Mr. Rose

[Main story complete. Next novel: Rainbow Fireworks]

Tan Nian, the future successor to Junhe Group, had already won an international creative award in his junior year of college and was riding high. Elegant, confident, and absolutely rational: that was Tao Youning's first impression of him.

She thought that a man like him could never be interested in her, even if the world were ending. But this man approached her with impeccable manners and made an offer:

"Let's try being together for three months. You won't have to do a thing. I'll take care of that annoying ex of yours."

Tao Youning frowned slightly. "I can handle it myself."

Tan Nian smiled with polished grace. "Can you? If you could, why is he still harassing you at work?"

Beneath the night sky, he stood by the car in a sharp suit, his features refined. His air of confidence and composure spoke of absolute control. With the most handsome face, he said the most blunt things.

_

Tan Nian had excelled at everything since childhood. He had never failed at anything he set his mind to. Even when he was transferred to an obscure branch office to clean up a mess, he never took it seriously.

Until he met Tao Youning.

Emotional, fragile, impulsive, sensitive... She embodied every trait he disliked most. He had never thought he'd get involved with someone so troublesome.

When Tao Youning stood there with red-rimmed eyes, crying as she told him she'd been deceived, Tan Nian stared at her reddened eyes without expression and realized that nothing had ever stirred his emotions so much.

No one knew when love had arrived.

They said that Tan, the CEO of Junhe Group, disliked women and was committed to remaining single. Someone privately asked Tao Youning for gossip: "I heard Mr. Tan doesn't date because he's frigid. What a waste of that face..."

Blushing, Tao Youning stammered that she didn't know.

But that night, someone cornered her against the wall and kissed her until her face was flushed.

"Who was gossiping with you this morning? I'll fire her tomorrow."

Tao Youning: "..."

Tan Nian was a rose: elegant, beautiful, and composed,

but also prickly, sharp, and hard to understand.

Luckily, Tao Youning could step inside his glass enclosure.

* An unconventional marriage-first, love-later story, slow burn

* Updates at 11 p.m.

Coming soon: Rainbow Fireworks

In high school, Cheng Yu was one of the quietest students in the class. Ning Yao's only interaction with him was the occasional reminder to hand out the homework.

Back then, she was popular and had lots of friends. Someone as quiet and unremarkable as Cheng Yu never caught her eye. By the time she transferred schools, they had exchanged fewer than ten words in total.

Later, the compliment she heard most often from her friends was that Cheng Yu, who hadn't been much of a student back then, had somehow become dazzling and successful, no longer the boy he'd once been.

At the time, Ning Yao was busy earning money to pay off debts, so she had no time to care.

At a class reunion, a male classmate sitting in the back asked, "Hey, are you still in touch with Cheng Yu? Didn't he like you?"

Only then did Ning Yao suddenly remember him. She looked astonished. "Huh? How could he possibly like me?"

The other guy scratched his head. "But I definitely saw him secretly write you a love letter before you transferred."

Ning Yao froze with her wineglass halfway to her lips, looking bewildered.

She looked up to see someone enter. He wore a suit, his features open and handsome, utterly unlike the inconspicuous boy he'd once been.

Amid the clinking glasses and lively chatter, Cheng Yu took a seat beside her.

Their positions had switched over the years, and Ning Yao couldn't help feeling awkward. She greeted him first. "Long time no see."

Cheng Yu looked up at her, about to speak.

An old classmate, drunk and uninhibited, came over and slung an arm around Cheng Yu's shoulders. "Cheng Yu, didn't you write Ning Yao a love letter in your second year of high school?"

Ning Yao tried to interrupt, but it was too late.

Cheng Yu lowered his eyes to look at her, his gaze dark and deep. He remained silent for a long time. Then, in front of everyone in the room, he admitted sincerely, "Yeah, I did."

--

In my eyes, she's a burst of rainbow-colored fireworks, dazzling and brilliant.

Theme: Build a healthy understanding of love