Dreaming of You, Against All Odds

[The main story is complete. Ready to binge. The whole series costs less than seven yuan.] [Weibo: Shi Ting Ya. My next books are Just One Kiss and Summer Evening Breeze. Please add them to your collections~ Synopsis at the bottom↓] [Highly recommend my friend's crime-romance novel, Best Partners [Crime Investigation], by Yi Zhi Bao Bao. Synopsis in Chapter 1!] Ruan Zhi and Jiang Yubai grew up together in the same residential compound. They went to the same kindergarten, elementary school, and middle school, and even planned to attend the same university. Everyone at Yunzhong knew that Jiang, the senior who had held the title of campus heartthrob for six years and was practically a genius, was aloof and hard to approach. But he had a little shadow who stuck to him every day. He didn't mind her at all. Every day, he patiently walked her to and from school, helped her with her homework, and looked after her as if she were his little sister. Ruan Zhi thought so too. She walked to and from school with Jiang Yubai, brought him breakfast, and did homework with him. She kept him company when he was down, and covered for him when he skipped class to sneak out and see the technology expo he'd been dreaming of. She had always thought of Jiang Yubai as her real older brother, and believed the two of them were as close as family. When it came time to fill out her university applications in her final year of high school, she even wanted to apply to the same school as Jiang Yubai so she could help him achieve his dream. But when Ruan Zhi went running to tell him the news, she overheard him talking about her with his roommate. They were playing a game, and Jiang Yubai spoke with casual mockery. "Who said she's my sister? She's the kid next door. A real clingy little thing." Only then did Ruan Zhi understand that Jiang Yubai had never considered her "family." To him, she was nothing more than "the clingy kid next door." - Having given her heart to the wrong person, Ruan Zhi resolutely cut off all contact with Jiang Yubai, vowing never to have anything to do with him again. But on the first day of university, Jiang Yubai caught Ruan Zhi, who had been avoiding him for months. His eyes were dark and his smile was unreadable as he asked, "Were you avoiding me?" From then on, Jiang Yubai stuck to her like glue. Every day, he followed Ruan Zhi around in his usual lazy, carefree manner, becoming her "little shadow." Ruan Zhi couldn't take it anymore and finally exploded. She found Jiang Yubai, who kept loitering in front of her and picking fights for no reason, and confronted him furiously. "If you don't think of me as your sister, why are you haunting me? Is it fun to mess with me?!" Jiang Yubai patted her head and smiled lazily. "What sister? I'm just waiting for my little cabbage to grow up." Ruan Zhi: "?" #I thought you saw me as your sister, but you see me as cabbage to steal?# #Has Jiang the Dog stolen his cabbage today?# #Not yet (smiling)# [Childhood friends / unrequited love / lighthearted and lively] [One-on-one romance, both leads are each other's first love, happy ending, no melodramatic love triangle] * My next book is Just One Kiss. If you like it, please add it to your collection~ [Willful little princess x genuinely aloof, supposedly celibate knight] Rising star Jiang Zhien reached the peak of her career as soon as she debuted. Not only was she clear-eyed and beautiful, her acting was exceptional. She won the Golden Deer Award for Best Newcomer right after her debut. Before long, people dug up the fact that Jiang Zhien had grown up surrounded by luxury and affection. She was the most doted-on young daughter of the Jiasheng Group, and her aunt, a celebrated actress, had taught her acting since childhood. Everyone around her spoiled her, and she was as willful and pampered as they come. They said that if she wanted the moon, someone would fetch it for her. Even her engagement had supposedly been won by crying and begging until she got her way. Someone in the know revealed that Miss Jiang had been eyeing the Fu family's heir since childhood. She always got whatever she wanted, except from President Fu, who had once rejected her and left her utterly humiliated. As the newly appointed head of the Fu family, Fu Yihan was composed and dignified, cool and celibate. At a young age, he had seized absolute power in the Fu family with ruthless methods. Many women pursued him, and many had been rejected by him. Jiang Zhien was one of them. Rumor had it that President Fu hated girls like her, spoiled little princesses. He'd agreed to the engagement only because of their business interests. At one banquet, the media photographed the two attending together, but they acted like strangers and seemed to have a purely performative relationship. Some busybodies even ran into them in a parking garage and posted a short video online. In the video, Jiang Zhien was drunk and wrapped her arms forcefully around the man's neck. In a coaxing tone, tinged with pleading, she said, "Just one kiss." In no time, #JiangZhienDesperatelyBeggingForLove# was trending. Everyone sighed that the rumors had been true after all. That was, until Fu Yihan, who never used Weibo, posted a clarification himself, along with the full video from that night. Only then did everyone discover that... That night, Fu Yihan had been the one to pull the young woman into his arms first, his eyes filled with rare tenderness. His voice was gentle and coaxing, with a hint of entreaty as he murmured, "Come on, don't be mad. Just one kiss." Jiang Zhien put her arms around his neck. Her slightly tipsy eyes glistened with alluring moisture as she answered haughtily, "Fine, just one kiss." Theme: Warmth, healing, and growing together.