The summer Shinian spent at her maternal grandparents' home near the border, she happened to find a handsome young man who was gravely wounded.
Lusting after him, she tried to repay his kindness with her own, clinging to him relentlessly, but he resisted to the bitter end.
Shinian ran out of patience and took matters into her own hands, making sure they consummated their relationship. Afterwards, she left him some money and a message: "You didn't lose out either." Then she cheerfully returned to the capital with her maid.
.
Half a year later.
The State of Yu was invaded by a foreign power, and war spread across the land.
To borrow troops from the powerful neighboring state, the ruler decided to send Shinian to Great Zhou for a political marriage.
She had heard that the Emperor of Great Zhou was cruel and inhuman, a doddering old man over fifty. Her mother and maid wept inconsolably, but Shinian had no choice. In the end, she set out for the marriage alliance.
On the night she arrived at the imperial palace of Great Zhou, Shinian finished a dance and removed her veil. The emperor was delighted and ordered on the spot that she be made a consort.
Then a cup was suddenly crushed, its crisp shattering sound ringing out.
Shinian looked up. Not far from the old emperor's throne, beneath the bright moonlight, a figure in robes embroidered with coiling dragons fluttered in the wind. Their owner was young, splendid, and peerlessly handsome.
A palace attendant called out to him: "Your Highness, the Crown Prince."
Shinian: "..."
It took her a long time to realize that the Crown Prince of Great Zhou, who had met her gaze, was looking at her like a wicked spirit. Wasn't he the handsome young man she'd taken to bed and then abandoned six months ago?
Shinian: I'm finished.
No, I'm not.
By seniority, I'm now his... stepmother.
*
Later, after the new Emperor of Great Zhou ascended the throne, Shinian was cornered behind the layers of banners at the imperial temple. He gripped her chin and lifted her face. "Y-Your Majesty, don't do this. I'm your step... stepmother."
Li Xuanzhao: "Stepmother? Back at the border, did you ever imagine this day would come?"
[Reader's Guide]
* Fictional setting, both leads are sexually inexperienced, happy ending. Smut and coercive possession.
* The main story begins on the night the heroine arrives for the marriage alliance. Her past with the hero is revealed through flashbacks; other details will be added as they come to mind.
Theme: Accepting whatever comes.
My Husband Doesn't Know He's a Substitute
The Madman I Humiliated Became a Prince
After Accidentally Kissing My Twin's Younger Brother
Embracing the Short-Lived
Meeting You in a Year
The Hated One's Gourmet Conquest Plan