Chapter 1

"Goddess! You're so beautiful. I'm a huge fan of you and your wife's CP. May you two stay happy forever~"

"Xiao Yuan, Xiao Yuan, I love you! Your stories are just too sweet. Yan Yuan 99, wuwuwu."

"You haven't been updating much lately, wuwuwu. Even if you're happy with your wife in real life, please don't forget to keep writing more!"

Chu Yuan, wearing a mask, smiled warmly as she diligently signed autographs for her fans. After each signature, she politely and gently said, "Thank you."

But beyond that simple phrase, she didn't say another word.

This was the third year since her webcomic had exploded in popularity, and her second in-person signing event.

She had always dreamed of becoming a manga artist. Since her freshman year of college, she had been serializing her comics on various online platforms, but they had never gained much traction.

It was only after graduating and marrying her wife, Yan Dai, that inspiration struck. She decided to create a dual-female lead comic based on her own life, titled Heartbeat.

Chu Yuan was always a woman of action. The moment the idea struck her, she registered an online account under the username "Salt and Pepper Tangyuan" the very next day. She created two fictional characters, "Yanyan" and "Xiao Yuan," and the comic focused on their sweet, everyday moments of marital affection.

Heartbeat was primarily an artistic reimagining of her and Yan Dai's married life.

Chu Yuan hadn't held much expectation for the work. After all, slice-of-life romance comics about married couples were quite common.

She was also long accustomed to her works flopping. Besides, her family was wealthy and didn't rely on her comics for income; she saw it more as a way to document the sweetness of her new marriage. Thus, she was fully prepared for her new work to be ignored when it began serializing.

However, she never could have imagined that by the third month of serialization, the comic would explode in popularity online.

The Yan Yuan CP within the comic became a massive hit, and fan-made content, such as videos, garnered enormous likes.

Fans of the Yan Yuan CP flooded the comments section with messages like: "I'm so invested! Your married life is just too sweet, waah..."

At the time, Chu Yuan was still quite arrogant.

After her work became popular, Chu Yuan self-funded her first fan signing event. With a radiant smile, she practically boasted to every fan she met:

"My wife is even more beautiful in real life!"

"I'm so happy in real life, too."

"I love my wife, and she loves me back."

She looked like she was swimming in a honey pot, dripping with sweetness.

Initially, some online trolls and unscrupulous marketing accounts spread videos claiming that "Salt and Pepper Tangyuan is just a publicity stunt" or "Salt and Pepper Tangyuan's marriage isn't happy in real life."

Although fans defended them with the slogan "Our Yan Yuan is thriving offline!", they couldn't stop others from creating accounts named "Salt and Pepper Tangyuan".

What started as nothing became a revelation: the real-life counterparts of Yan Yuan had incredibly powerful backgrounds—both were Little Princesses of the Beijing Circle.

Though their marriage was arranged, they lived in perfect harmony, their union as harmonious as a zither and a lute.

The Yan Yuan CP fanbase straightened their backs in triumph. Their CP topic on the Super Topic platform held the top spot for three consecutive years, crushing other hot-selling CPs in the entertainment industry.

Some even joked, "Even a stray dog passing by would stop to lick the screen after seeing Yan Yuan's videos."

Yet, only one person truly knows whether their marriage is genuinely happy.

In the first six months after marrying Yan Dai, Chu Yuan had genuinely believed her married life was wonderful.

Despite their arranged marriage, she was deeply satisfied with her wife.

At first, she boasted to everyone about having a beautiful wife. But later, when describing Yan Dai to others, she added a new word: "cold."

Over the three years of their marriage, Yan Dai had shown no warmth toward her—in fact, she had grown increasingly cold.

The more arrogantly Chu Yuan had boasted about her blissful marriage to friends or as the manga author "Salt and Pepper Tangyuan," the more foolish she now felt.

Now, Chu Yuan only felt that her marriage was a complete disaster.

After wrapping up the offline book signing, Chu Yuan was utterly exhausted.

A dedicated car was already waiting for her outside the venue. She slid into the back seat, pulled out her phone, and discovered she had trending on Weibo.

She wasn't a celebrity, but as a comic author with a well-known background, her appearances were bound to make her trend. Moreover, today was the day of her book signing, so trending was perfectly normal.

Facing this sudden trending topic, Chu Yuan casually clicked to take a quick look.

#SaltandPepperTangyuanBookSigning

The hashtag was unremarkable, and she didn't think much of it. But the next moment, two other trending topics caught her eye:

#ChuYuanYanDaiMarriageCrisisSuspected

#YanYuanCPBE

Chu Yuan: "???"

She rarely browsed the internet, but she clicked into these two hashtags anyway and saw the comments flooding the forum.

Waaah, doesn't anyone else feel a faint sense of impending doom for the Yan Yuan CP today?

I feel it too! Heartbeat only ran for six months before ending abruptly. Little Tangyuan hasn't updated about her life with her wife since then. The Yan Yuan CP has been stuck in a stale relationship for two and a half years!

"What broke my heart most was how withdrawn Little Tangyuan was at today's signing event. She only said 'thank you' the entire time, not a single other word."

"You're right. At her first manga signing, Little Tangyuan was beaming, enthusiastically sharing stories and praising her wife in nine out of ten sentences."

"Even though Yan Yuan's real life might be happy, I just can't handle this... wails..."

"The saddest part is that Little Tangyuan said this was her second and final signing. Could our Yan Yuan CP really be over?"

"And I heard Yan Yuan has been separated from her wife for six months now, so a marital breakdown is highly likely."

"Ahhh! Who told you that? I'll kill you!"

"These kinds of arranged marriages between wealthy families rarely have genuine affection. A split isn't that surprising, is it?"

Chu Yuan glanced at the comments briefly before closing the thread.

Seeing her marital life being openly discussed, she couldn't help but marvel, Netizens are truly omniscient. How did they even dig this up?

Well, my alias was exposed six months ago. Who online doesn't know by now that "Salt and Pepper Tangyuan" is me?

If her and Yan Dai's CP fans knew they hadn't just been separated for half a year, but hadn't even spoken much during that time, they'd probably go completely mad.

The thought that Yan Dai wouldn't say a single word to her if she didn't seek her out made Chu Yuan's teeth itch.

What she regretted most was probably how she'd been the one to chase Yan Dai when they first got married, trying to win her over for over half a year. She'd even based a six-month-long webcomic on their relationship.

How stupid! How utterly stupid!

Hmph! My sincere heart was toyed with by that wicked woman!

The more she thought about it, the angrier Chu Yuan became. She stomped her foot hard in place to vent her frustration.

The stomping made quite a racket, and the driver couldn't help but glance back. "Miss, what's wrong?"

Chu Yuan crossed her arms and said coldly, "Sister Qian, turn around. Take me to Wink Bar."

Sister Qian, being a professional who asked no questions as long as she was paid, immediately U-turned and drove Chu Yuan to Wink Bar.

Wink Bar was a Le Bar owned by Ji Xiran, a well-known rich second-generation heiress in Jingcheng. With more money than she knew what to do with, she'd invested in the bar. Despite years of operation, it hadn't turned a profit, instead requiring her to subsidize it with her own funds.

After all, when Ji Xiran first opened Le Bar, she had famously declared, "Why go out looking for pretty girls when you can have them come to you?"

In short, it was all about making it easier for her to flirt with women.

When she saw a cute, sweet girl, she'd immediately offer to buy her drinks and desserts. When she encountered a gentle, mature woman, she'd wave her hand and insist on covering the entire bill, happily footing the bill and boldly declaring, "Money should be spent on girls." And so she lived her carefree life, playing the field year after year.

When Chu Yuan suddenly appeared, Ji Xiran was already surrounded by women, calling them "sister" and "young lady" with a grin so wide it nearly split her cheeks.

Chu Yuan, however, spotted Ji Xiran in the crowd and walked over with a poker face. "Do you have any private rooms available?"

Her arrival immediately drew attention.

Her face was small, no bigger than a palm, but her features were strikingly grand. Her nose wasn't particularly high, but it had a small, refined tip.

Most striking were her eyes—large and round, with slightly downturned outer corners and sparkling pupils that made her look incredibly innocent.

She had the face of a sweet girl, but stood a full 173 centimeters tall.

In short, she was perfect in every way.

Already, quite a few girls in the room were itching to approach Chu Yuan and ask for her contact information.

Ji Xiran noticed the newcomer and exclaimed, "Well, well, what a rare guest! What brings you here? Business is so booming here every day, where would I have a spare booth for you? Why not join us instead?"

Wink Bar was indeed a thriving establishment. Everyone knew its owner was a stunningly beautiful, wealthy, and good-natured woman. More importantly, she was generous—lucky customers might even get their bills waived because the owner would sometimes book out the entire place when she was in the mood.

As a result, Wink Bar was almost always packed, yet it lost money year after year.

Chu Yuan used to come here often before her marriage. But shortly after tying the knot, Yan Dai, watching her get drunk one night, casually remarked, "You always get wasted when you come here. Maybe you shouldn't come anymore."

Naively, Chu Yuan assumed Yan Dai was jealous of all the beautiful girls at Wink Bar. She actually reduced her visits for a full six months.

This "friend-forgetting-for-a-pretty-face" behavior earned her Ji Xiran's teasing whenever she reappeared: "Well, well, what a rare guest!"

Even after Chu Yuan realized Yan Dai hadn't been jealous at all back then, just casually remarking, she found herself visiting Wink Bar more and more frequently. Ji Xiran continued to tease her about it.

Chu Yuan rolled her eyes. "Stop teasing me. Get me an empty private room."

"Young Lady, where am I supposed to get an empty room? They're all full," Ji Xiran said, rising and naturally pulling her shoulder down to guide her to the seat next to her. "Come on, join us!"

Leaning closer, Ji Xiran whispered in Chu Yuan's ear, her voice so low only they could hear, "With so many pretty ladies here, there's bound to be someone you like, right?"

Chu Yuan replied seriously in a low voice, "I have a wife."

Ji Xiran rolled her eyes. "Your wife is practically non-existent. She's been abroad for half a year—she might have found dozens of girlfriends you don't even know about."

Chu Yuan felt a pang in her heart. She raised her wine glass and took a sip, rolling her eyes. "Can you stop twisting the knife in my heart?"

"I'm just stating facts. Your marriage has been a sham for years, and Yan Dai doesn't even like you," Ji Xiran replied. She wasn't trying to hurt Chu Yuan; rather, in families like theirs, most people couldn't choose their own partners. Instead, they had to comply with arranged marriages to maintain family alliances.

Ji Xiran herself didn't believe that arranged marriages could ever foster genuine affection. Even though she wasn't married yet, she was certain that when she eventually did, she and her future spouse would both go their separate ways after the wedding.

As long as neither party acknowledged the truth, everything would remain peaceful.

Chu Yuan fell silent, continuing to drink her wine one glass after another, her face clouded with gloom. She barely acknowledged a girl who approached her to strike up a conversation.

To be honest, while Chu Yuan could hold her liquor somewhat, her tolerance wasn't particularly high. Moreover, she flushed easily when she drank.

Ji Xiran couldn't stand it any longer. She snatched the wine glass from Chu Yuan's hand and said, "Oh, my dear Young Lady, don't tell me you still have feelings for Yan Dai?"

The girls present exchanged glances, many of them unaware of the two women's relationship and now wearing expressions of avid curiosity.

Chu Yuan huffed. "She's my wife, of course I love her~"

Ji Xiran twisted the knife. "But she doesn't love you."

Chu Yuan pouted, her eyes welling up. She bit her lower lip hard, desperately holding back tears.

Yan Dai truly didn't love her. Otherwise, why would she have insisted on signing a prenuptial agreement right after they got married? The first clause stated: "This is a marriage of convenience; neither partner shall interfere in the other's personal life."

Yan Dai truly didn't love her. Otherwise, why would she have spent six months being met with a cold shoulder, her advances ignored, even her birthday forgotten?

Yan Dai truly didn't love her. Otherwise, why would she have fled abroad for half a year, never initiating contact unless Chu Yuan reached out first?

The specific details were countless.

In short, Yan Dai simply didn't like her.

Whether it was the fictional Yan Yuan CP or their real-life marriage, it was all a joke.

As Chu Yuan thought about it, her nose stung, her throat tightened, and her heart felt like it was being squeezed by something, aching with a sharp pain.

Finally, she lost control of her emotions, and her eyes welled up with tears.

Ji Xiran sighed, her heart aching for her best friend. She cursed Yan Dai viciously in her mind.

She didn't bother playing with the other young ladies anymore. "I'm taking my friend home. Half-price drinks tonight, everyone have fun!" she called out before grabbing Chu Yuan's wrist and dragging her out to her car parked at the entrance.

With her hand on the steering wheel, Ji Xiran asked, "Should I take you home?"

"You're hurting my wrist," Chu Yuan said, shaking her hand. "Why did you drag me out here?"

"You're almost drunk. I had to take you home."

"I'm not drunk."

Ji Xiran turned and held up two fingers. "What's this?"

Chu Yuan rolled her eyes. "Get lost."

Ji Xiran chuckled twice, confirming Chu Yuan was no longer drunk. "You were acting strange earlier. If I hadn't pulled you out, you would have started crying."

Chu Yuan rolled her eyes again. "Who would cry?"

"Keep pretending. You know how many times you've cried in front of me over that wretched Yan Dai."

Chu Yuan knew.

For the past three years, she had endured Yan Dai's mistreatment while convincing herself to keep loving her, becoming the ultimate doormat.

The pampered Young Lady Chu, who had been doted on since childhood, had only ever been hurt by Yan Dai, and this pain had festered for three years.

Previously, she could still soothe herself, but now, perhaps fueled by alcohol and the eruption of long-suppressed grievances, she snatched her designer handbag and threw it aside with a furious thud. "I'm done!"

Ji Xiran was startled. "Young Lady, what kind of madness is this now?"

Chu Yuan treated the handbag as Yan Dai herself, kicking it off the seat and stomping on it. "I don't want to love Yan Dai anymore! I want a divorce!"