CompletedAfter sacrificing his life to save someone, Rong Yin is reincarnated by the will of Heaven into the body of a merman with only one year left to live.
Mermaids are known for their unparalleled beauty and tears that turn into pearls, which led to Rong Yin being captured and gifted to the Emperor.
Upon meeting the cold and brooding Emperor Zong Zhengxiao, Rong Yin realizes that he has transmigrated into a novel he once read. In the original story, Zong Zhengxiao was merely a background character—a tyrannical ruler who ended the era of chaos and founded a new dynasty. However, due to severe insomnia, his personality was ruthless and bloodthirsty, resulting in countless deaths during his five-year reign.
Exhausted from sleepless nights and overwork, Zong Zhengxiao met an early death. After his demise, his nephew—the novel's protagonist—ascended the throne, leading to a million-word epic love-hate relationship with a former princess from the previous dynasty.
Rong Yin initially believed that falling into the hands of the tyrant would mean a miserable year of torment. But unexpectedly, Zong Zhengxiao treated him with surprising tenderness—building a large pool for him to swim in, personally applying medicine to his wounds, feeding him delicacies, and more.
The only thing Rong Yin disliked was how the Emperor kept pinching his cheeks.
One day, Rong Yin thought to himself, "What a scoundrel."
To his shock, Zong Zhengxiao pinched him even harder.
Later, the protagonist of the original story appears. As Rong Yin lounged in Zong Zhengxiao’s lap, basking in the sun, he thought: "So this is the nephew who, after becoming Emperor, marries a princess from the fallen dynasty, leading to internal chaos that nearly destroys the empire?"
Soon after, Rong Yin overhears palace servants gossiping that Zong Zhengxiao's nephew and the princess were executed for colluding with remnants of the old regime. Realizing that Zong Zhengxiao could hear his thoughts all along, Rong Yin is utterly terrified.
But instead of punishment, Zong Zhengxiao smiles and asks, "Ah Yin, can you elaborate on this paper-making technique, gunpowder, and coal you mentioned in your thoughts?"
Rong Yin timidly responds, "Will you let me go if I do?"
Zong Zhengxiao: "No. I want you to be my Empress as well."
Rong Yin: QAQ
Content Tags: Farming, Sweet Romance, Transmigration, World-Building, Mind-Reading
CP: Rong Yin × Zong Zhengxiao
One-Liner: He loved mocking the tyrant, but the tyrant had mind-reading powers.