The notorious imperial court lackey and the meritorious military general were well-known for their mutual dislike, a pair of arch-enemies set in stone. Who could have foreseen the unexpected change in the winds of heaven: the general injured on the battlefield, both legs disabled, and even forced by the emperor to marry his nemesis.
With one marriage edict, two people with mutual hostility are forced to marry and live under the same roof. Yet after these long days together, they come to the realization that this fellow is not truly devoid of any saving grace/unattainable and high out of reach.
Yes.. I’m into Danmei or Chinese BL novels for the past year (Thanks to MDZS). I’m still halfway into reading the almost complete translation of this novel. I can’t no longer sit still and literally shrieked and flailed like a fish. So here I am sprinkling off my infectious pixie dust hoping you guys will get into it as well. This is a precious hidden gem among the historical themed BL novels.
As the synopsis already says, it’s about a general who survived an ambush and is forced to marry his ‘enemy’ per royal decree. Despite him being crippled, he tries to maintain his independence as best as possible.The story is intriguing without trying to flaunt its dramatic moments, and both the pacing and writing style are very natural. You will not find the typical comic/anime-ish writing of most Chinese BL writers, but rather a work that takes its themes seriously. There’s no petty revenge porn involved; instead, we have elements of mystery, well-rounded characters, and fitting amounts of exposition. The MC is righteous and popular and prefers life on the battlefield while the ML is a cunning, opportunistic official (and leader of a specialized military group) who works for the emperor.
They treat each other with respect, especially once misunderstandings of the past are cleared up. No one gets bullied into changing sexual preference (one of the tropes that annoys me most besides lack of consent, considering the obscenity of conversion ‘therapy’).Its just so refreshing!
Naturally, they clash and disagree on topics of morality and honor.And yet, the author chose a very interesting dynamic we rarely see in Ancient China BL novels: there’s no power play involved between them. Both are equal in intelligence, skill, and self-confidence, and they get to keep those throughout the story. I always look forward to their conversations and the direction they will take each time.The romance is authentic, beautifully written, and neither too fast nor unnecessarily dragged on. We are given just the right amount of it, and every warm interaction between the MC and ML feels incredibly rewarding. Fingers crossed that it stays this good as it continues, but given the way the characters are portrayed, I’ll be surprised if it changes.
This is a really underrated novel. To be honest, I can’t wait to read more of the author’s works. Please give this one a try!
LINKS BELOW:
Golden Stage Novel Updates – ChiChi did a really awesome job translating the second half of the novel and I really appreciate her/him/it efforts. Please head over to her/him/it site to check out more of her/him/it translation works. I still have not figure out this Osprey birdy gender so forgive me~ 」(￣▽￣」)
(Yes.. I been lazing around for half a year or so since my last post. Looking back, yes, I made too many comebacks. Can’t say I regret since it’s really a much needed break for me.)
「The Only Shinyuu Site」 