Forced to Switch Brides, She Becomes the Crown Princess

Below is the blurb for the upcoming story, Will You Be My Number N+1? Feel free to skip it if it's not your thing:

Tsundere heiress × sweet-looking but scheming man

Jiang Xu met Shen Shiheng at a matchmaking dinner arranged by their parents. He wore a perfectly tailored suit and had the bearing of a nobleman, like a breeze through the pines or moonlight over water.

The Shen family's company was on the verge of bankruptcy, and they urgently needed a marriage alliance to save the family's fortunes.

Jiang Xu thought of him as nothing more than a handsome ornament in her home. She signed a prenup with him, and they began a marriage in name only. After the wedding, she continued to check in on the male models numbered 1 to N in her phone, living it up outside, while Shen Shiheng played the part of a devoted, honest husband. The two had nothing to do with each other.

A few months later, Jiang Xu unexpectedly saw a news story about Shen Shiheng ringing the Nasdaq opening bell with his company. In disbelief, she grilled her parents until she finally learned that it wasn't the Shen family that had been on the verge of bankruptcy, but the Jiang family.

Jiang Xu returned home in a daze. Shen Shiheng was in the kitchen making the bird's nest milk pudding she always had before bed. His handsome eyes fixed on her, dark and intent, as he wondered why she'd come home so early.

Burdened with the responsibility of reviving the Jiang family, Jiang Xu steeled herself and went over to say something nice. Instead, she blurted out, "I think you're better-looking than the guys on my phone. Would you consider becoming my Number N+1?"

Half an hour later, the air in the room was sultry, with tension simmering beneath the surface. Shen Shiheng abandoned his usual restraint, biting her lip hard and silencing her ragged breaths. "I can't be your Number N+1, but we could be a proper married couple."

From then on, Jiang Xu no longer had time to contact the guys on her phone. Instead, she was kept busy every night by the Number N+1 at home. Shen Shiheng always seemed like an honest man washing his hands and making her meals, but behind the scenes, he irresistibly tempted her into doing unspeakable things.

One day, she unexpectedly learned that Shen Shiheng had agreed to help the Jiang family and forbidden her parents from revealing the truth, all to get her to agree to the marriage. As she wondered why he had gone to so much trouble, a friend came over to visit. She casually introduced them, saying, "We got married after knowing each other for five days."

Shen Shiheng, who hadn't said a word until then, suddenly corrected her in a flat voice. "No. Nine years and five days."

The blurb for this story:

Soft, slow-witted layabout × gloomy, obsessive man with a sweet face and a dark heart

Xu Zhiyi is the second daughter of the Xu family, an innocent, easygoing girl who's slow on the uptake. She's no good at music, chess, calligraphy, or painting, and has nothing but a beautiful face. Among the young ladies of the capital, she's practically unknown.

Gu Yanci is the Crown Prince, as elegant as a jade orchid, brilliant and cunning. He controls the entire empire on behalf of the ailing emperor. Only the position of Crown Princess remains unfilled, drawing the covetous attention of the great clans.

Their status is worlds apart, and they have nothing to do with each other.

A decree of imperial betrothal matches the eldest Xu daughter with the Third Prince.

But the day before the wedding, the eldest daughter runs away from the capital with her lover, and Xu Zhiyi is ordered to take her place and marry the Third Prince.

On their wedding night, the embroidered canopy sways gently. The noble young man, as elegant as a breeze through the pines or moonlight over water, bites the delicate ribbon on her back. Dazed and afraid that the truth will come out, Xu Zhiyi stammers, blushing, "Third Highness, actually, I'm the second daughter of the Xu family."

The man behind her stiffens. She expects him to fly into a rage, but instead he pulls off the last of her clothes and laughs hoarsely. "It doesn't matter. I'm not the Third Prince you think I am, either."

The next day, Xu Zhiyi learns that the Third Prince was sent out of the capital after suddenly falling ill, and Gu Yanci had no choice but to marry his elder brother's bride in his place.

Through a twist of fate, she becomes Crown Princess. Though the two have little affection for each other after their marriage, they treat each other with respect and courtesy. The seemingly aloof and peerless Crown Prince, however, spends every night merging dreams with her, never once sated.

Until one day, she hears someone say that Gu Yanci himself arranged for the eldest Xu daughter to run away.

Later, by chance, she discovers the Third Prince imprisoned in a secret chamber in the Eastern Palace. Terrified, she realizes that her normally proper and well-mannered husband may be dangerous. After much thought, she decides to run away.

But when she steps outside, she sees the Crown Prince still smiling. "Trying to run?"

A moment later, the red gauze curtains enclose a scene of passion. Xu Zhiyi cries in grievance as the upright gentleman gently coaxes her. "What's so great about being a prince's consort? I can make you Empress. How does that sound?"

This was a carefully orchestrated scheme from the very beginning, all to marry the woman he wanted.

Theme: Live well.