A Reply at Dusk

[This novel has been revised many times. Stolen copies are incomplete; I am responsible only to readers of the official version. Thank you for supporting the official release.]

★ [Blurb]:

★ Marriage first, love later / long-planned scheme

★ Tough words, soft heart x scheming jealous king

When Lu Shiyin was eighteen, she visited a friend's house and learned in the course of their conversation that her friend had a younger cousin, now fourteen and an excellent student.

That evening, as twilight deepened, she crouched by her friend's pond to watch the fish. The thud and echo of a basketball hitting the ground startled the koi, and they vanished in an instant.

She turned around. The boy had shot up tall, his face flushed after exercising as he lifted his collar to wipe away sweat.

Their eyes met for a moment, and then the boy quickly left.

She asked her friend, "Why does your brother run off whenever he sees me? I haven't even had a chance to say hello."

Her friend said, "He's going through puberty. He's afraid of girls."

That very night, however, she went downstairs for a drink of water and found Cheng Jinghe standing in the dim light. The light fell across his face, his straight nose dividing it between brightness and shadow. He asked softly, "Sis, what do you need? I'll get it for you."

Remembering that her friend had said he was afraid of girls, she jokingly replied, "I want the jade pendant around your neck. Give it to me."

The boy froze for a moment, then took off the pendant and set it on the table.

Lu Shiyin thought he was far too obedient and patted him on the shoulder. "I was only joking. Put it away."

/

Not long after, her family forced her to go abroad. Years passed before she saw him again, at a dinner for their arranged marriage.

His boyish appearance was gone. He had become mature and handsome.

She was an unwanted titular general manager, while he had already gained real power in the family business at a young age.

During their marriage, they had been polite and distant, until Cheng Jinghe made the first move.

Under the night sky, aboard a yacht at sea, he wiped the moisture from her lips. "Could you try letting me into your heart?"

/

Cheng Jinghe had always treated their marriage with care, content with every little smile she gave him.

Until one rainy night, when his new wife was brought home again by a strange man. They had fought side by side, and the sight stung.

As the man left, he looked Cheng Jinghe over with disdain in his eyes.

Cheng Jinghe felt the man was reminding him that his methods of taking her from someone else had not been honorable.

He began to fear she would learn the truth.

From then on, "contentment" took on a new meaning, and "greed" grew unchecked.

[Reading Guide]

● Younger man / four-year age gap / both are each other's first

● Woman is 27, man is 23

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Please add my novel in the same series, Green Velvet, to your collection.

[Blurb below]

Cheng Jingzhi finally saw her boyfriend, Chu Yi, the poor boy who had disappeared four years ago.

Now he was the all-powerful head of the Chu Group, pretending not to know her at a party.

She already had a fiancé, too, and played along with the act of meeting him for the first time.

As her fiancé told her about President Chu's prestigious family and impressive abilities, Cheng Jingzhi silently turned her earring, feeling that she had been stupid beyond saving.

Later, her fiancé invited her to dinner with President Chu. After the meal, her fiancé anxiously searched for her outside the wall.

Inside, President Chu, who had just been so cold, asked in a pleading tone, "When are you going to break off your engagement?"

She smiled brightly. "You'll have to be patient a little longer."

/

At the racetrack, he ostentatiously held her in his arms in the VIP room, where the transparent glass walls left them in full view.

Furious, she scraped a mark into his neck with her long nail.

He didn't dodge, only grinning as he coaxed her. "No one outside can see us."

But the instant a server opened the door, someone passing by caught sight of a familiar head of black hair.

They turned and sent Qiao Yanjin a message: [Bro, I think I just saw your fiancée.]

Qiao Yanjin went to confront Chu Yi, but his punch hit nothing.

Chu Yi's expression didn't change. He said coolly, "How can a loser show his face and make a fool of himself?"

/

To the outside world, President Chu was decisive and ruthless, with sharp features that concealed a deep-seated cunning. He was a hard man who had risen to power by putting profit first.

Yet he invested in a small studio with little promise.

When someone asked what business opportunity he'd spotted this time, they saw a photo of the studio's founder tucked in his wallet.

His eyes dimmed, and he looked a little forlorn. "So I can stay with her for a long, long time."

The studio flourished. Once everything was stable, Cheng Jingzhi kicked Chu Yi to the curb.

Under the eaves at midnight, Chu Yi leaned against the door and caught the hem of Cheng Jingzhi's clothes. His eyes were as clear as they had been years ago. "Please don't leave me, okay?"

Cheng Jingzhi was determined to go. He gently took her hand. "The scratches on my back haven't faded yet."

Cheng Jingzhi: "So?"

"They're a mark. Now that I've been marked, I can only belong to you."

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Theme: Kindness is a precious treasure