Older Brother

[As brother, teacher, elder; as kin, friend, and husband]

Cui Yan had been disciplined and proper since childhood. He behaved with restraint, never spoke while eating or in bed, and had never done anything improper.

Though aloof and cold by nature, he was exceptionally handsome, quick-witted, and eager to learn. Everyone in the capital praised him as a true gentleman, an untouchable flower atop a lofty peak.

But no one knew that he often dreamed of his younger sister, Cui Zhao, who flouted convention and did whatever she pleased.

The scenes in his dreams were entirely unfamiliar, absurd and bizarre, yet utterly real.

Already married, she was locked in the ancestral hall by her mother-in-law. Cold water was poured over her head, and the handprint on her face was clearly visible.

"Cui Zhao, will you submit or not?!"

"Bah!"

A resounding slap jolted Cui Yan awake. He rose in the middle of the night and could no longer sleep.

*

Cui Zhao was stubborn enough to give anyone a headache, and she always seemed to fall in with rakes. Every time he saw her associating with one, he would dream that night of the hardships awaiting her.

Then, one day at a banquet, he saw with his own eyes the mother-in-law who had appeared only in his dreams. Only then did he understand: they were prophetic dreams.

With no other choice, he finally intervened and personally selected a future husband for her. That day, they parted on bad terms.

He thought that Cui Zhao had never liked him much. They had only been close when they were children, and she had some inexplicable longing for him in his role as her "older brother."

But their parents were dead, and he was her only living relative. How could he abandon her?

Cui Zhao... Cui Zhao...

Her troublesome name kept turning over and over in his mind at night.

Later, on an ordinary summer night, he dreamed of her again.

This time, however, there were no more tiresome men in his dream, nor any more troublesome circumstances.

In the dream, the lotus-patterned bed curtains were warm, and spring passion hung in the air. He knelt on the bed, his long hair loose, a jade lotus held between his lips, and leaned forward in a wildly improper manner

The wind swept the curtains aside, revealing Cui Zhao's face within.

He heard his own voice, sticky and slow, like a monster savoring its meal after devouring it bit by bit.

He said, "Cui Zhao, don't speak while eating, and don't speak in bed..."

After waking that night, Cui Yan sat alone beneath the covered walkway and listened to the rain all night.

Reader's guide

1. The male lead is actually a twisted, gloomy control freak who is very good at scheming. If that's not your thing, please read with caution.

2. There's another reason he chooses a husband for the heroine. The heroine is not someone who has transmigrated.

3. Other male characters will appear, and they will have one-sided feelings for the heroine.

4. The two only get together after it's made clear that they aren't related by blood.

Pseudo-incest, no blood relation. Please don't censor this, moderators!!

Blurb added on September 11, 2024.

Theme: Love and staying by one another's side can overcome every hardship.