Synopsis
The genre is still political intrigue, because I love it so much. The synopsis and some ideas may change at any time. I haven't figured out the central theme yet. If I write it, it'll be in September 2027.
Shen Qiongzhi transmigrates. She wakes up a thousand years in the past, in the chaotic era recorded amid the flames of war, as a noble daughter of the Qinghe Shen clan.
And, just her luck, she's betrothed to the Qinghe Cui clan, a family destined to fail according to the history textbook she once read, and doomed to collapse tomorrow.
The Cui family may be a prestigious clan of scholars and officials, but the whole lot of them are useless. If she marries into the family, she'll probably be done for before long. But the engagement can't be avoided, so after much thought, Shen Qiongzhi decides to give up and chooses Cui Yu, the least favored son of the Cui family.
The moment she makes her choice, she sees everyone else looking at her as if she's an idiot.
Shen Qiongzhi doesn't care. She strides forward, takes the hand of Cui Yu, the one nobody pays attention to, standing alone in the farthest corner of the family, and says quietly, "It's you, then. Wherever my husband goes, I'll go too."
She has a god's-eye view of history.
This guy lives the longest. Though history grumbles plenty about how dim-witted he is, at least he survives. If she works hard, maybe she can turn history around.
But later, Shen Qiongzhi never expected that she would not only survive the chaotic times, but also change the fate of that fool and save him from dying in obscurity.
She would even rise to become the empress, second only to one and above all others.
*
As a child, Cui Yu lost both his parents and lived under other people's roofs. He was the least favored person in the Qinghe Cui clan.
He thought he would remain obscure and unnoticed, and that he would have to use every ounce of his cunning and pay any price before his family would recognize his worth.
So he didn't care about his own life, nor about his own love or hatred. He lived only to win the recognition of his family and relatives. He was never the most important person in his own life.
Until one day, a little girl threw a red bridal veil on the ground before him, on the verge of tears.
"Cui Yu... couldn't you be a little more selfish?"
"Even if no one loves you, you still have to love yourself."
After that, he stopped longing for anyone else's love, and stopped caring what others thought.
Because he knew that only if he survived could he protect her.
He wanted to give his wife the best life possible.
So he made it to the very end, rising to the throne, and sharing the land and rivers of the realm with her.
I commissioned the cover myself, all for an excuse to make dumplings. I haven't figured out what the actual story will be, so I'll leave it here for now.
Probably about a young couple joining forces to conquer the realm. There's an age gap between the leads: he's ten years older than her. TAT Older men know how to cherish someone. Also, the romance is much sweeter than in my last book. That's how it feels when I'm thinking about it, anyway. It may turn out differently once I start writing. (?) But I'll try. An alternate-history setting modeled on the Eastern Han through the Six Dynasties. The institutions and ceremonial rules may change at any time before I begin writing... Let me think about how to write it. The male lead's character is partly inspired by a historical figure, but his path and what happens afterward are completely different. Please don't read this through the lens of widely known official history. This is fundamentally an alternate history.
My version of the late Eastern Han in a parallel universe. Please note. Both leads come from clans that have produced high-ranking officials for four generations. They are equally matched and join forces.
If you curse me, that means you're right.
Theme: Be the person who loves yourself most, and work hard to keep moving forward
