Song of Unrestrained Joy

[I've been trying to write this, but I can't get the logic to work. It's a short story, but I don't want to rush through it just to finish. I'm sorting out the outline and will post it all at once when it's done.]

Purification column, short stories, updated irregularly.

The night before the palace coup, Zhao Wanning sat in the Princess's residence, watching Gao Shuyue polish a blade until it gleamed like snow.

Gao Shuyue said to her, "After tomorrow, you and I will roam freely across this vast land."

She replied, "The weight of the empire lies not in enjoying its riches, but in taking responsibility for its people. Your Highness, are you ready to shoulder the realm?"

Gao Shuyue gazed at her quietly. "I have been preparing for twenty-three years."

The Great Liang Emperor Jingwu, once the Princess of Taian who guarded the nation, was twenty-three that year.

Zhao Wanning rose and bowed solemnly. "I am willing to wield the blade for Your Highness."

Chancellor of Great Liang for twenty-five years, Minister of the Phoenix Pavilion and Secretary of the Orchid Terrace, she was twenty-five that year.

I have a blade that can tear through the clouds at the edge of the sky and seize the morning light to bathe me in its glow.

They say that even women, once in power, will bow to the prevailing order and seek the company of men.

Weren't the three regent empress dowagers of Great Liang all the same?

Gao Shuyue's response: Are you trying to teach a lunatic how to do her job?

Reader advisory:

This story may be pretty unhinged, and its political maneuvering may be worse than an elementary schooler's.

The female lead is a native of an ancient world and a devoted monogamist who will uphold a one-on-one relationship for life. She does, however, have a deceased former fiance in name only. Her true spouse may appear quite late and have little presence.

The second female lead transmigrates with a system. She's both crazy and promiscuous, an avid collector who likes to pursue one-on-one relationships in different phases. Her storyline includes male pregnancy (it's only described briefly, but here's an advance warning: if that's a hard no for you, please don't read, or skip those parts!)

An outline-free piece of madness (the author has gone mad)

Enter at your own risk.

I'll write it first; it won't be going VIP anytime soon.

Theme: Reject submissiveness, reject being molded, refuse to become a "lady" who is gentle, yielding, virtuous, and obedient.