MTL - Beloved Empress - ~ Chapter 23: The emperor is the base

How does a half-grown mountain village boy like me end up bizarrely becoming the grandmaster out of nowhere?Source: Web...

He was once the most feared villain in the empire, a master of manipulation who wove chaos from the shadows. Ruthless, untouchable—until the day he was betrayed and executed by the very man he sought to control.But death is not the end.He awakens in the body of Lady Elara Valcrest, a fragile noble girl doomed to be a pawn in political games. Stripped of her former power, she is forced into an arranged marriage with none other than Cairon Everhart—the man who once killed her. He does not recognize her, but she knows him. And she will never forget.To survive, Elara must play a new game. One where deception is her only weapon, and trust is a dangerous illusion. She must outmaneuver her enemies, uncover the truth behind her execution, and reclaim the power she lost. But as she navigates the treacherous world of court intrigue, one question lingers—Was Cairon truly her greatest enemy? Or had she been blind to an even greater threat?Time is running out. The villain has been given one last chance. And this time, she refuses to lose.

In her previous life, Gu Ying gave up her dignity as the legitimate daughter of the Duke of Dongping’s manor for Jiang Yin. She pestered him relentlessly until she finally married him.

Later, Jiang Yin rose to great power and status. He schemed against the state first, then killed her father and exterminated her clan.

She was betrayed by her scumbag husband and sister-in-law. They broke her legs and threw her in a dilapidated temple, subjecting her to all kinds of humiliations for ten long years.

After being reborn, Gu Ying returned, ready to take revenge.

The first step was to cling onto the “fiancé, Young Marquis Yong’an”, kick away the scumbag, fight the scumbag sister-in-law, and play the prestigious families of Bianjing for fools!

The second step of revenge was to cancel the engagement with the “fiancé” and flee to the borderlands, taking her younger brother to find their father!

The third step of revenge was to find a meek, submissive man to marry, staying far away from the scumbag husband, and live a happy life!

Yet she never expected that the leg she clung onto by accident did not belong to the Young Marquis, but the legendary, sinister and ruthless Crown Prince Zhao Changdu!

Everyone said the Little Prince was hard to handle. This time she would certainly lose her life.

Yet unexpectedly, she could not only handle the Little Prince, but also arrogantly ride on top of him. “Husband, you have cultivated excellent masculine virtues, your wife cannot run away!”

The subordinate was shocked: “Little Prince, you stay up all night reading, you wouldn’t be looking through the Dongli Punishment Illustrations Manual to torture your wife, would you?”

Zhao Changdu remained expressionless: “Thank you for your concern, but this Crown Prince is cultivating masculine virtues to please his wife.”

Playing under the plum trees and riding on bamboo, those were the days of joyful play. It was when they first met.She was not shy but innocently charming, standing before the breeze with her hair flowing, her complexion as creamy as curds.After waking up, Xu Qingfan had returned to 20 years earlier, to the year 2002.That year, the sky was very blue, the clouds were very white, and the wind was very noisy.That year, his Childhood Sweetheart hadn't gone abroad, their parents hadn't gone grey, and he hadn't the worries of being unaccomplished.That year, he was six, she was five, and they both could fully experience the climate as snowflakes blossomed.PS: This book is also titled “Help, I'm Surrounded by Childhood Sweethearts” and “I Have a Little Too Many Childhood Sweethearts.”