A Striver's Tale of Connections in the Rear Palace

[A concubine heroine from an empress-making family who fails to win the empress's position x an emperor hero who lucks into the throne and swears he won't be the nation's plaything]

The Xu family had produced empresses for nine dynasties and had been related to the imperial house for generations. They were the most powerful family connections in the palace.

One day, her aunt, newly elevated to Empress Dowager and opting to delay retirement, forced Xu Jiao into the imperial harem as the newest temporary candidate: she would take the title of consort while preparing for the job of empress.

"Shunying, be good. In a few days, Auntie will make you permanent."

So Xu Jiao copied her aunt's top-grade exam answers and waited for her promotion.

Then one day, her aunt, her support in the imperial harem, unexpectedly logged off for good.

The new Boss Emperor, a true chosen one, had long been displeased with her status as a family connection.

He even made the daughter she bore into a sacrificial offering.

And her aunt's study notes were already out of date.

Xu Jiao opened her survival guide in despair. Every page bore the same eight characters: "Rise up and slay the dragon. No lying flat."

A family connection, a family connection. Where was that promised EASY mode of life?

*

Xiao Wei was arguably the greatest chosen one in your dynasty.

His mother had served the late emperor only once, yet somehow conceived him, making Lady Gu, who struggled to conceive and bear children, bite her handkerchief in envy.

The late emperor's sons were all outstanding men. Xiao Wei should have simply gone to his fief and lived quietly.

But then an epidemic struck. The crown prince, beloved by all, died; the battle-hardened Prince of Huainan fell; the legitimate youngest son, Prince of Hengyang, was crippled. The throne came hurtling toward him, an inconspicuous prince with no presence whatsoever.

The Empress Dowager couldn't stand him, her bargain-bin emperor, and did everything she could to make trouble for him. Then she passed away within a few years.

Xiao Wei looked back at Xu Jiao, who dared not speak, and pondered: Should he dismiss this family connection of a former enemy, or make her his own family connection?

Wait, why was this family connection sharpening her knives and coming for him?

An extreme push and pull, a wildly chaotic love polygon midway through, a wife-chasing crematorium, love and mutual destruction, a cast of villains, overwhelming melodrama, and a stew of political intrigue, romance, and ambition.

Content warning: The emperor hero has a harem, and he is not sexually inexperienced. Characters act according to their own positions and desires; this is not a judgment of who is good or bad.

All prominent characters will face a wife-chasing crematorium or the darkest moment of their lives. Expect dramatic ups and downs.

The story's values do not represent the author's views. Enter at your own risk.

Coming Soon: Lingering Warmth in the Sandalwood Resonator

(This book also goes by the nickname A Poor Wife's Concubine.)

[Provisional Blurb]

Scholars have servants in their private households, and high officials have retainers in their private households.

At thirteen, Lu Sisui was the daughter of a retainer in Yin Zaidao's maternal grandfather's household.

At fourteen, Lu Sisui became the servant-concubine his mother bestowed upon him.

She accompanied him for twelve years, from Prince of Hedong in the Kingdom of Wei, to hostage in the Kingdom of Chen, to emperor of the unified Great Wei. The hardships were many, the road long.

The new dynasty brought a new era. Ministers of lower birth than hers could rise to become great generals, and ministers who arrived later could be promoted to great chancellors.

Why shouldn't she try to reach the supreme position of Empress Changqiu at his side?

But she fell, and fell terribly hard.

For anything in this world, if the emperor is unwilling to give it, neither ministers nor commoners may ask for it. Naturally, she was no exception.

There was nothing special about her.

As the autumn wind began to rise, she stepped over the fallen leaves that had not been swept from the palace steps and came to the monument carved with the emperor's achievements.

The sea and sky were merciless, eternal and unmoving. All human feelings ended up swept away by the current.

In the end, she jumped, entrusting the love and life and death of her wretched half-life to the vast sea and sky.

Yin Zaidao's life was like that of every warlord in a time of chaos: full of rises and falls, with a long and winding fate.

At thirteen, he was the most illustrious Prince of Hedong in the Kingdom of Wei, just one step away from becoming crown prince.

At fourteen, he was the rebel son left behind by a deposed empress. A single edict sent him to the Chen court as a hostage.

Ten years later, north and south were united, the realm pacified, and he became its true ruler.

All the affairs of the realm were entrusted to one man, his will absolute and his person bearing the weight of all.

A sage should be free of passion and love.

So why, when he saw that resolute figure by the sea, did his heart ache beyond measure?

Heroine: Lu Sisui, courtesy name Manye. Hero: Yin Hong, courtesy name Zaidao.

His shoulders are slender as if carved, too delicate to bear a few strands of tassel.

The heavenly fragrance lingers on the phoenix tail, warmth remains in the sandalwood resonator.

Li Yu, "Inscription on the Back of a Pipa"

Content warnings:

1. The male lead is sexually inexperienced, the female lead is not. The male lead is a legitimate emperor with a harem, though he has not slept with anyone. After the heroine jumps off a cliff and runs away, she has normal physical needs and takes lovers without much emotional attachment.

2. The heroine is not kind. She has done many things, competes viciously with women and men alike, and even pits women and men against each other. If you can't accept this, please don't bother. The leads act according to their own positions; don't judge them as good or bad.

A wife-chasing crematorium, a sea of hate and love, taking what you want by cunning or force, overwhelming melodrama, political intrigue and romance mixed together. Enjoy the spectacle and don't mind the chaos.

Theme: Learn to rely on yourself, take responsibility, and never give up