Sweet Desire to Kiss! After Getting the Marriage Certificate, I’m Kissed Red Every Night

Shen Nanzhi is a university student who lost her parents at age ten and was subsequently taken in by the wealthy Jiang family. She was raised alongside Jiang Tingxu, her childhood friend and de facto fiancé under a marriage alliance arranged between their families two decades ago. Jiang Jinnian, the eldest son of the Jiang family and a powerful business magnate, has spent most of his life abroad and maintains a distant, aloof relationship with Nanzhi. Upon returning to China for the Mid-Autumn Festival, Jinnian unexpectedly picks Nanzhi up from her university, revealing his intention to integrate the family businesses more closely. During this visit, Nanzhi retrieves a lost USB drive for her friend at an entertainment venue, where she encounters Jiang Tingxu. Tingxu, who has recently rejected the arranged marriage and distanced himself from Nanzhi, makes a dismissive comment about her being too well-behaved to be interesting, signaling the end of their romantic prospects.

The core conflict arises when Tingxu flees to another city to avoid his family, leaving the engagement in limbo. Nanzhi returns to the Jiang residence hoping to formally annul the engagement to avoid awkwardness, but Jiang Jinnian interrupts her. Citing the deep historical ties between the two families and the potential damage to their reputations, he refuses to let the alliance dissolve. In a shocking turn, Jinnian proposes that he, rather than Tingxu, will marry Nanzhi. His parents, who have long favored the union and view Nanzhi as a daughter, support the suggestion. Jinnian asserts his authority, clarifying that he is not her brother but her designated fiancé, and insists that the marriage serves the pragmatic interests of both families, particularly in stabilizing the declining Shen family business.

Nanzhi attempts to resist, retreating to her apartment and avoiding contact, but Jinnian pursues her with quiet persistence. He visits her home, orders her favorite food, and insists on maintaining a presence in her life. His actions are calculated and calm, contrasting with Tingxu’s rebellious indifference. Jinnian investigates Nanzhi’s interactions with other men, specifically a senior researcher named Chi Zheng who shows romantic interest in her, revealing Jinnian’s underlying possessiveness despite his composed exterior. He questions Nanzhi about her feelings, deducing that she has not fallen for anyone else, and uses this logic to argue that she has no valid reason to reject the engagement.

As the story progresses, the dynamic shifts from a forced arrangement to a complex negotiation of proximity. Jinnian moves into Nanzhi’s life by obtaining the code to her apartment and ensuring she does not neglect her health, blurring the lines between duty and care. Meanwhile, Tingxu remains absent, entrenched in his rebellion and his new relationship with an artist he promotes. Nanzhi is caught between her loyalty to the Jiang family who raised her, her confusion over the sudden change in fiancé, and her discomfort with Jinnian’s dominant yet attentive courtship. The narrative establishes a trajectory where Nanzhi must navigate her new reality with Jinnian, whose cold exterior masks a strategic determination to secure both the family alliance and her companionship, while she struggles to reconcile her past with Tingxu against the unavoidable present with Jinnian.