Crossing the River [Marriage Before Love]

[Main story complete | Powerful man humbled / Marriage Before Love / Five-year age gap] Elegant, daddy-type man in power from Beijing's elite circles × delicate kindergarten teacher / Zhou Wanning's marriage to Xie Wenyan began when he rescued the Zhou family from ruin. To repay Xie Wenyan, Zhou Wanning was the most proper and dignified Mrs. Xie in public. In private, she worked hard to get fit and adapt to Xie Wenyan's increasingly strong physical needs. For the past two years, they had treated each other with respect, but when exploring each other, they spared no effort. Every night he loved her with abandon, Zhou Wanning grew deeply dependent on Xie Wenyan, to the point that she couldn't help enjoying the special care he showered on "Mrs. Xie." But as their two-year agreement drew near, Zhou Wanning had no choice but to steel herself and force herself to pull away from this ill-timed relationship... * Xie Wenyan was the favored son of heaven, revered by the powerful and influential in Beijing's elite circles. Everyone said he had power that reached everywhere and was someone no one in the capital could afford to offend. Recently, his friends noticed that he was becoming increasingly irritable. After looking into the reason, they discovered that the great Xie had lost his "charm" with his wife: she wouldn't let him touch her. To win back his wife's affection, Xie Wenyan humbled himself and diligently studied his technique. But all three times he tried to climb into her bed, he failed. As he tried to figure out why, he unexpectedly learned that Zhou Wanning's first love had returned. For the first time, a sinister look appeared on the dignified, composed Xie Wenyan's face. * Late at night, Zhou Wanning had just returned from dance practice when the man, overcome with drink, tore her sheer dance dress to shreds before she could take it off. The tatters hung limply around her ankles. Knowing it was their last night, she let her feelings pour out. Who knew he would pin her against the bathroom sink and thrust harder than ever before? She begged hoarsely, "Xie Wenyan, leave me some strength. I still have to go get our divorce certificate tomorrow." His eyes darkened as he bent close. "Ningning, who said I was going to let you go?" "..." "You will always be Xie Wenyan's wife." The next moment, he claimed her with even greater force. * [Bonus Scene:] Zhou Wanning had always believed that although she and Xie Wenyan weren't a loving couple, they were close comrades-in-arms. But after hearing about their daily life together, a friend asked her a soul-searching question: "So you're saying that even though the two of you take baths together every Saturday to grow closer, he holds you while you sleep during thunderstorms, and he buys you little cakes to cheer you up when your students make you cry, the two of you are just... pure comrades-in-arms?" Zhou Wanning nodded, then added with complete seriousness, "But he's a little more than a comrade-in-arms now. He actually makes time every day, despite being so busy, to help me prepare lessons for the children!" Her friend dropped to her knees on the bed and made a show of prostrating herself. "Teacher Zhou, you should write a book called How to Train Your Dog. I'll be your most devoted disciple!" Coming Soon Falling Night * Shi Ruoling, the little princess of the Shi family, adored by all. Beautiful, sweet, and adorable, she was especially beloved by the Hong Kong media, who usually had a sharp tongue in their coverage. And Xie Wenci, the head of a top-ranking family, was the man feared by Hong Kong's powerful elite. He belonged to her alone. He gave her not only endless affection, but also a marriage everyone envied. Everyone said Shi Ruoling was lucky, and even she thought so. But when Shi Ruoling unexpectedly recovered her memories, she realized that the past two years of marriage and her family's love had been nothing but a bubble, a phantom. She wasn't "Shi Ruoling" at all, but her twin younger sister, Si Ruoning. Shi Ruoling had disappeared before her wedding, while Si Ruoning had lost her memory in a car accident. After discussing it, the Shi family sent her to the Xie family in her sister's place. She enjoyed everything that should have belonged to her sister, including the man who left her drunk on love and unable to escape her desire for him. Si Ruoning knew all too well what kind of man Xie Wenci was. If he loved someone, he wanted them to live; if he hated them, he wanted them dead. He would never tolerate anyone deceiving him. From the moment Si Ruoning learned she was an impostor, only two thoughts filled her mind: One cursed her amnesiac self for daring to throw a fit and demand to be Xie Wenci's little empress, riding on top of him. The other racked her brains, figuring out how to slip away from under the nose of this ruthless big shot without a trace. Later, her older sister returned. While Xie Wenci was away on a business trip, she decisively hit the gas and left that chaotic upper-class world, returning to her own life. * Xie Wenci was used to calling his beloved little butterfly for phone sex every night he was away on business, using it to lull her to sleep. But one day, after more than a dozen calls went unanswered, he realized something was wrong. He rushed back to Hong Kong, only to discover that his little butterfly had flown away. He searched all over Hong Kong, finally finding her in a village where wildflowers bloomed in profusion. Seeing him approach with a cold gaze and a frigid presence, Si Ruoning recoiled in fright and stammered, "B-brother-in-law, what are you doing here?" Brother-in-law? Not brother, not daddy, not beloved husband. Well, the man found that a novel change. He gripped Si Ruoning's hand tightly. Though furious, he smiled brightly. "Baby, I've finally caught you." Thesis: The person who loves you most is me