Meeting Mr. Perler

[Quirky bamboo-weaving craftswoman x gloomy, scheming younger bead-shop owner]

[Sour and sweet romance | older woman/younger man | online frenemies, offline sworn enemies]

The Liang family's bamboo-weaving shop, which had been in business for over fifty years, was bought out overnight.

And turned into a bead shop.

Liang Yunxi looked at the old shop that had grown up alongside her. It had been transformed into a cute, trendy bead shop. The owner had striking brows and bright eyes, red lips and white teeth, yet he sneered coldly:

"It's just an old shop."

Liang Yunxi spitefully went to his shop, only to unexpectedly get hooked on making bead art. But just ten minutes later, Ye Ye handed her a corner of her creation that had melted apart and calmly said, "Sorry, I burned it."

Liang Yunxi was furious but didn't dare say anything, so she secretly left a bad review.

As soon as she left the shop, she vented to an online friend, who comforted her:

"The shop owner is awful! I'm never going there again."

They met again at a cultural exhibition. Liang Yunxi's bamboo-weaving stall was right beside Ye Ye's. Her business was slow, while a crowd filled the space in front of Ye Ye's stall. In less than half an hour, he had sold out everything.

Looking at her untouched bamboo crafts, Liang Yunxi was so disheartened that she decided to pack up. Ye Ye walked up to her stall, his voice low and husky:

"I'll take everything that's left."

Later, Ye Ye offered to rent her a shop and team up to launch a couple's account to attract customers. Their products combining bead art and bamboo weaving became a huge hit.

Then, on an ordinary day, she spotted a bamboo leaf bookmark in Ye Ye's room. It clearly said:

"To Yezi"

The handwriting was crooked.

Wasn't this what she'd written for her online friend?

-

Ye Ye stubbornly insisted that he could never develop romantic feelings for anyone else.

Until Liang Yunxi showed up.

First she appeared in his virtual world, drawing him in bit by bit through their chats. Every emotion he felt, whether joy, anger, sadness, or happiness, was because of her.

Then Liang Yunxi appeared in his real life: her beautiful face still damp from the rain, a cup of roasted milk tea offered to him in late autumn, her high ponytail always swishing, her chattering never stopping.

She's really noisy, he thought.

Yet he couldn't stop himself from treating Liang Yunxi well. After a while, she took the initiative to break the tension between them:

"Do you like me, Ye Ye?"

Ye Ye gave a humorless smile and replied coolly,

"You're imagining things. I won't fall for you."

That insincere reply became the words he regretted most. Liang Yunxi left without a word, and he went mad searching every corner of the city for her, but to no avail.

Then they met again in T City.

On a snowy night, the man who had once refused to bow his head confessed his feelings again and again:

"Sis... I really... really like you."

A few notes before you read:

A fluffy, brain-off bedtime read / older woman-younger man romance. The heroine is nine years older than the hero / imperfect, unconventional characters / a story focused on the two leads.

Blurb written on September 12, 2026.

Theme: None