A One-Man Show

This isn't written well, so please don't read it. I'm begging you, on my knees, qwq As Jing Mian's fiancée, Jiang Muning took patience and devotion to the extreme. Once the precious darling of her family, she had to endure his cold indifference, take care of all the daily details of his life, handle his social obligations, and even occasionally look after his sickly childhood friend, who might have been his first love. Some pitied her, others looked down on her, but Jiang Muning never cared. She had pretended to be deeply in love for so long that she almost believed it herself at times. Then, as their wedding approached, all the old conflicts that had been ignored came to light one by one. Amidst the glittering nightlife, Jing Mian listened as others exposed the wounds in Jiang Muning's heart that she had never let anyone touch. He let them humiliate and trample her, and showed no reaction at all. At last, Jiang Muning's limits were crossed. She calmly called off the engagement, then vanished from his world for good. She returned to the Jiang family and became the pampered young lady she had once been. By chance, Jing Mian passed by and saw the happiness and harmony he had never known. Backlit, Jiang Muning gazed at the laughter filling the courtyard, her eyes warm with a smile. She was happier than she had ever been with him. Only then did Jing Mian finally understand: She had called him "A-Jing" only because the name of her deceased lover was Yun Jing. She had been considerate because she was simply used to looking after others. Even their engagement in the first place had been nothing more than a mutually beneficial arrangement made after weighing the pros and cons. From beginning to end, all the concessions, sacrifices, and generosity in this relationship had been nothing but a one-man show on his part. Content warnings: * The heroine once loved someone else. * This is my personal take on the "win her back after losing her" trope. I couldn't find one that suited me, so I rolled up my sleeves and wrote one myself. * This isn't a typical groveling romance. Please don't bash it if it's not your thing. * Idea drafted on September 15, revised on December 25. Proof: screenshot from Weibo. "I Will Win People Over with Virtue," a collaborative story with my friend. It's a long one. Sending love to the authors. Let's grow stronger together, and don't forget us when you get rich! Blurb: Ruan Qing is an unconventional task-taker with a wide range of specialties. She's good at weaving illusions, and her hobby is bringing the light of justice to every world. She sterilizes domineering CEOs with a penchant for confinement without asking for a penny. She helps abusive men who live off their partners spend the rest of their lives in prison, expecting nothing in return. She sends hypocritical, harmful troublemakers into endless nightmares from which they cannot wake, yet never lets it go to her head. Even her two friends are diligent in using virtue [and physical force] to win people over. Their dedication to their work is enough to bring one to tears. As for the despairing curses she occasionally hears in her ear... Huh, where's that pig squealing? "The Max-Level Expert Transmigrates into a Good-for-Nothing Summoner." Ahem, this is just to fill the schedule. I'll try to start it soon. Blurb: Fu Yi, a cultivation-world powerhouse, is pulled into a power-fantasy novel about a strong heroine and becomes one of the cannon fodder characters meant to highlight the heroine's strength and dazzling success. The heroine, Ye Wushuang, is a mercenary queen from another world. After transmigrating into the body of the original owner's biological sister, she becomes the perfect foil to the original owner, who has a tragic life. They are both abandoned, but Ye Wushuang is found by divine beasts and becomes their beloved, while the original owner wanders alone and becomes an orphan. When they come of age and enter the academy, they awaken their talents and summon spirit beasts, as expected. Ye Wushuang dazzles everyone with a whole string of divine beasts, while the original owner has the weakest affinity and summons absolutely nothing. In the end, the original owner can no longer endure the ridicule and the enormous gap between them. She tries to sabotage Ye Wushuang, only to be torn to pieces by wild wolves. Fu Yi, who has been the focus of the cultivation world since birth: "...?" Her spiritual power is too weak to form contracts with spirit beasts? Then she'll strengthen herself and tear divine beasts apart with her bare hands. Outsiders spread lies and slander? Then she'll make those rumors come true and beat them all back, one by one, until they shut up. The heroine looks down on everyone and casually bestows charity? Then she'll give that charity right back. Power borrowed from others is ultimately just an illusion. When everything is over, Fu Yi watches the cannon fodder script in her hands become completely unrecognizable, and smiles with satisfaction. Theme: Love cannot be replaced.