After Faking My Death, My Ex-Husband Went to Hell and Back

Recently updated at one chapter every two days. Please check out my upcoming novels, "After Marrying My Ex by Contract, I Became Famous" and "You've Eaten All the Jealousy in the World"! Fragile, sweet beauty x aloof, volatile young master Zhu Nanxi x Xie Chengzhou Everyone in Nancheng said that Zhu Nanxi was blessed beyond measure to marry Xie Chengzhou and climb into the powerful Xie family. They weren't wrong. Back then, the Zhu family was in such dire straits that bankruptcy was only one step away. Zhu Nanxi had begged for help all over town in the pouring rain, only to be turned away without mercy. The red beauty mark beneath his eye, damp with either rain or tears, made him all the more captivating. From behind the car window, one glance was all it took for Xie Chengzhou to take an interest in him. The rain came down in sheets. Holding an umbrella, Xie Chengzhou spoke with the air of someone deigning to offer charity: "I'll give you a chance. Will you come with me?" Zhu Nanxi looked up and saw a face so similar it seemed to belong to someone returned from the dead. He answered in a daze, "I will." Just like that, Zhu Nanxi married into the Xie family and became a laughingstock everyone looked down on. Some even said that Xie Chengzhou merely treated him like a pampered pet bird, amusing himself with a pretty toy. How could he possibly have genuine feelings for him? - Xie Chengzhou really did like Zhu Nanxi. He liked how obedient and compliant he was, how he let Xie Chengzhou do whatever he wanted without a hint of resistance, and how completely devoted he was to him. Zhu Nanxi knew how to love him so well. He would cross half the city in the bitter cold of midwinter just to bring back a pastry Xie Chengzhou liked; he would wait outside the company until four in the morning, fighting off sleep just to see him finish work; he would painstakingly pick out every difference between himself and Xie Chengzhou, then sand down all his rough edges, just to become the person who fit Xie Chengzhou best... Even though Xie Chengzhou was utterly vicious in bed, Zhu Nanxi never made a sound. He would look at him with those eyes full of love and obediently endure it. When passion overwhelmed him, his eyes would fill with tears, and he would keep demanding a kiss. Xie Chengzhou thought, There's no harm in giving a pet a little extra affection. So he bent down to kiss him, only to grow even rougher, making him cry even more pitifully. - Then one day, the Xie family made a grand spectacle of finding Xie Chengzhou a new partner of distinguished birth. At the banquet, Zhu Nanxi heard someone tease him, "Third Young Master Xie, what do you like about your little wife?" Xie Chengzhou let out a scornful laugh, his eyes full of bottomless mockery. "He's just a little plaything. What's there to like?" Zhu Nanxi's eyes remained calm and empty. He left a divorce agreement behind just before Xie Chengzhou's new engagement banquet. Then, right in front of him, he leaped into the sea. His body was never found. He disappeared from Xie Chengzhou's world completely. Apart from that cold death certificate, he left not a trace behind. Later, people heard that the most promising heir of the Xie family had gone completely mad. He muttered about something all day long, something like... Nanxi? - Three years later, in a small town in Jiangnan, a dense crowd surrounded a little house, leaving no way in or out. Xie Chengzhou stood at the very center, arms spread toward the young man in the courtyard, smiling with unhurried ease. He said, "Nanxi, you've been naughty." Then he opened his arms to the young man again, his voice gentle. "I'll give you one more chance. Come back to me." As if he weren't the one who had gone mad with longing for Zhu Nanxi day after day. But no one knew that through countless sleepless nights, Xie Chengzhou sat inside a birdcage made of solid gold, clutching Zhu Nanxi's old clothes, his gaze obsessed. He whispered, "Nanxi. My Nanxi." You can only ever stay by my side. Even in death. Content Warnings [Please Read] [Important] [!!!] 1. This is extremely melodramatic, ridiculously melodramatic, and drenched in old-school angst. It has a classic groveling-after-the-breakup arc and a substitute lover trope. 2. 1v1, both leads are pure, happy ending. Neither the top nor the bottom is perfect, but they will weather the ups and downs and make it to the end together. No changing the top or the bottom. 3. Please be civil! Don't fight! Don't fight! Don't fight! I know this story will probably be controversial, and people will have very different opinions. If you don't like what you see or can't accept it, please click the exit button in the top right. There are countless great stories on Jinjiang, so you don't have to put yourself through this one. 4. I hope you won't insult the author. Let's treat each other with respect and keep things friendly. (Please, please.) (If you insult me, it'll be like punching cotton.) (I'm extremely sensitive and have a history of mental illness.) (Once again, I beg you not to insult the author.) (Whether you're happy or unhappy, the day will pass anyway. I hope everyone can be happy and let go of their anger.) Here's a preview of an upcoming story. Wives, you can check it out on my profile: "After Marrying My Ex-Boyfriend by Contract, I Became Famous"~ Mischievous, demanding, pure-hearted beauty bottom x ruthless, sharp-tongued actor top who spoils his wife Since his debut, rising star Wen Sui has been hailed as the entertainment industry's ultimate mix of innocence and sensuality, and a dream man in the gay community. His stunning face has fans completely bewitched, yet he keeps himself impeccably clean. Not a single scandal since his debut, as chaste and desireless as a monk. When fans and haters dug through his past for three days and three nights, they still couldn't uncover a single trace of a past romance. Unexpectedly, scandal struck all at once, his carefully crafted image collapsed, and Wen Sui was cursed at on trending topics for three days and three nights. Wen Sui, a happy-go-lucky slacker: "I can quit the industry." His agency: "No! You can't!" To save Wen Sui's career, which was hanging by a thread, his manager found him a husband for a marriage of convenience overnight: Xie Hanshu, a newly crowned Best Actor. The manager made arrangements with Xie Hanshu's agent, then hurriedly bundled the two of them onto a hugely popular couples' reality show. What no one knew was that Xie Hanshu was the one piece of Wen Sui's romantic history that three days and nights of digging had failed to uncover: His one and only first love. - "I Really Want to Sleep with You" is the most popular reality show of recent years. The moment the production team announced its newest cast members, the show's official account erupted in a storm of angry comments. Wen Sui's secret marriage partner was thoroughly exposed, and wave after wave of haters piled on. Weibo nearly crashed. Then, on the day filming began... The devil-may-care actor Xie Hanshu, infamous for rubbing everyone the wrong way, suddenly appeared on camera, his handsome face wearing a tender, affectionate smile. Fans: ? Fans: ??? Xie Hanshu, aren't you single? What are you doing here? It wasn't just his fans. Everyone in the entertainment industry knew Xie Hanshu was the only man in show business who upheld traditional standards of male virtue. He never promoted a pairing, never had a rumored romance, never got physically intimate with women, and even kept a careful distance from the men around him. He was even more celibate than Wen Sui. Xie Hanshu was perfect in every way except for his sharp tongue. Even passing dogs got a scolding from him... His fans were still baffled, just about to ask what was going on. The next second, Wen Sui tried to sneak away from under the cameras with an awkward look on his face. Actor Xie casually grabbed him by the collar, his tone impossible to read: "Honey, where are you running off to?" Wen Sui: ??? Fans: ??? The entertainment industry was rocked, and Weibo crashed again. Only Wen Sui was on the verge of tears: Who can tell me why my ex-boyfriend is here, and why he's become my husband of convenience? Wen Sui: Danger!!! - Before going on the show, Xie Hanshu thought, That heartless little Wen Sui dumped me back then. I'll pay him back twice over and make him suffer. After the show began, Xie Hanshu looked at Wen Sui, whose eyes were full of spring and whose lips were red against his pearly teeth, and felt his defenses gradually crumble. Wen Sui had gotten even prettier... Why was Wen Sui talking to another man... Wen Sui could only belong to him... Maybe it wouldn't be so bad to make Wen Sui suffer in other ways? Xie Hanshu glanced at the tie by the bed. After a moment's thought, he wrote down the positions he planned to try that day in his little notebook, then smiled with satisfaction. Afterward, poor little Wen Sui clutched his aching waist, close to tears. Weren't they supposed to be a married couple in name only? How had it turned real??? Theme: Love means willingly admitting defeat