The Deposed Crown Prince Keeps Asking Me to Log On and Chat Privately

[Bold, direct, looks-obsessed heroine x handsome but oblivious, conservative and proper hero]

Jiang Jinyue, a graduate student in the history department at Z University, is a hopeless pretty-boy enthusiast.

She is obsessed with studying Ji Heng, the stunning former crown prince of the Xuan Zhou Dynasty from three thousand years ago. She even wrote about him in her academic paper.

After submitting her thesis proposal to her advisor, Jiang Jinyue received an invitation to beta-test a historical VR game called True Xuan Zhou: Rise and Fall.

Jiang Jinyue logged into the game and exclaimed, "What a thrill! The scenery is so realistic!"

The game began with a fierce, epic battle. With her expertise, Jiang Jinyue quickly figured out that this was the famous Battle of Mangchuan from the Xuan Zhou Dynasty.

According to the history books, Ji Heng had just been deposed as crown prince and exiled to the barren Northern Desert when foreign invaders attacked before he had even found his footing. Ji Heng suffered a crushing defeat in the battle. Three years later, when the new emperor took the throne, Ji Heng was executed.

Just as Jiang Jinyue was lamenting his fate, a System notification sounded in her ear:

[ Ding! Player "Sweetheart Baby Little Yueyue" has been bound to key character: Ji Heng! ]

[ Please complete the beginner's quest: Win the Battle of Mangchuan. Reward: 10,000 gold coins, 1,000 basic rations. ]

Jiang Jinyue looked down at the spear in her hand and the warhorse beneath her, and her mind went blank.

Good heavens! Am I controlling Ji Heng?

*

On the eleventh day of the twelfth lunar month in the forty-seventh year of Emperor Tianqi's reign in Xuan Zhou, Ji Heng led his army into battle against foreign invaders at Mangchuan. Seriously wounded, he was about to be cut down from his horse by an enemy soldier.

Suddenly, a powerful force surged through his body. He had no idea where the strength came from, but he grabbed his spear and impaled the enemy soldier!

Then he heard a woman's voice: "Huh, this game doesn't even have health bars?"

Ji Heng was horrified. A demoness had possessed him!

"Hah, hah... Ji Heng's character model is way too handsome!"

"I'm just going to say it: hey, hubby!"

"Hehehe, let me feel those abs!"

The mysterious demoness often showered him with shameless advances. Ji Heng blushed furiously. "Demoness, state your name!"

"Wait, is this character talking to me?" Jiang Jinyue exclaimed in shock. Then she realized what he meant. "Oh, my ID? Sweetheart Baby Little Yueyue. Isn't it cute?"

Ji Heng: ...Even her name is so wanton!

She was reckless, yes, but she also produced a miracle medicine called penicillin that cured his terminal illness.

Later, cities rose from the Northern Desert wasteland, and trade routes connected every corner of the land.

He ate crops grown from the unusual seeds Yueyue had brought, wore warm clothes woven on looms she had improved with her designs, and led the iron cavalry she had forged to conquer far and wide.

"Ji Heng," Yueyue's voice rang out beside the newly completed canal. "I'm going to give you a different ending."

A deposed crown prince was no more than a discarded pawn. Ji Heng had never expected anyone to stay by his side.

Blushing, he resisted halfheartedly, willingly letting her take control as he sank deeper and deeper.

It didn't matter how things turned out, as long as you were there every day.

I want so badly to see you...

Until one day, Yueyue's voice suddenly vanished.

*

After finishing her paper, Jiang Jinyue enjoyed a lovely bath, put on a lace camisole, and logged into the game for the first time in ages.

The game had updated to a new version. She wondered what features had been improved.

Then she saw Ji Heng, his eyes red, staring at her intently. "Sweetheart Baby Little Yueyue?"

...Had they improved the feature that lets players and their in-game characters meet face-to-face?!

Reader's Guide:

1. The Xuan Zhou Dynasty is an entirely fictional setting.

2. This is a straight romance, with the heroine taking the lead.

3. The heroine is in the modern era, while the hero is in the historical era. Their two timelines run in parallel and drive the story forward together.

4. One-on-one romance, both leads have only ever been with each other, happy ending.

The blurb was screenshotted as proof on April 25, 2025.

Theme: Learn from history