A Broken Mirror Never Mends

* New love interest and a crematorium-style groveling arc, with the couple joining forces to get revenge and take down the trash. Please check the content warnings first!

* Coming soon: the suspenseful crime-investigation novel about lovers who are both enemies, The Madman's Game of Love. Please add it to your collection. Scroll to the very bottom to read the blurb ^_^

[Blurb]

Shi Tian and Ji Yuanlin had been in a relationship for eight years. He never imagined it had all been a con.

On the second day of their marriage, he was sued in court, lost control of his company, and was saddled with enormous debts. His reputation was ruined overnight.

On the day the lawsuit went to trial, Shi Tian waited in vain for his childhood sweetheart and husband. Instead, his greatest business rival showed up: Zhou Sifu, his first love and now his sworn enemy.

-

His sworn enemy had not only made a special trip to court to provide business evidence, sparing Shi Tian a prison sentence, but had also offered him a place to stay for a while.

Shi Tian: Thanks for the offer, but no.

#I'm President Shi. How could I possibly be unable to find a place to stay? #

#This guy's awful. He must have an ulterior motive. #

However, despite being the big boss of the Lighting Group and a widely renowned business tycoon, Shi Tian was hopeless at taking care of himself.

After a while, he somehow managed to... end up at his sworn enemy's house.

Shi Tian: ...I'm done for.

He had thought Zhou Sifu was doing all this just to laugh at him.

But...

Shi Tian turned his head and looked at the fluffy head resting in the hollow of his shoulder. The familiar gesture was practiced, with an intimacy he couldn't put into words.

He couldn't help feeling dazed. Hadn't things been supposed to go differently?

-

No one knew that an old photograph had always been hidden in the safe in Zhou Sifu's office.

That summer, the sunlight poured onto the classroom balcony, while the trees cast deep shade.

He put an arm around the boy beside him and carefully drew him into his embrace. He was being as careful as he could, yet he still couldn't stop his fingertips from trembling.

In the photo, eighteen-year-old Shi Tian gently curled his pinky around Zhou Sifu's, smiling as he turned his head to kiss him.

-

Bonus scene:

When news that President Shi had rekindled an old romance spread through the financial world, Shi Tian's friends were shocked, thinking he had remarried Ji Yuanlin.

That evening, however, President Zhou posted a photo of the two of them with their fingers intertwined, captioned:

[We rekindled an old romance.]

[With me.]

"Optimistic, easygoing, irresistibly charming top-tier CEO bottom vs. scheming, calculating, possessive top-tier CEO top"

[Reader's Guide]

- [Layered Content Warnings] Same-sex marriage is legal in this setting. The bottom's first love and first intimate experiences were both with the official top. After breaking up with him, he had a relationship and intimate experiences with the scum top; the top has no such history.

- The scum top is not a throwaway character. He has a lot of scenes early on. (The more awful he is at the beginning, the more satisfying his downfall will be later, QAQ.)

- The story features financial and business rivalries. The plot is more complex than the blurb, and includes flashback storylines. The professional details are based on industry sources and online research, so please don't scrutinize them too closely.

- Happy ending, with both sweet and angsty moments. I'll add more as I think of it!

- Everyone has different tastes. If it's not for you, feel free to drop it without telling me in particular (wry smile).

-

[Upcoming Story]

The Madman's Game of Love

[SCIB Senior Criminal Investigator vs. Chinese-American Financial Tycoon]

[Sweet yet gloomy black-lotus madman bottom vs. ruthless, unhinged tycoon top]

Ed received orders from his superiors to pose as a young student with a chaotic private life and deliberately approach Chapman Tu, the current head of the wealthy Tu family, to gather all the evidence of his involvement in major criminal offenses.

When they first met, Ed staged a collision on the street. After Tu Lin's car knocked him flying, Ed grabbed onto the rear window.

The young man casually wiped the blood running down his forehead and smiled brightly. "As compensation, how about pretending to be my boyfriend? My ex is about to catch up with me."

Tu Lin, who had remained expressionless the whole time, slowly raised his eyes.

Later, the two made a deal.

Ed would pretend to be Tu Lin's boyfriend and deal with the business marriage arranged by his elders, while Tu Lin would help Ed shake off the string of lovers he'd left heartbroken.

But at their next meeting, Ed was tied up and thrown into a river. Tu Lin and his bodyguards happened to be passing by.

Soaked from head to toe, the young man saw Tu Lin and his eyes lit up. He pointed at him. "My man's here. You're all dead!"

Tu Lin: "..."

At their third meeting, their fourth... every time they "ran into each other," Tu Lin had no choice but to play the hero and rescue the damsel in distress.

Until the day Tu Lin decided to propose to the young man.

Holding out the carefully chosen engagement ring, Tu Lin looked down at the flirtatious little liar before him and asked, "Is there anything you want to tell me?"

Ed smiled. "My darling, what are you worried about?"

He had always been good at sweet talk.

The instant Tu Lin opened the ring box, he found himself surrounded by dozens of fully armed officers. With a click, Ed handcuffed him himself, then pulled out his badge. "Allow me to introduce myself properly: Ed, Senior Investigator with SCIB's Organized Crime Unit."

The young man said with a beaming smile, "Mr. Chapman, you're under arrest."

-

Ed was prepared for Tu Lin to shoot him, but could only watch as Tu Lin calmly took his hand.

Ed: ?

Tu Lin slid the ring onto Ed's ring finger.

At that moment, Ed felt no love from Tu Lin. Instead, he felt that he had just released a demon with his own hands.

#We were supposed to hurt each other, so why is he proposing to me? #

[Reader's Guide]

- [Important] The couple team up to solve crimes. They're crazy, but they obey the law and commit no crimes. The romance only begins after the bottom confirms that the top is innocent and not the culprit.

- The setting and country are fictional. Beyond that, this is very much an alternate universe.

- The bottom is a brown-haired, green-eyed wolf pup; the top has partial Eastern heritage.

- One-on-one romance, happy ending, sweet (really!).

- I'll add more as I think of it.

Theme: Work hard, and remember to balance work and rest.