★ The timeline begins when Lu Yanshen makes his third trip to Jiangzhou. The outline needs a little more work~
At first, Fang Lang and Zhou Cheng were both quite pleased to have unexpectedly made the acquaintance of Lu Yanshen, a powerful man from the capital.
But gradually, Fang Lang began to feel uneasy.
It all seemed to happen without warning, yet also as if it had been planned for a long time:
From her boyfriend suddenly being unable to meet her after work, while Lu Yanshen's Maybach just happened to be parked beside her, to trouble arising at home and someone directing her to seek his help, which he resolved with a single phone call without a moment's hesitation...
"We really shouldn't get too close to Mr. Lu. People like him and people like us..." Fang Lang couldn't help saying one time when she saw her boyfriend happily heading off to meet him.
"Langlang, what's wrong? Don't worry, Mr. Lu isn't like that. He doesn't care about people's backgrounds, and he won't look down on us." Zhou Cheng cheerfully patted her shoulder.
Looking at his young, handsome face, so utterly unguarded, Fang Lang fell silent.
Another handsome, mature face came to mind without her realizing it.
In terms of looks, Lu Yanshen wasn't the kind of man who struck you as handsome at first glance. He had single-lidded eyes, a high nose bridge, and an elegant, refined air. But he handled everything with ease and carried himself with confidence. When he smiled, there was an air of control over everything.
Even one more glance made her feel as though her heart might stop.
Fang Lang grew more and more afraid, but she didn't dare ask him outright, in case she had misunderstood and made herself a laughingstock.
Until, on a stormy night, she saw her boyfriend walk into a hotel with his arms around his ex.
Fang Lang stood dazed in the rain, unable to tell her tears from the raindrops.
A silver-roofed Maybach pulled up beside her. Lu Yanshen got out and held a black umbrella over her, shielding her from the wind and rain. She said nothing, so he stood behind her and kept her company. The umbrella covered her completely, while his own shoulder was soaked through.
Fang Lang's heart was cold, and she hated that he had seen her in such a wretched state. "Don't pretend to be kind! This was all your doing, wasn't it?!"
She took her anger out on him and let loose a torrent of abuse.
But he remained pleasant and composed throughout. Once she had calmed down, he asked with a faint smile, "Finished? If you're done, can I take you with me? Keep standing in the rain and you'll stop being a little wildcat and turn into a sick kitten."
-
Fang Lang knew from the start that Lu Yanshen was no good. In their circle, there were few truly good people. Those accustomed to navigating power struggles were mostly cold-hearted.
Even the people around her said he had approached her with three parts interest in seducing her and five parts self-interest, and that his real goal was to deal with her adoptive father. He was merely playing a much bigger game.
His kindness toward her felt more like poison, meant to be withdrawn just when she was too far gone to recover.
Still, she couldn't help falling for him.
Then the truth came out. She was framed, and everyone said she had conspired with Lu Yanshen to betray her friends and family. Abandoned by everyone, she was driven from her home.
When she met him again in the capital, she kept her distance from this dangerous, cold-hearted man.
But she ended up asking him for help anyway.
"I have no problem helping," he said, then smiled slowly. His long fingers tapped lightly on the desk. "But what will you give me in return?"
★ A seemingly sweet but secretly ruthless power player in the capital's elite circles x a college student and stunning translator. Wolf and rabbit. The male lead is a hunter, a truly bad man who carefully plots his way into winning the beauty's heart.
★ Ten-year age gap, both are each other's first, happy ending.
★ Two volumes: Jiangzhou and the capital.
Theme: Hard work can help you turn the tables against all odds.