Heart of Apricot

Chun Xing's hapless elder brother went to watch the excitement among the crowds outside the capital. Unexpectedly, he was caught up in a major disaster and wrongfully imprisoned for months. Luckily, he was eventually rescued by the heir of Prince Xun.

Their family had no way to repay such an immense kindness. The Chun family set up a shrine to pray for the health and longevity of Heir Lan, burning incense and offering prayers every day.

Later, Chun Xing was reunited with her birth family, one of the capital's most prominent households. Her aunt felt sorry that the fake daughter had stolen twenty years of Chun Xing's life. "I'll find you a good match. The heir of Prince Xun. Would you be willing?"

Chun Xing's heart pounded. Remembering the half a face she'd glimpsed beneath the curtain that day, she felt a glimmer of hope. "I would."

After their marriage, she studied and practiced hard to become a capable mistress of a noble household, forcing herself into a mold and putting on the appearance of a proper, virtuous wife. Fortunately, Heir Lan's wealth was hers to use as she pleased. She gritted her teeth and endured the demands of her young military husband, and managed to deal with her vicious mother-in-law.

That is, until the legendary fake daughter, Zhu Zhiwei, also entered the prince's residence.

The moon was a curved blade, and beneath the pavilion sat a perfectly matched couple.

Chun Xing had long heard that Heir Lan and the fake daughter had grown up together as childhood sweethearts, and that without her, they would have been a devoted couple.

Just then, she learned that the kindness she'd been repaying had all been a misunderstanding. She packed her things and left in the dead of night to seek refuge with her adoptive elder brother, who had been transferred away to serve as a minor eighth-rank official. The family soon settled into a happy, simple life.

On the day she was preparing to remarry, her adoptive brother told her that a powerful visitor from the capital had arrived, a noble with command over a mighty army.

Kneeling before him, she didn't dare raise her head.

*

At first, Lan Helin assumed she had married him to climb the social ladder, because her family's position was unstable. As long as she remained faithful, he would give her a dependable support and a life of wealth.

But this pretend wife acted as if her affections were sincere.

The way she secretly watched him through the gauzy bed curtains, the delicate gold filigree bracelet swaying around her snowy ankle, nearly made him lose control and fall under her spell.

He didn't understand what she wanted, and didn't believe anyone could love him.

Until one day, he heard that his wife had married him to repay a debt of gratitude.

But he wasn't the one who had saved her.

Once she learned the truth, she was utterly disappointed and left without a trace.

Later, he rose to the highest seat in the imperial court, covered in blood and reviled by all. Yet when she looked at him, all he saw was distance.

"You said that when I came back, you'd treat me well." Lan Helin leisurely lifted her slender fingers and pressed them to his cold lips, kissing them. "Does that promise no longer count?"

*

A few notes: 1. One-on-one romance, both leads' first love, happy ending.

2. The heroine has a crush on the hero in the early chapters. Both leads suffer workplace bullying, so things get a little angsty. After the heroine runs away, only the hero suffers.

3. The hero is a military officer, and the latter half takes place during wartime.

Please add my new novel, Meeting My Ex While Courting an Enemy Prince, to your reading list!

An enemy's enemy is someone you can win over.

Yuan Lanzhu, a princess of a poor border kingdom, put everything she had into finding allies.

Even if it meant sacrificing herself, she wouldn't hesitate.

She would marry the ninth prince of the great Central Plains empire.

Gritting her teeth as she counted out the huge treasures hidden away in her treasury for her dowry, Yuan Lanzhu set off with two attendants, planning to offer herself to the ninth prince.

The ninth prince was simple and innocent. They hit it off at once and were chatting happily when someone else arrived at the banquet.

Yue Zhuo took his seat and saluted the ninth prince as a subject should, but there was little respect in his eyes. He only looked at Yuan Lanzhu.

Yuan Lanzhu was struck speechless, forgetting everything she had planned to say next.

Five years ago, her elder brother was alive and their army was strong. She was a spoiled princess, and Yue Zhuo was a spoils of war her brother had brought back. Since he was good-looking, he was given to her as a daytime distraction.

But Yuan Lanzhu treated him very well. In the chaos of the imperial palace, she took him as her adopted younger brother and shielded him from harm.

Yuan Lanzhu once asked him, "What if one day I wanted your life?"

Yue Zhuo paused, lowered his eyes, and quietly replied, "Then I'll keep repaying your kindness in my next life, Sister."

But on the day Yuan Lanzhu killed him, resentment and indignation still surged uncontrollably from the depths of his heart.

When they met again, Yue Zhuo asked her two questions. "Did you have a reason for killing me? Was it you who arranged for someone to save my life?"

Yuan Lanzhu replied, "No. It wasn't."

If she had to explain, Yuan Lanzhu thought, then when she had gripped his chin and poured the poisoned wine down his throat, she had thought that even if he died, she would leave his body intact, so he could come see her again in his next life wearing that beautiful face.

Everyone thought that once Yuan Lanzhu fell into Yue Zhuo's hands, he would torture her to death for revenge.

Including Yuan Lanzhu herself.

But all he wanted was to lift the moon in his heart back into the clouds.

Theme: No matter how your identity or circumstances change, never forget who you are.