One-Sided Approach: Marriage Before Love

My other novel, Letters After Marriage, is currently being serialized. Its blurb is at the very bottom. Please add it to your reading list~ I've prepared a giveaway on Weibo. If you're interested, feel free to join in. Find me on Weibo: @Bie Buzhi Blurb for this novel *Long-distance relationship across countries / marriage first, love later / aloof beauty has been plotting this for ages / bittersweet secret crush / both leads are sexually inexperienced *Understated and reserved x bold and uninhibited | new money x old money *Venture capital founder x editor-in-chief of a financial magazine and blogger 1. Xu Jiashi and Liang Xun belonged to two distinct worlds of high society. Raised under the protection of her family's trust, Xu Jiashi loved jewelry, gold, and art. She was a regular at major auction houses and involved in running charitable projects, living a life of dazzling privilege. Liang Xun was more like a bauhinia growing wild along Victoria Harbour. Through his own efforts, he worked a miracle at Jingyang Capital, becoming a much-courted rising star in venture capital. He was reserved and understated, never flaunting his brilliance. Few people outside their circle believed their marriage would work, but Xu Jiashi didn't care. She only wanted them to be a married couple in name, living separate lives. 2. A year after the wedding, Xu Jiashi filed for divorce, citing “irreconcilable differences.” When she went to Liang Xun with the agreement for him to sign, she saw him on the phone through the half-open study door. The person on the other end was speaking unusually loudly: “Marrying Xu Jiashi was already a win-win. What more do you want?” Liang Xun stood by the window with his back to the caller, looking relaxed. The next moment, she heard him say in Cantonese, “I want her to love me.” As Xu Jiashi stood there in shock, she realized something was wrong with her own feelings. 3. The frequent flights between New York and Shenzhen, the shift of his business operations toward the mainland after their marriage, the private interview he made an exception to attend, and the extra spoonful of chili added to her meals. All of them were proof of Liang Xun's love for Xu Jiashi. Meeting her meant falling so deeply in love that he would give up his whole life. [Reader's guide] 1. Both leads are sexually inexperienced. 2. The heroine once had feelings for the second male lead. Blurb for Letters After Marriage A steady, sincere, and scheming flirt of a male lead x a sharp-tongued, formidable heroine The next time Zhao Jiayi saw Shen Jinyue, he rear-ended her car. They hadn't seen each other in ten years. He had risen to a position of power and shed the awkwardness of youth, while she was willing to ruin her reputation to stand up to her father, hiring a “third-rate loser” to pose as her boyfriend. Ever since that kiss she'd given him in a moment of madness at their high school graduation reunion, the boundaries between them had been clear. But Zhao Jiayi never imagined that, to save her family's crumbling empire, she would marry Shen Jinyue. Outsiders were in an uproar. They said Shen Jinyue, who stood apart from power and luxury, was like a lonely star high in the night sky: cool, distant, and out of reach. And Zhao Jiayi, rebellious and reckless, raised amid her family's twisted power struggles, was simply not good enough for him. Zhao Jiayi thought so too. They were just using each other. But Shen Jinyue's friends knew the truth: Shen Jinyue had been the one to propose marriage. The enormous memorandum of cooperation he signed with the Zhao family was the extravagant dowry he had prepared for Zhao Jiayi. Shen Jinyue would even give up everything in New York and compromise with his family for her. He had personally designed the “proposal” at their wedding, too. “Even if we're not in love yet, she should have everything everyone else has.” “I planned every step, and at last I caught the light.” The day Zhao Jiayi left Beicheng, she read a line in an airline magazine: “A fulfilled life needs family, friendship, and love.” Back then, she had only friendship. When she was twenty-seven, Shen Jinyue entered her life with his quiet protection and forceful presence. He silently stayed by her through every stormy night when thunder crashed overhead. When she faced off against her father, he stood firmly by her, holding nothing back... Little by little, he filled the empty places in Zhao Jiayi's life. [Bonus scene] “Anonymous Q: When did Shen start liking Zhao? They already have a kid, and we still don't have an answer!!!” 3 mins “0667 (verified driver): I still remember a snowy day years ago. My new boss, usually so calm and composed, was in a hurry. He pointed at the slow-moving Mercedes ahead and calmly told me, ‘See that? Run into it.’ And that's how the first spark of love began.” 10 mins “Same here: So it was on purpose. You're sleeping in the living room tonight.” 10 mins “S: Honey, I'm sorry...” “You are the one and only desire in my long life.” “Letters After Marriage: I'll tell you I love you.” [Reader's guide] 1. The male lead is head over heels. Both leads are sexually inexperienced and have only ever been with each other. 2. Feigned enemies, secret mutual crush. 3. They save each other; very sweet married life. Weibo: Bie Buzhi Theme: I never hesitated to take the road that led me closer to you.