Let It Burn Bright

On the night of the celebration banquet, Wen Zhenni, the leading actress, was brought by the vice president to meet the investors.

Amid the crowd of elegant clothes and beautiful faces, she looked only at Ci Heng, seated at the head of the table.

The young president of Taihua, who held the reins of the company, idly spun his glass. A simple three-gold wedding band gleamed coldly on his ring finger.

When they shook hands, his broad, dry palm enclosed her right hand, his thumb seemingly brushing her palm by accident.

Wen Zhenni suddenly remembered that before the banquet, this hand had tied the ribbons on her evening dress. Her heart raced and her cheeks warmed.

They'd agreed to act like strangers.

After a few rounds of drinks, as an investor's hand was about to settle on her waist, her phone vibrated in her palm.

[Come sit beside me.]

Was he kidding? If she sat with him, the trending topics would tear her apart.

Wen Zhenni pretended not to see the message. Another one popped up: [If you don't come, I'll come over and hold you.]

Wen Zhenni: ...

She looked up and saw that the man across from her had already stood. She hurriedly replied in surrender: [Got it]

After the banquet, the aloof and indifferent Mr. Ci slowly took off his suit jacket and draped it over her shoulders, trapping her in his arms. Just as Wen Zhenni was about to struggle, a soft laugh fell by her ear. “Miss, what's got you upset? You're the one who wanted to keep our marriage secret. You can't blame me.”

*

Ci Heng had never posted a photo of himself on any platform.

The first clear, front-facing picture of him appeared at a charity ball at the Bernar Palace.

The young, handsome man in a tailcoat, with his exceptional bearing, danced a waltz with a nationally renowned singer.

A camera caught the moment he held the elderly woman's hand and smiled up at her.

The atmospheric photo spread across the internet the next day.

The whole internet was abuzz when people learned that he was the mysterious, low-key executive president of Taihua, who had married young.

As for his arranged-marriage partner, all anyone knew was that she was the daughter of the Jin family, a jewelry business family. No other information was available.

It wasn't until Wen Zhenni, a member of the group Sweety, revealed her secret marriage that

netizens followed the trail and dug up the photo again. To their shock, the bracelet Ci Heng wore that day seemed to be the blue morpho pearl necklace that the popular actress Wen Zhenni wore all the time...

*

Her husband, who'd been living apart from her for three years, was back, and rumors of divorce were everywhere.

A friend asked Wen Zhenni, “If you're not getting divorced, are you planning to fall in love after marriage?”

Wen Zhenni thought about it and came to the conclusion that she knew her husband too well. There was no way they could date.

Later, by the crowded riverbank, the business celebrity known for his calm and wisdom lifted the radiant young woman onto one shoulder.

In a passerby's video, fireworks filled the sky and lit up his handsome profile.

His eyes were fixed entirely on the woman on his shoulder.

Ci Heng wasn't gentle, but having Wen Zhenni in his life gave him a tender side.

* Marriage first, love later / Secret marriage / Sweet romance

* Cool on the outside, hot-tempered and jealous CEO × sunny idol with high self-esteem

* I've never written a sweet CEO romance before, so I'm just writing for fun

Theme: Run passionately and tenderly toward love