Chi Li [Beijing Circle]

[A young master from Beijing's elite circles x a college student. Please add my next book, Perching Sparrow [Beijing Circle], to your reading list.]

Ling Yao came from Guangdong to study in Beijing. She stayed at the Shen residence a few times for various reasons, and Shen Qingli took care of her.

She knew that this refined young master was someone she could never hope to have.

After a bit of thoughtless flirting with him, Ling Yao left without a word and went to the University of Hong Kong as an exchange student for a year.

Shen Qingli's childhood friend teased him that the fish he'd been raising had escaped. His face turned cold as he said quietly, "Come with me to Hong Kong."

"To find her?"

"To pick something up."

Not long afterward, Ling Yao received a pigeon-blood ruby bracelet he'd bought at auction.

-

When she returned from her exchange program, Ling Yao decided to give him a gift in return.

Shen Qingli asked only for the Buddhist prayer beads she wore.

Ling Yao was good at playing the piano, so Shen Qingli bought her one.

Later that night, the piano roared, its body stained, and Ling Yao called him a wastrel.

Ling Yao believed she was destined to lose in this absurd dream. When she prayed to Buddha, she said she had already made peace with it.

The man's gaze was as deep as the sea. He smiled faintly. "Made peace with it? I prefer being hopelessly obsessed."

Content warnings:

1. Nine-year age gap.

2. Both leads are each other's first and only, happy ending.

3. The more powerful one lowers his head and compromises for love.

Perching Sparrow [Beijing Circle]: a story about Beijing's elite circles, with a refined, wealthy hero and a resilient heroine, and a three-year age gap.

Song Ran first met Pei Jiangyu during her sophomore summer break. She was working at a flower and bird market, delivering a pair of expensive parrots to No. 25 Nanfeng Alley.

Outside the wide, bright gate, the handsome man looked at the cage in her hands. "Give them to me."

Song Ran shook her head. "I have to hand them to the person who placed the order myself."

The man smiled faintly. "You have principles."

*

The second time Song Ran saw Pei Jiangyu, she was working part-time as a server in a private dining room. He was the guest of honor at the dinner.

After work, Song Ran ran into her persistent ex-boyfriend on the road. A car stopped in front of her, and Pei Jiangyu lowered the window.

"Sorry I'm late picking you up."

*

After her family fell on hard times, Song Ran never coveted anything that wasn't hers. She could support herself.

He said he had his eye on her.

Later, when Song Ran had money, she felt as if she'd acquired a little caged bird.

-

Theme: Move forward bravely, and embrace the sunshine and the one you love.