[Gorgeous, Goofy, Money-Grubbing Village Girl × Upright, Aloof, Patriarchal Big Daddy | Big Bad Wolf Pretends to Be a Little White Rabbit and Drives the Real Lamb Crazy]
Yun Yao was born with cloudlike hair, a slender waist, and a naturally seductive charm. She was also sick of being poor.
To scrape together the travel money she needed to head to the capital and mooch off relatives, she used every trick she had to coax the cool, noble power minister Shen Ji into bed. Then she swindled him out of his valuables and ran, hoping that with mountains and miles between them, they would never meet again.
As it turned out, Shen Ji was her betrothed.
On their wedding night, Yun Yao was stunned when he lifted her veil. She shrank beside the bed and stammered, "H-Husband..."
He reached out and gripped her chin, his eyes filled with undisguised disdain and contempt. "Run, then. Why aren't you running this time? You had the nerve to run a honey trap on me. Quite the talent."
He had meant to divorce her, but the spring wine was intoxicating. One reckless night later, they had become husband and wife in truth.
**
After they married, he treated her with icy indifference. She, meanwhile, saw money signs in her eyes. He was powerful and influential, which would make it easy for her to rake in cash.
To build up her little nest egg, she was tender and considerate, and in bed she gave herself over to passion.
One day, after they were done, her jade feet slipped from his shoulders. As she helped Shen Ji dress, he glanced down, caught sight of the marks of their lovemaking, then quietly turned his head away.
He thought, This wild girl, where did she learn all these tricks? How scandalous. She must be madly in love with me. Very well, I'll treat her a little better from now on.
**
He never imagined that once Yun Yao had saved enough money, she would bundle up her belongings and run away again.
On a rainy day in a little Jiangnan courtyard, Yun Yao was holding hands with her childhood sweetheart when the gate was kicked open with a crash.
The armed Imperial Guards surrounded the courtyard, leaving no way out. A familiar figure stood at the entrance.
Shen Ji slowly advanced on her, laughing darkly. "Yun Yao, you've got some nerve. Are you coming to beg me yourself, or should I go over there and kill him?"
He watched the young woman, so frightened that tears gathered on her lashes, and his gaze grew darker.
Once, twice. There would never be a third time.
This time, he would lock her to the bed and punish her day and night, until her eyes, heart, and body remembered no one but him.
[Bonus Scene]
Shen Ji stood in the doorway, eyes red. "Yao Yao, you told me you loved me."
Yun Yao bit a gold ingot and cocked her head. "Does loving your money and your face count?"
[Reading Guide]
1. Both leads are virgins, one-on-one romance, happy ending.
2. Marriage before love, then falling hard | face-slapping | husband pursues his runaway wife | rekindled romance | bickering couple.
3. The heroine puts making money first. The hero is blind and makes up a romance in his head at first, then becomes crazed and obsessive as he pursues her.
Blurb written on January 19, 2026
Theme: Love yourself
