Female Lead Version
After spending many years at the monastery, Nan Xi is ordered to go down the mountain and deliver medicine to a wealthy man. She happens upon him being attacked by assassins, and when she steps in to save him, she meets the carefree, unrestrained Zhai Lang.
The two agree to escort the wealthy man and... um, his beloved courtesan, to a safe place.
On the road, Zhai Lang talks Nan Xi's ear off, while the cheeky rogue with his perpetual grin, who calls her his Taoist bride all day long, drives her to distraction.
At the same time, she realizes that Zhai Lang may not be as simple and harmless as he seems.
Still, she tells herself it has nothing to do with her, and simply ignores it.
Until...
He tells her, "I like you." His usually lazy, flirtatious eyes rarely shine with such burning, single-minded devotion.
But Nan Xi has long since left the mortal world behind. That light can't warm her in the slightest.
Besides, who would believe the words of a roguish playboy?
Until one day, she learns the whole truth.
She finds him, kisses him of her own accord, and says to him, stunned and delighted, "If you want to do anything else, then you have to come back alive!"
Male Lead Version
Zhai Lang carries a sandalwood fan inscribed with the words "Show Off" and spends his days in all sorts of places of pleasure. With a face handsome enough to captivate everyone, he embodies the phrase "roguish playboy" to perfection.
One day, he meets a woman, one whose peerless beauty shines through even her plain gray robes. But this woman is a Taoist nun who has renounced worldly affairs.
She won't speak? No problem. He can talk, and he can sing, too.
She treats him like he isn't there? No problem. He can make his own entertainment, circling around her until she can't help but notice him.
The more annoyed she gets with him, the closer he gets.
He insists that if she finds him annoying, it's only because she hasn't seen enough of him. Once she gets used to him, she'll be fine.
So, "Reverend, won't you take a look at me?"
This all looks like frivolous behavior inspired by her beauty, but there's a deeper reason behind it.
Until one day, that soft little hand, as delicate as if it had no bones, grabs him just as he's about to fall off a cliff. He knows then that he can hide anything, but he can no longer hide his heart.
A Little Scene
One day, Zhai Lang and Nan Xi are forced to pose as a young farming couple. They share a room at a shabby inn with a family of five.
"Young man, how long have you been married?"
Zhai Lang smiles politely. "Uh, not long. Just a year."
"A year! You're still newlyweds. Why don't you look affectionate at all?"
"That's not true. My wife is just shy."
As he speaks, Zhai Lang pulls Nan Xi close and swiftly plants a kiss on her cheek. Seeing his "wife" about to get angry, Zhai Lang grabs her hand, pretending to be affectionate while panicking like crazy, and frantically winks at her to signal her to play along.
"Haha, you're a funny young man. But you've been married for a year already. How come you don't have any kids?" The man points to the three lively children behind him. "Look, our eldest was born six months after we got married!"
Zhai Lang: "...That's impressive, big brother! But, well..." As he speaks, he pats Nan Xi's belly. "Soon, soon!"
In an empty corner of the inn.
"Reverend! Reverend! I'm sorry! I was wrong! You can hit me anywhere, just don't hit me in the face, okay?"
Reader's Guide:
1. The male lead isn't really a womanizer; there's a reason for his behavior. The female lead genuinely doesn't fall for him at first. This should be a story about a devoted man hiding behind the guise of a roguish playboy, bearing humiliation and hardship. He starts out carefree and bold, then falls in love in a way that's frustratingly repressed and restrained.
2. A story about two people saving each other.
3. One-on-one, both are each other's first and only, happy ending, fictional setting.
Theme: Only love can strip away every disguise in the world.
Good looking, my type