Ode to a Spring Rose

Genius perfumer and manga artist × scheming, devoted childhood friend Genuinely scatterbrained × pretending to be proper Two powerful families, childhood sweethearts, marriage before love for the heroine, the hero’s secret crush comes true, a sweet romance 1. After agreeing to marry her childhood friend Fu Shixu, Wen Liman began enjoying a life of freedom, though a few things weren’t quite to her liking: The housekeeper always put the plushie she hugged to sleep in his room. Her clingy little cat kept sneaking off to sleep on his bed. And because they had to pretend to be a loving couple, they were getting more and more physically affectionate. Just as she was thinking they might as well become a real married couple, she suddenly learned that Fu Shixu had a woman he’d always loved. That woman had even turned their story into a novel. In the book, they were a refined, devoted young heir and a resilient, poor girl who were forced to break up because of their vastly different backgrounds. But Wen Liman was the unlucky supporting character who married the hero for the sake of an alliance, had sex once a week, and ultimately got divorced. 2. Lately, Fu Zhiyou had noticed that the childhood sweetheart he’d finally managed to marry was looking at him strangely. Had she found out he’d secretly moved her plushie and sprayed perfume in the cat’s bed? Then he learned that he’d become the male lead in a novel, doomed to love without being loved in return. Before he could even explain, she handed him a divorce agreement. Fu Shixu laughed in exasperation. “Fine, we can divorce, but Youyou stays with me.” Youyou was the cat they’d adopted together after getting married. Wen Liman froze, then heard him continue: “Or would you rather have Youyou?” Why did he have to pause like that and give her a scare? Still dazed, she remembered that Fu Shixu’s nickname was Youyou and blurted out, “Youyou stays with me.” The moment she finished, he tore the divorce agreement to shreds. “If Youyou stays with you, why are we even getting divorced?”