The emperor was shrewd and calculating, and the Crown Prince Sheng Qi's marriage was a bargaining chip in his hands. As a result, Sheng Qi was over eighteen, yet the choice of Crown Princess had still not been settled.
To appease Sheng Qi, the emperor allowed him to take a secondary consort first.
As soon as the news came out, officials and members of the imperial harem scrambled to curry favor with the Crown Prince. But, to everyone's surprise, he chose an unremarkable eighth-rank female clerk from the Directorate of Records.
Jiang Fumi, chosen as the Crown Prince's secondary consort, found it unbelievable too. "I've never met His Highness the Crown Prince. How could he know who I am?"
Jiang Fumi had only recently become a female clerk at the Directorate of Records, but lately she'd been having strange dreams. In them, she failed to secure a position at the Directorate and had no choice but to marry her childhood betrothed, Song Xiangan, a junior official at the Court of Judicial Review. At first, they were in harmony and their marriage was quite happy. But after three years without a child, her mother-in-law turned against her and forced Song Xiangan to write her a letter of divorce. Cast out, Jiang Fumi lost all hope. After catching a chill, she died in a medical clinic...
*
In his previous life, Sheng Qi met a beautiful young woman who had come to the capital to compete for a position as a female clerk at the Directorate of Records. Before he could learn her name, she had already married someone else.
While handling a case outside the palace, Sheng Qi saw the woman he longed for leaning against Song Xiangan. Her robes fluttered, her eyes were bright, and she looked only at her husband. Sheng Qi couldn't sleep that night. He clenched his fist and swore to himself that once he ascended the throne, he would take her for himself.
But before he could become emperor, news came that she had suddenly passed away...
*
After entering the Eastern Palace, Jiang Fumi knew she wouldn't get along with the future Crown Princess and the other secondary consorts. To protect herself from whatever might come, she served Sheng Qi with the utmost caution, while secretly saving up money of her own, hoping that one day he would let her leave the palace.
But Sheng Qi was gentler and more affectionate than she'd imagined. He treated her with tenderness and care, and late at night, he even whispered a promise in her ear that left her bewildered.
Outsiders said the Crown Prince had been bewitched by a fox spirit. Yet everyone scrambled to curry favor with that fox spirit, hoping she'd put in a good word for them with the Crown Prince.
Jiang Fumi had grown used to flattery and fawning. One day, she sneaked out of the palace, only for an unfamiliar young man to rudely block her path. With red-rimmed eyes, he murmured, "We were once betrothed. Don't you remember?"
Looking at the handsome young man, Jiang Fumi thought to herself: When I leave the Eastern Palace one day, wouldn't it be nice to keep this refined scholar by my side?
*
In his previous life, Song Xiangan had been unable to defy his mother's wishes and lost his beloved wife. After being reborn, he discovered that his beloved had been chosen to serve the Crown Prince.
[Blurb posted on August 8, 2025]
Theme: As long as the green hills remain, there's no need to worry about firewood
Has My Lady's Heart Fluttered Today?
Beyond the Palace Walls
The Female Scribe, Two Years Into Her Secret Marriage
My Boss Found Out I Was an Undercover Agent [Showbiz]
The Camellias Return
Who Was Hit by a Rock? [Three Kingdoms]
Fragrance Filling the Courtyard
The Imperial Censor and the Right Chancellor