Chapter 44: Mr. Xie, long time no see
Du Henian suddenly fell silent, as if his whole being had entered a state of blankness.
After a long while, he asked in a strained voice, “Not Si Jiahe? Then who is it?”
He couldn’t imagine who Tang Man had suddenly decided to get engaged to, someone who could replace Si Jiahe in such a sudden manner and accomplish what he hadn’t been able to do in the past two years.
“It’s someone you know.” Tang Man opened the box and placed it on Du Henian’s lap, stuffing the spoon into his right hand before saying, “Xie Li.”
“Xie Li.” When he first heard this name, Du Henian felt it was very unfamiliar. It took him a while to react and recall who Xie Li was.
Tang Man’s phone contact had always been Assistant Xie. Even when addressing him, she wouldn’t directly call his name. Du Henian really couldn’t remember who Xie Li was for a moment. He pondered for a while before meeting Tang Man’s gaze and recalling.
He couldn’t help but laugh, a somewhat indescribable smile.
Holding the spoon in his hand, he suddenly said, “Tang Man, you make me feel like a joke.”
“A joke that’s been alive for two years.”
Tang Man didn’t say anything. She also didn’t know what to say.
The lean meat congee in the box was still warm. Placing it on the knees for a long time warmed up a spot, enough to make one sweat.
However, Du Henian felt his bones aching. He couldn’t help but shiver a little, feeling that in a place like a hospital, even in the middle of summer, one could feel a chill, making one’s heart involuntarily turn cold. He couldn’t help but touch his own hand, not even feeling any warmth. Perhaps the intense stomach spasms from earlier had caused him to temporarily lose his sense of temperature.
The two of them sat in silence for a long time.
Tang Man looked up at the IV bag. Only half of the solution was left. She felt her nose becoming uncomfortable again. She could only say that she and hospitals really had incompatible auras in this lifetime, but she still had to come here for various reasons, most of which were not her own.
“I see you’re fine now, much better. After you finish the drip, go back and rest.” Tang Man stood up and said to the silent Du Henian, “Drink the congee quickly too. When it gets cold, it will have a fishy smell, and you definitely won’t be able to eat it. Eating some now to warm your stomach is good.”
Only when he heard these words did Du Henian finally raise his head, looking at Tang Man standing in front of him in a gorgeous outfit. There was an indescribable coldness on her bright face.
Tang Man’s eyes were not phoenix eyes, but they were slightly upturned. So when she lowered her eyelids and looked at someone, there was naturally a hint of disdain, and her face would naturally carry a trace of superiority that she herself was unaware of. Perhaps the word “superiority” wasn’t quite appropriate to describe it. He thought for a moment. Maybe using the phrase “casual aloofness” was more fitting.
Because of this disdain, many people felt that Tang Man was unapproachable. At that time, Du Henian also thought so. Previously, in that sunlit corridor filled with a faint tobacco scent, his first impression was that this girl was not easy to approach.
He felt his stomach starting to ache again. “Are you leaving?”
“Mm.” Tang Man nodded, slinging her bag over her shoulder and glancing at her wristwatch. “After you finish the drip, go back and rest early.”
She paused, her gaze falling on Du Henian’s pale and weakened face. “I remember you don’t like to drink. In the future, drink less. Drinking on an empty stomach is not good for your health.”
During the earlier consultation, Tang Man had overheard about Du Henian’s frantic and irregular decadent lifestyle recently: drinking on an empty stomach, irregular diet, and smoking. She smelled the cigarette scent on him, not heavy, so he probably hadn’t been smoking for long.
Du Henian didn’t respond to her, but instead looked at Tang Man for a few seconds and suddenly spoke, but on a different topic. “Why did you suddenly get engaged?”
He didn’t believe that Tang Man would love that man named Xie Li so much. A person who had known Tang Man for nearly ten years and had never been together before was suddenly getting engaged now, in just a month’s time. If it was about love, he couldn’t believe it no matter what.
He didn’t believe that Tang Man could fall in love with someone, to the point of being willing to choose to get engaged for him in such a short time and have the idea of marriage.
Tang Man smiled, “Everyone gets engaged and married. I just did it a bit earlier.”
“What about Si Jiahe?” Du Henian himself was surprised. He never thought there would be a day when he could mention this name so calmly.
“That’s already in the past.” Tang Man said, “Du Henian, you’re just feeling unwilling now. In life, there are many likes. Since you were able to like me, you may like someone else in the future. You just like my type.”
Most of the likes in life are very shallow, and many people’s love is also very shallow. They begin with money, with appearance, with personality, but these things all change. So likings and love become shallower and shallower, and love eventually shatters, turning into a puddle of broken glass on the ground.
Du Henian suddenly grabbed Tang Man’s hand, burying his face in her palm, not saying anything more.
How did it suddenly become like this?
Like Si Jiahe.
Tang Man sighed helplessly, “Du Henian, you also know that we’re not suitable.”
But Du Henian acted as if he hadn’t heard her words and spoke straight, as if he had fallen into his own thoughts.
“Man Man, I used to think about our future. I thought about us getting engaged, getting married, living in the same house. We would become husband and wife. If you wanted to have a child, we could have one, a girl or a boy, it wouldn’t matter…”
“If you didn’t want to have a child, that would be fine too. With time, we could travel everywhere. I would take a lot of time to accompany you, to be with you. We would have a lifetime…”
“But now, why have we become like this?”
The man couldn’t help but start crying silently again, causing the IV needle beside him to tremble along with him. Tang Man was afraid that the needle in Du Henian’s hand would cause blood to flow back. She didn’t dare to make big movements and could only whisper to coax Du Henian not to get too emotional. Otherwise, his stomach spasms would act up again, and she wouldn’t be able to do anything.
The two of them tugged and pulled at each other. Du Henian cried silently, but it was still noticeable that he was crying. The doctors and nurses on duty inside couldn’t help but glance at them several times, feeling that the scene was too ridiculous.
It was just a stomach spasm. How could this man cry like this? It was really true that you can’t judge a book by its cover. They never expected him to act so spoiled with his girlfriend.
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If you’re like me…
Too tired of reading stories where the female lead is often foolish, weak, feeble both physically and mentally, usually in a subservient and oppressed role in society such as a maid, secretary, concubine… or to put it bluntly, typically the one who has to serve and please the male lead, always needing protection and rescue from male leads, while the male lead is often described as talented, strikingly handsome, powerful,…
Then please continue reading.
Hi there, girls!
I’m Yuushi L.
Every day, movies and comics continuously reinforce the notion that women are weak, that they can only handle trivial matters in the background, that women are petty-minded and constantly jealous, mocking, and laughing at other women, while men are strong, wealthy, and solely focused on conquering the world, with countless mindless women ready to fall into their arms.
Believe me, once you read Female-dominant (FEDO) novels, your mindset will change significantly.
I am deeply inspired by strong, independent, and rational women who have the power to take control of their lives, and I am fascinated by the way society’s gender roles are reversed in this genre compared to real life.
So I have created this web with the noble purpose of promoting the “Female-dominant (FEDO)” genre of novels.
In my country, there was a rare renowned female poet in ancient times who wrote the following about the fate of women in that era:
“Damn this life of sharing a husband,
One wrapped in warmth, the other left cold.
I’d rather have stayed single from the start,
Than to endure a life so torn apart.”
Perhaps my penchant for reading female-dominant stories is partly a way of rebelling against the realities of life.
On my site, there will be stories that are not only female-dominant novels, as long as they align with my taste, featuring strong female protagonists and fresh, captivating storylines. Usually, they will be modern or fantasy novels.
I rarely read ancient novels that aren’t female-dominant because they often contain details that easily trigger me. These include the portrayal of men having multiple wives and concubines, which was considered utterly normal in ancient society, and the frequent disdain towards women.
I cannot change the world, as the societal structure that discriminates against women and elevates men has existed for thousands of years. Changing it to truly give women an equal role in society is not something that can happen overnight. If you want gender equality now, it’s laughable. It will never happen when over 90% of national and business leaders are men.
But I can start by changing the mindset of women, sisters, and young girls. Don’t just read dull slogans urging women to be strong and independent; it’s hard to imagine. Read Female-dominant (FEDO) novels to see clearly what true female empowerment looks like.
I believe there will be more and more independent and strong women who prioritize their careers and personal stability over seeking a man to rely on.
In the future, there will be more successful female entrepreneurs, politicians, and thought leaders.
As for me, I will start by making this website grow stronger day by day.
I especially like the concept of “the male lead falls in love first, the female lead is the cold-hearted and rational one, and the male lead suffers because the female lead doesn’t reciprocate his feelings.”
Therefore, you’ll see that most of the novels on my website will belong to this trope. Of course, there will be exceptions.
In the future, I also plan to write my own novels following this concept, where the female lead in my stories will never be the weaker party. I hope I can do it soon.
The novels I highly recommend will be listed under the category:
There will be exceptionally brilliant stories, but there will also be mediocre ones. As the Female-dominant (FEDO) genre has fewer authors and readers, the number of high-quality novels is limited.
Therefore, I want to promote this genre to reach a wider audience, which will encourage more talented authors to choose to write in this style, leading to the birth of more outstanding Female-dominant (FEDO) novels.
The Chinese versions of the novels I use for translation are all sourced from various websites on the internet. You know, I don’t have much budget to purchase so many novels.
Therefore, if your financial situation allows, please support the authors by purchasing the original works. You can find the original works using the Chinese titles of the novels.
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WARNING:
In some novels, there are certain unhealthy ideologies and illegal actions held by the main characters (for example, treating human lives as worthless, or casually deciding to kill someone, forcing others to do things they don’t want to do, arbitrarily imprisoning others, plotting to harm others, using violence to retaliate against violence,…).
This may be because the authors are still young and inexperienced, unaware that what they’re writing goes beyond moral standards and can negatively influence young readers.
It’s important that readers under 18 years old need to recognize these are illegal actions, not permitted to be carried out in real life, always keep a clear head while reading, treat these works only as entertainment, and don’t let yourself be influenced by those plot points.
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If you want to join me, support me, recommend novels, or simply want to connect with me privately, please contact me via email: yuushi.l.me@gmail.com
Or join my Discord to connect with others who share the same taste for novels:
With love and appreciation,
YUUSHI L
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*Spotlight on Finished Novel Translations*
The Male Lead’s Obsessive (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.
Synopsis:
Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead
Summary:
Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.
He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.
Watched her go public with her boyfriend.
Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.
Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.
The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.
Fan Xia, how can I have you!
【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】
1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy
2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition
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Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.
If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
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