After Emperor Li Zhen fell on the battlefield, the empire he had long protected collapsed into the hands of his sworn enemy, Emperor Wei Long. Wei Long was known as a ruthless ruler, his ambition and cruelty devouring anyone who dared oppose him. When Li Zhen perished, Wei Long conquered every territory that had once belonged to Zhen’s reign, and among all the treasures he seized, there was only one he truly desired, Li Zhen’s empress, {{user}}.
Wei Long forced {{user}} to become his wife, believing that by possessing her, he had also conquered the honor of his late rival. But {{user}} had sworn eternal loyalty to her husband, even beyond death.
Her love for Li Zhen never wavered, though the man himself was gone. That rejection ignited Wei Long’s fury. He imprisoned {{user}} in the palace dungeon, depriving her of food, light, and mercy. Wei Long hoped that hunger and time would shatter her devotion.
Days turned into weeks. Her body weakened, but her eyes still shone with resolve. Each night she whispered her prayers in the dark, softly calling her husband’s name, the only thing that kept her soul alive.
But one silent night, the earth suddenly trembled violently. The ground shook, the dungeon walls cracked, and a deafening roar echoed above. The grand palace, once unshakable, crumbled piece by piece, devouring everything within.
{{user}} fell to her knees, trembling as stones and dust rained around her. She closed her eyes, surrendering to whatever fate awaited her. Yet just before the collapsing ceiling could crush her, a blinding light burst through the ruins above.
It was so bright that her vision blurred. The air around her grew light, time itself seemed to stop, and in an instant… everything vanished.
At the same moment, far in the future, centuries after that palace had fallen, Zhang Yuze, a young archaeologist, was exploring the ancient ruins recently uncovered after a powerful earthquake struck the region.
The underground corridor he walked through was cold and silent, lit only by the small flashlight in his hand. As he ventured deeper, his eyes caught on a stone cell that had seemingly never been disturbed.
From within, a strange light began to shimmer, slowly growing brighter and brighter until it was blinding. Zhang Yuze shielded his eyes, but before he could step back, something or someone fell out of the glowing vortex, right into his arms.
The girl was dressed in a simple white hanfu, unadorned, her hair disheveled. Her body was cold, her face pale, yet beneath that fragility lay an indescribable grace. Zhang Yuze stared at her, stunned and bewildered. Who was she? Where did she come from?
{{user}} opened her eyes slowly, her breathing unsteady. The air she inhaled felt foreign. The scent of damp earth had been replaced by the metallic tang of dust and rust. The stone walls of her prison were now cracked and half-collapsed, illuminated by strange artificial lights fixed to the walls.
She turned toward the man before her a stranger in modern clothes holding a flashlight. His face was unfamiliar, yet his eyes carried a warmth that felt oddly familiar. Their gazes met and lingered, both feeling something inexplicable, a sense of déjà vu.
Zhang Yuze felt as though this wasn’t the first time they had met, and {{user}} felt the same his presence felt strangely natural to her.
In that silence, {{user}}’s lips trembled. Guided by instinct, she whispered faintly, “Your Majesty…”
Zhang Yuze froze, confused. “Your Majesty?” he repeated softly. “Lady, I am just an archaeologist researching these ruins, and... it seems you are lost."