● 1v1, happy ending, rekindled love, two strong leads with an age gap, switch, with the younger one taking the lead more often
● A ruthless, taciturn, devoted shipbuilding engineer (Chen Sheng) vs. a high-powered shipping magnate with formidable strength but a frail constitution, beautiful and tragic (He Qingzheng)
● 2024.08.14, also known as The Heat Island Effect
Blurb:
"Chen Sheng, the future of shipping has a place for you."
Chen Sheng heard praise like that countless times during her studies. Her prospects were bright, but after graduation, she turned down a PhD and a university job with a generous salary and high status, going to Xinhai to work as an assistant for a woman.
No one understood her choice. They urged her to think it over, but she stubbornly went her own way.
Later, a friend saw Chen Sheng gripping the woman's waist, pinning her between herself and the car, and kissing her neck.
The woman was elegant and composed. Though Chen Sheng's restless, disordered movements clearly made her uncomfortable, she only furrowed her brow slightly and raised a hand to stroke Chen Sheng's damp, feverish hairline. "Keep it down. There's a Maritime Affairs Bureau meeting tomorrow. It'd be a hassle if the press caught us."
"Mm..." Chen Sheng agreed, but kissed her even harder.
Later still, Chen Sheng abruptly left Xinhai without a word about what had happened there. It was as if nothing had ever taken place, until a few months later, when her friend couldn't help asking over the phone, "What exactly is going on between you and that woman from the He family?"
Chen Sheng sat by the sea as a storm threatened, drenched in blood. "Nothing's going on. I accomplished what I came for, so there was no reason to keep pretending with her."
--
He Qingzheng was a pillar of Xinhai's shipping industry. Her methods were seasoned, people from all sides courted her, and she never let sentiment get in the way of business. Yet she made exception after exception for her assistant, Chen Sheng.
Late at night, she was bathed inch by inch in moonlight, her fingers leaving patches of mist on the glass. Before the haze reached her eyes, she suddenly lifted a hand. Her limp fingers rested against Chen Sheng's shoulder, pushing her away.
Chen Sheng: "What's wrong?"
He Qingzheng: "You said no to me today."
Only then did Chen Sheng remember hanging up on her earlier. "Does saying no mean I don't get another chance?"
He Qingzheng: "Do you want me to give you another chance?"
Chen Sheng: "I do..."
So a few days later, in the same place beneath the same moonlight, He Qingzheng was soon drenched in moonlight all over again.
And later, the moonlight abandoned her once more.
--
Four years later, they met again. He Qingzheng stepped out of a banquet hall and unexpectedly saw Chen Sheng. Drunk and unsteady, she looked away as if she didn't know Chen Sheng and walked on.
Just as they were about to pass each other, Chen Sheng suddenly called out, "He Qingzheng..."
He Qingzheng stumbled, half falling and half shoving Chen Sheng against the wall. Her voice was astonishingly gentle. "Miss Chen, how dare you still call my name? Didn't I tell you that if we met again, I'd strangle you with my own hands?"
Theme: Love others and yourself, and don't let your heart become a prison.
