Ensemble cast, slow burn, secret identities
One-on-one romance, both are virgins, younger top
Cold, beautiful, highly skilled fighter bottom x dark, unhinged top who loves manipulating people's hearts
Orphaned at a young age, Gu Zhixing accidentally entered a training camp and became the sharpest blade in the emperor's hand.
Gu Zhixing knew exactly what his duty was: to eliminate the emperor's enemies and secure his throne. He'd made countless enemies, and plenty of people in court hoped to see him dead.
Cold-faced and cold-hearted, Gu Zhixing didn't care. He never hesitated when killing, and when blood splashed across his peerlessly cool face, he didn't even blink.
But one young man was always following him around, showing up wherever he went, whether he was investigating a case or suppressing bandits. He was like a dog's tail that just wouldn't come off.
"Kind big brother, could you give me a hand? It's our first time meeting."
"Have you eaten, big brother? I've got food. Let's eat together."
"What do you think I'm after, big brother?"
"If you would just..."
The boy chattered away without ever seeming to get tired of it. Gu Zhixing knew perfectly well his background was suspicious and his motives impure, yet the boy still managed to leave a mark on his heart.
Later, the boy fell off a cliff while saving him. No one knew whether he was alive or dead...
And later still, the boy who had always followed him around ascended the throne and became his new master...
*
As an unfavored prince, Li Ze'an struggled to survive in the imperial palace. He grew up to be sinister and ruthless, maneuvering at every turn and using everyone in the empire as a pawn to carve out a chance at survival for himself.
Yet he kept the last soft corner of his heart for one person.
When the world misunderstood and cursed him, that person stood before him amid wind and snow, just to tell him, "This isn't your fault."
So even though he hated everyone in the world, he still kept one person safely hidden in his heart, too precious to touch. He could only steal glances now and then. Even when his heart ached with bitterness and misery, he couldn't bring himself to let go.
"Gu Zhixing is the one I love. He's the person I want to spend my whole life with."
Theme: May we be forged together, and grow old beneath the same falling snow.
