The Hostage Prince Is a Beauty in Red

They first met in an enemy kingdom. She was a girl disguised as a boy, forced to take her ruthless, cold-hearted imperial brother’s place as a hostage. He was a prince who was publicly favored at court in the enemy kingdom. He had fought in battles since the age of seven and won many glorious victories, striking fear into his enemies. He should have been the obvious choice to inherit the throne, and everyone at court had high hopes for him. But rumors claimed that, after coming of age, he treated his concubines with such extreme cruelty that beautiful women who had hoped to marry into the royal family fled from him like snakes and scorpions. From then on, his reputation at court was divided. The two rarely had any reason to cross paths. But at their first meeting, he caught a fleeting glimpse of the cunning, feigned composure in the eyes of the hostage who pretended to tremble before the entire court. From that moment on, one glance bound them for life. As he tested, deceived, and used her, she met every move calmly and planned several steps ahead. “Shall we make a bet?” “What’s at stake?” “The rest of your life. Dare to take me up on it?” “Why wouldn’t I?”