Marriage first, love later + top-tier star x ordinary person + fake relationship turns real + secret marriage + fans’ showdown + childhood friends, older man
Who could have guessed that when I, An Yu, was 20 and a junior in college, my mom would suddenly drag me off to a blind date?
She hadn’t given me the slightest warning the day before. In the morning, she just told me to get ready without saying who I’d be meeting or where we were going.
I followed her to a grand villa. I’d barely sat down on the sofa when I heard footsteps on the stairs. A man came slowly down, one hand on the railing. His suit accentuated his broad shoulders and slim waist, and beneath his lean frame was a hint of strength. He was the very picture of looking slim in clothes and muscular out of them.
The moment I saw his face, I froze. My parents smiled as they introduced us: my blind date was none other than Lu Qinlang, the top-tier star from the boy band I was always seeing online!
His whole family had moved overseas ten years ago. After returning to China, he debuted at sixteen and shot to fame. I’d long forgotten he was my childhood playmate; all I vaguely remembered was an older boy who used to play with me.
As soon as we sat down, Grandpa Lu brought out old videotapes. Onscreen, I clung to him and called him “Stone Brother,” but his eyes were full of distance. Neither of us took this matchmaking arranged by our elders seriously.
I was even more afraid of his celebrity status. If his fans caught us together, an ordinary student like me would probably be hounded, insulted, and dug up for dirt.
Grandpa Lu arranged two more meetings. I showed up bundled up each time, but we remained polite and made no progress.
When it looked like nothing would come of it, Grandpa Lu pretended to be sick, lay in bed, and declared, “If you don’t get married, I won’t get treatment.”
For old times’ sake, Lu Qinlang and I gave in and got our marriage license, becoming a couple in name only.
But Lu Qinlang, didn’t you say this was just to humor our elders?
You know I’m afraid of your fans attacking me, so why is your gaze growing more and more heated? How is this fake marriage starting to feel so real?
