Her unlucky father was gravely ill and near death. With few people left in the family, he had no choice but to bring her back from the estate where she had been raised at a distance and demand that she inherit his title and restore the family's former glory.
And so Yang Siyun was forced down the one-way road of a universally despised treacherous official, following in her father's footsteps.
Fine, a treacherous official it was. Even a treacherous official could leave a name in the history books.
Once Yang Siyun came to terms with it, she began nervously and cautiously drawing up a plan to "outlive a thousand years as a scourge."
Step one: Disguise herself as a man and attend court. By an extremely unfortunate accident, she knocked over a coffin-faced, nostril-flaring upright official, making herself a thorn in the side of the incorruptible faction.
Step two: On her very first day at court, fate threw her a curveball. The rising leader the incorruptible faction had groomed was her childhood sweetheart, whom she hadn't seen in years.
The young man had grown into a graceful beauty, all refined elegance and noble bearing. His slim waist and long legs made his official robes look indescribably good on him.
Yang Siyun felt a playful urge to tease him, without forgetting her identity. She gave him a flippant whistle, earning frosty looks from him and the officials around them.
Step three: On her second day at court, she got into an argument with her childhood sweetheart, who didn't recognize her. She made him blush single-handedly, taking her first step toward a reputation as a treacherous minister.
And that wasn't all. After court, she invited him to meet at a pleasure house, only for the young man to rebuke her for being "utterly improper!"
Step four: On some later day as an official, after court was dismissed, her childhood sweetheart walked up to her of his own accord. Dark waves stirred in his usually calm eyes as he called her childhood nickname, one word at a time.
Yang Siyun thought, This is bad. I may have taken things too far.
# The treacherous official secret identity development plan: success by childhood sweetheart, failure by childhood sweetheart
# How could someone reeking of treachery like me dare provoke you, when you reek of upright righteousness?
Blurb written on July 30, 2024
Note: The cover shows the female lead disguised as a man.
Theme: Though I stand in the court, my thoughts are in the countryside.
