Lin Chuhe was in the terminal stages of cancer when the System gave her a chance to survive: win over the bloodthirsty tyrant Helian Chi, and she would be cured if she succeeded.
Desperate enough to try anything, she gave it her all. But while trying to win him over, she died three times.
When she opened her eyes for the fourth time, she had become the enemy nation's empress: a woman who had once disguised herself as a man, whose identity had been exposed, and who was now beset on all sides.
Since she was going to die either way, to hell with the mission!
She mustered what little military power she had left and marched north. Even if they were all destroyed, she would drag the arrogant tyrant from his throne and make him pay back every last debt from her three previous lives, with interest.
At last, catching him off guard, she outsmarted the enemy and took the city. She imprisoned Helian Chi at the foot of the steps, beating him and subjecting him to torture.
Yet he clutched the arm she had dislocated, spitting blood as he laughed. In a hoarse voice, he said, "Be harsher. I like it."
Lin Chuhe: ?
Lin Chuhe: Tears of joy.
So all that gentle talk and cautious consideration in her first three lives had been wasted!
But before she could figure out how to use this "new approach," rebellion broke out. The nation fell, and she died.
Her transmigration allowance was used up. The System asked whether she wanted to take a gamble and try to win him over in her real body.
Lin Chuhe agreed and dragged her frail, sickly body back to his side.
This time, she had no chance to start over. Succeed, or die trying!
*
Everyone said Helian Chi was heartless, cruel, and ruthless, a man who slaughtered people without mercy and had no weaknesses at all.
Then, all at once, he built ten thousand temples and enshrined identical statues of a faceless goddess in each one. He traveled across thousands of miles of mountains and rivers, devoutly paying his respects at every shrine.
The people thought the tyrant had finally found his conscience and was repenting for all the lives he had taken. They had no idea he was praying only for that goddess to descend and return to his side.
*
The once arrogant, bloodthirsty, cold-hearted tyrant finally found his heart. He knelt before the Buddha and repented for a lifetime of evil deeds. He offered himself to the enemy in exchange for a single medicinal pill. He crossed thousands upon thousands of miles to seek doctors and immortals for her, praying to gods and Buddhas alike.
His tears fell without end, landing on Lin Chuhe's eyes, face, and lips. She heard him beg the Buddha, promising everything, even his life. He did not ask to atone for the lives he had taken; he only begged for her health.
She heard the System's voice: "Congratulations, Host. The conditions for winning him over have been met. Your reward will now be redeemed."
Later, with red-rimmed eyes and tears on his face, he asked her if she had ever felt even the slightest bit of sincerity toward him. Lin Chuhe's expression was cold as she pried his fingers away one by one. "Never."
Reader's Guide:
1. The heroine transmigrates into another body four times and returns in her own body once.
2. One-on-one, both leads are sexually inexperienced. The male lead is pure in body and heart, with no flirtations or unattainable first love.
3. The younger sister she becomes during her third transmigration is not related to the male lead by blood.
4. The setting is inspired by the chaotic Sixteen Kingdoms period. The male lead is a true tyrant.
5. The heroine eventually returns home and recovers. Her story has a happy ending.
Theme: Perseverance through every setback
