A Heart-Pounding Kiss

Tan Ruo brought a man home from a bar. He was refined and handsome, a proper gentleman, and every last detail matched her tastes. She kept him by her side, buying him luxury watches and designer gifts, spoiling him to no end. He treated her well too: gentle by day, dominant by night. Tan Ruo soon couldn’t get enough of him, and the two began a shamelessly passionate romance. Not long after, Tan Ruo’s eldest brother, Tan Chang, returned from abroad. Afraid he’d find out she was shirking her responsibilities and keeping a man, and with the novelty wearing off anyway, Tan Ruo left the man a generous breakup settlement, blocked his contact information, and slipped away with her luggage. A month later, Tan Chang invited a major business partner, with whom the family was still negotiating a deal, to dinner. He brought his younger sister, Tan Ruo, along. The other party hadn’t arrived yet. Tan Chang said, “This project is very important to our family. Keep your temper in check later and show him some respect.” Tan Ruo yawned repeatedly. “Why do you have to bring me? Aren’t you worried your sister might get bullied?” Tan Chang said, “He’s the man our family has arranged for you to marry: your fiancé, Jiang Che.” Tan Ruo: “?” The private room door opened, and a man in a sharp suit entered, surrounded by attendants. His features were striking, his eyes and brows refined, and he exuded an air of wealth and status. She had admired that face countless times a day in the mansion. Not long ago, she’d just kicked him out… #What should you do when the ex you dumped suddenly becomes your arranged-marriage match?## [Bonus Scene] Tan Chang noticed that although his sister and Jiang Che were engaged, their relationship was chilly, so he often tried to bring them closer. One day, he took his sister to the Jiang family home. Jiang Che said he wanted to discuss their engagement with Tan Ruo, and the two went into a room. Tan Chang waited nervously outside, afraid they might end up arguing. But he waited until late at night, and no one came out to tell him how the discussion had gone. Exhausted, he simply fell asleep on the living room sofa. At dawn, Jiang Che opened the door and met Tan Chang’s eyes on the sofa. Leaning against the sofa, Tan Chang yawned. “Even if marriage is a major life decision that needs careful consideration, there’s no need to discuss it for this long. It’s already morning.” He glanced inside. “Where’s my sister?” Jiang Che shushed him and lowered his voice. “She’s still asleep.” Tan Chang: “?” Tan Chang: “!!!!!!!” #Jiang Che, I’m going to kill you!# #I actually thought you were discussing things!# Bright, proud heiress VS a man whose words say no while his actions say yes, a reserved flirt ↓ Please add my upcoming novel, Wrong Move, to your reading list ↓ Bian Ying had been raised in the Zhou household since childhood. With skin as fair as snow and eyes like the moon, she was the very picture of a beauty. As Bian Ying grew up, the Zhou family elders quietly began considering using her in a business marriage. Rumor had it her intended was fat and ugly, a good-for-nothing who drank and ate all day, with an illegitimate child outside the marriage. Unwilling to go through with it, Bian Ying tried to refuse, only to hear Aunt Zhou say, “The Zhou family has raised you for fourteen years. It’s time you repaid us. Don’t tell me you intend to be ungrateful?” With nowhere else to turn, Bian Ying thought of Zhou Yubai. Zhou Yubai was Aunt Zhou’s son. Gentle and elegant, he was always considerate of Bian Ying. Bian Ying knew Zhou Yubai liked her. He was her only way out of the arranged marriage. The night Zhou Yubai came home, Bian Ying worked up her courage and crept into his room in the dark. Zhou Yubai was already asleep in bed. Bian Ying quietly lay down beside him, not daring to move. Later, a strong arm reached out, dragged her beneath the covers, and rolled on top of her. - At daybreak, Bian Ying woke thinking that she and Zhou Yubai were now officially together, and that they should discuss how to deal with Aunt Zhou. She opened her eyes and met a pair of dark eyes, deep as a frozen pool. Her own widened, and she nearly screamed. The man beside her had sharp brows and a broad forehead. His mature frame, broad-shouldered and narrow-waisted, was faintly visible beneath the thin blanket. This wasn’t Zhou Yubai. It was Zhou Yubai’s uncle, and the true head of the Zhou family, Zhou Linyuan! Years ago, Zhou Linyuan had led her by the hand to the Zhou home and entrusted her to Aunt Zhou. He’d said he was busy with his studies, and that the First Madam was better suited to take care of her. From then on, she called him Uncle, just as Zhou Yubai did. Over the years, he rarely returned to the Zhou home, and the two of them hadn’t spent much time together. In her eyes, he was a man of authority who must never be offended. And yet, last night, the two of them… Unable to face him, Bian Ying forced a smile that looked worse than crying. She wanted to grab her clothes and run, but before her feet touched the floor, Zhou Linyuan pulled her back down… “Uncle, why are you in Yubai’s bed?” “And why are you here?” “…” *Male lead’s perspective* 1. That year, in the Zhou family’s back garden, his nephew Zhou Yubai gazed for a long time at Bian Ying reading in the garden before saying, “Uncle, Bian Ying is a good girl. I like her.” Zhou Linyuan lifted his teacup. Fragrant tea steamed as he lowered his eyes and pondered for a long moment. “She is a good girl.” Which was why he could never let her go to anyone else. 2. At some point, Bian Ying began appearing in Zhou Linyuan’s dreams. Every time, she was crying in his bed. By chance, Zhou Linyuan once slept in Zhou Yubai’s bed. That night’s dream felt more real than any before, and her tears were real, too. Eight-year age gap Innocent white rabbit X big bad wolf (Synopsis screenshotted and archived on 2021/06/01) Theme: Cherish happiness and hold on to love.