[Mature leads / Married life / First love in their youth / Chaste, virtuous male lead]
The heroine is 32.
The hero is 33.
Gynecologist x university professor
Quiet and attentive x graceful and reserved
[The blurb was screenshotted and documented on December 11, 2022. Copyright protection was registered when the story began. Don't steal or repackage my ideas.]
Six years into their marriage.
Jiang Ying suddenly felt tired.
Zhou Zhaoyan was a perfectly good husband: approved of by her parents, highly educated, handsome and dignified, and with a respectable job in the public sector.
Their married life was regular and harmonious, too.
What's more, he agreed with her decision to remain child-free.
She wasn't sure what had gone wrong in their marriage.
On Friday afternoon, Jiang Ying got off work and, after some hesitation, went shopping with a friend. She didn't get home until ten that night. She casually took off her coat and high heels, changed into a new nightgown, and prepared to make mulled wine and spend the evening by herself.
But to her surprise, the familiar figure who should have been working overtime was sitting in the dining room.
She had no idea how long Zhou Zhaoyan had been home.
He sat silently by the window. The light was dim, and the dinner on the table had gone cold.
Jiang Ying realized they hadn't shared a moment like this in a long time.
Zhou Zhaoyan gestured for her to sit down.
Their eyes met.
The years had sharpened his features, while the coolness in his eyes had softened into a calmness polished by time.
"I won't consider divorce," Zhou Zhaoyan said gently. "So I've taken a month of annual leave. I want to know what you're thinking, what you want... I also remember that today marks ten years since we got together, and our seventh wedding anniversary."
"Every moment we've spent loving each other has been like the wind blowing through an entire spring. I can't point to a specific moment, because flowers have bloomed in my life through every second I've loved you. I found a white pear blossom at Chengqian Palace and remembered how you smiled at me and asked if I wanted to marry you and start a family together. I loved you so much at that moment."
Reading notes:
The leads were each other's first love when they were young.
Chaste.
The leads remain child-free.
The story begins in the sixth year of their marriage.
A slice-of-life story, a gentle romance with no major ups and downs.
The message: Love means respect and freedom.
