Falling in Love

"A sweet romance story?" Han Juyou blinked at Liu Muye, her eyes wide with curiosity.

"Exactly, a sweet romance!" Liu Muye nodded earnestly as he began analyzing it for her. "At its core, those overbearing CEO stories are just sweet romances—aren’t they all about dating a hot guy? But why limit yourself to writing about some unrealistic, cringe-worthy fictional man who spouts cheesy CEO lines all the time?"

...At another table not far away...

"Achoo~" Nangong Ye sneezed suddenly. Shangguan Yurou immediately pulled out a pack of scented tissues from her bag, offering him one.

The tissue carried a faint, elegant sandalwood fragrance, subtle and refined—just like Shangguan Yurou herself, gentle and understated. Nangong Ye wiped his nose, hesitating to throw the tissue away afterward.

She smiled softly and asked, "Why are you sneezing too?"

Nangong Ye shook his head, baffled. "No idea. Maybe someone’s gossiping about me behind my back."

"Pfft~" Shangguan Yurou covered her mouth, her laughter brightening even more at his ridiculous remark.

...Back to Liu Muye’s perspective...

After listening to Liu Muye’s analysis, Han Juyou nodded thoughtfully. "You make a good point, but wouldn’t an ordinary sweet romance be too bland to attract readers?"

Liu Muye shrugged. "Then make it extraordinary. The plot is whatever you imagine it to be."

"Hmm~~~" Han Juyou pursed her lips, resting her chin on her hand as she seriously considered story ideas.

Liu Muye picked up his chicken drumstick again, taking a bite before adding, "Stop overthinking it for now. Eat your food before it gets cold."

Han Juyou waved him off. "Let me think a little longer..."

"Enough thinking. Just eat." Liu Muye rolled his eyes. "With a well-read guy like me helping you, you’re bound to become a bestselling author."

Han Juyou set down her chopsticks and leaned closer to Liu Muye. "Then talk to me about the plot right now."

The moment she moved in, the delicate scent of white camellias drifted into Liu Muye’s senses again. They were so close that he could almost feel the warmth radiating from her.

With just a slight turn of his head, he could clearly see her flawlessly sculpted face—the tiny heart-shaped beauty mark near her left eye, so small yet impossible to ignore.

"Gulp~"

Liu Muye swallowed hard, his heartbeat suddenly racing.

He shifted slightly away. "Finish your meal first. We’ll discuss the plot afterward."

"Fine."

Han Juyou made no move to return to her original seat. Instead, she pulled her tray over and sat shoulder-to-shoulder with Liu Muye as they ate together.

To her, it was no big deal—she just wanted to finish quickly so they could talk about the novel.

But Liu Muye grew flustered. With Han Juyou sitting so close, his eating pace slowed, though his heart only beat faster.

Has this woman cast some spell on me? Why is my heart pounding like this?!

Despite starting his meal first, Han Juyou finished before him and immediately began urging him to hurry up.

Under her impatient gaze, Liu Muye had no time for distractions. He wolfed down the rest of his food, then followed her out of the cafeteria.

Once outside, the two wandered aimlessly, chatting about the novel as they walked.

Before they knew it, they reached the track field.

"Hold on, hold on!" Liu Muye cut off the conversation, tired of the topic. "Talking about writing won’t get you anywhere. You actually have to write to figure things out."

"Mm." Han Juyou nodded. "But you’ve given me a lot of inspiration just now. Thanks."

"Don’t mention it." Liu Muye waved dismissively. "Thank me when you actually become a famous author."

Han Juyou nodded firmly. "Just for that, I will make it big!"

Seeing her determined expression, Liu Muye was reminded of his own ambitious younger self. He pressed his lips together, smiling faintly.

Misinterpreting his smile, Han Juyou frowned. "You don’t believe me?"

"Of course I do." Liu Muye met her gaze. "You’re Han Juyou, after all!"

What he left unsaid was the rest of his thought:

You’re Han Juyou—the unstoppable Han Juyou from my story!

If you weren’t playing the villainess, with your intelligence and relentless drive, is there anything you couldn’t achieve?

"Really?" Han Juyou tilted her head, studying his face. "Then what were you smiling about earlier?"

"I was smiling… because your determination reminded me of myself."

Liu Muye scratched his nose, suddenly a little embarrassed.

Hearing this, Han Juyou also flushed slightly. "Fine, I’ll take that as a compliment."

Liu Muye sat down on the bleachers. Back when he studied at Sunan University, he used to come here every evening after dinner with his roommates—walking around, sitting, admiring the girls in shorts, and discussing how to woo them.

Han Juyou settled beside him, following his gaze toward the track. Small groups of people strolled along the running path, along with couples—some newly together, keeping a shy distance, while others held hands openly, comfortable in their intimacy.

Glancing at Liu Muye, whose thoughts seemed miles away, Han Juyou wondered for a moment: If people on the track looked up here, would they mistake us for a new couple too?

Liu Muye suddenly snapped out of his daze, turning just as Han Juyou was watching him.

"Why are you staring at me?"

"Who’s staring? Don’t flatter yourself."

Blushing, Han Juyou stood up to leave.

"Where are you going?"

"Back to my dorm to write!"

"Got inspiration?"

"So much inspiration!"

Just then, Liu Muye seemed to remember something and called out, "W-Wait!"

Han Juyou turned. "What now?"

"Art shouldn’t stray too far from reality," he said. "Otherwise..."

"Otherwise what?"

"Otherwise, it’ll be super cringey!"

"Got it, got it. I won’t make it unrealistic."

With a mischievous grin, Han Juyou waved and descended the bleachers.

...

"How strange," Liu Chenghan muttered, leaning back in his office chair. "I froze all his accounts, yet he hasn’t come begging all day."

He turned to his secretary. "Did the young master eat at the cafeteria today?"

"He did," the secretary replied, checking his tablet. "With a girl."

The secretary placed the tablet in front of Liu Chenghan—on the screen, Liu Muye and Han Juyou were sitting side by side, each holding a cup of bubble tea, their faces lit up with smiles, looking every bit like a young couple freshly in love.

“Hmm?” Liu Chenghan frowned at the image on the tablet and said, “What’s going on here? Are they dating? That brat swore he wasn’t in a relationship. How’s he even affording it without money?”

The secretary asked, “Should we unfreeze the young master’s financial accounts, then?”

“Not yet.” Liu Chenghan stroked his chin, grinning. “That little rascal must be playing the poor guy to chase after her—no doubt about it. That’s a worn-out trick I used back in the day.”

From that smile, it wasn’t hard to tell he genuinely hoped his son would inherit his legacy as a ladies’ man.

…