Intimacy Forbidden

Ming Shu had known Sheng Wenhe for as long as she could remember, from the age of seven until she was twenty-two.

In her eyes, he was simply an elder who had been around her for more than a decade. An elder was an elder, nothing more.

Whenever she saw Sheng Wenhe, she would politely greet him as Second Uncle. Sheng Wenhe would give her a brief, indifferent glance and look away. Their interactions were calm and bland, with not the slightest hint of romance.

She learned that Sheng Wenhe's feelings for her were not entirely innocent one night, when she invited him to dinner to thank him for connecting her with some work.

They were alone in the private room, and the atmosphere was pleasant. She had a little to drink and leaned back in her chair, drowsy, with her eyes closed.

Thinking she was drunk, Sheng Wenhe stood up, came closer, and kissed her.

Ming Shu froze, pushing at him as her eyes slowly widened.

Realizing she wasn't drunk, Sheng Wenhe didn't back away. Instead, he swept her up in his arms and pinned her against the wall. He bit her ear, his breath hot. His voice, no longer held back, was low and husky. "Shushu, be mine."

* Powerful man x Delicate beauty

* A radiant, gorgeous beauty x A sly old fox who never lets on

* Nine-year age gap. The leads are not related by blood or law. They simply grew up together, with one an elder and the other a junior.

Please add my next novel, Be Good, Don't Divorce Me, to your collection =3=

Xu Songli's broken engagement to Chen Ji caused a huge stir online. Both the Chen and Xu families were wealthy, and Chen Ji was young, hotheaded, and unruly. He detested arranged marriages decided by the older generation, so he found an excuse to break off his engagement to the Xu family.

Xu Songli was the Xu family's only little princess, born into a life of privilege. But at eighteen, she was jilted, losing face completely in high society.

Unable to stomach the humiliation, Xu Songli went to the Chen family to confront Chen Ji about it. Instead, she unexpectedly walked in on Chen Ji kneeling before a refined, distinguished man. Seeing Chen Ji's furious yet helpless expression gave Xu Songli an idea.

She would marry that man and make Chen Ji watch his step around her every day.

The man's name was Chen Wangyan. He was twenty-eight, and Chen Ji's second uncle.

As it happened, the Chen family was arranging a match for Chen Wangyan. Xu Songli used a few tricks and successfully married him.

Her friend thought she was being too impulsive. Handing her whole life over to a stranger just to make Chen Ji suffer was hardly sensible.

At the time, Xu Songli was in Chen Wangyan's enormous villa, counting the wedding gifts. At her friend's words, she looked up with a shrewd little smile. "You don't know? Chen Wangyan can't perform. This marriage means I don't have to fulfill any marital duties. It's the same as not being married at all."

She'd heard that when Chen Wangyan was a child, he had been kidnapped and taken to the bitterly cold borderlands. His health had been severely damaged, leaving him weak and frail. He spent half of every day in a wheelchair, resting and recuperating.

She would have a husband, a respectable status, and plenty of money. Chen Ji would have to bow his head and call her Second Aunt every day, and she wouldn't even have to fulfill any marital duties with Chen Wangyan. What could be better?

But married life turned out to be completely different from what Xu Songli had expected.

Chen Wangyan wasn't weak or frail, and he didn't use a wheelchair. He was even extremely demanding about marital duties at night. Xu Songli stared at him in shock, then immediately ran back to the bedroom to pack up and escape.

The man caught her around the waist with one hand and pinned her in a corner. His voice was unhurried and low, with a hint of danger. "Where do you think you're going?"

Chen Wangyan considered himself a good second uncle. He had first met Xu Songli at twenty-six and immediately wanted to claim her, but since his nephew Chen Ji was engaged to her, he kept his feelings hidden and did everything he could to bring about their marriage. He never expected Chen Ji to fail him by casually breaking off the engagement and turning the young woman into a laughingstock in high society. Annoyed, he made Chen Ji kneel and reflect on what he'd done before going to make up with her. But one night, the young woman wandered into his room by mistake. The next morning, she woke up with her clothes in disarray and tearfully demanded that he take responsibility.

Chen Wangyan was no good man. He had wanted her for two years, but morality had kept her out of his grasp. Now she had come to him of her own accord, and he had every right to claim her. So he married her, just as she wished.

On their wedding night, the young woman wore a creamy-white nightdress and lay defenseless on the marital bed, counting the wedding gifts. Her lovely bare feet were as smooth and radiant as jade.

Chen Wangyan loosened his tie, bent down, and lifted her onto his lap. His gaze darkened as he murmured, "Wife, it's time for bed."

When Xu Songli discovered that Chen Wangyan was nothing like the refined gentleman he seemed to be, she regretted everything.

At five in the morning one day, Xu Songli had red eyes and a deeply aggrieved expression. Her voice was so hoarse she could barely speak. "I want a divorce, Chen Wangyan!"

Chen Wangyan drew her into his arms and kissed her forehead, smiling. "Be good. We're not getting divorced."

A refined, distinguished man on the surface, but actually a forceful, calculating powerhouse x An innocent, gullible beauty with no schemes

Theme: Stand on your own two feet