Clearheaded Small-Town Girl x Capital-Circle Power Broker
Age gap / rekindled love / angsty push and pull
Everyone gives Mr. Zhou their due, except Wen He.
The day they first met, the schoolyard was muddy, and Wen He bent down to wipe her shoes. A hand with long, distinct knuckles offered her a plain handkerchief, and a calm male voice said, "Use this."
Wen He looked up. Beneath a black umbrella stood a man in a sharp suit, handsome and refined. Only later did she learn that he was an influential benefactor of the school.
Later still, she left her small hometown for western Beijing. Whenever she worked late at her part-time job, his car would be waiting at the alley's entrance. People in their circle teased, "Mr. Zhou has a young girl by his side. One phone call from her, and he'll walk out of even the most important banquet."
They were worlds apart. Wen He wanted to make a clean break before it was too late, but Zhou Fangxun quietly cut off every potential suitor around her.
"He's not right for you." Zhou Fangxun's voice was low. He held an unlit cigarette between his fingers, squeezing it until it bent.
Wen He stared at the curve of the bent cigarette, her chest tight, but still raised her chin. "Mr. Zhou, what gives you the right to interfere in my life?"
She didn't want to keep getting entangled with him, so she went abroad to pursue further studies.
At a dinner, a friend sounded him out. "Are you really willing to let her go?"
Zhou Fangxun stubbed out his cigarette without looking up. "No one's indispensable." But no one knew he sat downstairs from her apartment until the sky turned pale.
Four years later, Wen He returned to China, on the verge of getting engaged. Zhou Fangxun cornered her in the dressing room. He picked up her engagement ring and turned it beneath the light, then suddenly smiled.
He lowered his head, his voice cool. "Miaomiao, you're getting engaged... I don't think I ever agreed to that."
Reader's Guide
1. Sweet romance, happy ending
2. Eight-year age gap
3. A powerful man bends for love
Theme: Love yourself a little more
