(Marriage first, love later / Two powerful leads)
(A loyal, promise-keeping, highly skilled and straightforward heroine VS an ambitious, scheming, theatrical disgraced crown prince)
Jiang Xian woke up one day to find her martial arts gone and her memories frozen a year in the past.
She had no idea what had happened over the past year. She had concealed her sword and changed into women's clothes, transforming into the nominal Crown Princess of Daliang's disgraced heir, Dugu Zhi.
Dugu Zhi was temperamental and infamous, but he treated her very well. He not only protected her at every turn, but also taught her how to survive in the palace. Jiang Xian gradually came to understand the reasons behind his reckless behavior.
Later, Jiang Xian regained her martial arts. She had planned to escape the palace, but after much hesitation, she decided to stay and protect him.
As they spent day after day together, their feelings deepened.
Until the rebellion broke out...
Jiang Xian saw with her own eyes as Dugu Zhi risked his life to save the woman he had once loved from a hail of arrows amid the rebel forces.
She went to demand the truth, only to be confined by him instead.
Just then, Jiang Xian regained her memories. She remembered that their marriage had been a matter of mutual convenience, and everything that came after had been an act.
Jiang Xian no longer hesitated. With three strikes of her sword, she broke through the palace gates and rode away.
At a palace banquet, Dugu Zhi took one look at Jiang Xian and chose her. A discarded daughter from a fallen marquis's household, straightforward and dull, with little cunning: she was the perfect choice for a marriage alliance.
To keep Jiang Xian by his side, he gave her more and more tenderness and favor. He thought he remained clear-headed, never realizing that he had stepped into his own trap and would eventually lose himself in it.
When he saw Jiang Xian injured with his own eyes, he experienced the terror of losing control for the first time in his life. He bared the claws he had concealed for years and bathed the court in blood.
Before leaving the imperial palace, Jiang Xian left letters for everyone, except him.
Dugu Zhi ran his fingers over the letters and murmured:
--- Ah Xian, now that I've glimpsed the light of day, how could I ever return to the dark?
Reading Guide:
1. The male lead has no former love. There is a reason he saved her, which will be explained in the story.
2. The female lead is a formidable fighter. She uses a secret identity in the early part of the story, then drops it midway and wreaks havoc.
Theme: Treat each other with sincerity.
