Upcoming story blurb:
[Calculating, scheming, sweet-on-the-outside, dark-on-the-inside concubine-born daughter vs. aloof, upright, gentle, incorruptible official]
Female lead's perspective:
To secure a future for herself, Jiang Bailing became the bickering wife of Shen Zhu, her rival from across the street for ten years.
She thought theirs was merely a superficial relationship, neither loving nor willing, each getting what they needed. Then, by chance, she heard him murmur her pet name as their lovemaking came to an end.
After enduring sixteen years of contempt from everyone in the Jiang household, Jiang Bailing had never heard such a tender tone. She let him hold her, closing her eyes as she wondered in a daze:
Why not give it a try with him?
Try trusting someone with her heart. Try growing old together, and loving each other for all time...
She had suffered for over a decade, and wanted to live once as the heroines in storybooks did.
But their happiness did not last. Less than three days after Shen Zhu passed the highest imperial examination, he became a scapegoat for a corrupt official, and she was forced into exile with him at the frontier.
Their place of exile was a remote, desolate border town.
To make a living, she took up her mother's old tea-making trade. As she and Shen Zhu supported each other, they gradually built a successful business on the frontier.
Later, Shen Zhu was cleared of his false accusation and rose swiftly to become Grand Preceptor.
But she was deeply caught in a trap laid by the Jiang family, with no way to escape.
Jiang Bailing didn't want to become anyone's burden, so she sensibly handed him a divorce agreement.
But she never expected Shen Zhu to be willing to abandon every principle he had to avenge her and keep her safe.
She had spent most of her life scheming for herself, but never imagined that someone's sincerity could burn so brightly.
Everyone else said she was born worthless.
She, too, thought she was no more than a reed, and that life and death were nothing to care about.
Only he cherished her like a precious jewel, caring for her with all his heart.
2024.11.15
* Female lead's perspective: married first, love later. Male lead's perspective: secret love comes true + long-laid plans + rekindled love after a breakup.
* A supporting character transmigrates. The leads are both natives of this world. Both are each other's first and only.
* An entirely fictional setting. The female lead rises from humble beginnings. The male lead is reborn once. Exile, famine, and farming, with some travel-story elements. A slow-burn romance alongside the farming plot.
Content warning: Plain, straightforward writing, and a gentle, slow pace.
A comfy historical romance, please add my new story to your collection!
Theme: Cherish the person by your side.
