The Heart-Testing Terrace

The political epic The Color of Decay is now available. If you're interested, head to my profile!

[Childhood friends + equally matched leads + revenge + serious drama + political intrigue]

Before she turned sixteen, Xiao Ling was the brightest and most radiant of the Rongle Commandery Princesses in Li'an City.

Then disaster struck. The entire Xiao family was wiped out, and the Jingkang Army, guarding the frontier to defend their homeland, fell victim to the emperor's suspicions.

She survived by sheer luck, but was also poisoned.

With her injustice unavenged, how could she ever live in peace in a broken body?

When she returns, she is a spoiled, willful princess sent away to marry for peace. Concealing her identity, she joins forces with her childhood friend to stir up the winds of change and manipulate people's hearts. She vows to clear the names of the Xiao family and the Jingkang Army, and make everyone who wronged her pay.

The road ahead is thorny, so she'll clear every obstacle. If those in power stand in her way, she'll ruin their reputations. If anyone blocks her path, she'll kill them all.

Yet on the day her enemies are dead and the injustice finally comes to light, she discovers that someone else was pulling the strings all along.

The player moving the pieces is a piece on the board too. We are all caught in the same game.

*

Shen Xie was born into a family of generals. Three years ago, while repelling a foreign invasion of Nanjing, he heard the terrible news that his childhood friend had fallen in battle. He raced thousands of miles, only to find countless bones scattered across the desert. At last, on the body of a woman, he found the jade pendant he and his childhood friend had exchanged as a token of their love.

From then on, he bore a notorious name and struggled at every turn, spending years plotting to clear the name of the woman he loved.

He thought he would walk this road alone to the very end.

But then the princess who had come to marry for peace deliberately approached him, offering evidence as she pledged her allegiance. "I am a surviving member of the Jingkang Army. From this day on, I will follow your every command, Duke."

Little scene

Before he learns her identity:

Shen Xie: Men and women should keep their distance. Your Highness, please behave with decorum.

After he learns her identity:

Shen Xie: My lady, the autumn air is crisp tonight. It's perfect for discussing how to bring new life into the world.

1. Both leads are devoted to each other and equally strong. Happy ending. The heroine's poison is cured; she can fight with both pen and sword and doesn't need the hero to save her.

2. No rivalry between women. Plot-driven.

3. No ridiculous misunderstandings. The leads love each other deeply, and there's no angst between them.

4. The heroine won't put up with any disrespect. She's not foolishly lovestruck and can fight her way out even in desperate situations. The hero is more of a lovesick fool.

5. The characters aren't perfect. The heroine is ruthless, the kind who really will wipe out an entire family. Please read with caution if that's not for you.

6. If you drop the book, no need to tell me. A character's worldview isn't the author's. Please go easy on me.

Below is the blurb for the upcoming book The Color of Decay

In the fourth year of Pinghua, a war left Nan Jiang the sole survivor of the Jiang royal house. The emperor brought her back and raised her at his side.

The emperor treated Princess Nan Jiang like his own daughter. For ten years, he spoiled her without limit, turning her into a willful, unrestrained girl who forgot the hatred her homeland had suffered. She fell in love at first sight with Xing Chao, the second young lord of Chen, and even declared in public that she would marry him.

Unable to bear seeing her heartbroken, the emperor issued a decree at the grand court assembly, granting her wish.

From then on, the people of the realm condemned Princess Nan Jiang even more, treating her as a disgrace.

But only she knew that she had spent ten years biding her time, all for the blood debt she still had to settle.

And Xing Chao would be the first sword she wielded against her enemies.

*

Xing Chao not only disbelieved Nan Jiang's claims that she loved him, but was also driven by her resemblance to his mother to try several times to kill her on the journey back to his homeland. Each time, she managed to escape danger.

In the process, he discovered Nan Jiang's true aim.

After she dropped her pretense, she hooked a finger into his belt and smiled, her charm concealing a sharp edge. "We want the same thing, don't we?"

Watching her go to such lengths to draw him into her scheme, Xing Chao suddenly smiled.

It was true. He wanted something from her too.

So he stepped, one step at a time, into the trap Nan Jiang had carefully woven for him.

He thought he could get out safely, but in the end he was doomed beyond redemption.

#In this life, I willingly lose to you.

#I will be the sword in your hand, clearing every obstacle in your path. All I ask is that you turn back and look at me.

Theme: The world is harsh. Even when trapped, may everyone hold fast to who they are.