He Qiuting and Lu Shun were frequent faces on the covers of financial magazines. The two were evenly matched, refusing to yield an inch in their battles, and their romance was like a merger and acquisition war.
They could join forces at the negotiation table to drive their opponents to ruin, but they could also give each other the cold shoulder for a month over a project disagreement.
He Qiuting was tired of Lu Shun's domineering nature, and Lu Shun couldn't stand He Qiuting's cold-bloodedness when he weighed the pros and cons.
Their relationship had long been fraught with problems. They attended social functions separately, and neither of them ever came home. It all came to a head one day when He Qiuting left Lu Shun, who was suffering from gastroenteritis and a high fever, at the hospital to fly to Europe and sign a multi-million dollar deal.
He Qiuting: "It's just gastroenteritis, nothing to be dramatic about. Don't delay next week's bond issuance."
Lu Shun finally couldn't take it anymore. "Let's break up, President He. I wish you a life free of illness, and may you work yourself to death."
Later, by a strange twist of fate, He Qiuting binds with a [Frail System]. Every three days, a random illness befalls him.
A perforated stomach, angina, suffocating asthma, visual impairment and tinnitus, a back injury leading to paralysis...
[System: Pain sensitivity 1000%]
[Showing weakness to your lover can alleviate the pain.]
Show weakness? He Qiuting had no idea what that even meant. He gritted his teeth through board meetings, drenched in a cold sweat, and even coughed up blood and fainted at a press conference, yet he still refused to admit his condition to anyone.
By the time Lu Shun noticed something was wrong, it was too late. He Qiuting seemed to be terminally ill, and even after the Frail System was removed, he remained listless and weak.
"I'm sick..." He Qiuting lay on the hospital bed, his hand with the IV needle held by someone. Even breathing was an immense effort. He looked at the person by his bed and finally learned how to show weakness.
"Lu Shun, will you take care of me?"
**Reading Guide:**
1. He Qiuting (beautiful, strong, and tragic, cool cat-like gong) × Lu Shun (high-IQ, powerful shou from a wealthy family). Both are alphas. A real estate company president × a genius with the Touch of Gold. The gong is two years older than the shou; they are childhood friends.
2. A smorgasbord of illnesses. The system is bound in Chapter 5. Suggestions are welcome. If there's an illness you want to see, leave a comment. I'll write about all of them if I get inspired. (The gong is very strong and won't give up his career despite being constantly sick due to the system).
3. This is a story for the frail/sickly trope enthusiasts, focusing on the relationship with business warfare as a subplot (it's not professional, just for fun). It features a strong gong who is frail and a shou who dotes on the gong, but not purely so. The story is set during their breakup period, so there will be bittersweet ambiguity and push-and-pull. The shou can't help but feel his heart ache when he sees the gong sick and takes care of him. Later on, the doting will be extreme~
4. The shou's affection > the gong's. Neither of them is perfect. The gong is indifferent, and the shou is self-centered. They slowly learn to love each other through their interactions. I hope my dear readers can engage in friendly discussions~ The shou is an entitled prince in the early stages, arrogant and self-centered. If you find him annoying, you can skip to Chapter 24. If a character angers you, you can criticize them, as long as it's not too extreme~ Thank you~
5. [Reversing or splitting the CP is forbidden.]
6. Readers who are exclusively shou-biased or gong-biased should proceed with caution (this is what I've always said, even before the public opinion storm). This is a novel oriented towards the frail/sickly trope + shou-doting-on-gong. I don't understand the rest, and I can't figure out which side I'm biased towards myself. I just simply want to write a story I want to write in my spare time after work.
Tags: Strong-strong, Angst, Enemies to Lovers, System, Beautiful-Strong-Tragic, Redemption
He Qiuting, Lu Shun, President He, President Lu
One-sentence summary: If you also like frail gongs...
Theme: You don't need to be perfect, you just need to live authentically.
