Unyielding

Main story complete, bonus chapters coming! Please add my upcoming novels Chasing Waves at Sunset and Tequila Sunrise to your reading list. -- Song Xiujun was always hearing Tang Xiu's name from Old Master Tang. He heard it while playing chess, while watering the flowers, and all through his childhood. Every time the old man finished showing off, he'd sigh regretfully. "What a shame you're a little too old. Otherwise, you'd make a fine grandson-in-law." When Tang Xiu was a junior, Song Xiujun filled in for his advisor and moved back into an apartment near campus. After becoming her roommate and spending more time with her, he realized the old man's praise wasn't unfounded. She really was wonderful, and the little dog she raised was adorable, fluffy, and had such good manners. He loved taking her poodle out for a walk at five thirty every morning. Song Xiujun figured he was growing fond of her dog because he was fond of her. Until someone got there first. -- Tang Xiu had been secretly in love since childhood with an "older man" who was stunningly handsome and refined, a lofty beauty meant to be admired from afar, never touched. With such a perfect man as her standard, she'd never dated anyone before Cheng Xuanyi, a sports student, confessed to her. He was sunny and handsome, with an eight-pack. Tang Xiu thought it over for two days and found no reason to turn him down. Who knew things would change as soon as they started dating? After a mixer, Cheng Xuanyi walked her home and happened to run into Song Xiujun, who was taking his dog out in the middle of the night. Song Xiujun gave them a cold look, picked up the dog, and walked over, exuding the authority of the rightful partner. "Tang Xiu told me about you. You're the boyfriend she just started dating." "But that's enough for tonight. It's her curfew. Let go of her hand." On a holiday date, Tang Xiu received ninety-nine bright red roses. At breakfast the next morning, Song Xiujun arranged flowers on the table. Hearing her praise the roses, he smiled and replied, "Really? You brought red roses home last night. I was worried you wouldn't like the white peonies." Gradually, Tang Xiu noticed that someone was acting strangely. He was working out more, dressing with care, constantly giving her gifts and asking after her. He was putting on quite a peacock display, but he always came up with excuses she could use to explain it away. Until one night, Song Xiujun came home from a work dinner after two glasses of red wine, the tips of his ears flushed red. He took her hand and asked: "Do I still have a chance?" "I'm sorry. I lost control just now... But you're too good to him." "When are you two going to break up?" - A pampered, sweet-but-clueless beauty x a lofty, old-fashioned gentleman - Also known as The Lofty Gentleman Goes Crazy for Love and Steals His Rival's Girlfriend - Seven-year age gap - Blurb written on March 13, 2022 -- Blurb for Tequila Sunrise: After the self-taught game streamer Tequilalala repeatedly reached the top of the Korean server rankings, TKK, an esports powerhouse that had once enjoyed glory in the LPL before falling into decline, reached out to her. They were ready to hang their hopes on this crooked little tree. After three months of tryouts, TKK announced its spring lineup. A female streamer had suddenly joined the team as its jungler. That night, fans swarmed the official account, flooding it with tens of thousands of comments saying, "TKK is doomed." In the first game of the spring split, rookie Tequila made her debut and won MVP. During the post-match interview, the host asked, "As a player who's joined a top team and made it to the LPL stage right at the start of your career, what are your hopes for your professional future?" The girl in the black jersey thought for a moment, then gave a down-to-earth answer: "Since I'm already here, I might as well win a world championship before I leave." -- Before You Yang joined TKK, Shi Yu was already a top-paid LPL player and a champion ADC. She'd watched many of his matches. On camera, he was focused, calm, and taciturn, and even his post-match interviews were painfully formal. She'd assumed he was the sort of lofty beauty who could only be admired from afar, never touched, until she became his teammate. Then she heard the lofty beauty doing everything he could to mooch off her every day: "T, can I take your red buff?" "TT, let the Rift Herald loose in bot lane. Give me some help." "TT, come gank bot for me. The enemy team is playing dirty." You Yang's daily responses were always: "Take it, take it, take it..." "Here, here, here..." "Coming, coming, coming..." - TKK_Tequila, a top-tier jungler who always finds ways to make the other team do all the work x TKK_FOUR, a world-class bot laner who can carry late game no matter how carefully he plays early on -- Blurb for Chasing Waves at Sunset: Before coming ashore for good, Cheng Shi'an took one last look at the sea. When she returned to the little seaside town, she'd quit her job and brought her two dogs along as she joyfully ran toward the warm water. Looking up, she saw a man not far away, holding a surfboard and gazing at the distant horizon, drifting aimlessly through the waves. She asked the owner of the surf shop, "Is he new here?" "Yeah. He says he's staying for half a month. His Chinese isn't very good, and he's pretty quiet." "I see." Cheng Shi'an narrowed her eyes slightly and looked again at the distant figure. Half a month later, Cheng Shi'an drove a secondhand Jeep she'd bought from a villager, taking him all the way to an airport a hundred kilometers away. As he put on his backpack and prepared to get out, he paused with his hand on the door and turned to look at her. Recognizing that look, Cheng Shi'an leaned across the passenger seat, slammed the door shut, and kissed him hard. "Stay. Let's wander the sea together." - Short story, not paywalled, coming this summer - Blurb first published on June 10, 2022 Theme: Chinese culture is profound and rich