Newlywed Notes

[Beijing power circles x sweet girl | Wolf-and-rabbit couple]

★ Marriage alliance + married first, love later, eight-year age gap, an old flame catching fire

Yu Xi initially had no intention of marrying Shen Shu. But her family had arranged it, and she was practically pushed into it. After meeting him just twice, she went with him to register their marriage.

They were people from completely different worlds.

In her brief twenty-two years, she had gone to school and worked, following the usual routine. She was utterly ordinary, even having to rely on connections to get into the translation department of this company because of her inability to speak.

Shen Shu, on the other hand, was nothing like her.

He was confident and powerful. Past thirty, he was already the big boss of this multinational company, moving through high society with decisive authority and an unstoppable presence.

She would never forget the first time she met him. Speaking with a strong Beijing accent, he had made sarcastic, barbed remarks and chewed out a group of senior executives for their incompetence.

His fierce, icy presence left her with a deep psychological scar. From then on, she kept her distance from this big shot.

They were as different as heaven and earth.

She never expected that one day they would sit across from each other at the same matchmaking table.

"I can't speak. I can only get by doing the occasional translation job, so don't let yourself be fooled," she wrote on a slip of paper, hoping to put him off.

Shen Shu smiled and asked her, "Don't you plan to get married someday?"

Yu Xi froze. She hadn't expected him to ask that, and his words struck a nerve.

It was true. She couldn't defy her parents, and she didn't plan to stay single for the rest of her life.

Shen Shu continued, "I need to start a family and build my career, and you'll have to get married someday too. If that's the case, I think I'm a pretty good choice."

-

After they married, Shen Shu was very busy. They saw each other so rarely that they seemed more like strangers living under the same roof.

In public, he was still the impeccably dressed financial tycoon who handled everything with ease. She, meanwhile, was used to her ordinary, unremarkable life of commuting by subway every day.

Yu Xi thought their married life would continue in this calm, uneventful way.

Then one day, a male colleague walked her home. She smiled happily to thank him, only to turn around and see Shen Shu standing coldly behind the door.

He didn't say a word before turning and leaving.

That evening, sensing she'd done something wrong, Yu Xi hugged her teddy bear cushion and quietly knocked on his door.

As soon as she stepped inside, he pulled her into his arms.

Shen Shu looked down at her.

"Mrs. Shen, has no one ever told you that married people should keep their distance from members of the opposite sex?"

Yu Xi: "..." Weren't they in a marriage of convenience?

-

Yu Xi had always thought Shen Shu married her to appease his family.

He was simply too outstanding, fierce and domineering, the complete opposite of her mild-mannered self. No matter how much she indulged in wishful thinking, she couldn't believe he would like her.

Later, she saw the light in his study burning all night as he revised an outstanding job application for her. He even crossed three Beijing districts in subzero temperatures during a heavy snowfall just to bring her a piping-hot late-night snack...

Only then did she understand what she meant to him.

-

Shen Shu had married Yu Xi at first simply because he was at the right age and needed a suitable wife.

And she met his requirements in every way.

He just hadn't expected to be the first one to lose his heart.

★ Married first, love later; 1v1, both virgins; a cozy, healing winter sweet romance. Everyday married life, with the male lead falling first. [The heroine lost her voice later in life and will recover it later in the story. She starts speaking in Chapter 31.]

★ The scene in the blurb where the male lead spends all night revising the heroine's job application is part of a plot setup, not an indication that he lacks ability. Don't read the blurb, assume you know the whole story, and come here just to pick a fight.

★ This is a story about everyday adjustments between two people with a huge gap in status, going from strangers to familiar, from distrust to trust and a life together. The characters grow over time.

[If you demand perfect characters or are already finding fault with them early on, please click away.] If they loved and trusted each other right from the start, what would I have left to write?

★ The supporting characters have personalities of their own, and each has both strengths and flaws. There's no need to click in just to nitpick and insult them.

★ If you dislike domineering male leads, leave. If the male lead smoking bothers you, don't read.

[If you're reading pirated copies, don't leave comments here. All unsolicited writing advice is unwelcome.]

Note: The heroine is a classical dancer and teacher, a practitioner of classical dance who promotes and carries on traditional culture.

Theme: Learn to compromise and love others. Tame your temper for the person who loves you.