The Stubborn Emperor and His Horse Slave

[Same-Series Upcoming Novel: The Prince Was Bent by the Little Mute He Took In. Blurb below.]

A beautiful horse slave who only wants to die, bullied by everyone, vs. a revered war god of a prince, respected by all

"Jade-green eyes are born to command slaughter!"

This rumor was the only reason Chu Yi, born to a camp prostitute, was allowed to live.

In the Hu army camp, Chu Yi was the soldiers' amusement during the day. They used him for target practice, tossed him bones they'd gnawed clean and made him pick them up with his teeth and chew like a dog. At night, after the soldiers had ravaged his mother, they took out their anger on Chu Yi, tying him to a table and whipping him with a riding crop.

Rather than live like a pig or a dog, Chu Yi would rather die somewhere clean and deserted.

But fate had other plans. Because of the rumor that jade-green eyes were born to command slaughter, a princess from Shule who had come to marry into another kingdom set her sights on Chu Yi and forced him to take her place.

Only when the wedding ceremony began did Chu Yi learn that the man he was to marry was none other than the war god prince he revered most, Li Yin.

Chu Yi fled the wedding, laughing as he jumped off a cliff to end his life. He never imagined that, by a twist of fate, Li Yin would find him.

Li Yin had no idea that this frail little boy before him was the very consort he had married.

He took Chu Yi back to his manor and treated him like a child, wanting to spoil him rotten. Every day, he brought home delicious food from the palace, taught Chu Yi to read and write, instructed him in strategy and tactics, and even personally trained him in martial arts.

Chu Yi knew the truth, but he kept silent. He quietly accepted Li Yin's kindness, never daring to overstep, and gave up on trying to die.

He decided to live for Li Yin, and to bury his love for him in his heart for the rest of his life. It would be enough to stay by Li Yin's side and protect him.

Until the day Li Yin was framed by powerful ministers, stripped of his rank, and exiled as a commoner. Then Chu Yi's killing intent was unleashed in full.

His eyes brimmed with boundless hatred as he swept his gaze over every official in court. He swore to himself that one day, he would make the court beg on its knees for Li Yin to return...

*Li Yin treats Chu Yi like a child and wants to spoil him rotten. Chu Yi treats Li Yin like his wife and wishes he could spend every night nestled close to him.

The Prince Was Bent by the Little Mute He Took In

That year, Xiao Jue was nineteen, and Helian Qianyu was twelve, the last surviving soldier in the enemy army.

Covered in blood and utterly alone, he stood unmoving amid a mountain of corpses and a sea of blood, guarding the military banner. His tender hands struggled to grip a huge saber he could not even swing. His eyes brimmed with hatred as he stared at Xiao Jue, sitting imposingly astride his warhorse

He looked just like a ferocious wolf. If Xiao Jue dared so much as touch the banner, then even if the boy couldn't swing his blade, he would tear the flesh from Xiao Jue one bite at a time.

Xiao Jue had never met a child with such unyielding spirit. He admired the boy's loyalty and courage, and let him go.

But Helian Qianyu didn't leave. Instead, he followed Xiao Jue everywhere.

Helpless, Xiao Jue brought him back to his manor when he returned to the capital, only to discover that the little wolf cub was mute.

Unable to find out his name, and having taken him in himself, Xiao Jue named Helian Qianyu Xiao Shier.

He gave the boy his surname, hoping the imperial name would protect him.

But Xiao Jue didn't know that this new name perfectly concealed Helian Qianyu's identity as a young prince of Xiqiang.

*

From then on, Xiao Jue had a shadow. Wherever he went, Xiao Shier was never far from his side.

Seeing this, the deputy generals privately warned Xiao Jue that he was raising a tiger that might turn on him. Xiao Shier was a remnant of the enemy army, and couldn't be trusted.

Xiao Jue said, "I know what I'm doing."

And then he continued to keep Xiao Shier by his side, spoiling him even more than before.

Seeing their commander stubbornly disregard their warnings, as if Xiao Shier had bewitched him, the generals grew furious with the boy and resolved to kill him before he could become a threat.

But they never found an opportunity.

Until one time, Xiao Jue was ambushed and poisoned on the battlefield. He needed a rare medicinal ingredient to neutralize the poison, or he would die.

And just then, Xiao Shier vanished without a trace.

The generals were convinced that Xiao Shier had conspired with the enemy to ambush Xiao Jue. They ground their teeth in fury and complained at Xiao Jue's sickbed:

"Do you believe us now, Commander? That boy is a spy."

"We warned you again and again, but you refused to listen to good advice."

"If we catch him, we'll cut him into a thousand pieces."

As his subordinates grumbled endlessly, Xiao Jue's ashen face still held the same unwavering faith as ever. His eyes shone as he gazed beyond the tent at the red plum blossoms blooming in the bitter wind and snow. Xiao Shier had planted them just for him.

The little wolf cub had somehow heard that he liked red plum blossoms. Braving the snowstorm, he had galloped through the night all the way to Gusu, a thousand li away, to bring back a plum tree and plant it outside Xiao Jue's tent.

Seeing their commander still trust Xiao Shier without a doubt, the generals could only sigh. They were furious that the boy had him so thoroughly under his spell.

Just then, a blood-soaked figure struggled into the camp, carefully cradling the medicinal ingredient that could save Xiao Jue's life. It was Xiao Shier...

*Love-at-first-sight wolf-cub gong vs. decisive and ruthless beauty prince shou

*Both leads are each other's first and only, in body and heart, and dote on each other endlessly. The gong really is mute, but he'll recover later.

Theme: A young boy grows wild and strong amid hardship and danger.