A Good Beginning and a Good Ending

[The full text has been revised multiple times. Only the official version on Jinjiang is authoritative.]

[My next book is Heart Knows Without Saying. Please add it to your reading list and follow the author!]

*This story has a slow pace. Some readers say its gentle, steady flow is heartwarming, while others find it boring and uneventful. Please read with care, dear readers. We recommend subscribing one chapter at a time rather than buying the whole book at once. Sending love.

*Rekindled romance / reunion after a long separation / starts with their reunion / few school-day flashbacks

Zhong Shan found a part-time job tutoring an elementary school student.

On her first day at work,

she adjusted the corners of her mouth into a gentle, serene smile, took a deep breath, and raised her hand to knock.

"Hello, I'm..."

Pei Cen's expression remained unchanged. His voice was cool and emotionless. "Come in."

A little boy peeked out from behind him.

She tried hard to find something to say, so things wouldn't get too awkward. "I didn't realize your child was already this old."

"Dumping me wasn't enough," he said, lifting his eyelids and stressing each word. "Now you're spreading rumors too?"

****Blurb for Heart Knows Without Saying****

*Marriage first, love later / sexual content / the male lead falls first

From the day Wen Yang registered her marriage with Fu Qibai, she knew their marriage was in name only, and didn't count.

They each got what they wanted, with no emotional foundation whatsoever.

When they happened to meet at the company, she was no different from anyone else, respectfully addressing him as President Fu.

Few people knew about their relationship in private.

-

One day after their wedding, a few friends got together.

Fu Qibai left early, prompting his friends to gossip.

Someone in the know said they'd just heard him on the phone outside. Apparently, his wife had returned from a business trip.

"Wasn't that marriage arranged by Grandpa Fu? They don't have any feelings for each other, do they?"

"Who knows?"

When they got home,

Wen Yang was packing her suitcase in the bedroom. She caught a faint whiff of alcohol and looked up. The man was leaning against the doorway. She didn't know how long he'd been standing there.

She frowned slightly, her voice calm. "Did you go drinking?"

"No, Ji Shixing and the others were drinking." Fu Qibai explained slowly. "I remembered you don't like the smell of alcohol, so I didn't drink."

-

The first year of their marriage, around the time of the first snowfall.

In the evening, Wen Yang returned to their marital villa and watched a movie in the second-floor screening room.

A faint sound came from downstairs.

She had a feeling something was up. She didn't even have time to put on her slippers before hurrying to the stairs.

The man, who should have been on the other side of the ocean, stood quietly in the living room, crystalline snowflakes still unmelted on his black coat.

Wen Yang asked, "Didn't you say it'd take another week to finish your work?"

Fu Qibai gave a slight nod, lifted his eyes to look at her, and spoke in a tired voice edged with delight. "I'll put work aside for now. I came back to spend your birthday with you."

Message: Look ahead. Tomorrow will be better.