The Widow of My Elder Brother

Qin Huaiyu was born into a family of generations of officials. Skilled in both letters and arms, she made a name for herself at a young age. In the Great Zhou dynasty, where women could also serve in government, her prospects seemed bright. But then her elder brother stumbled upon a shocking secret. It cost him his life, and dragged her into the matter as well.

With her ambitions still unfulfilled, Qin Huaiyu had no intention of standing by and watching the realm fall into chaos. After much struggle, she abandoned the idea of keeping her head down and staying safe, and stepped willingly into the treacherous court. She never expected that all her careful maneuvering would end up paving the way for someone else...

Shi Yun was born beautiful and dreamed of soaring out of her mountain village like a phoenix. But her family was poor, her parents died young, and she was frail and sickly. Though she lived in an unprecedented golden age for women, she was unable to take part in it. To escape the village men who coveted her, she went to great lengths.

Fortunately, Heaven had not abandoned her. One day, Shi Yun rescued the Qin family's young master, who was close to death, in the woods. Thanks to this act of kindness, she successfully married into a wealthy family. She didn't mind that she was marrying a dying man to bring him good luck. But her mother-in-law was fierce and made things difficult for her at every turn, so she had to find another source of support for the comfortable, leisurely life she'd hoped for...

"That day, before all the guests, it was you who worshipped Heaven and Earth with me and became my wife." On a snowy night, she knocked at her door, dressed in flimsy clothes, trembling all over, her exposed skin bruised red and purple.

The din of the crowd suddenly fell silent. Trembling, she threw herself into her arms and whispered through her sobs, "So you are the one I married, too."

The beauty wept like a pear blossom in the rain. The nameless desire that had taken root on the day Qin Huaiyu married in her brother's place began to surge wildly once more. Unable to help herself, Qin Huaiyu lifted her face. Her throat bobbed, and her voice was hoarse. "All right."

"I'll take responsibility."

Note: The two do not enter a romantic relationship while they are related by marriage.

Theme: We all have a bright future.