Weaving Lies

[Gentle piano teacher x devoted hotel owner | Sweet at first, then angsty | BE]

Shi Wenyu learns that he has terminal stomach cancer and has at most six months to live. He doesn’t want to use love as an excuse to tie her down for the rest of her life.

For the first two months, he takes her to see all the world’s splendor.

Then he joins forces with those around him to stage a heartbreaking performance, all to drive her out of his life.

“Jiang Wanyin, get out. I don’t love you anymore.”

“Shi Wenyu, have you forgotten? You were the one who said you loved me first.”

At last, he gets what he wanted. Jiang Wanyin leaves with her suitcase, never looking back.

Three months later, at his funeral, she weeps as if her heart is breaking.

She loudly demands of everyone: “Why did you lie to me? Why? Why?”

Everyone lowers their heads, too afraid to make a sound.

That night, she stands in the courtyard, gazing up at the brightest star and murmuring softly.

“Shi Wenyu, do you remember our promise? We promised that after we died, we wouldn’t drink Granny Meng’s Soup of Forgetfulness, and we wouldn’t forget each other.”

Shi Wenyu: Wanyin, I haven’t forgotten. For the rest of your life, I’ll stay by your side in a different way.

(The novel features several kinds of romance, all grounded in everyday life: secret crushes that are returned, proud roses who keep their heads high even when rejected, and those who turn away with grace after being rejected by someone they openly love. Life is nothing but a mix of sweet, sour, bitter, spicy, and salty.)