A Fling on a Deadline (Part Two)

A story about two people who reunite after a long separation and fall in love all over again.

Beautiful, pure, warm, and sweet

In her senior year of college, shortly before graduation, Shi Yun is a bridesmaid for her roommate.

She sees Cheng Yanchu again. He has returned from Britain as a top student and is one of the groom's groomsmen.

When the groomsmen arrive to collect the bride, they breeze through the door like no one's there to stop them. None of the bridesmaids can hold their own.

Her roommate pushes Shi Yun, their secret weapon, to the front. "Let me introduce you: the top beauty and top student in our department. Dare to take her on?"

Cheng Yanchu is dressed in a suit and bow tie. His expression is cool, but his eyes stay fixed on Shi Yun. "Sure."

*

After the wedding, Cheng Yanchu waits at the entrance and stops Shi Yun. "Let me take you back to campus."

Shi Yun glances at him coolly. "Sorry, we don't know each other."

*

One day, Cheng Yanchu gets drunk and clings to Shi Yun, sobbing his heart out. "Shi Yun, can you give me one more chance?"

Shi Yun looks at him. "I told you, it was a limited-time romance."

"Then make it last a lifetime!"

*

The day they get back together, Shi Yun pushes Cheng Yanchu down in a hotel room. "If you want to be my boyfriend, I have to inspect the goods first."

Cheng Yanchu sighs, looking a little melancholy. "Do you just want to sleep with me?"

Shi Yun slowly unbuttons his shirt. "Not bad abs."

Cheng Yanchu: "I worked them just for you."

Afterward, Cheng Yanchu holds Shi Yun close. "I gave you all my firsts. You have to take responsibility, right?"

*

Shi Yun leans against Cheng Yanchu's chest, gazing at his impossibly handsome face. "Two years!"

Cheng Yanchu: "Two years for what?"

Shi Yun: "A trial period. If I'm still not tired of you after two years, then we can talk about what comes next."

*

For the story of the two leads in their youth, see the column Limited-Time Romance.

Coming next

The Rich Couple's Marriage of Convenience Is Surprisingly Sweet, currently updating. Please add it to your collection.

A gorgeous, flirtatious heiress who's innocent at heart vs. a cold, abstinent-seeming CEO who's passionate and devoted underneath

*A marriage first, love later, and a game of push and pull*

At twenty-six, Jiang Mingxi, the little princess of Yungang, is told by her father that she's to marry the young master of the Xie family in the capital.

Jiang Mingxi considers running away, but she can't bear to give up her rich lifestyle, so she has no choice but to go along with it.

Rumor has it that Xie Qingzhuo also has a longtime crush he never quite got together with, but he married her under pressure from his family elders.

On their wedding night, Jiang Mingxi coolly says to Xie Qingzhuo, "Let's make a deal. In public, we'll be a loving couple. In private, we'll stay out of each other's way, for two years."

After two years, once everything is settled, Jiang Mingxi can divorce him and walk away with a huge fortune.

"As you wish." Xie Qingzhuo coolly picks up the agreement and goes to the guest room next door.

*

One day, Jiang Mingxi is at an entertainment venue playing a game with a male model where they have to kiss if they don't drink. That's when she runs into her good-for-nothing husband, Xie Qingzhuo.

Xie Qingzhuo drags her out of the crowd of male models, his face cold. "Jiang Mingxi, you've got some nerve! Kissing and canoodling with another man right in front of me. Do you think I'm dead?"

Jiang Mingxi sneers. "We're just a couple in name. Why do you care what I do?"

Xie Qingzhuo grits his teeth. "Doing it so openly still counts as breaking our agreement!"

Jiang Mingxi smiles flirtatiously. "Fine. I'll be more discreet next time."

*

One day, Xie Qingzhuo gets drunk. His eyes red, he pulls Jiang Mingxi into his arms and presses her hand against his firm abs.

"I have everything those guys have, and even better. Why not give me a try?"

Jiang Mingxi can't resist the temptation of his good looks...

The next morning, she wakes up rubbing her aching waist and kicks the man beside her resentfully.

So much for being cold and abstinent!

*

Xie Qingzhuo is a distinguished young man from one of the capital's great families. He's refined and aloof, taciturn, and keeps his distance from women.

He never expected his beautiful, charming little wife to hand him an agreement on their wedding night.

Xie Qingzhuo can't help feeling annoyed. No woman has ever treated him like this before.

*

After the wedding, they each go about their own business, and his little wife continues living in Harbor City.

Once, while in Harbor City on a business trip, he's at a club with friends when he happens to see his new wife playing a flirtatious game with a tall, handsome male model.

The model has a pretty-boy face, a muscular build, and eight-pack abs.

A nameless anger suddenly rises in Xie Qingzhuo. Forgetting his usual restraint and coolness, he strides over and hauls her away.

Under the dazzling lights, he looks down at his wife. She's fair-skinned and beautiful, with an air of privilege. She really does live up to her title as the little princess of Yungang.

Xie Qingzhuo leans down slightly and lifts Jiang Mingxi's chin. As he gazes at her alluring red lips, the desire long dormant within him surges like a ferocious beast, ready to break free...

Fueled by drink, he says something he never would have said in the first half of his life.

"I have everything those guys have, and even better. Why not give me a try?"

*

Jiang Mingxi never expected her aloof, self-controlled husband in name only to become a different person after they finally slept together.

He wants to drag her back to the bedroom anytime, anywhere...

At last, Jiang Mingxi can't take it anymore and flees abroad to stay with her niece.

To her surprise, Xie Qingzhuo follows her to France. At a romantic vineyard, he feeds her wine he made himself, then kisses her through her drunken haze.

After a wild night, Jiang Mingxi feels as if she's been completely drained.

Xie Qingzhuo, however, kisses the tear tracks at the corner of her eyes, still wanting more. "Be good. You have to pay back what you owe."

Jiang Mingxi stares up at the sky. "But you can't make me pay it all back at once..."

*

Jiang Mingxi and Xie Qingzhuo married for business. Countless people are waiting for this couple in name only to get divorced, so they can have a good laugh.

No one expected that two years later, the two of them would have a child.

*

The leads are devoted to each other, one-on-one. The supposed old flame is a misunderstanding. Four-year age gap.

Theme: Reunited after a long separation, and after careful consideration, still in love with you