The Broken Scholar

[Female Disguise]

The third-place palace graduate of Chongning's third year was the most despised man among the court officials.

He put righteousness before family, shooting his mentor's only son and leaving his eighty-year-old mentor weeping in the rain until he fainted.

He showed no loyalty to his fellow disciples, causing a junior fellow disciple to be dismissed from office and exiled three thousand li away.

He betrayed his own faction and replaced the superior who had promoted him.

"The entire court wants you dead."

Behind nine layers of curtains, the emperor's iron grip clamped around the third-place graduate's slender wrist. In the wanton springtime haze, he shattered the cool composure of that celestial face.

"I insist you live and accept my favor."

"Shen Tongguang, you will have no allies, you will hide among your associates, and you will be abandoned by both ruler and family.

You will be a casualty of factional strife, a traitor to your fellow officials, and a betrayer of imperial authority."

Years later, that voice still swept through the storms of the gilded palace hall and echoed into the haze surrounding the dragon bed.

The emperor flung memorials before Tongguang, his voice cold and brutal. "They love you too much."

By then, Tongguang could see that even the divine emperor was not omnipotent.

1. A woman disguised as a man, with a forced romance.

2. A touch of Mary Sue. The heroine is somewhat irresistible, and many characters will have unrequited feelings for her.

3. The bureaucracy is modeled on the Ming dynasty, but don't expect historical accuracy.

Theme: Though I have seen the vastness of the universe, I still feel tenderness for green plants.