The Childhood Friend I Hurt Turned Dark

The upcoming novel "A Maid at His Side" is now available. See the blurb below. If you like it, click into my author page to bookmark it~ Blurb: When Deng Zhiyao returned to the capital in glory, Gu Mei knew she was done for. After all, she had schemed against him and used him more than once to climb out of the mire. -- When their master was reinstated, everyone in the Deng household was delighted. Before long, though, they were all trembling with fear. Their master had changed. His former gentleness was gone, replaced by an imposing presence and a sinister gaze that made anyone who caught it shudder. They, too, hated the Gu family's cousin who had caused their master to leave the capital in disgrace. Still, watching their master keep the young woman locked in a room and torment her day after day was hard not to pity. One night, a maid came to deliver hangover soup and happened to witness this scene. The cold and severe Grand Secretary kissed the tiny teardrops on the lovely woman's face, then her full lips, bit by bit. His voice was as tender as wine: "You wanted wealth and glory. I have them now. You wanted a husband of the highest rank, and now I am one. So why are you still looking for someone else?" He knew that beneath her pitiful facade, she was ruthless and calculating, advancing one step at a time. And yet, even knowing how mercenary and ambitious she was, he couldn't stop his heart from fluttering for her again and again. That midsummer, she stood amid the pink and white hibiscus blossoms filling the courtyard, radiant as a flame. It was the first time he had seen her. She tipped her head back, her eyes curving into crescents, tugged at his sleeve, and called him "big brother" in a sweet, soft voice. He knew she was deliberately trying to seduce him, yet still fell for her in that moment. *For years, he risked his life to earn the glory that would make him a lofty branch she could reach for. 1. A scheming heroine and a brooding hero. 2. The hero is a virgin; the heroine is not. Upcoming novel 1: "A Maid at His Side" Nan Zhi was the envy of everyone in the marquis's household, for she was the personal maid doted on by the Marquis of Dingyuan and the only woman he had ever taken to bed. Such unprecedented favor meant that even the household's masters had to show her some respect. With that slender waist, narrow enough for one hand to encircle, and those pitiful almond eyes, she was sure to have a bright future. But no one knew that all Nan Zhi wanted was to buy her freedom and leave the household. When she knelt before Qi Jingtang and told him what she wanted, the man merely glanced at her. "I'll assume you were confused. Don't let it happen again." He turned a page beneath his fingertips. Seeing her eyes redden, he softened at last. She had been tossed about by fate since childhood, after all; it was only natural for her to feel anxious and hesitant. "Don't worry. Once my new bride arrives, you'll be my concubine." But when the marquis was about to arrange his marriage, and Nan Zhi realized she would become a thorn in his future wife's side, she packed her bags in the middle of the night and faked her death to escape. * At first, he kept her only to reassure the old madam. He never knew when his feelings for her had turned romantic. He had no idea the girl could be so troublesome, or that she had such an untimely sense of pride. Like a sparrow fluttering in a cage, she would peck him if he let his guard down. So he would tap her with a bent finger now and then, then soothe her with a gentle rub and scatter some grain. He thought she would behave. But it was only when he heard of her death that Qi Jingtang understood what it felt like to have his heart pecked hollow. Upcoming novel 2: "The Scheming Maid's Rise" Yuanwei had been beautiful since childhood, with clear almond-shaped eyes, cherry-red lips, a hibiscus-petal face, and a willow-slim waist. When she smiled, a pair of dimples appeared, and her soft beauty was beguiling. Sadly, she was only a servant in the Su household. The Su family's young lady had schemed her way into marrying Lu Jingze, the noble heir to the marquis's estate, but he ignored her and still hadn't consummated their marriage after a year. So the young lady's mother chose Yuanwei to serve as her daughter's bedchamber maid. Yuanwei heard everything when Madam Su advised her daughter. "Yuanwei is just a plaything we're sending over. Once she has a child, you'll have her contract in your hands. You can beat her or kill her as you please." Yuanwei smiled. Why should a servant's life be worth nothing? The night she was sent to Lu Jingze's room, she saw him frown and start to leave. She grabbed his sleeve, tears glistening in her eyes. "My lord, heir to the marquis, please stay here for just one night and save my life. I promise to know my place and never overstep." After he let her stay, she was gentle and considerate, becoming the confidante who could always smooth the furrow from his brow. Then, one day, in a thin summer dress, she became his true woman. Later, when she became pregnant, she deliberately let him catch her about to abort the child. As he flew into a rage, she threw herself into his arms, weeping pitifully. "How could I not love my own child? I'm just afraid that if I give birth, Madam won't tolerate me anymore... How could I bear to see him left all alone in this world..." Before long, Lu Jingze took her contract from the Su family, and she was no longer a servant. Not long after that, Lu Jingze divorced his wife. But then she heard that Lu Jingze was going to marry a new wife. She picked up her child and left the estate that very night. When the man stopped her, she was the first to feel wronged. "I don't want Heng'er to call another woman Mother and be treated as inferior from then on." One night, Lu Jingze suddenly sensed something was wrong. Just as he furrowed his brows, his pregnant wife whimpered beside him. "Husband, my leg's cramping again." Lu Jingze quickly got up to massage her leg. "Is that better?" His languid wife complained, "Use a little more strength." Lu Jingze had spent his whole life holding fast to propriety and uprightness. He despised scheming women most of all. And yet, in the end, Yuanwei was the one who got the better of him... Theme: Be a person of integrity.