[Blurb]
Mu Youyou was born with a dark blue birthmark on her left cheek, earning her the disdain of her parents and the bullying of her sisters.
On her sixteenth birthday, the Xu family, to whom she had been betrothed since childhood, came to propose. But Mu Youyou was forced to pretend she was gravely ill and give up this excellent match.
Mu Youyou went to plead with her mother, only to be mocked for being unmarriageable. Her older sister shoved her down, splitting her forehead. Her father despised her even more and ordered her confined to her room to recuperate.
Blood from her forehead soaked into her birthmark. In a daze, Mu Youyou found herself in a mist-shrouded prison.
A man in bright yellow robes was locked in a black cage. The moment he saw her, he coldly ordered, "Open the door."
Mu Youyou jumped in fright, then quickly realized she must be dreaming.
No one out there wants to marry me, so surely someone in my dreams will. He looks so proud and handsome, and doesn't seem like a bad person. Could he be a god who has fallen on hard times, like in those storybooks?
Maybe I should have him say a few nice things to cheer me up.
So, in the only time she ever dared to make a demand, Mu Youyou said, "I'll let you out, but first you have to promise to marry me! And you have to compliment me, too."
Xiao Yanhuai fell silent.
Mu Youyou pouted, poured out all her troubles in one breath, then timidly helped him open the door anyway.
Who knew that from then on, she would dream of him every day, and the god would be locked in the cage every time.
Whenever Mu Youyou opened the door, he would help her solve one of her problems.
From then on, her sisters no longer dared to bully her.
Until one day, her father decided to curry favor with someone by sending Mu Youyou off as a concubine.
Mu Youyou asked the god, "Could you please divine where I should settle down? Can you bless me so I can escape this marriage and open a shop that makes a fortune?"
Xiao Yanhuai: "..."
Mu Youyou: "Do none of those things fall under your jurisdiction? Then what do you govern?"
Xiao Yanhuai: "Marriage."
The next day, Mu Youyou was summoned to the palace for saving the emperor. The Empress Dowager announced her marriage on the spot: she would wed Mu Youyou, daughter of Mu Cui, Vice Minister of Rites, and make her empress.
Mu Youyou was shocked. Had the god abused his power to pull strings for her? That was a grave crime of deceiving the emperor!
Terrified, Mu Youyou hurriedly fell asleep in the carriage. "I'm just a mortal. I can't take the blame for deceiving the emperor. What should I do? Can you only keep me on the throne as empress for three days?"
The emperor wouldn't kill his new wife in a fit of rage, since bloodshed was taboo during the first three days of marriage.
Xiao Yanhuai: "You silly girl, I only govern the marriage between you and me. Come with me, and attend to me tonight!"
*
Xiao Yanhuai ascended the throne at seven and had finally endured long enough to take personal control of the government. But on the eve of the ceremony, someone cursed him, leaving him in a deep sleep.
His consciousness was trapped in a cage forged from black iron. No matter what he tried, he couldn't escape or wake up.
Until a little girl appeared, foolishly daring to use marriage as leverage against him.
When he learned she wasn't the one who had cursed him and that her life at home was difficult, Xiao Yanhuai softened and helped her once. After that, he could never let go.
Note:
A light, sweet story with a devoted couple.
The heroine has a birthmark early on, but it will later disappear.
[Sweet, straightforward beauty VS elegant, scheming emperor]
Theme: A drop of kindness should be repaid with a spring of gratitude.
