*This is my first time writing a story, so there are plenty of shortcomings. Thank you all for being understanding!!! (Frog Frog salutes)
1. The first time Yu Yi met Cheng Yu was at Huaqing Temple.
The grand hall was solemn, and drifting incense illuminated the countless desires of the world. Yet Yu Yi could discern nothing about him.
He wanted nothing, was bound by few karmic ties, and treated her with enough warmth and courtesy. Even his rejection was a honey-coated dull blade.
In one of her rare moments of clarity, Yu Yi chose to walk away. Still, she came out ahead: with his support, she threw herself into building her career.
When they met again, she was performing at a private garden for a birthday celebration as part of her work. Cheng Yu sat among the guests, with the host's granddaughter beside him. They were said to be a perfect match, with wedding plans imminent.
Yu Yi found the sight grating. She planned to slip away as soon as work was over, but someone stopped her outside the moon gate.
"Won't you stay for dinner?"
With guests passing behind them, the man spoke gently, yet kept pressing closer with every step. "Miss Yu is so broad-minded. You left right after we slept together, so surely you won't avoid a work dinner. Don't you agree?"
A lush old banyan tree stood at Huaqing Temple, its branches hung with red ribbons and wooden plaques bearing people's wishes. Yu Yi followed local custom, wrote down a wish, and asked Cheng Yu to hang it up for her.
When she returned later to give thanks, she found a line of sharp handwriting on the back of the weathered, faded plaque:
"May you bloom like a rose, radiant beyond measure."
[Reading Guide]
1. One-on-one romance. The male lead is six years older. He is neither a monk nor religious; the Buddhist temple is only a backdrop!
2. Happy ending.
3. Entirely fictional, so please don't overanalyze it.
Theme: "Only a rose can bloom like a rose."
Sprinkle flowers, sprinkle flowers, come on
The heroine's mother is so strong!