Plucking the Tender Blossom

Su Rui had only graduated from high school. Fortunately, she was fair-skinned and beautiful, with naturally lovely features that fueled her ambition to climb the social ladder. After a carefully planned encounter at a bar, she successfully became Lin Tingzhou's nanny and moved into his home to take charge of his daily needs.

Everything that followed went remarkably smoothly. Lin Tingzhou presented her with a ten-carat diamond ring and said he wanted to marry her.

With tears streaming down her face, she accepted, deeply moved, and slipped the heavy ring onto her ring finger.

Although Lin Tingzhou had a disability in one leg, he was handsome and rich, and both his parents were dead. For someone of her background, he was about as good a match as she could hope for.

He wanted to introduce her to his closest friend. She thought it would be an ordinary dinner, and that she could get through it as usual by acting like an innocent, delicate flower.

But the man across the table gave her a long, ruthless once-over with eyes that seemed to see right through her. Then, without sparing her any face, he said in front of Lin Tingzhou, "She's not good enough for you."

In an instant, the smile on Su Rui's face froze. She wanted nothing more than to flatten him and roll him into a ball.

Anyone who stood between her and a marriage into a wealthy family was her enemy.

*

In the spacious fitting room of a bridal shop, the zipper on Su Rui's back suddenly jammed. No matter how hard she tried, she couldn't pull it up.

Just then, the door quietly opened. Her slender shoulders and neck trembled, but she quickly steadied herself.

The only person who would walk in so openly had to be her fiance, Lin Tingzhou.

So she lifted her foxlike eyes and simply tugged the zipper all the way down. Her smooth, fair skin gleamed under the lights, as silky and tempting as milk.

Standing straight with her back to the mirror, Su Rui deliberately softened her voice. "Tingzhou, could you help me with my zipper...?"

The footsteps drew closer. The man's fingertips traced from her shoulder blade down to her waist, setting off a teasing shiver.

She was abruptly turned around and stumbled backward in alarm. Just as she was about to hit the table, the back of the man's hand pressed against her waist.

A sinister smile played on Zhou Siyun's lips as he bent toward her. "Miss Su, is this how you usually seduce Tingzhou?"

*

Later, Zhou Siyun decided to tell his friend every detail of how Su Rui had deliberately approached him in the first place.

In a private club, Lin Tingzhou sat upright on a long sofa, holding a glass of red wine. He swirled it for a long time without drinking, seemingly unruffled. "That's all? Tell me something I don't know."

Zhou Siyun sat opposite him, a cigarette between his fingers. Through the curling smoke, he couldn't make out his friend's expression, yet his own hand began to tremble. Ash from the burned-down cigarette fell onto the back of his hand, but his drifting thoughts registered not the slightest pain.

With a crash, the wineglass shattered into two pieces on the coffee table. Bright red wine mixed with blood and ran between Lin Tingzhou's fingers.

His voice was no longer as warm as before. "So what? I break up with Su Rui and hand her over to you?"

Theme: Be brave enough to pursue love.