Name: The Puppy Wags Its Tail [Break Up to Make Up]
Author: Zhao Yunning

Synopsis

[Cunning, reserved wallflower × devoted, possessive puppy-like boy 🐶]

[Civilian lawyer × celebrity musician]

Everyone thinks Ye Shuyi is punching above her weight by dating Liang Yunxiao.

Liang Yunxiao is a street-dance champion, a fan favorite, and a musical prodigy who shot to fame at a young age. He's bright and dazzling, and everyone says he's hard to win over.

Ye Shuyi is gentle, reserved, and well-behaved, keeping a low profile as if she'd disappear into the dust.

No one thought she could win him over. Even when they went public, nobody approved. Everyone was just waiting to see when he'd dump her.

Only his friend Zhou Hao saw the truth. He patted Liang Yunxiao, who was still out cold from a hangover, and said:

“Liang Yunxiao, one day she's going to destroy you.”

-

On the eve of the televised competition's live performance, in a dim, low-ceilinged stairwell, the young man rests his forehead against hers. His breath comes in broken gasps, and his voice is hoarse beyond recognition.

“If I take first place and debut, will you stay with me?”

Ye Shuyi is weak from his kisses, her hands pinned in his grasp, yet her gaze is cruelly clear. “We're already over.”

-

Years later, they meet again. Liang Yunxiao is now a top-tier star in music, with his new song topping the charts, his tour selling out in seconds, and an aura of success surrounding him. Ye Shuyi is just an unremarkable assistant at a law firm. Their lives are worlds apart.

She deliberately keeps her distance, thinking he no longer loves her.

But when he learns she's gone to see another man, Liang Yunxiao nearly loses control. He locks the car doors, speeds up, and lets the engine roar.

“You were the one who came after me first.” He turns to her, fury and hurt churning in his eyes. “You should've known this day would come.”

Liang Yunxiao throws her onto the sofa. His lips travel downward, kissing her chin, neck, and the side of her ear. His scorching breath brushes her skin.

“If he sees these marks...”

“What will he think?”

* One-on-one romance, both leads are each other's first and only, HE

* The heroine has mild hearing loss. The description of her as “cunning and aloof” has an explanation and a reason. After the breakup, she only had a brief relationship in name, with no physical intimacy and no real feelings.

* The hero is hopelessly in love. He gets a little broken later, but remains sunny at heart. They heal each other by the end.

* Entirely fictional setting. Please don't compare it to real life.

Coming next: Bite and Burn. Please add it to your favorites

Sweet, sheltered heiress × powerful daddy

Ji Xi first meets Wen Tingyu at her father's wedding.

She is thirteen that year, the unhappiest person at the entire wedding. She slips away and hides in the courtyard, her eyes red. He finds her and offers her a tissue.

Later, Ji Xi is sent to an elite school, and her father asks Wen Tingyu to look after her. She stays at the Wen home on weekends, calling him “Uncle Wen,” and he answers as naturally as can be.

Wen Tingyu is a friend of Ji Xi's father, and she should call him “Uncle Wen.” He shelters her, steps in to protect her, and raises her to be the most well-behaved plant in his greenhouse.

-

Wen Tingyu thinks he's only taking care of an old friend's daughter.

He tells himself that his urge to be close to her is concern, compassion, a senior's care for a younger person.

He draws a boundary with reason, then blurs it with tenderness. Until the night of her eighteenth birthday, when the young woman, flushed from alcohol, corners him among the desk and chairs in his study.

“Can I... kiss you?”

Wen Tingyu looks up at her, restraining his restless desire. His voice is low and heavy. “Do you know what you're doing?”

-

Later, they part ways. They meet again at a dinner gathering.

She brings another man with her. Wen Tingyu says nothing and makes the man drink three glasses of wine as punishment.

In the restroom, he pins her against the wall, lifts her chin, and bends to kiss her. His voice is low and hoarse, gentle as he coaxes her:

“Be good, Xixi. Go break up with him.”

* No intimate scenes before she comes of age

* Both leads are each other's first and only, HE

* Neither lead is perfect

Coming after that: The Moon in My Heart [Marriage Before Love]

Lively and radiant × Pure and restrained

Sunny heiress × Literature professor

To He Xingyao, Xie Wenyan is a high moon hanging in the sky.

When she was a girl, she called him “Brother Xie,” an older boy who was far too accomplished and far too distant. After meeting Xie Wenyan, every other man seemed like settling.

Raised in California sunshine, He Xingyao has never lacked for boys eager to pursue her. But after returning to China, she looks around and still finds Xie Wenyan the most irresistible. Gentle and restrained, distant yet courteous, the youngest literature professor at M University, with a thick stack of research achievements to his name. He stands there immaculate, like a lofty mountain herb beyond anyone's reach.

Then a marriage contract falls from the sky.

The Xie family's grandfather is ill and longs to see his grandson married. He has someone match their birth dates and is told they are a perfect match who can also resolve his grandson's romantic tribulation. The old man believes it wholeheartedly and declares that he wants to see them married while he is still alive.

Xie Wenyan can't refuse out of filial devotion. He Xingyao happily agrees.

At long last, she gets to bring home the man she's been pining for.

-

After the wedding, Xie Wenyan strictly follows the rules. He doesn't touch her, kiss her, or do anything intimate. They are a couple in name only. He Xingyao finds a book in his study claiming that “abstinence is good for your health.” She reasonably suspects this man is a monk who can count the number of times he masturbates on one hand.

Then one day, after they'd been married for a while, she wakes up aching all over and discovers that the refined, distinguished man turns into a tiger once he breaks his vows. She can't keep up. Her face flushed, she can barely get the words out. “Brother Xie, you've changed.”

Xie Wenyan takes his time showing her, his voice low. “Is there anything wrong with satisfying my wife?”

Later, Xie Wenyan returns from a business trip and finds a divorce agreement on the table.

He thinks his sweet little wife has found someone new. That night, holding back his jealousy, he coaxes her with actions as he indulges all her strange preferences. He even agrees to let her do whatever she wants in his study. He nibbles her ear, his voice low and soft. “Yaoyao, don't divorce me, okay? Can you really bear to leave your Brother Xie?”

-A little scene-

After they marry, Xie Wenyan finds He Xingyao's teenage diary while tidying up. The pages are filled with neat rows of characters, chronicling the restraint and desire of loving someone.

He has written her a whole book of love letters, too.

The young girl's first love finally gets an answer years later:

A promise from Xie Wenyan to love her for the rest of his life.

* Mainly focuses on married life

* The heroine is in love with him, but never grovels. The hero is devoted in both body and heart.

* He seems abstinent and restrained, but is full of surprises. He feels insecure about their age gap and secretly goes mad with jealousy. Even when he's angry, he'll give her the cold shoulder while washing her underwear!

* He's not a traditional unattainable ideal. He's cunning and knows how to make sure she can't leave him.

Theme: Love bravely.