Rose-Colored Mist

The full text has been revised several times. Pirated copies are riddled with errors, so please support the authorized version on Jinjiang Literature City.

1.

When Wen Xuegui was nineteen, a practice painting of hers sold for tens of millions, making her famous in the art world.

On the oil painting, delicate roses lounged beside dark rocks, evoking the dreamlike profusion of blossoms everyone imagined. It went viral across the internet.

Yet someone posted anonymously: [The painter herself is even more graceful and dazzling, a beauty of exquisite charm, and she's already engaged to the Yu family, the most powerful family of all.]

What the poster didn't know was that she never showed up at the engagement banquet.

2.

Unwilling to submit to an arranged marriage, Xuegui flew back overnight to her alma mater, the Florence Academy of Fine Arts, to clear her head.

Amid the glittering nightlife, she met a poor but handsome Chinese international student, Aaron.

Aaron was gentle and sincere. He took her by the hand to dance the foxtrot, gave her roses, and fed her Cartellate drizzled with wine syrup.

Beneath a shower of fireworks, he confessed his love to Xuegui, his eyes reflecting a sky full of stars.

For the first time, Xuegui experienced the boundless beauty of being in love.

After spending several enchanting nights together, she was pressured by her family and left without saying goodbye.

Half a month later, she was brought in to meet the man she'd been promised to.

He was handsome and refined, his features blurred by the wisps of tea steam. All she could make out clearly were the eyes that had reflected that starry night.

"Miss Wen, long time no see."

His gaze was somber. "I'm Aaron, Yu Mohuai."

3.

Yu Mohuai, head of the Yu family, was long known for his deep scheming, noble bearing, and gloomy nature.

Xuegui smiled bitterly. He certainly lived up to his reputation.

She had been raised pampered, without the slightest bit of cunning. If she really married him, he would devour her until not a bone remained.

With that in mind, she took a step back from their relationship.

The news caused a sensation across half of Yuncheng. Plenty of people had hoped to climb into the Yu family's good graces, and now their hopes were rekindled.

Countless people watched eagerly, waiting for him to call off the engagement.

But Yu Mohuai not only kept the ring on his middle finger, he also stopped showing up at banquets more and more often.

A reporter came to interview them. When she got home and enlarged the photos, she noticed what looked like the hem of a boldly colored nightgown slipping past the door.

After the reporter left, the girl wrapped herself in a coat in embarrassment and zipped it all the way up.

"I'm going home!"

"Didn't Rose promise to tell me about the Renaissance?" Yu Mohuai said with a smile. "You haven't finished. You're not allowed to leave."

He drew Xuegui into his arms, and the two kissed in the evening breeze steeped in the scent of roses.

The Renaissance brought art back to life, and you brought me back to life.

Soft yet strong oil-painting beauty x brooding tycoon

The title, Ink Smoke, comes from the line "The mountains wither, revealing ink smoke." It originally means a black mark and can refer to dark rocks.

You are the music, the heavens, the palaces, the rivers, the angels,

The deep rose, hidden and without end, that God displays before my blind eyes., Jorge Luis Borges, The Deep Rose

tips:

1. Both leads are devoted to the one they love from beginning to end

2. Friendly discussion is welcome~

(The cover background and font are public-domain materials.)

My next book will be Autumn Days, Sharing a Home and Sweet Treats. Add it to your favorites~

A popular post on a social media app: "Life in Shanghai is so rough. Takeout is either ridiculously expensive or pre-made, greasy, and gross. Cooking for yourself is too much work, and you're exhausted after work every day."

"Tonight, I'm dreaming of a gorgeous, rich man with plenty of free time who cooks for me at home. If there can be a snail maiden, why can't there be a snail husband?"

Chen Tang sat in the car, the night scenery illuminating her radiant face.

She forwarded the post to Su Rongxu: [Thanks, handsome Su, for making me dinner!]

Elsewhere, a phone lit up on a gaming desk.

Su Rongxu read the post and smiled. He replied: [What do you want to eat tonight?]

-

For a long time, Chen Tang never felt at home in the city of Jinghai.

Cold, sharp, a place where everyone could be replaced.

Later, she stopped feeling out of place.

Every night when she got home, a warm orange light was waiting for her. Beneath it was a comforting meal of three dishes and a soup. The soothing warmth flowed from her tongue to her stomach, warming her all over.

-

Back when they were at one of the top three universities.

Su Rongxu was the best-looking among the geniuses,

the most well-mannered among the handsome men,

the most mysterious among the well-mannered.

Though his features were sharp and his figure tall and straight, and he had all the qualities needed to live a carefree life,

he was neither arrogant nor a playboy. He had a quiet, dignified grace,

like a jade scabbard hiding a sharp blade, his whole person calm and restrained.

Many people liked him,

but he always kept to himself and was hard to approach.

So, years after graduation, Chen Tang never imagined

that the two of them would end up in a relationship where they...

shared the same bed.

-

One morning.

The morning light filtered through milky gauze curtains. Chen Tang, ears bright red, tried to push away the man who had draped himself over her shoulder first thing in the morning.

Su Rongxu didn't budge. Beneath his shirt, his lean muscles were like a spring mountain ridge, his waist trim and graceful.

"Are you going to seduce me and then abandon me?"

Chen Tang's eyes widened. "But you were the one who..."

"We agreed," Su Rongxu said, burying his face in her neck. "Let's give your body time to rest, and set aside some time just for me."

·Sweet-toothed foodie x dragon's beard candy

·Through comforting food, share autumn moons, winter snow, spring blossoms, and summer nights with you

Theme: Healthy intimacy helps people grow