Afternoon Peaches

My next novel will be Fish-Tail Wedding Dress. Please add it to your reading list!

A deceptively sweet, devoted older-man-type boyfriend x a delicate little white rabbit who is a master of Suzhou embroidery, an intangible cultural heritage

Everyone in Qiucheng knew the Su family of Beilin had been blessed with a little princess. The old master of the Lin family pored over the Book of Songs before naming his granddaughter Lin Chunxi.

Lin Chunxi grew up sheltered beneath her family’s wings, never showing her true face to the outside world.

The media spread rumors that the young miss was terribly ugly, and that the Lin family hid her identity so she would never have to appear in public.

Then came a design competition between Chinese and foreign students at a certain university. The giant screen showed the contest live.

Lin Chunxi sat upright at her desk. Her water-blue qipao accentuated her graceful figure. With her classical oval face and a few strands of long, silky hair falling loose, she bent her head and worked stitch by stitch on a double-sided embroidery piece. Even a glimpse of her profile was breathtaking. She was a peerless beauty.

Later, someone anonymously revealed on Weibo that she was Lin Chunxi, a nationally recognized representative of an intangible cultural heritage, and the sole heir to the Lin family, a renowned embroidery dynasty.

The revelation caused an uproar.

-

Song Zhiyi, head of the Song family, was blessed with a handsome face. Refined and noble, he was as beautiful as an immortal descended from heaven.

But after taking control of the Song family’s business, he became ruthless and decisive, striking fear into everyone around him.

Everyone knew Song Zhiyi loved cats, but no one knew that he doted on just one: a Ragdoll cat.

-

The media released a photograph. The man was tall and handsome, his long, lean figure outlined by a black shirt, its cuffs half undone. With his distinctively jointed fingers, he cradled the cat’s soft chin and bent down to brush his lips against its ear.

The contrast between the man’s imposing height and the petite Ragdoll was striking.

Not long afterward, a certain social media account posted a video:

At the same location, the man, who was known for keeping his distance from women and being utterly abstinent, gently pulled a young woman who had nowhere left to retreat into his arms.

He chuckled, lowered his eyes, and reached out to touch the tip of her reddened ear.

“Mrs. Song, your ears are all red. Want me to rub them for you?”

-

Only later did Lin Chunxi realize that he had schemed and maneuvered at every turn, luring her step by step into his trap.

He had personally woven a net around her. She couldn’t break free or escape.

A deceptively sweet, devoted older-man-type boyfriend x a delicate little white rabbit who is a master of Suzhou embroidery, an intangible cultural heritage

#How a cunning old fox won his wife over#

“His little girl gradually grew into someone with a touch of his own bearing: poised and confident, resolute and bold.”

“To me, you are like snow upon the eaves and moonlight in a cup, standing alone, shining brighter than the candles in the night. Even a glimpse of you is more than I could ever hope for.”

1. Happy ending, both are pure and exclusive

Seven-year age gap / older-man-type boyfriend

2. The heroine is unbelievably beautiful. No arguments.

3. The characters’ values do not represent the author’s values.

Synopsis for When Winter Meets Midsummer:

Xia Xing first met Duan Lingshan on a summer night in a border town. Cicadas buzzed noisily as a group of drunken street thugs cornered her.

The man had sharp features and deep, dark eyes. As he passed by, the girl grabbed his sleeve.

Duan Lingshan reached out, grabbed the girl by the collar, and lifted her off him. Ignoring her pleading gaze, he said coldly and impatiently, “I don’t know you. Get out of my way.”

Later, someone saw them at a wonton stall beneath a dim lightbulb.

The girl complained, “The wrappers are too thick. They don’t taste good.”

The man actually took Xia Xing’s bowl, scoffed, “You’re so fussy,” and ate every bit of leftover wonton wrapper without a hint of disgust.

-

On a rainy day, damp spread across the walls of a cheap rental room. Xia Xing silently packed her things.

Amid the gray smoke, Duan Lingshan fell silent for a long while but didn’t stop her.

“If you leave, don’t ever come back.”

Xia Xing left, and never came back.

-

When she met Duan Lingshan again, he was the group’s all-powerful chief operating officer.

By then, Xia Xing had been framed. She was a down-and-out, little-known classical dancer, and the difference between her and the struggling young man she’d once known was like the Milky Way and a ditch.

She assumed he must have forgotten her, the unremarkable girl who had always stayed in the background.

Even when they met again, she pretended they were strangers.

He was courteous and restrained; she was polite and distant.

At a banquet, the man was impeccably dressed, refined and noble. But by chance, he heard that Miss Su was engaged to someone else.

After the banquet, someone saw the abstinent, refined man lose control for the first time. He picked up the struggling, kicking girl and stuffed her into a car. His usual easy charm and polite reserve crumbled completely, leaving him with no composure at all.

A little bonus scene:

After years of being kept offstage, the legendary classical dancer Xia Xing finally performed at a national theater. She danced with such grace, her flowing ribbons making her look like a celestial maiden. The audience was spellbound.

After the performance, the media unexpectedly caught the dancer opening her arms toward a man. “I’m tired.”

The man, usually aloof and cold, bent down and gathered Xia Xing into his arms, his voice full of affection. “Want me to carry you on my back or in my arms?”

Content warnings:

1. Happy ending

Both are each other’s first love / both are pure and exclusive

#To Duan Lingshan, she was the light in his dark life#

#Once you’ve felt warmth, you never want to let go#

Theme: Build a happy and fulfilling life