CEO, Do You Enjoy Kneeling on the Washboard?

A collection of old-school, melodramatic stories about domineering CEOs who mistreat their sweethearts, then go crawling back to win them over. Story 1: Rising Star x Powerful CEO Everyone in the industry knows that Zhou Hua, the new king of showbiz, has a spouse, but no one has ever seen them. Before Shui Yuning and Zhou Hua registered their marriage, Zhou Hua laid down three rules: No one outside the family can know they are married. Shui Yuning cannot use the Zhou family name to get work. And Shui Yuning cannot cheat, including pretending to be in a relationship with someone else for publicity. Looking down at him, Zhou Hua said, "You know exactly why you climbed into my bed." Shui Yuning knew perfectly well how he and Zhou Hua had gotten together, so he wasn't upset by these three rules. In fact, he felt relieved. This way, he could quietly leave three years later without causing Zhou Hua any trouble. Later, Zhou Hua discovered that Shui Yuning had been taking birth control pills all along, and was even preparing for a divorce. Furious, he held Shui Yuning and kissed him relentlessly, but Shui Yuning still said, exhausted, "Let's get divorced." Zhou Hua roared, "You'll be Mrs. Zhou for the rest of your life!" But this time, President Zhou's words didn't carry much weight. Story 2: Little Spy x Powerful CEO (a corporate spy) Because their parents were always busy with work and flying all over the world, Luo Baobao was too frail to travel with them. He grew up alone abroad, raised by a housekeeper at the family estate. Later, when Luo Baobao heard that his older brother had run into trouble back home, he returned without hesitation to help him deal with that big...problem. He'd heard the big...problem was a stalker who followed his brother around every day. Even though he knew his brother had a boyfriend, he still demanded that his brother be with him. If his brother refused, he wouldn't work with him, and he even wanted to steal his company! How could Luo Baobao possibly let that happen? He was going to make that huge pervert pay! When Gu Hanyi first saw Luo Baobao, he thought he would make a good substitute. Since Luo Zhou wouldn't give in, he might as well find someone new and interesting. Later, Luo Baobao left. Gu Hanyi searched everywhere, but couldn't find him. He would never find that adorable baby again, or hear him call him "big...problem." P.S. It's a substitute trope. The younger brother is the substitute. I just love melodrama, so satisfying! My next novel, Reborn as a Little Mute. Please add it to your reading list. Blurb: In his previous life, Mu Xiaoke was a fool. He actually dared to fall for Jiang Yuze, the same man his older brother loved. He was a useless little mute. Why would Jiang Yuze choose him? He shouldn't have competed with his brother, or married into the Rong family as his brother's replacement. Otherwise, he wouldn't have died alone in the wilderness, with no one to claim his body. He was given a chance to be reborn, and returned to the start of his freshman year of high school. He knew he couldn't repeat his past mistakes. He had to stay far away from his brother, Jiang Yuze, and Rong Yanzhe, who had treated him cruelly as a replacement for his brother. This time, he wanted nothing at all. He just wanted to live in peace. But he never expected that when he kept his distance from those people, they would keep pursuing him. In his panic, he accidentally got involved with another man he absolutely had to stay away from... P.S. 1. In his previous life, the protagonist was married to the scummy Gong Rong. If that bothers you, don't read. 2. The plot is melodramatic, a little angsty, and conventional. The scumbag gets his comeuppance gradually. 3. A new love interest, and this one is even more powerful. Theme: