Lonely Chen [Rebirth]

[A sharp-tongued but soft-hearted older, fatherly minister gong x a gentle, refined, decisive, sickly beauty shou. They are not related by blood] Coming next; currently drafting.

Yuan Shang'an, the splendidly beautiful and decisive leader of the Great Wei's intelligence network, was frail and chronically ill, with old wounds that never healed.

He single-handedly put his elder brother, Yuan Suchen, in the position of powerful chancellor, allowing him to control the emperor and command the feudal lords. The civil and military officials trembled in fear.

In the end, his brother's trusted subordinates surrounded him. In the depths of winter, arrows pierced his heart. Yuan Shang'an coughed up blood until he died, full of resentment.

Apart from the loyal reputation he earned as a lone minister, he had nothing in this life.

The root of it all was that he was too powerful, refused to let his brother have his way, and stood in the way of his brother becoming emperor.

*

When Yuan Shang'an opened his eyes again, he was back five years in the past.

Yuan Shang'an knew his brother was ambitious, and that he himself didn't have much time left.

So at court, he was sinister and ruthless, pressing forward at every turn to hunt down the loyal and virtuous men he had once supported.

On the Rouran grasslands, he broke his promises, killed to silence witnesses, then framed others.

In government, he slaughtered officials until history recorded rivers of blood and skies darkened by their crimes.

Yuan Shang'an cast aside his reputation without a second thought. He drew his sword and pointed it at his brother, waiting for Yuan Suchen to take revenge tenfold, so they could die together.

But he never expected his brother's revenge to mean...

Personally shooting the trusted subordinate who had tried to kill him, right before his eyes;

Inciting the old officials who had cursed him to write books and clear his name;

Blowing out the candle as he bent over his desk late at night, then forcefully carrying him to bed to sleep;

Making him drink medicine before a battle he might not survive, and forcing him to vow to live to a hundred.

"You refuse to let me have my way," the man said, rushing over and pulling him into his arms, his voice choked with emotion. "So why should I grant your wish to be a lone minister who sacrifices himself for his ideals?"

"Shang'an, if we stay together for the rest of our lives and grow old side by side, how is that not dying together?"

*

Yuan Shang'an once thought his brother hated him for standing in the way of ultimate power.

But only after being reborn did he realize that what Yuan Suchen truly hated was his willingness to give up his life and walk the path of a solitary martyr.

So in this life, Yuan Shang'an used every means and scheme at his disposal for just one purpose: to force himself to live well.

*

A little scene:

After learning of his brother's obsession, Yuan Shang'an willingly swallowed an aphrodisiac pill and took off his clothes, ready to grant him one night of pleasure before going to his death.

But Yuan Suchen gripped him by the throat, forced him to spit out the pill, then picked him up and held him facing a full-length bronze mirror.

"Look carefully. You don't need it, and neither do I."

Warm hands and lips traced every inch of his trembling spine, the hollow of his damp waist, and the hideous old scars on his back.

For every scar he didn't want anyone to see, his brother had tenderly kissed and bitten him once.

CP: Yuan Suchen x Yuan Shang'an. No switching or breaking them up. Older gong, three-year age gap. The cover features Yuan Shang'an.

Content warnings:

1. The two protagonists are maternal cousins: Yuan Suchen's father and Yuan Shang'an's mother are siblings. Their relationship is similar to that of Baoyu and Daiyu.

2. Yuan Shang'an has a many-men-want-him quality, and more than one supporting character, male and female, is attracted to him. But Yuan Shang'an has only ever loved Yuan Suchen, and Yuan Suchen only loves Yuan Shang'an. Yuan Shang'an will not reciprocate the other characters' feelings. The main romance is between the two Yuans. Yuan Suchen's feelings for Yuan Shang'an are intense, and Yuan Shang'an's feelings for Yuan Suchen are just as intense. They cannot be separated.

3. They have adopted children. Both Yuan Suchen and Yuan Shang'an are very good-looking, so please don't compare them unfavorably.

4. I'll add more if I think of anything else.

Theme: Clear up misunderstandings and accept each other.