Name: Against All Odds
Author: Fang Cha

Synopsis

[The neighboring novel, Late Moon, is now underway! Its blurb is below. The next book is a super-sweet romance, Hurry Up and Fall in Love with Me. Click into my author page and add it to your to-read list!]

[Offbeat has been signed for print publication in simplified Chinese. Follow the publication progress on Weibo: @FangCha_]

1

Sang Ning first met Sheng Lianxun in a flower shop tucked away in a little alley.

The young man was cool and striking, aloof and proud, a heartthrob who could make anyone swoon. But no one caught his eye. Bound to Sang Ning by a contract she couldn't refuse, she was willing to shed all her defenses just to get close to him. Then she accidentally overheard what he really thought. In a dim corner, Sheng Lianxun lowered his eyes and said coldly, "I'm not interested. It's just a way to pass the time."

2

Later, on the night Sang Ning insisted they break up, Sheng Lianxun gripped her shoulders so tightly that the composure he always kept in check began to crack. "Why are you breaking up with me? Didn't you say you'd love me forever?"

She replied nonchalantly, "I'm not interested. It's just a way to pass the time."

"Sheng Lianxun, I hope we never see each other again."

"Fine, Sang Ning. Remember this: if we ever meet again, I won't let you go."

Only much later did she hear that Tianfan Mountain's winding road was steep and remote, and that a temple at its peak drew countless worshippers. They said your wishes would come true if you prayed there.

In a torrential downpour, the cool, distinguished man bowed low and climbed the long stone steps, kowtowing at every step, all to beg for one more chance to see her.

☆ Currently serializing: Late Moon

01

The year Ruan Shuangning turned twenty-four, she impulsively married a man.

He was a top-tier star and singer-songwriter, showered with acclaim and sweeping every major award. He was also the young master of the Lu family, used to doing whatever he pleased, with seductive eyes and a reputation for being both passionate and heartless.

The man she loved most was out of reach anyway. As long as marrying someone got her out of that house, it didn't matter who it was.

Seeing the near-pleading look in Ruan Shuangning's eyes, Lu Qingzhi replied coolly, "I can marry you, but I won't love anyone."

It was a loveless marriage of convenience, and when their contract ended, she asked for a divorce without hesitation.

Lu Qingzhi leaned back on the sofa, his long legs crossed lazily as ash fell from the cigarette between his fingers. "Ruan Shuangning, I can let you go, but don't regret it."

Ruan Shuangning was relieved. She asked for nothing and left without looking back.

02

To appease Old Master Lu, Lu Qingzhi invited her back, and the two were forced to live together again.

Everyone in the know assumed the coldhearted young master Lu was merely going through the motions with Ruan Shuangning.

She kept to her boundaries, carefully maintaining her distance and never crossing the line.

Until a paparazzi photo went viral.

Late at night, inside a car, neon lights flickering along the street.

In the dim light, two buttons of Lu Qingzhi's soft white silk shirt were undone. Looking devilishly handsome and languid, he pinned the pure, lovely girl into the leather seat. Her doe eyes glistened as if washed clean, her lips a vivid red.

Where no one could see, he threaded his fingers through hers, one by one, and whispered, "Ruan Shuangning, could you love me?"

"Even if you have to pretend."

Before I ever realized I loved you, I had already loved you a thousand times over.

You are mine.

On the long, lonely nights, please be my last moon.

Gentle, timid sweetheart x devilishly handsome top-tier star whose heart softens as much as his words were once hard

Unconventional marriage-first, love-later / sweet romance / both are each other's first / happy ending

☆Coming soon! Please add it to your to-read list!

Hurry Up and Fall in Love with Me

01

A summer downpour battered the iron jasmine blossoms lining the alley.

Xie Shumo watched, expressionless, as a delicate little white flower cried pitifully. "Sister Shumo, I love him so much. Please, let us be together."

Beside her stood her scumbag ex, the man who "just happened to fall in love with two women." He stood in the rain without a word, like a mute, soaked dog.

Playing the victim, are you? The eighteen classic melodramatic romance tropes were right up her alley, too. Xie Shumo curled her pretty lips.

"Are you there yet?"

"I'm here. It's a black car, moving slowly. Wait for the right moment, then run into it."

Xie Shumo covered her face as she ran, pretending to cry, then threw herself into a slowly moving black car at the end of the alley. The instant she hit the ground, she came to her senses.

Oh, no.

It was a Maybach.

The rear window slowly rolled down. A young, arrogant man stared out with thick brows and piercing eyes, cold and forbidding, his dark eyes as icy as frost.

02

She saw Yan Zhan again during an interview her colleague had gone to great lengths to arrange.

Her colleague whispered, "He's the Jade-Faced Demon, notorious for his iron-fisted methods and lack of compassion. Watch what you say."

For her final question, Xie Shumo asked, "Mr. Yan, you've achieved so much. Have you ever thought about settling down?"

His black suit was crisp and severe, his handsome face indifferent. He curled his lips, amusement flickering in his eyes. "With you?"

The battle flag was raised.

As soon as she got home, Xie Shumo changed her WeChat name to "Flower Thief" and drew up a detailed plan to win his heart.

Me? Why couldn't it be me?

03

She spent months carrying out her plan, sweet-talking him until her mouth went dry, but Yan Zhan remained unmoved.

Xie Shumo had never been patient. When nothing worked, she simply gave up on the plan.

Not long after, the magazine was acquired by the Yan Group, and Yan Zhan became her boss.

It seemed she was being deliberately targeted. The editor-in-chief forced Xie Shumo to work late with the boss every day, and she was worked to the bone.

Yan Zhan: Hurry up.

Xie Shumo, drained, hammered away at her keyboard, then finally fought back:

"Mr. Yan, even the production team's donkeys get the first and fifteenth of the month off, don't they?"

"Exploiting people like this is bound to earn you society's contempt."

"I dare you to answer when I call you a good boss!"

Yan Zhan: Date me.

Xie Shumo: ?

Yan Zhan: Let's fall in love.

[Xie Shumo unsent a message]

Yan Zhan: You don't have the patience to chase someone, so I'll do it instead.

◎ Cool CEO x sweet-tongued, sharp-witted girl

One-on-one / happy ending / 100% sweetness