Smothering the Fire [Foster Care Trope]

(Pre-release: The Fog of Jing City, with Marriage Before Love. Blurb at the end.) [Fake Siblings / Coercive Love / Cool, Stunning Beauty x Powerful Aristocrat] Chen Qisong, the youngest head of the Chen family. Rumor had it that Chen Qisong was a rebellious playboy who loved tormenting his foster younger sister. Outsiders often speculated that Chen Qisong and his younger sister, Qiao Ning, couldn't stand each other. At a welcome-home banquet, the media cautiously asked whether Chen Qisong planned to marry off the younger sister he'd taken in to forge an alliance. Looking weary, Chen Qisong toyed with a plain hair tie in his palm. "My little girl will naturally be cherished by me." 1 Chen Qisong and Qiao Ning's marriage came about entirely because of a ridiculous deal between them. Their childhood friends soon voted them the couple most likely to split up first. All the rich playboys knew that Chen Qisong and Qiao Ning, the siblings who weren't really siblings, couldn't stand each other. Back in middle and high school, they caused endless headaches for their teachers and principal, and at home they made life miserable for everyone. Their friends simply set up a betting table to wager on when the mild-mannered Qiao Ning would be bullied into running away from home by the spoiled young master. Qiao Ning's response: Actually, Chen Qisong treats me pretty well. Her best friend: ?? Her best friend was heartsick and tried to convince Qiao Ning to see reason. The next day, she sent her a report that the playboy Chen Qisong had been spotted shopping, seemingly cheating. In the video, Chen Qisong sat tall and languid, one long leg stretched out on the sofa. In a lazy voice, he pointed at the merchandise lining the shelves. "This one, this one, no. Pack up everything else." Chen Qisong lowered his lashes. A trace of tenderness crossed his usually refined, aloof face. "Our little girl doesn't like pink." The rich playboys: Damn, this is what you call not being able to stand each other? Her best friend: Oh my god, is this what an antagonistic couple looks like? 2 Qiao Ning's first impression of Chen Qisong was that he was the most arrogant and domineering bastard in the family. Just because he didn't like her, he was always coming up with a whole bunch of painful deals and forcing her to follow through. He made her cry as she tore up the homework she'd just finished with her own hands. The expensive scarf she'd saved up to buy became the young master's foot rag the very next day. And because of one of their deals, she somehow became the high-maintenance little tyrant's girlfriend at eighteen. Qiao Ning was honest, but she wasn't stupid. While the young master was away on his graduation trip, Qiao Ning swiftly broke up with him, packed her things, and ran away from home. Chen Qisong's reply was as cold and arrogant as ever: "Read." It was years before she learned that Chen Qisong had cried like a baby after sending that message. "If a bastard tells you he loves you a hundred times, will you believe him?" A stack of letters was hidden in a drawer, every page filled with her name: "...So, Miss Qiao, would you like to give us another try?" Her perspective: Marriage Before Love / His perspective: His Secret Crush Comes True Reading Notes: 1. The leads are not related by blood and are not registered in the same household. 2. Not based on real people. 3. Both leads are sexually inexperienced. Pre-release: The Fog of Jing City, with Marriage Before Love. Coming next! If you're interested, check out the author's page! [Marriage Before Love / Stealing Her Away / His Secret Crush / Carefully Planned for Years] [Seemingly Gentle, Scheming and Brooding Heir of a Powerful Jing City Family x Stubborn, Pretend-Brave Darling] 1 Song Zhishui never imagined she'd discover her marriage partner cheating at their engagement banquet. And that on the very same day, she'd impulsively agree to marry someone else. Her new marriage partner was Shen Zhuoyuan, the eldest son of the Shen family. The Shen family was a distinguished clan at the height of Jing City's power, and Shen Zhuoyuan was its brightest jewel. He had a face as fine as jade and the grace of moonlight, yet wielded power with ruthless force. Outsiders praised him, but also feared and respected him. Song Zhishui had called him Big Brother along with her older siblings since childhood, but she knew they came from different worlds and never dared to claim the same closeness her siblings did. But that day at the banquet, the secret behind the marriage alliance scandal came to light. Song Zhishui became the laughingstock of the whole room, and even her older siblings avoided her. Her palm, slick with sweat, could only reach the hem of Shen Zhuoyuan's clothes. Her voice was thin and weak as she awkwardly copied her siblings and called out to him: "Brother Zhuoyuan..." The man turned around. His breathtaking, luminous eyes seemed to look straight into her heart. Song Zhishui panicked and let go, only for him to clasp her hand tightly. The scent of sandalwood wrapped around her, while a soft voice stirred ripples in her heart, gentle and warm against her ear. Shen Zhuoyuan said, "He's not good enough for you, Xiaoyu. Marry me, all right?" 2 She'd thought it was just a marriage of convenience, but it turned out to be unexpectedly hard to escape. After a night of passion, Song Zhishui became Shen Zhuoyuan's personal assistant, still dazed. A cartoon lunchbox prepared especially for her sat in the back of his black Maybach every day. Whenever they went out for business, Shen Zhuoyuan personally stepped in to refuse the drinks offered to her. Being so thoroughly looked after by Shen Zhuoyuan, Song Zhishui could hardly tell anymore: Which one of them was the assistant? Sneaking a glance at Shen Zhuoyuan, who was witty, funny, gentle, and devoted, Song Zhishui couldn't help wishing their marriage would last a lifetime. Until her former fiance showed up, clinging to her with a "win back your wife at any cost" playbook. That night, Shen Zhuoyuan grew strangely impatient. A silver bracelet clasped around Song Zhishui's wrist like a prisoner's shackle. The corners of Shen Zhuoyuan's usually impassive, dignified eyes grew hazy with drunkenness. "He's already cheated on you, and you still care about him?" His straight, sharp nose pressed into the hollow of her neck. His voice sounded unexpectedly fragile. "Song Zhishui, you can only look at me." [Bonus Scene] On the day Song Zhishui agreed to the marriage alliance, her fiance was secretly taken to Shen Zhuoyuan's estate. Shen Zhuoyuan gave him a contemptuous look from head to toe, then flicked cigarette ash onto his face. Shen Zhuoyuan: "You have one day to get out of her life." [Calling your name on a wild night is the sum of all my love and desire to possess you.] Jealous Husband x Naive Girl Both sexually inexperienced Theme: Keep your original aspirations in mind to see them through.