Dreams Beyond the Mountains (Reborn)

Completed. Any updates are just typo fixes | Next book, "The Sound of Home from Ten Thousand Miles Away", is being drafted. Please add it to your collection; blurb at the bottom.

In the eyes of a world where prejudice against aristocratic clans had yet to disappear completely, Xue Yunrong and Yue Chengyun were a terrible match.

One was the emperor's beloved daughter, skilled in all six arts, born to enjoy the highest honors as Heaven's favored child. The other came from a humble family and, after overcoming countless hardships, finally made his way into the limelight and passed the imperial examinations, earning third place in the palace exam.

Yet these two, so different in status, married.

In their three years of marriage, apart from a brief spell of happiness at the beginning, they spent the remaining two and a half years arguing.

Then, one day, in the middle of yet another fight, Yue Chengyun sneered without thinking: "I almost forgot. Your Highness's mother's family is also an aristocratic clan. Why would you be so hard on those scions who treat human lives like grass? You and I were never on the same side!"

Those words shattered her last hope.

So her youthful crush had been entirely one-sided. He had never understood her, nor had he understood the emperor's policies.

She and Yue Chengyun had been living apart in separate residences for a long time. On the rare occasions they met, not a kind word passed between them. They could hardly stand the sight of each other.

She was so tired.

"In that case, once we return to Jiankang, let's divorce."

_

The last scene in Yue Chengyun's memory was Xiaozhong Mountain blanketed in snow. It was where he had first met A Rong, and where he had chosen to die.

But when he opened his eyes again, he had returned to the third year of his marriage to A Rong.

He had no time to feel even a moment's joy before the words from last night's argument rang in his ears, leaving him dizzy.

He didn't want a divorce!

In his previous life, he had believed the emperor was hypocritically favoring the aristocratic clans while pretending to support men from humble families. But after the divorce, he traveled far away to Tingzhou and gradually realized he had been blinded by his own narrow perspective.

But by then it was too late. The crown prince had died suddenly, the emperor was gravely ill, rumors were spreading everywhere, and the Prince of Chenliang marched his troops into the capital. He raced more than a thousand li through the stormy night, but it was already too late to do anything.

Reborn, and now that he could see the truth, he would never let go!

As long as he exposed the treacherous person behind everything, as long as the crown prince was still alive, as long as the emperor remained healthy, as long as... he was honest and sincere, stopped hiding his inferiority, and always remembered to make his wife feel cherished, he and A Rong would not repeat the same mistakes.

Pride and self-respect didn't matter. If she didn't ask for a divorce, there was nothing he wouldn't do.

For all these years, I have regretted it every moment. I have never stopped missing you.

(Extra scene)

"A Rong, I'm sure your brother didn't mean to hurt me."

"A Rong, I'm in pain."

"A Rong, I'll do anything." Late at night, wary of her sworn brother and on guard against the new servant she had taken in, he kissed his way down with reddened eyes.

That was too much. How could he put his mouth to work like that?!

Xue Yunrong closed her eyes without a word. After she was satisfied, she kicked him off the bed. "Take care of yourself."

A thoughtful, outwardly cool but warm-hearted princess x an emotionally submissive husband who learns to act like a green tea

Reading guide:

1. In their previous life, they separated because of a huge misunderstanding, which will be explained in the main story. The heroine is not invulnerable; she has a quite fragile side, and was once a bright, radiant girl when she was young.

2. The hero is emotionally submissive and prone to insecurity, though his inferiority complex only appears in romantic relationships. He acts like a green tea only in front of the heroine, as a tactic. (To explain why I call him arrogant: you can think of his arrogance as an outward mask for his inferiority complex. This character type may not be everyone's cup of tea, so please don't read if you dislike it! I'm begging you, I've already put up all the warnings myself, so please don't read if it's not for you, sob. Also, I really can't write blurbs x_x)

3. One-on-one in both the past and present lives, both leads are each other's only partners, happy ending, fictional setting, so don't overthink the details.

4. A story about winning back his wife. Only the hero is reborn, and the leads have loved each other before. Their relationship will only truly reach a happy ending once all the problems have been completely resolved. The romance and plot progress side by side. The causes and consequences, as well as the antagonists, are all clearly explained in the book, so please don't take things out of context and misinterpret the characters or plot.

5. (Important) This is my first time writing, and I'm inexperienced. I don't think I managed to balance the plot and romance very well. The blurb's central conflict gets resolved fairly early, and there is more plot later on. The main focus is resolving the problems left over from their previous life; the romance develops alongside the plot, and the relationship reaches its happy ending right at the conclusion.

6. That's everything I think needs to be said. If you open the story, I hope you enjoy it. You don't need to tell me if you drop it, thanks.

My next book will be "The Sound of Home from Ten Thousand Miles Away". If you like it, please visit my author page and add it to your collection. I'm begging you ovo

Marriage first, love later | Slow-burn romance | Both leads are each other's only partners | A little face-slapping satisfaction, plus a little melodrama

[Haughty, clever aristocratic young lady x loyal, straightforward, handsome general]

Cui Hengyin was once a celebrated young lady in Jiankang.

But that was in the past.

Three years ago, the second son of the Cui family gave in to treacherous ambitions during a rebellion and nearly caused a catastrophe. As a result, the Cui clan lost the emperor's favor.

Old friends left, and an old engagement was called off. For three years, the Cui family saw fewer and fewer visitors. But no one expected that, when Cui Hengyin turned seventeen, her family would form a marriage alliance with the He clan, a newly powerful family whose members had earned merit by rescuing the emperor.

Still, Cui Hengyin resisted the marriage.

Not long after the man arrived in Jiankang, the emperor temporarily sent him to Jiujiang Commandery. No one had ever met him. Who knew how uncouth he might be, or what kind of brute he was? Young ladies she had clashed with laughed that Cui Hengyin, who used to be so high and mighty, was going to marry some country bumpkin.

Cui Hengyin was deeply unwilling, but no one cared what she thought. The Cui family sent her off to her wedding in high spirits.

On their wedding night, she clutched the silver scissors in her hand, tense with nerves. Her thoughts ran wild until he lifted her veil. The man before her gazed at her intently, his handsome, jade-like features looking especially gentle in the candlelight.

Still reeling from shock, she lowered her voice. "Y-you can sleep under the window...!!!"

-

He Yinxiao was born in the countryside. Unlike his two older brothers, he had a strong physique and was a natural at martial arts. As a child, he spent his time either studying or visiting the military camp. Apart from the girls in his clan, he rarely spoke to young ladies.

Three years ago, his whole family moved to Jiankang. Not long afterward, he was ordered to go to Jiujiang Commandery. He had only recently returned when he learned that his parents had just arranged a marriage for him.

He had never met his fiancée. He had only vaguely heard that Fourth Miss Cui was bold and reckless, and had escaped from her home many times, once even running away in the middle of the night...

He heard only bits and pieces, but his eyes gradually lit up. This young lady had quite a personality!

But the moment he lifted her veil on their wedding day, he froze.

Wasn't she the young lady he'd met at the Buddhist temple late at night, when he had gone to admire the crabapple blossoms? She had run away from the temple, and he'd happened to "help" her, too!

Remembering their first encounter at the temple, He Yinxiao instinctively pressed a hand to his waist. A hint of a smile appeared in his eyes.

But the young lady didn't seem to like him very much right now.

He Yinxiao readily accepted this and spread out his bedding on the floor.

When he turned to look again, the young lady who had just been bristling with anger had already buried herself under the covers.

It was all right. They had plenty of time.

-

Later on, one day, when Cui Hengyin was exhausted, she sleepily touched his face. "Why do you look so much like that lecher I met at the Buddhist temple?"

He Yinxiao stiffened.

The good news: his wife had finally recognized him.

The bad news: she still thought he was a lecher.

Theme: Cherish the person by your side