The Fish in Her Bathtub [Marriage Before Love]

Find me on Weibo at @Baoguangxiangzhi. Come say hi! My next novel is "Bad Dog Behavior." Please add it to your reading list, bbies! ★ Marriage first, love later | Intense push and pull | Matched opponents | Sparks fly ◆ Half-ripe honey peach Barbie x dark, manipulative wolf in sheep's clothing As the eldest daughter of the You family, You Xia lived a life surrounded by adoration. Her small, porcelain-white face looked innocent and cool. No one knew what kind of longing for the unconventional was hidden inside this haughty little swan. When her family told her she was about to be married off to a stranger, and she learned that he already had a beloved stashed away in a golden house, You Xia stewed over it all night. In the end, she pointed to an exceptionally handsome man with an incredible body to vent her frustration. The next morning, once she'd sobered up, You Xia sneaked around, planning to leave immediately. But just as her hand touched the doorknob and she was about to open the door... "Leaving already?" The man's voice behind her was low and husky. She was so guilty she couldn't bring herself to turn around, yet insisted on pretending she was an experienced player. Before fleeing, You Xia maintained her composure and said, "Thanks. You're the best man I've ever had." The man behind her fell silent for a second. You Xia slammed the door. Her composure shattered in an instant, and she shrieked as she ran away with her hands over her head. 1. The You family and the Qu family, an elite name in Beijing's most powerful circles, joined forces in marriage. The wedding between the two wealthy families stunned the entire social scene. But after the wedding, You Xia was dissatisfied with everything. She especially hated Qu Lizhou's hypocritical manner. He seemed refined and elegant, disciplined and courteous, always impeccably dressed, and always bland and boring. He was nowhere near as good as the man from that night. Just remembering him now and then was enough to make her head swim. To get a divorce, You Xia did whatever she could to annoy Qu Lizhou. She threw parties at home, flirted around wherever she went, and used her beauty to get her way. She acted out in every possible way. She thought Qu Lizhou wouldn't last more than a few days, but he always remained indifferent. 2. Then one night, while Qu Lizhou was away on a business trip, You Xia got completely drunk and fell asleep on the stairs of the villa as soon as she got home. The motion-sensor lights snapped on and off with the footsteps of someone approaching. You Xia opened her eyes groggily. Before she could react, someone suddenly kissed her. "Is this still the best you can do?" The man pulled away, laughing hoarsely. "You've made no progress even after getting married." It was the man from that night. You Xia's struggle froze in confusion. In the darkness, she couldn't see his face, so she had no way of knowing how wicked and darkly possessive the gaze was in the eyes of the man who was always so gentlemanly and distant around her: her husband. "Do you think married life is boring?" Qu Lizhou murmured. "Want to relive the night you called the best?" "Let's enjoy ourselves again." Reading guide: 1) One-on-one romance, both leads are each other's first and only. 2) The true love was a lie. The heroine is wild, and the hero is genuinely unhinged. 3) The hero has never been with anyone before. He is pure in body and mind until he meets the heroine, and afterward his dark obsession is directed at her alone. 4) There's a reason the heroine didn't recognize the hero. It will be explained in the story. Blurb saved on April 27, 2024, revised on April 14, 2025. Any plagiarism will be pursued. -- Next up: "The Etiquette of Stealing Kisses" [Pregnancy Before Love]. Blurb below. ■ Amnesia from the start | Pregnancy before love | Passionate push and pull | Enemies to lovers ● Rebellious black swan hot mom x fake ascetic, dark and depraved man Also known as "After Losing My Memory, I Got Pregnant by My Nemesis..." Bei Qian, the only daughter of the wealthy Bei family, was arrogant and difficult to control from childhood, rebellious and unruly to the core. The person she hated most in this life was Song Yanzhen, the heir to a Shanghai dynasty who lived across the hall from her. The Bei and Song families had been enemies for generations. Their heirs never crossed paths on friendly terms. Bei Qian had always known Song Yanzhen disliked her. From elementary school to university, he opposed her at every turn and outdid her in every way. Bei Qian was just as sick of his cool, noble demeanor. He looked radiant and peerlessly handsome, but was actually cold, unfeeling, aloof, and solitary, arrogant down to his bones. But the social scene wasn't all that big. They kept running into each other at gatherings with mutual friends, and every time they met, it was a case of enemies crossing paths: they were utterly at odds. 1. Who could have guessed that a sudden car accident would make Bei Qian lose five years of her memory? When she woke up, she saw Song Yanzhen sitting by her hospital bed. His voice was hoarse. "Beibei, I'll take responsibility." Bei Qian immediately sat up and pointed at him. "I knew it was you who hit me, you bastard--" "I mean the baby in your belly." The man held her hand. "Ours." Bei Qian: ? His voice was cool and steady. "We're not getting divorced anymore." Bei Qian: ...?? 2. Bei Qian decided she must have gone crazy over the past five years to marry Song Yanzhen and get pregnant by him. To find out what had happened, Bei Qian insisted he recreate scenes from their past to stimulate her brain and restore her memories. "You usually like my study best," he said. Bei Qian sat on his cold wooden desk with haughty contempt and looked around. "I used to work and study here?" The man gave her an odd look, then fell silent for a moment before answering, "No." "It was here, in this position, that you conceived little Beibei." Bei Qian: "..." 3. After the baby was born, Song Yanzhen took meticulous, patient care of them, day after day, leaving nothing undone. No one could find fault with him. Bei Qian thought that perhaps, over the past five years, they really had gone from hate to love. Their marriage had grown closer and steadier. Until Bei Qian accidentally found a photo in his bookcase. It showed her with another young man. She was smiling brightly in the picture, while the young man's face... had been slashed so many times it was unrecognizable. Dried dark-red liquid ran down it like blood dripping from a ruined face. Bei Qian remembered everything in an instant and was horrified. She quickly fled, leaving the child behind. But no matter what she did, she couldn't escape Song Yanzhen's control. When the man caught her again after another escape attempt, Bei Qian finally broke down and shouted: "You lied to me! My original husband wasn't you at all!" The madman was still impeccably dressed, smiling elegantly as he watched her with a dark, feral gaze. "You remember now, Beibei." "I stole you and the baby." My favorite stolen treasure. Theme: Love between equally matched opponents is the most interesting kind.