A Marriage of Convenience, but Not Quite

The main story is complete! Bonus chapters will be updated at random. Thank you, dear readers! Narrative order: It starts in the middle, then goes back to the beginning and continues in chronological order. It's a slow burn, but sweet, and you can read it as a normally ordered story. 1. Jing Luo has held the title of North City University's campus heartthrob for ten years. He has a face that looks charming and flirtatious, yet there have never been any rumors of him dating. He devotes himself to academics, outlasting one senior professor after another. Even his juniors haven't managed to outlast him. On the day of his doctoral defense, one of the university's most outstanding students, Jing Luo, calmly reaches the final slide of his presentation in front of a thousand people in the auditorium: "I'd like to thank my advisor and my junior classmates, especially my wife, Liang Yunyao. I wouldn't be where I am today without you. I love you." The auditorium falls silent. Jing Luo straightens his notes, then suddenly remembers something and explains, "Oh, I mean the actress, Liang Yunyao." The uproar that erupts nearly lifts the roof off the auditorium. 2. As a nationally acclaimed actress, Liang Yunyao has been the subject of countless rumors since her rise to fame. Only a handful of people know that she avoids men like the plague and has zero romantic savvy. She's fairly satisfied that the man listed as her husband on her marriage certificate is a handsome, obedient younger guy. She tells people, "My husband is totally safe. He's not interested in sex. Once our contract expires, we'll go our separate ways." Late one night, her very obedient husband saves the paper he's just finished writing, takes off his glasses, and sets them aside. Then he stands up, draws her into his arms, and gives her a meaningful smile. "I think you might have misunderstood me, Sister." This is a story about keeping secrets. "Steel-spined, straight-laced actress × outwardly sweet, inwardly scheming student"; "He's younger and calls her Sister every day, but his desires are still very wild"; "I wanted an asexual husband, but somehow I ended up with a wolf." Reading Guide 1. Their age difference is three years. 2. Sweet romance. 3. Regular updates. Coming Soon A Mother-Daughter Struggle in the Entertainment Industry of the 1990s Shi Ju is a struggling minor celebrity. To make money, she clings to powerful backers, only to be used as a pawn by them and betrayed by her boyfriend. Her ending is utterly miserable. When she wakes up again, she has an acting System and finds herself in 1996, as the mother of the vicious female antagonist in a novel. Twenty-five-year-old Shi Ju looks at the little girl crying for milk: ... No matter what, Shi Ju has to work hard to give herself and her daughter a better life, and keep her daughter from becoming a sacrificial pawn. When the scumbag who will later remarry in the original story comes courting, Shi Ju shuts the door in his face and hangs a sign on it: "No marriage, no kids, just a career. I don't like men." When she sees a filthy, run-down courtyard that everyone is moving out of, Shi Ju pulls out several thousand yuan and buys the whole place. Her daughter: "Mom, are we having rice soup again today?" Shi Ju: "Damn it, when are housing prices going to go up?" Later, Shi Ju keeps track of the dates and goes to the production set to look for bit parts, eventually cornering the director of a TV series destined to become a nationwide hit. "Director, what do you think of me playing the female lead's mom?" The director looks her over and rubs his chin. "I think you'd be great as the crazy female lead." Reading Guide 1. The heroine raises a child and builds her career; the male lead is just background scenery. 2. The heroine is a beautiful madwoman; her daughter is a cool, aloof lady. 3. A story about the heroine growing into a business mogul and her daughter becoming an award-winning actress. 4. A satisfying power fantasy. Blurb written on 2021.08.05 Coming Soon: Girls' Love Meng Xinqiao finds herself a little apprentice on a forum she visits often. The apprentice's username is "Xiao Liu Doesn't Have the Surname Yan." Her specialty is pouting, rolling around, and acting cute. She calls Meng Xinqiao "Master" every day. Whenever Meng Xinqiao shares something useful, she responds with starry eyes: "Master, you're amazing!" She's diligent, obedient, sensible, and sweet-tongued, clearly a child who's been raised well. Meng Xinqiao grows fonder and fonder of her apprentice, but still freezes when the girl confesses to her in a private message. Meng Xinqiao: "...You don't even know if I'm a man or a woman." Xiao Liu Doesn't Have the Surname Yan: "I'm fine with either! As long as Master isn't married or dating anyone." Meng Xinqiao can't help thinking about what strange ideas kids these days have in their heads. She scolds her, logs off, and tells her to go home, study something useful, and focus on writing instead of thinking about pointless things. A few days later, rumors spread around school that Teacher Liu, the prettiest person in the student affairs office, has been dumped. Male students and faculty, from first-years to professors, all want to know which guy was so shamelessly lucky, so they can dig him up and meet him. Much later, Meng Xinqiao goes to deliver the students' grade sheets to Teacher Liu. With no one else in the office, Meng Xinqiao turns her head and asks quietly, "Are you free tonight?" Liu Xizhao gives her a professionally polite smile. "I have ten thousand words to write. I'm busy." "You ignore me today, I'll make sure you can't graduate tomorrow"; "I taught my student to starve her master"; "Let me explain how my adorable apprentice became a teacher." Rich, beautiful, mature administrative teacher × cool beauty, taciturn top student and class monitor Theme: Study hard and improve together.