Atonement for Sin

Yu Weiqing, son of the Minister of Justice, is a dazzling star. Gifted from a young age, he is radiant and bright, with springtime in his eyes. His admirers stretch from the Imperial Academy to the city gates. He picks and chooses among them, and settles on the Crown Prince, Ruan Heng.

"I only love the person who loves me most," Yu Weiqing says, training him like a dog. "Don't expect me to be touched just because you do some trivial little thing for me. That's what you're supposed to do as my lover."

"Then what would touch you?" Ruan Heng asks with a smile.

"Thousands of little things, every little detail of life. One isn't enough. I want thousands upon thousands."

"Got it," Ruan Heng says, kissing him. "You bad-tempered little brat."

Yu Weiqing, already of age, blushes furiously and waves his hands. "I-I'm not a child."

Ruan Heng has always indulged him. And just as he promised, Yu Weiqing loves only Ruan Heng.

The year Ruan Heng loves Yu Weiqing most, Yu Weiqing frames him for treason. Unable to defend himself, Ruan Heng is stripped of his title and placed under house arrest, falling from the heights into the dust in a single day.

Yu Weiqing keeps his distance and never once looks at Ruan Heng.

On the day Ruan Heng ascends the throne, Yu Weiqing comes to him of his own accord. His hair is dull and brittle, his cheeks sunken, his lips cracked. His clothes hang empty on his painfully thin frame, and none of his former radiance remains.

Ruan Heng's gaze is dark. "You've got some nerve, showing up here. You know I won't spare you, don't you?"

"I wronged you..." Yu Weiqing's voice is hoarse. "You can do whatever you want to me. Just let it out."

Reader's guide:

1. Ruan Heng, the indulgent top who spoils his brat, x Yu Weiqing, the spoiled, sharp-tongued bottom who never says what he means.

2. This story is bittersweet, not pure fluff.

Theme: Love means accepting and supporting each other.