Becoming a Tailor in Republican-Era China

Fashion designer Ji Qingzhou was traveling for inspiration when he checked into a distinctive guesthouse reputed to be a hundred years old. When he woke, the room was the same, but he had transmigrated into the Republican Era, a hundred years in the past, and become the male spouse of a blind, discharged military officer. He had been married to the officer to bring him good fortune. The officer was tall and handsome, but cold and difficult, often making cutting remarks and ignoring him. Ji Qingzhou: There’s no way I’m staying married. We have to get a divorce! But Ji Qingzhou had arrived with no money and only a suitcase to his name. Ji Qingzhou: Fine. A rich husband is better than sleeping on the streets :) To survive in this turbulent age, Ji Qingzhou played the role of a caring wife and looked after his blind husband, all while returning to his old profession. He started by taking over a tailor shop and altering and mending clothes. Then he founded a studio and opened a fashion boutique, followed by a fashion magazine and a brand empire… Ji Qingzhou’s name gradually became famous across the country and overseas, and he led the fashions of a new era! A few years later, Ji Qingzhou had finally established himself in the Republican Era. He tossed a divorce agreement at his husband, who kept checking up on him, and argued that people in the modern age were free to love whom they pleased. Xie Yu’an was furious. He insisted he was a traditionalist while kissing Ji Qingzhou until his head spun and his lips went numb. After waking up, sore but satisfied, Ji Qingzhou looked at his husband’s broad shoulders, narrow waist, and long legs. Fine. We’ve already slept together, so we might as well make it work. Sharp-tongued, stubborn, jealous, blind, discharged military officer top x carefree, cheerful, short-tempered workaholic designer bottom Marriage before love, lighthearted wish-fulfillment, focused on running a business, with a little nation-building. Reader’s guide: 1. The setting is entirely fictional, borrowing only the customs, culture, and geography of the modern era. The characters are not based on real people, and the story is pure fiction. It contains no sensitive material and is unrelated to real history. 2. The bottom is somewhat idealized. This is not a love triangle, but several people like him. 3. The top is blind at first, but recovers after receiving treatment. 4. The bottom has had several exes, of different genders. His relationships with male exes were romantic only, with no intimacy. Readers who prefer a pure and perfect protagonist may want to skip this one. [70% anti-piracy ratio. Purchasing has been disabled.] Coming soon: The Entertainment Industry Goes Back a Hundred Years [Republican Era] Rising director Zhuang Mumei fell for the elegant and handsome second male lead in an old Republican Era film. He couldn’t stop thinking about the character, so he wrote a screenplay for him, but he couldn’t find a suitable actor to play the role. Then an accident sent him back to the Republican Era, where he became the third young master of the Zhuang family, a madman obsessed with art. Though born into a wealthy family, he was the son of a concubine. Above him was a legitimate older brother, and below him were favored younger siblings. Caught in the middle, he was both bullied and despised. Zhuang Mumei thought: Being crazy is great. Being crazy about art is even better. Nobody’s going to stop me from pursuing my career! To move out with his frail, sickly mother, Zhuang Mumei decided to return to his old line of work and make his way in the silent-film industry. He submitted work to newspapers and magazines to earn fees, wrote scripts, and sought investors. From a director working with a makeshift crew to the owner of a world-renowned film company, Zhuang Mumei created one box-office miracle after another and single-handedly ushered in the golden age of cinema in the Republican Era… . By chance, Zhuang Mumei met the eldest young master of the Xie family next door. Beside a green fir tree, Xie Juan wore a black lay Buddhist robe and held a bamboo umbrella covered in oiled paper. Tall and graceful as a pine or crane, he stood like a jade tree in the wind, leaving Zhuang Mumei utterly captivated. Wasn’t this the very second male lead from the film he had been dreaming about in his previous life? To persuade this wealthy and influential heir to act in his film, Zhuang Mumei decided to become good friends with Xie Juan. They went out for entertainment, socialized, drove around, and watched shows. Whenever anything fun came up, he was sure to invite the young master next door, always making sure to stay on his radar. But when Zhuang Mumei thought the time was right and invited him to take part, Xie Juan met his beaming smile with a cold refusal. “Acting? Who do you think I am?” Try as he might, Zhuang Mumei couldn’t change Xie Juan’s mind, so he had no choice but to give up with regret. Then, just when all seemed lost, he met an exceptionally handsome young opera performer who looked exactly like the second male lead in that old film. Zhuang Mumei: When one road ends, another opens. So this is my leading man! . The film he had planned for across two lifetimes finally began shooting. Zhuang Mumei was delighted to be making it, but the spirited young man was no longer at Xie Juan’s side. Day after day, Xie Juan held fast to his precepts and chanted sutras and prayers, but he could not cleanse his heart of its yearning. Using an excuse to visit the set, he found Zhuang Mumei surrounded by a fair-faced young performer. They were laughing and joking, playing around, and having the time of their lives. Xie Juan immediately lost his composure. He stopped the young man and demanded, “Didn’t you say you wouldn’t have anyone but me?” Zhuang Mumei raised an eyebrow and smiled. “Well, well. Young Master Xie wants to act now? Get in line. Plenty of beauties are waiting for me to make them stars!” Notes: 1. Fictional setting, fictional setting, entirely fictional! 2. The top is a lay Buddhist who follows the precepts and practices at home, not an ordained monk. Because of his background, he’s celibate, homophobic, and even somewhat opposed to homosexuality. 3. The bottom is a professional screenwriter and director as well as an actor. He will direct and star in his own films. A story about a repressed, self-controlled, straight, icy top who is thrown into turmoil by a free-spirited, alluring beauty of a bottom, yet stubbornly refuses to admit it~ Dignified, chaste, rule-abiding, proud heiress-like top x naturally flirtatious, slightly lascivious, carefree director bottom Theme: Build from nothing and serve the country with all your heart.