An Old Promise

Childhood sweethearts | Reunion after years apart | A touch of ensemble cast | Cohabitation romance

Clearheaded and carefree x Dark, aloof, and arrogant

Xu Ciying and Sheng Rangchen were born on the same day, and even their names come from the same poem.

Their families live opposite each other, and they've been classmates ever since kindergarten.

In high school, their classmates teased them: "You two would make a mess of things if you didn't get married."

"You just want to give one wedding gift instead of two," Xu Ciying said, looking at her cool and distant childhood friend. "Forget it. I don't want to look at that face for the rest of my life."

Even though Sheng Rangchen was a spirited, popular student known throughout the school.

Beside her, Sheng Rangchen scoffed. "Funny, I was thinking the same thing."

They were inseparable for eighteen years, but went their separate ways after the college entrance exams.

They meet again seven years later.

Xu Ciying returns to Nancheng, and Sheng Rangchen is just as she remembers him, if not even more accomplished. He's constantly appearing in front-page headlines.

While her family home is being renovated, Xu Ciying stays at Sheng Rangchen's place.

They keep out of each other's way, awkward roommates who barely know each other.

Then a mutual friend drops by. "So you two are really getting married?"

Sheng Rangchen neither confirms nor denies it. "I'll send you an invitation when the time comes."

After their friend leaves, Xu Ciying looks at him. "You're crossing a line. We're just neighbors."

Sheng Rangchen says, "Neighbors? I've been sick of being your neighbor for damn ages."

Later, the old bookstore at the entrance to the alley is demolished, and a promise they made at ten is unearthed beneath a chinaberry tree.

Xu Ciying wrote: [Be neighbors for life.]

Sheng Rangchen wrote: [Make money to buy her dresses.]

Later still, he makes good on his promise.

Xu Ciying does the math. "If we get married, we'll get fewer wedding gifts. That's not okay."

Sheng Rangchen: "I'll make up the difference. Don't even think about leaving me again."

"The little shop at the entrance to the alley holds a promise from years ago. Now that they've met again, everything is just right."

The protagonists' names come from the lines "The mountains let no dust settle, the rivers reject no surplus."

Chinaberry tree: A deciduous tree in the genus Melia, family Meliaceae, order Sapindales. It flowers in late spring, with pale purple blossoms.

Theme: Study hard and keep improving