I Like You

My new novel, *Deliberately Climbing the Ladder [Marriage Before Love]*, is now out! A top conglomerate's head x a news anchor

[Fake playboy x genuinely heartless]

[Capital's pampered young master x pure, radiant classical dance student]

Zhong Boxuan first met Cen Yi at a party his friends had thrown to welcome him back.

At the time, Cen Yi was there as one of his friend's dates.

Zhong Boxuan noticed her at once: long, straight black hair, a tight-fitting qipao that traced her perfect curves, and a pure, delicate face, pale and soft as jade.

One of his friends whispered to him, "See her? She's the woman Meng Huizhou spent a fortune on. I hear she's a classical dancer. Ever since he got together with her, Meng Huizhou hasn't gone to those places of debauchery once."

Another friend chimed in, "He's spent a ton on her, and they've been together for two months. He takes her everywhere. Looks like Young Master Meng might finally be ready to mend his ways."

Zhong Boxuan was surprised. Meng Huizhou was a notorious playboy in their circle, the sort who'd flirt with every flower in the garden and leave none untouched.

The Zhong, Ying, Meng, and Shen families were the four great families of Jing City. The Mengs were especially prominent, and Meng Huizhou had older siblings, so he bore none of the family's responsibilities. Naturally, he could do whatever he pleased.

But Zhong Boxuan doubted this playboy had really turned over a new leaf. If he'd spent a fortune to get the woman, wasn't she just a gold digger? What good could possibly come of it?

As if sensing his thoughts, Cen Yi looked over, whether intentionally or not, her eyes crinkling into a smile.

"Damn, she's incredible!" his friend exclaimed, having noticed her too.

Zhong Boxuan indifferently looked away and shifted in his seat. "She's only so-so."

A few months later, the friends gathered again, this time to comfort Young Master Meng after his romance ended. Apparently, the woman had dumped him.

Unusually, Zhong Boxuan came along too. One friend consoled Meng Huizhou, "That woman was just after your money. There are all kinds of birds in a big forest."

Before Meng Huizhou could even protest, Zhong Boxuan spoke up. "I doubt that."

His friend: "?"

Zhong Boxuan: "So what if she was after his money? Even if she didn't want to take it, there'd be plenty of people eager to give it to her."

His friend stared blankly. Seeing Meng Huizhou still heartbroken, he tried again to comfort him. "She only acted innocent on the surface. I'm sure she was wild behind closed doors. There are plenty of other women, so don't let it get you down."

Zhong Boxuan: "You're wrong about that. She really is pure. All the women in the world can't compare to her."

His friend: "? Didn't you say she was only so-so?"

Zhong Boxuan: "Actually, no. She's truly beautiful. What a shame Huizhou wasn't lucky enough to keep her."

Unlucky Meng Huizhou was even more devastated.

His friend: "?"

Come on, man. You weren't saying that a few months ago. And are you here to comfort your good friend or rub salt in the wound?!

Besides, how would you even know?

One midsummer evening, a group of young masters raced their cars along the road. To help Young Master Meng get over his heartbreak as soon as possible, the guys took turns playing good cop and bad cop.

Then they passed an intersection, where a black Maybach with the license plate Jing A00000 was parked. One friend whistled. "Isn't that Young Master Zhong's car?"

Another friend grinned wickedly. "What could Young Master Zhong be doing parked here so late at night? Heh heh."

His tone was so suggestive that anyone could hear the teasing in it.

Meng Huizhou was still drowning in the pain of his breakup. "Call Zhong Boxuan. Damn it, I'm suffering over here while he's having the time of his life."

Someone answered the call. It was a woman's voice. "Hello." Her voice trembled slightly.

His friends laughed. "Don't interrupt Young Master Zhong's good time."

But Meng Huizhou's mind reeled. That voice... why did it sound so much like the ex-girlfriend who'd dumped him?

In the car, Zhong Boxuan leaned close to the ear of the disheveled woman pinned against the passenger seat and whispered jealously, "Why aren't you saying anything? Afraid they'll recognize you?"

*Both leads are sexually inexperienced. The heroine has no intimate contact with the second male lead while they are dating, and there is no real romantic attachment between them.

*An unconventional friends-with-benefits-to-lovers story. The hero keeps trying to claim the heroine's heart, but she won't let him.

*The heroine never cheats while in a relationship. Prosperity, democracy, civility, and harmony.

#How I Fell for My Friend's Girlfriend and Stole Her Away

#Everyday Face-Slapping

#A Mistress's Status, a Wife's Mindset

Theme: Love is in the hands of fate