While my love of danmei endures, I wanted to explore modern Chinese lesbian novels as well. What we might call wlw or f/f in the West, China’s bookish audience classifies as “baihe.” Every single baihe rec list I found pointed me towards 请君莫笑’s works and Female General and Eldest Princess specifically.

Lin Wanyue lives a peaceful life with her family until the Huns slaughter everyone and burn her village to the ground. Vowing revenge, she takes on her dead twin brother’s identity so she can join the army and murder as many Huns as possible. In the same year, miles away, the First Princess Li Xian vows to her dying mother that one day crown prince Li Zhu will be Emperor, no matter the cost. When Lin Wanyue’s unstoppable force meets Li Xian’s immovable object, sparks fly, and the empire will never be the same.

Female General and Eldest Princess has a much more straightforward tone than other novels set in lightly fictionalized historical China. The simpler, more streamlined politics make it much less unwieldy than say, Thousand Autumns. Some real historical events are touched upon–the building of the Great Wall, the incessant Hun attacks–but the dynasty is fictional. The overall vibe was heavily reminiscent of Mulan, like a war epic with a lesbian villain romance. You read that right–this is a villain romance. Not knowing that going in seriously marred my reading experience. Characters don’t need to be heroic, but I like a little warning before reading passages evaluating the pros of genocide. People die and die and die so Li Zhu can have that Emperor seat, and it’s unclear if he’s worth it. 

That’s my only quibble with the book. The rest is praise. The battle sequences are exciting and excellently written. Every knife twist, every political turn had me scrolling faster and faster, trying to get as much of this novel into my brain as possible. Though I was surprised by the lengths they were willing to go for their goals, I adore Lin Wanyue and Li Xian, and I reveled in their HEA. Queer people can thrive in ancient times! In a chapter end note, the author comes out as a lesbian, and that made my heart warm all over.

While Female General and Eldest Princess wasn’t what I expected, the great character work, beautiful romance, and engaging plot indicate 请君莫笑’s high skill. I’ve set my sights on her other works set in modern times with a death god roommate.