A Dream in Huai'an

Blurb 1:

If teenage love is pure, untouched by even the slightest ulterior motive, Meng Jinjiao would scoff at the idea.

To this day, she still doesn't know whether Shen Huaian ever truly loved her.

The year Meng Jinjiao turned twenty-two, two major upheavals changed her life.

Her father died of a serious illness, forcing her to take over the failing Meng Group.

Then Shen Huaian betrayed her, saying that everything between them had been part of a scheme.

Under crushing pressure, her personality changed. Without a word, she held the tottering Meng Group together.

Her father's unhealthy expectations and her lover's heartless exploitation haunted the darkness of her early life.

The entanglements of the previous generation and the rivalry between two conglomerates spilled over into the next.

We were all pieces on the board, caught in the game and unable to act of our own accord.

Five years later, Meng Jinjiao had made the Meng Group thrive. Then that woman appeared in her life again.

This time, Meng Jinjiao would show her no tenderness. She would weave love and hate into bloodied thorns, imprison Shen Huaian in the abyss, and make her her caged songbird, forever unable to escape.

Blurb 2:

If every child were born carrying their family's love, their whole life would be filled with love and beauty.

But not everyone is so lucky.

Shen Huaian was born carrying her parents' hatred, and from the moment she was born, her life was about revenge.

She endured inhuman training from childhood and undertook life-or-death missions, honing herself into a blade that could kill with a single strike.

When she was sixteen, she met her target for the first time.

Shen Huaian never imagined that her target would be such a warm and gentle person.

She was like the sun, shining gently even in the darkness of the Milky Way.

That one person shone a ray of light into Shen Huaian's heart, still as a still pool for sixteen years, and pumped fresh blood through her dried-up veins.

Shen Huaian's heart beat for her. Yes, she had fallen in love with the girl who brought brilliant sunshine to her dull, dark life.

Yes, she, Shen Huaian, had fallen in love with her target.

"Heavens above, how can a venomous snake fall in love with the sun? It's as absurd as me falling in love with her!"

What could a sixteen-year-old girl possibly know? Shen Huaian was torn and tormented. With her parents on one side and her beloved on the other, how could she reconcile family vengeance with love?

In the end, she turned her blade on the woman she loved. It was a double-edged sword, and she was cut to ribbons too.

Every day after turning twenty-two, she lived in regret, risking her life on perilous missions and witnessing death day after day.

She wore Buddhist prayer beads and repented every day. She saved lives and prayed for Heaven's mercy.

Then Heaven gave her another chance. This time, she would not let her down again.

Even if the love that once existed had changed and become mad, Shen Huaian willingly let Meng Jinjiao bind her. She was more than happy to accept it.

Reader's Guide:

1. The protagonists aren't perfect. Please don't read if that's not for you.

2. Same-sex marriage is legal in this fictional setting, which has an alternate historical background.

3. The author's writing is at an elementary-school level. No need to announce if you drop the story.

4. The author is in high school, so updates are irregular.

5. Gloomy, obsessive, gentle, puppy-like mogul and aloof, proud, unhinged genius doctor (both are exceptionally strong).

Theme: Rekindled love after a breakup