The Icy Earl Falls for Me

An ice-cold, outwardly defiant, love-deprived Earl versus a soft-bodied, stubborn, intelligent noblewoman from a Marquis's estate.

Nan Xu, the legitimate daughter of Marquis Yong'an, was of noble birth and exquisite beauty, the most envied woman in the capital. However, with the new emperor's ascension, the Marquis's estate lost favor, and even her childhood sweetheart, soon to be her fiancé, suddenly married a princess instead.

Though raised in the inner chambers, Nan Xu was a woman of strong will. She immediately demanded the return of her love token, severing all ties with the unfaithful man. But before she could finish looking through the handsome bachelors compiled by her mother, an imperial decree of marriage arrived at the Marquis's residence.

The decreed groom was none other than Duan Wenpei, Earl of Weiyang, a newly ascendant figure in court who had just arrested her second brother and seized their family's iron death-exemption tablet. A cold-faced Yama King marrying a noblewoman in distress? The entire capital waited to see the spectacle.

On their wedding night, Duan Wenpei gave Nan Xu a deed of divorce, unsigned and unsealed. "If one day you can no longer tolerate this Earl's residence, you may leave on your own."

Clutching the divorce deed, Nan Xu looked at the man's chiseled profile in the candlelight, and suddenly felt that her cold-tempered husband wasn't so difficult to get along with. At least, he knew his boundaries.

Half a year later, Nan Xu produced the divorce deed, asking Duan Wenpei to uphold their agreement. Yet, Duan Wenpei began to stay in her room every other night, refusing to leave. "Divorce deed?" he leaned in, his hot breath caressing her sensitive earlobe, his fingers ambiguously stroking the contract paper, his voice low and laced with a smile, "Madam, could you be mistaken? When did this husband ever write such a thing?" His gaze was like a wolf fixated on its prey.

Everyone said that Duan Wenpei, Earl of Weiyang, was the sharpest blade in the Emperor's hand. Born in the countryside, cold and unemotional, marrying a noblewoman from a Marquis's estate was merely to satisfy the Emperor's expectations and acquire a beautiful vase.

Initially, Duan Wenpei indeed thought so. But within this 'vase' lay strong wine and sharp edges. The unintentional resilience and intelligence revealed in her eyes and brows were like hooks, silently ensnaring his cold, hard heart, pulling him deeper and deeper until he was completely lost.

That day, she stood by the door, delicately holding a letter, smiling calmly, "Please, Earl, grant me a divorce." His tall figure completely overshadowed her. He lowered his head, his nose almost touching hers, his voice imbued with ice, yet harboring fervent desire.

"You intend to leave after sleeping with me? Unless..." His hot lips brushed her cool earlobe, each word a temptation, "You kill me with an arrow, like you did that time in Tianxiang Tower."

Duan Wenpei discovered he was very prone to jealousy; whether it was people or animals, as long as a male appeared, he would forcefully embrace Nan Xu. Until her so-called childhood sweetheart plotted to abduct her. He frantically searched for her, and the night he rescued her back, the possessiveness buried deep in his heart completely spiraled out of control.

What kind of nonsense was 'considering the bigger picture'? Nothing was more worth risking than having her. Later, Nan Xu, exhausted, lay in Duan Wenpei's arms, her slender fingers tracing his damp temples, and she asked with a muffled voice, "When did you change your mind, my lord?"

He caught her mischievous hand, licked his lips, still unsatisfied, then turned his head to gently bite her earlobe. "Guess."

This novel is a HE (Happy Ending), both leads are virgins, and it's a 'marriage before love' story. The male lead had never loved a woman and suffered from a lack of love since childhood, requiring time to adapt. In the later stages of their relationship, the male lead becomes somewhat of a 'love-addict', a family trait. The female lead is relatively clear-headed.