Caution, women

Author: Xu Ming
Publisher:
Publish Date: 2005-05-01
Features: The son of a farmer graduates from university and gradually enters the mainstream urban society; he faces dilemmas between passion and sentimentality, loyalty and betrayal, and madness and loss. The novel tells readers: in the fierce struggle of the officialdom, the fall of the soul must be paid for by oneself; in the separation of love and reality, how will emotions find their. This book is the complete version of the 2005 internet hit novel "Playful Women" (including the final ending). Written by a top internet celebrity writer at the end of 2004 and first published on the Tianya online community, it created a huge buzz among netizens and was reposted by multiple websites. Although the content of this novel still revolves around the familiar themes of marriage and love, its unique narrative style, deeply moving storyline, the gripping emotional journey of the protagonist, and the author's profound reflections on social moral issues elevate the novel to a certain intellectual level.
The protagonist of the novel, Xu Ming, is a child from a rural family who deeply understands the hardship his parents faced in supporting his education. From a young age, he was determined to work hard and achieve great success to repay his parents' nurturing. After entering university, Xu Ming experienced romantic relationships and pursued Meng Yan, a fellow hometown girl, according to his parents' standards for a future daughter-in-law. However, finally, Meng Yan rejected him because she despised his family's poverty and did not marry him.
Stung by this rejection, Xu Ming resolved to find a daughter from a wealthy family to rely on and began a friendship with Wan'er, whose father was the head of the Provincial Department of Grain. After two years of knowing each other, Wan'er also left him because she could no longer endure the suffering of being separated by distance. After two failed love affairs, Xu Ming became completely disillusioned with love and eventually married Xia Yu, a woman who had neither a good job nor good looks. After marriage, they had a lovely daughter, and their little life flourished. Xu Ming thought he could live a quiet life like this, but unexpectedly, five years into the marriage, his wife Xia Yu cheated on him.
At this point, Xu Ming's worldview underwent a huge change. He began to become unrestrained and playfully indifferent to life, engaging in sexual relationships with several women and completely isolating himself in a world of loneliness and decay. At this time, Chen Xiang, a female university student, entered his life, and they became entangled in a series of emotional conflicts. The story unfolds, vividly depicting the complex relationships between Xu Ming, Xia Yu, and Chen Xiang, as well as the ups and downs of Xu Ming's career, his struggles with family, and his unyielding emotions.