The Crown Prince's Palace.
Shangguan Yunying's eyes shone like two polished glass beads, refracting a blazing light.
A faint smile curved at the corners of her lips, carrying both a sense of release and firm resolve.
She spoke aloud the conclusion she had finally reached:
“Because Lin Qingyan is Lin Qingyan! Cui Zilu is Cui Zilu!”
Her voice rose a notch, tinted with obvious realization.
“But I am not! Shangguan Yunying is not Shangguan Yunying!”
“I am His Highness's chief female official!”
As those words left her mouth, something almost tragic crept into Shangguan Yunying's voice.
Chief female official.
The root of everything—the true reason she was always one step behind everyone else.
Because she was not Shangguan Yunying, but the chief female official.
And that identity, she had chosen it herself.
It was a path she had walked step by step with her own two feet.
Shangguan Yunying still remembered that day—standing before Luo Zhao, dressed in a brand-new crimson female official's robe.
Her hair bun was combed flawlessly, and she performed the formal salute with propriety, her voice gentle and composed:
“Your subordinate, Shangguan Yunying, pledges her service to Your Highness.”
Luo Zhao glanced at her, gave a slight nod, and uttered a single word:
“Good.”
Just that one word, Shangguan Yunying had remembered for many years.
From that day on, her primary identity was no longer the eldest daughter of the Shangguan family, no longer the daughter of Shangguan Yuan and Jiang Jianli.
It was chief female official—one of Luo Zhao's closest aides, part of the Crown Prince's Palace.
Every decision had to prioritize Luo Zhao's interests first.
Every action had to consider its impact on Luo Zhao.
Every gain and loss had to be ranked behind the four words “chief female official.”
But after meeting Gu Chengyin, Shangguan Yunying began to waver.
After being provoked by Lin Qingyan and then struck by Cui Zilu,
Shangguan Yunying finally started to reflect on herself—on where the root of all this lay.
And just now, while crying in Gu Chengyin's arms,
she had rendered her final verdict on herself.
It wasn't that she was too weak, not that she wasn't good enough, not that she couldn't measure up to them.
It was because she was the chief female official.
So she had to place her personal interests behind her loyalty to Luo Zhao.
She had to place her feelings for Gu Chengyin behind Luo Zhao's interests.
That was the true reason she fell behind everyone else at every turn.
Lin Qingyan didn't have to prioritize Luo Zhao.
Jingzhe of the Heavenly Master Manor didn't need to put Luo Zhao's interests first—she only needed to be herself.
So she had no worries, no concerns, and certainly no hesitation.
She liked Gu Chengyin, so she pursued him.
She caught him, so she loved him.
She loved him, so she would marry him.
Clean and decisive, without a shred of dragging feet.
She embodied the ten words “Lin Qingyan wants, Lin Qingyan gets” to the fullest.
Cui Zilu didn't have to prioritize Luo Zhao either.
Her interests, her roots, lay with the Cui clan, with the great noble houses.
Cui Zilu could have just lived as a carefree legitimate daughter under Cui Shifan's protection.
Until she met Gu Chengyin—and even then, she met him so late.
But she could get Cui Shifan to personally step forward, personally speak up, personally come to the Crown Prince's Palace to propose marriage.
She didn't need to consider whether doing so would offend anyone, or whether it would disrupt the balance of the court.
Cui Shifan and Xiao Ruxu handled all those considerations for her.
All Cui Zilu had to do was love Gu Chengyin with a hundred percent of her heart.
Only she, Shangguan Yunying, had nothing and was nothing.
While everyone else charged forward, she alone stood still, marking time.
Only she was still agonizing over whether Gu Chengyin might harm Luo Zhao.
Only she was still tangled up in how to test Gu Chengyin.
Lin Qingyan appeared the latest, yet she was the first to win Gu Chengyin.
Without hesitation, without asking about consequences, without thinking about the future—she charged ahead purely on the strength of her feelings.
When she charged forward, she didn't think about what Luo Zhao would think, didn't think about what Shangguan Yunying would think, didn't think about what anyone else would think.
That Lady Jingzhe knew only one thing:
Lin Qingyan wants, Lin Qingyan gets.
Cui Zilu came much later, yet she was already talking about marriage.
She too was reckless, she too didn't ask about consequences, she too didn't think about the future.
If not for Gu Chengyin's extremely sensitive status,
if not for the enormous impact of a marriage alliance between the Cui clan and the Crown Prince's Palace,
given her position as a legitimate daughter of the Cui clan, she'd probably be in the bridal chamber by now.
And all of this—all of Lin Qingyan's gains, all of Cui Zilu's gains—
should have been hers. Shangguan Yunying could have won Gu Chengyin. Shangguan Yunying could have had his hand in marriage.
Shangguan Yunying even began to wonder: if she hadn't been the chief female official when she met Gu Chengyin, what then?
If she had merely been the eldest daughter of the Shangguan family when she met Gu Chengyin, what then?
If she didn't have to consider Luo Zhao, didn't have to consider the Crown Prince's Palace, didn't have to consider all those rules and constraints—
and simply be herself, what then?
The answer was obvious.
She would have had everything of Gu Chengyin's.
Because everything Gu Chengyin wanted, she could give.
Gu Chengyin wanted status—she could give it.
Her father was Shangguan Yuan.
The representative of the rising noble houses, a heavy-weight minister of the court. Though not a top-tier power broker like Cui Shifan, he was still a man who could shake the entire court with a single stomp of his foot.
Shangguan Yuan had spent so many years building his influence in the court, with inexhaustible connections and resources.
If she spoke up, Shangguan Yuan would pave the way for Gu Chengyin.
Because Gu Chengyin was the husband Shangguan Yunying had chosen.
Gu Chengyin wanted a sect—she could give it.
Her mother was Jiang Jianli, her grandfather was Jiang Qingshan.
If she spoke up, Jiang Qingshan would no longer be arbitrarily sidelined.
Instead, those ants at the Foundation Establishment stage would learn what a Golden Core cultivator truly was.
Because Gu Chengyin was the husband Shangguan Yunying had chosen.
Even if Gu Chengyin wanted absolute, unwavering trust, she could give that too.
Because as long as she wasn't the chief female official, she didn't need to consider anyone else anymore.
She didn't need to consider Luo Zhao, didn't need to consider loyalty to the Crown Prince—
she only needed to love Gu Chengyin with her whole heart, a hundred percent.
Whatever Gu Chengyin wanted—promotion, power, anything—she could give.
Because she was the eldest daughter of the Shangguan family, wealthy enough to rival a nation.
And all of that fell within what money could buy.
But she happened to meet Gu Chengyin while she was Luo Zhao's chief female official.
Not the eldest daughter of the Shangguan family, not that wealthy, nation-rivaling heiress.
But the chief female official.
A chief female official who had to mind every word and action, who couldn't lose composure in public, who couldn't show any cracks.
So from the very beginning, she had been wary of Gu Chengyin.
Not just wary that he might harm Luo Zhao, but also wary of her own feelings for him.
Shangguan Yunying told herself endlessly: You are the chief female official. You cannot love anyone.
Getting close to Gu Chengyin was for His Highness, for the greater good of the Crown Prince's Palace, for the duty of the chief female official.
And so she approached Gu Chengyin with calculated intent.
Every chance encounter had been meticulously designed.
nd fell into a coma while saving his younger sister from an out-of-control car. He became a vegetable. No one knew that his consciousness had crossed into a world of cultivation. Over the course of sixty years, he began as the lowest kind of mine slave, struggling to survive amid mountains of corpses and seas of blood. By sheer chance, he eventually obtained the complete memories of a fallen Immortal King. Alchemy, medicine, formations, feng shui, physiognomy, artifact forging… Every great inheritance of the cultivation world was now his. But when he opened his eyes again, he discovered that ten full years had passed in the modern world. To pay for his treatment, his father had sold the family’s shop and house, leaving himself covered in lasting injuries and illness. His mother had cared for him day and night, and more than half of her hair had already turned white. His younger sister, who had been only fifteen back then, was now twenty-five. To help repay the family’s debts, she had been forced to lower her head and put on a smiling face in places of glittering lights and endless revelry. Only then did Chen Xuan understand that what he had lost was not merely ten years. He had lost the life his entire family was meant to have. The good news was that he had brought back the memories of an Immortal King’s entire lifetime. The bad news was that his soul had returned alone—his cultivation had not come with him. Spiritual energy was scarce, resources were depleted, and the modern world still had firearms, surveillance, capital, and laws. If he wanted to protect his family, break free from everyone’s control, and become truly invincible beneath the heavens, he would have to start all over again.
] [Lone Wolf, No Male Gaze] [Protagonist is pursued early on; extreme protagonist-stans, stay away!] The "Carnival Paradise" descends and slowly devours the real world in the form of a game. By chance, Zhu Yan awakens the talent [Roleplay], becoming one of the first beta players. He thought he could develop safely, but after clearing the first instance, he is branded by humanity as the chief culprit behind the game's spread—a traitorous villain. A villain? Who would ever... become one! He'll be the villain! From then on, Zhu Yan is not only a player but also a lackey for the Carnival Paradise. Between the straight path and the crooked path, he chooses the con. With his left hand, he dons the villain's mantle, staging scenes within instances, infuriating players who decry him as a despicable traitor, all while the game happily promotes him. With his right hand, he joins the non-human organization "Fangcun Mountain," which opposes the Carnival Paradise, transforming into a mysterious player who slaughters game bosses, earning cheers of "Long live the expert!" from fellow players. Gradually, Zhu Yan rises to become an S-rank human player in Fangcun Mountain's archives, while also being the Carnival Paradise's certified top game Boss. But when the final war erupts and both major factions place their hopes in him— Players tag his various aliases: "Experts, this offensive depends on you." The Carnival Paradise's supreme Boss throws an arm around his neck: "Bro, you're the iron, I'm the steel; you can't let me down again!"
ions, keeping it grounded and realistic】 After quitting his job, office worker Su Yang accidentally binds with the "Enjoy Life System." As the name suggests, simply by indulging in life's pleasures, he can earn random rewards from the system—no need to spend money on beautiful women or grovel before anyone. Just enjoy, and the money follows, making it all about effortless fun. The system comes with a scanning feature, allowing him to establish a favorability bond with women rated 85 points or above. Every 20-point increase in favorability unlocks additional rewards. After suffering through over twenty years of hardship, Su Yang trembles with excitement, his dull eyes suddenly gleaming with newfound hope. "Enjoy life? How hard could that be?"
s + Rent Collection Wealth】 At the start, he inherited a rundown house in the urban village from his grandfather. The house had no tenants, but the moment he was diagnosed with a terminal illness, a self-proclaimed empress from the Tianxuan Continent arrived as his first tenant. Ye Chuan soon discovered that with every new tenant moving in, not only did he receive massive daily payments, but he also obtained unique items related to their backgrounds. 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Tiger Strength Pill—dramatically enhances physical power!】 【Acquired Bai Qianshuang’s related item: Deer Blood Pill—significantly boosts vitality!】 …… From that day on, all sorts of bizarre tenants began appearing in the house: the empress from Tianxuan Continent, an apocalyptic sorceress from the Magic Realm, a mysterious scientific girl who fell through a spacetime rift… Every single day, he received strange, powerful items and endless money. Then one day, he suddenly realized—he had become invincible. Enough, enough! Stop giving me more!
