What Is Your Crime?

When they first met, Liang Li was the beloved heir of the Prince of Yuzhang.

He blinked his round eyes and asked Shen Ke in a childish voice:

"Is Pingjing big? Is Pingjing prosperous? Are the people in Pingjing all as handsome as you?"

Shen Ke patiently guided Liang Li's right hand, picked up the last piece of meat from the plate, and fed it to the bald eagle chained to its perch.

He lowered his eyes and smiled. "When you grow up, Your Highness, you'll return to the capital and see for yourself."

-

The year Liang Li returned to the capital, he was seventeen.

His father had died under mysterious circumstances, and his fief had fallen into someone else's hands. The once exalted and pampered heir had fallen from the heights overnight, suffering cold treatment throughout Pingjing.

Just as everyone thought he'd lost all hope and would never recover, he swallowed his pride and came to Shen Ke's door. With tears in his eyes, he pleaded in a trembling voice, "Help me uncover the truth. I'll do whatever you say."

Shen Ke remained unmoved:

"To get things done in Pingjing, you have to know how to read the room and when to advance or retreat."

"You've been privileged all these years. You won't be able to do it."

Liang Li bent his knees and dropped to the ground with a thump, clenching his jaw so hard it nearly bled. He slowly wiped every inch of dust from Shen Ke's shoes with his fingers, putting into practice what he'd just learned as he wagged his tail and begged for mercy. "Please, General, help me."

-

From then on, Liang Li "lowered" himself, "kept" his sharpness in check, followed Shen Ke's instructions to the letter, and worked hard to "play along" with everyone.

But somehow, he ended up "colluding" with the eldest son of the Grand Commandant's household; smiling warmly at the generals of the Imperial Guards; and putting on an innocent, docile, harmless act in front of the suspicious emperor...

Shen Ke, however, was not pleased.

The disgruntled General Shen began ignoring the facts and making a fuss over nothing. One stormy night, he forcibly carried Liang Li back to his residence and gave him a merciless lesson!

Liang Li's black hair was in disarray, his eyes flickering with resentment. He was thoroughly unconvinced: "You were the one who taught me to read the room and know when to advance or retreat!" ╰_╯

"Everyone else is irrelevant now. From this day on, you only need to look at me."

[Sickly, spoiled, stubborn beauty x domineering, scheming feudal patriarch and powerful minister]

- Both are attracted to good looks. Neither is a paragon of virtue. Readers with strong character loyalties, proceed with caution. Happy ending.

- Twelve-year age gap, size difference, and a relationship that grows over time.

- Liang Li isn't weak. He's naturally spoiled, hot-tempered, and has a tendency to attract everyone's attention. He grows over the course of the story. Both of them change how they handle things as the story progresses.

- Fictional setting with plenty of original worldbuilding. Don't expect historical accuracy.

- More serious in tone, but with old-school melodrama. Sweet and angsty in equal measure. The romance matters more than the plot.

Please check out my new novel, The Greedy Algorithm:

[Controlling, moody rich heir x beautiful, money-hungry, lustful third-rate actor]

*Younger sugar daddy gets mercilessly played by a peacock

Lu Qingyu is a third-rate actor: handsome, dedicated, and well-liked, but an extreme self-interester. He's not exactly short on money, but he's nearly thirty, stuck in the middle, and always just one step away from becoming a star.

People say that President Shao of Huanda is handsome, suave, gentle, and generous. He's respectable and never clingy, a walking charity fund who seems to have descended from heaven.

So Lu Qingyu pulls out all the stops and gets into bed with the God of Wealth... only to discover that "handsome and suave" are apparently the only true parts of that description.

The profit-driven Lu Qingyu says, "We never signed a contract. We're both respectable people, so let's part on good terms."

At the word "contract," a barely perceptible darkness enters the eyes that Shao Jiayi usually keeps indifferent.

-

Ever since Lu Qingyu suggested they "part on good terms," Shao Jiayi seems to have changed his ways and genuinely started doing charity.

Someone takes care of the scandals, someone controls public opinion, and so many resources are poured onto Lu Qingyu that his head spins.

Ever since his childhood debut, he's never had it this good.

One early morning, waking in a soft bed at a villa halfway up the mountain and listening to birdsong outside, Lu Qingyu's conscience stirs. "Let's sign a contract, President Shao. We should protect your rights, President Shao."

Shao Jiayi: "...Didn't get enough last night, did you?"

-

A peaceful, happy life never lasts long.

Lu Qingyu doesn't encounter some wealthy mother who offers him a hundred million to leave her son. Instead, he faces the formidable head of Huanda Group.

The man tells him to choose between his son and his career.

Lu Qingyu decisively chooses the latter.

- After all, Shao Jiayi only keeps him around as a plaything. He won't feel sad or miss him if he's gone.

-

Three months later.

Shao Jiayi forcibly drags him home and slams the door shut.

He tries every method, alternating between kindness and force.

He grips Lu Qingyu's chin, not allowing him to move at all.

He seems to be... trembling.

"You used me and now you're throwing me away?"

"Big star, do you think this kind of business is that easy?"

*Inviting a god in is easy. Getting him to leave is hard.

*Angsty melodrama turns into pure love.

- Lu thinks it's a transaction; Shao thinks it's a romance.

- Loaded with wealthy-family melodrama.

- A cracked pot finds its broken lid. Neither is a good person.

- Repressed apricot versus peacock; fake prude versus genuine playboy.

Theme: Sincerity is the rarest thing.