Princess Li Wu Yang and her childhood sweetheart had known each other since they were young. In their youth, they pledged themselves to each other for life with a single sheet of paper.
Their wedding took place as planned, its grandeur making waves throughout the capital. All the former suitors who had admired the princess came to attend, hoping only to catch a distant glimpse of her.
After the wedding, the couple were deeply devoted to each other. Sadly, their happiness did not last. Her childhood sweetheart was suddenly murdered by assassins.
In a single night, red wedding robes were replaced with mourning clothes.
Li Wu Yang wept as she held her deceased husband's portrait, unaware that a widow's doorstep attracts trouble. The princess was already breathtakingly beautiful, and this sight of her only made people desire her more.
Before the seventh day after her childhood sweetheart's death had even passed, the people who had been eyeing her hungrily came to her door, all rushing to tempt her: "It's all right, Your Majesty/Wu Yang/Big Sister. Choose me. I'll treat you even better than your former husband did."
Li Wu Yang's eyes reddened at the corners, making her look utterly pitiful. "But there's room for only one person in my heart..."
She had no intention of falling for someone else, but to find the real culprit, she had no choice but to start with these people.
Sadly, despite plotting and scheming her way step by step to the throne, she still could not discover the killer's identity.
Li Wu Yang was even more heartbroken. Just days after her accession, her suitors came again, seeking places in her harem. Having already shut her heart to love, she turned them all down outright.
One night, her childhood sweetheart appeared in her dream again.
She awoke drenched in cold sweat and summoned the Imperial Preceptor, shamans, and others, all in search of a way to resurrect her late husband.
Word of this leaked out, and everyone praised the emperor's unwavering devotion, certain that she must be a truly virtuous and benevolent ruler.
Li Wu Yang thought so too.
But lately, things around her seemed strange: anonymous letters, objects from unknown origins... And there was also a bone-chilling gaze that followed her day and night like a shadow.
Was this what it meant to be a suspicious ruler?
She could find no answer.
Until her ever-present childhood sweetheart appeared before her and asked with a smile, "My dear, don't you love me so much? Why are you so afraid?"
Li Wu Yang shook her head and took half a step back, but the man gripped her chin and kissed her. "What? Can't remember who I am? Want me to help you remember some more?"
She cried like a pear blossom in the rain. "I-I remember now."
Wasn't this her deadbeat husband? Why had he really come back to life?
[This story is entirely fictional, with a setting where men and women are equal. And, baby, it's a political intrigue story that's mainly a romance-centered Mary Sue tale, and there will be plenty of woman-praising descriptions. The heroine is the type who hates everyone, flirtatious and cheeky, and will stop at nothing to claim the throne. The male supporting characters are all complete lunatics.]
Theme: Learn to recognize what's in your heart
