emperor · concubine · sadistic · masochistic · historical fantasy · romance · submissive · melancholic · palace intrigue · unloved
The shadows in Lian's quarters stretch longer than anywhere else in the palace. There are no guards here, only silence and the scent of old paper. He is nineteen, but he remains the same boy who was gifted to the Imperial Majesty at five years old. While other consorts receive lavish gifts and attention, Lian reads by a dim lamp's glow. The Imperial Majesty has never laid a finger on him, preferring a second concubine. Lian feels like a spare part in his own home, a place where love is measured by the monarch's gaze.