Fragrant Smoke from the Golden Incense Burner

*

Kunzhu married the third-place palace exam graduate, a dazzling talent with real power in his hands and the emperor's favor. It was such a wonderful match that everyone envied her.

But who knew that the scholar already loved someone else? In their three years of marriage, they never consummated it.

Not long after their divorce, Kunzhu slipped and fell into the water, losing her life.

Reborn, she no longer hoped for a happy marriage. She only wanted to meet a good end.

It was now early spring of the Yin-Mao year. She calculated that only two years remained until Prince Qi regained his status as a prince. If he would speak up for her someday, perhaps she could decide her own marriage.

Kunzhu looked at the young man not far away. He was her brother in name. In her previous life, she had rarely grown close to him and had even been a little afraid of him. After he became Prince Qi, they were separated by mountains and rivers and never met again.

After hesitating for a long while, this time she did not avoid him. She carefully called out, "Brother, the night is cold and windy. You're dressed too lightly. Be careful not to catch a chill."

Kunzhu lowered her eyes guiltily. It shouldn't be too late to start building a bond between siblings, right?

*

From childhood, Pei Qingxuan knew he was not a member of the Pei family.

The Pei family treated him with respect and never overstepped their bounds.

Later, when he held power over all under heaven, the Pei family never asked him for anything, except once, when Father Pei was gravely ill and begged him to return his daughter's body.

"You're muddled with age." He pretended not to hear.

That night, Pei Qingxuan rested a hand on the ice coffin. "Kunzhu, you want to stay with your brother, don't you?"

*

To keep his promise to his cousin, the third-place palace exam graduate Wei Mingxiu remained faithful to his vow for three years after marrying.

But in truth, his heart had long since begun to waver.

When he saw his wife, he finally understood what it meant for a man to love a woman.

On the day he had chosen to consummate their marriage, he resolved to tell her the truth and hurried home, only to learn from his mother that she had divorced him and left.

Wei Mingxiu proposed to her a second time. His intended was still Kunzhu of the Pei family, and he made the proposal with great fanfare, treasuring her above all else.

He travelled day and night across a thousand miles, but just as he entered the city gate, he heard someone say:

"The Pei family's daughter is dead."

* The female lead is reborn, and the male supporting character is reborn.

* The male and female leads are not related by blood. While their sibling relationship lasts, they will never cross that line.

* Sweet and fluffy story.

Screenshot saved on 2024.11.13

Theme: Say it out loud when you love someone