Sleepless in Broad Daylight: Marriage Before Love

My next novel, Exclusive, is introduced below~

Blurb:

Xie Songbai, the head of the Xie Group, is renowned overseas, but has always kept a low profile and avoided the cameras. Unexpectedly, a fleeting shot from an overseas press conference set off a heated discussion back home.

Amid all the chatter marveling at his stunning looks, a blurry screenshot of his ring finger quickly rose to the top comment:

[Is that a wedding ring? Is CEO Xie married???]

While everyone wondered who the woman was, Qiao Mian had no time to think about anything else. She hurriedly opened their chat and typed: [Who told you to wear a ring in public!!!]

That night, Qiao Mian was woken from her sleep.

A searing presence drew near, forcing her to retreat step by step.

His clear, deep voice was indistinct: “Put one on me.”

Only after a long moment did the person on the sofa manage to focus on the silver band on his ring finger. In a hoarse voice, she said, “But you’re already wearing one.”

It wasn’t until he guided her hand over that she realized what he meant by “put one on.”

I

After three years of marriage spent more apart than together, Qiao Mian planned to get divorced and focus on her career. Then, out of nowhere, rumors surfaced that she had broken up an award-winning actor’s marriage.

In an instant, she was caught in a storm of public opinion, buried beneath a torrent of abuse.

Then a gossip blogger broke the news:

[The affair rumors are false. Actress Qiao Mian is married, and her husband is that stunning big shot from the other day.]

After the post went up, the comments were predictably full of mockery.

The top comment even read: [Sure, if it’s her, I’ll eat my hat.]

Under the topic #QiaoMianSecretlyMarried, the post was pushed to the top.

As the rumors spread, a post from a new account appeared on the forum

@User9683129891:

[@QiaoMian When are you going to make our marriage official?]

Netizens assumed it was just another account trying to ride the wave and were ready to start hurling abuse. Then the Xie Group’s verified account reposted it:

[Helping the boss @QiaoMian: Big boss, when are you going to make Director Xie your husband? [Pleading]]

Netizens, only just catching on: ???

Two minutes later, @User9683129891 posted again:

A screenshot of a netizen’s post.

[You still haven’t told me what to eat.]

The tide of public opinion turned in an instant: Now that’s what you call protecting your wife!

Some quick-fingered netizens even found this on Baidu:

Xie Songbai’s birthday: 19960831

Qiao Mian’s birthday: 19980901

So it wasn’t some default ID from a brand-new account after all!!!!

[Proud, radiant actress x aloof, deep-minded big shot]

Reader’s guide:

1. Both leads are sexually inexperienced, one-on-one romance.

2. Secret marriage.

3. See the author’s note in Chapter One for specific content warnings.

Blurb screenshot saved.

Blurb for my next novel, Exclusive:

Shen Yuanhe had never felt that her life was so dramatic:

1. Her identity as the Shen family’s eldest daughter was fake. She had been adopted.

2. Her childhood sweetheart wanted to break off their engagement and marry the real Shen family heiress instead.

Before the people in their social circle could even make fun of her for plummeting in status, news suddenly broke that she had married Fu Yanjin, the head of the Fu family.

For a time, everyone had something to say.

Some even claimed Shen Yuanhe couldn’t accept being dumped by her childhood sweetheart, so she had borrowed his uncle’s name to save face.

Everyone knew Fu Yanjin, head of the top-tier Fu family, was young, ruthless, domineering, and uninterested in women.

Why would he ever look twice at a disgraced internet celebrity?

As everyone waited to laugh at her, a photograph quietly surfaced.

In it, Shen Yuanhe stood in the dappled light. Beside her, Fu Yanjin, normally so cool and distant, wore a patient, tender expression as he held an umbrella over her.

The wedding ring on his ring finger glimmered as he gripped the cold metal handle.

And with that, everything was settled.

As soon as the paparazzi they had hired left, the once-loving couple immediately put some distance between them.

The softness that had been nestled in his arms pulled away. Fu Yanjin’s eyes were calm and unreadable. “Don’t get too into character.”

Shen Yuanhe was patting the droplets of water from her clothes. At his words, she looked at him and said, “Don’t worry. I’m not interested in men six years older than me.”

His dark eyes turned toward her, carrying an invisible pressure.

Realizing she had said what she truly thought, Shen Yuanhe remembered she needed his help. She handed him a packet of wedding candy and put on an affectionate act. “Happy wedding, hus, band.”

“...”

After the wedding, Fu and Shen were rarely seen together. Some even speculated that their marriage was just an act and that they had already divorced.

At an interview after an event one day, her management team spotted a personal question, “Is there anything you’d like to say to your significant other?” They were about to cut it, but Shen Yuanhe stopped them.

At her manager’s puzzled look, Shen Yuanhe casually raised a hand to cover her swollen lips and called the makeup artist over for a touch-up.

After the interview, someone picked her up and carried her toward the bedroom.

“Am I not taking good enough care of you?”

Shen Yuanhe’s reply was swallowed by the turbulent night, dissolving into incoherence.

“No...”

Fu Yanjin pressed on. “Then why did you tell them I’m rough?”

She bit her lip and struggled to force out a sentence. “Would you call this gentle?”

As soon as the words left her mouth, she felt the rumble of the man’s chest and heard his clear, low laugh.

He leaned over, held her wrist and drew her toward him.

“After all, I’m six years older than you. I was afraid you’d get bored.”

“...”

His handsome face and warm breath enveloped her at close range. “Do you like it?”

Theme: Be brave enough to love.