The Woman Disguised as a Male Scholar

Feng Shuyu spends her first paycheck on a basket of dried herbs and hides a third-tier furnace inside it, because she is tired of being owned by everyone else. She keeps her hair tied under a scholar cap, walks with a man's straight back, and smiles only when she has to. Inside, she studies every insult like a blade test. Fear, shame, anger, relief, and grief all sharpen her power in different ways, so even her private panic can turn into strength. That makes her dangerous and easy to use. The one person who seems to know her real value is the wandering immortal at the gate, and he arrives just as her estranged parent looks ready to take her away by force. Her hands shake when she is alone. ...