Trapped by Three Obsessive Younger Princes

Only after her younger brother died did Jiang Shu begin to pity and love him.

He was clearly a cold-blooded, heartless demon who kept her awake in terror. Yet he was also the one who personally choked the life out of the prince consort who had abused her, then perished in a sea of flames along with the evidence, leaving no body behind.

Forced into a political marriage far from home and left a widow, Jiang Shu was nearly overwhelmed by longing for her younger brother as time went by.

She missed his cold, aloof eyes, his ruthless disregard for others, and the warm back that would slip into her arms without invitation on a frigid night... She was consumed by melancholy.

She adopted a boy who looked very much like him.

She asked her homeland to erect a tombstone for him, and she never stopped sending letters by carrier pigeon.

Seven years later, she was finally granted permission to return to court, only to hear that her younger brother had ascended the throne the year before and now sat securely as emperor. He wasn't dead!

Overjoyed, Jiang Shu often went to the palace to visit him. But the new emperor wouldn't let her near, wouldn't call her "Elder Sister," and even compared her to his consorts, teasing and flirting with her. He was like a completely different person.

When he saw her in tears, he finally let the smile leave his eyes. He sat beside her and talked with her beneath the moon, sharing the sorrows of the years they'd been apart, then drew her into his arms...

Jiang Shu thought they had made up, unaware that behind her back the new emperor wore a sinister expression, seething with anger and jealousy, his teeth clenched.

Another night, the siblings raised their cups and drank together.

Jiang Shu couldn't hold her liquor. She didn't know which palace attendant she pulled into her room, where they tangled together in a heated embrace, slick with sweat. In her muddled state, she heard someone whisper "Elder Sister" in a hoarse voice, and the words sent a melting softness through her.

*

The man from that night... It must have been the new emperor. Why else would he be so attentive and concerned, gaze burning as he even suggested she "come to the palace and stay by his side"?

Jiang Shu didn't dare agree, but she was happy. Her parents were dead, and her younger brother was her only family and support. So when the palace attendants brought her that wine, she drank it again.

The same burning heat and voice as that night left her intoxicated.

When she woke, an unfamiliar face lay beside her.

The young man's gaze was cold and distant as his clinging kisses lingered on her neck. "Elder Sister, it's been so long..."

The ugly burn scar on his chest brought her to her senses at once.

*

With truth blurred into falsehood, and affection confused with love, Jiang Shu knew she had gone terribly wrong and wanted to repent, resolved to live as a proper widow. But her younger brother wouldn't let her go. He kissed away her tears and shattered her trembling cries.

"Do you want me, or those two impostors? Hmm?"

Delicate widow x born villain x scheming madman x sweet-faced, black-hearted loyal dog

1. The heroine is six years older than the hero. Their romance begins after their sibling relationship is no longer in effect.

2. A romance-focused story with four people in the mix and a one-on-one ending. The characters are flawed and morally compromised. I want to write a love built on unhealthy dependence, so please go easy on me.

3. Blurb saved on June 24, 2026.

Theme: Work hard to get the life you want