Your Highness, Please Behave

The land was in turmoil, with smoke rising from battlefields everywhere.

Ji Jiahe gathered the people of Qingfeng Stronghold, built a fortified settlement, and made herself ruler of the mountain.

One day, she sent someone down the mountain to buy grain. They came back empty-handed, but hauled in a "fortune-telling immortal" who was nothing but a swindler.

Her weather predictions were wrong because she hadn't eaten enough. Her face-reading was off because she hadn't slept well. She claimed she couldn't kill animals when asked to cook. She couldn't chop wood or sharpen knives, either, acting every bit like a pampered young lady.

The one thing she could do was read and teach the children in the stronghold. Unfortunately, she was lazy: she never said anything unless asked, was always first to meals, and was picky about the food. She was passionate about only two things: eating and sleeping.

Ji Jiahe wanted nothing more than to throw her off the mountain, but she pitied her as a lone orphan with nowhere to go amid the chaos of war.

Since she couldn't chase her away, she could only make use of her. To make Ying Danxiao work harder, Ji Jiahe kept giving ground. But Ying Danxiao took advantage of it, trying to steal her chair and occupy her room, and ordering her people around. She acted more like the bandit chieftain than Ji Jiahe did.

And on top of that, she kept saying ambiguous, flirtatious things to tease her!

Ji Jiahe was furious. "Why don't you take over as chieftain?"

Ying Danxiao's eyes lit up, and she smiled broadly. "All right."

Ji Jiahe: "..."

She wasn't going to hand over the chieftaincy, but making Ying Danxiao her bandit bride seemed entirely doable.

In the late years of Yongming, during the reign of Emperor Ping of Qi, four princes fought over the throne and died. A powerful minister installed the Mourning Emperor, then soon murdered him and took the throne himself. Fires of war erupted everywhere. Powerful local clans claimed to be kings under the banner of "Great Qi," while rebellions raged on.

The third daughter of Emperor Ping had devoted herself to the Dao from childhood. Unable to escape the bloodshed, she changed her name and went down the mountain.

She had no desire to restore the dynasty. She only wanted a small place to settle down. Qingfeng Stronghold was small and inhabited entirely by women, but it was safe enough.

As for Ji Jiahe, the chieftain of Qingfeng Stronghold, she might have a cold expression and a harsh tongue, but she was soft-hearted beneath the surface and seemed perfect to grow old with. Teasing her now and then was fun, too, and life here was far more comfortable than in a silent, secluded temple.

She didn't pay much attention when Ji Jiahe drilled the stronghold's troops. After all, she needed a strong fist to protect herself. She didn't care when Ji Jiahe conquered a nearby county, either. The county magistrate's office had been a constant nuisance, after all.

But as their territory expanded, Ying Danxiao began to think something was wrong.

Ji Jiahe had actually said she wanted to become emperor! Who could tell her why Ji Jiahe had such enormous ambitions?

Theme: Finding a place to make a life amid the chaos of war.