Very Happy

by Yue Xia Die Ying, 月下蝶影

Yan Ting: Life is no fun. What is the difference between life and death?

Li Zhao: Life is very happy.

The world in Yan Ting’s heart was very grey until he met Li Zhao. He thought this must be the liveliest person in the world. Otherwise, how could Li Zhao be so lively in his heart every day?

Very happy x Unhappy.

Warm text with entertainment circle elements.

Genres: Romance, China, M M Romance, Contemporary, Modern, LGBT, Fiction

1330 pages

First published January 1, 2019

About the author

Associated Names:
* Yue Xia Die Ying
* 月下蝶影
* เยวี่ยซย่าเตี๋ยอิ่ง, เยว่เซี่ยเตี๋ยอิ่ง, เย่ว์เซี่ยเตี๋ยอิ่ง (Thai)

Reviews

[yel ᰔ · Rating 3 out of 5]

➺ 3.5/5 🌟

Though I expected something more profound, this novel is still a fun read. Full of face-slapping moments which I always loved but the best part of this might be the MC and ML themselves. Zhao Zhao, a very precious sunshine that gives so much energy and Ting Ting, a gloomy but very generous and doting lover, both equally needs a proper protection. I loved them both so much. And though it is still a slow burn romance, the crumbs of dog food from them are scattered from the beginning so there's no shortage of sweetness. there are some trigger warnings you need to be aware of but this story is overall not that dark

tw: depression, child abuse, bullying, suicide

[Mello · Rating 4 out of 5]

RTC 😍

[richa ⋆.˚★ · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5/5 🌟

[Elle · Rating 4 out of 5]

Light and fluffy entertainment circle romance. Very interesting use of rebirth trope in that only two minor villains are reborn and the actions they take to try and ruin the life of the protagonist and steal his success only serve to make his life even better.

I adore the protag and the ML. So many wonderful side characters as well. I was always very happy to see a new chapter go up.

[qikiqtarjuaq · Rating 4 out of 5]

A chill and level-headed take on the entertainment industry genre of novels, this book is a light and fun read. The protagonist has a pragmatic and happy-go-lucky attitude, which is a fresh treatment that makes the face-slapping and scheming in this genre a lot more fun to read than the typical fare. The love interest in comparison falls a little flat (I feel like I've read this kind of doting, rich and possessive love interest in just about every entertainment cnovel both m/f and m/m) but the main character and his unique narrative voice carries the book despite that.

A lot of the book centers around themes of found family and karma (good deeds coming back to reward you when you least expect it), and although the ending is almost unrealistically good, it's not bad if you're in the mood for wish fulfillment.

[angie · Rating 4 out of 5]

Re-read: June 12, 2023

Raising my rating to 4⭐️. I like the story more on my second read. Not sure why my rating on my 1st read is low but I enjoyed my read this time. Possible re-read in the future.🤗

**********************
Actual rating: 3.5🌟

This is the story of Li Zhao as he try to reach his dream in the entertainment industry.

This story was tagged as reincarnation. This is very unique because the one that reincarnated was not the main lead but a cannon fodder villain. And what's more weird is that it's not just this character, there are two more secondary characters who have dreams of the past.

The story is a bit cute and sweet but more on the funny side. I love how Li Zhao's fans baby him.😆

It has a bit of a plot in there but mostly it's Li Zhao's flowery road to success and happiness.😁

If you're just looking for a short and funny story, this one's for you.❤👍

[M · Rating 5 out of 5]

4 stars content wise, 5 stars in my heart

[Hellarious · Rating 5 out of 5]

Aaaawwww I LOVE THIS NOVEL 

This is definitely one of the best I’ve read so far. There is not so much of adventure, more like a slice of life but it is never boring. The characters are so different and alive, some of their developments are even unexpected.


It a very heartwarming story with great characters and plot. The pace and romance a just right. It’s quite quite, sometimes sad or making you sentimental, but that’s all good. Almost no dog drama. Still, you can follow our main characters to develop and find a new side of life. 


There are unexpected moments, there are bad and good twists but it’s so lovable that I’m at loss of word. I love how it start and ends. How the characters develop and what choices they make. It is very interesting to went in this book with them. 


I will definitely read it again when I’ll feel sad or depressed. Strongly recommend! 

[Anika · Rating 2 out of 5]

DNF. Got boring after a while.

[Anjax · Rating 4 out of 5]

Sometimes funny, sometimes sad. I really liked it.

[Dianna · Rating 3 out of 5]

Cute story about romance in the c-ent industry. It was enjoyable reading about how rival after rival tried to take down Li Zhao and all went down in flames after Yan Ting found out about them and got involved. This book does make me wonder if c-ent culture is as toxic and cutthroat as it's described here, like fans of different actors engaging in online wars, hiring water armies to blacken other artists based on gossip and hearsay, etc. Based on my limited experience with the world of c-ent, I'm guessing it is....

I actually didn't like either of the main characters much at the beginning. Li Zhao seemed a bit overly naive (he thought Song Yu was helping him by ordering him so much food when Song Yu was just trying to make him fat lol), while Yan Ting was not in a good place mentally. I much rather prefer the people they became after meeting each other.

Overall their relationship wasn't the most interesting part of the story for me. Rather, the highlight was watching how all of Zhao Zhao's rivals either start hugging his thigh or are taken down by Yan Ting and the financial might of Cang Huan. First there's Song Yu, who quickly converted into Zhao Zhao's "friend" when he realized which direction the was blowing. And then there was Xu Bei, which did his best to steal Zhao Zhao's roles and smear his reputation. Then where was a brief appearance by Qiao Jing, who in her ignorance angered Yan Ting so much not just her but her dad had to pay by stepping down as company head. There are a couple more actors whose names I don't remember, but they all made the same mistake of messing with Zhao Zhao and it felt so satisfying to read about them getting their just desserts.

I also loved the CPs the author thrown in there and how Zhao Zhao ends up paired with so many people. There's not just Cang Li and Yu Li, but also a Zhai Li (referring to Zhao Zhao's good relationship with his two house demolished friend). What was especially amusing to me was that the Cang Li and Zhai Li fans were fighting between themselves, not realizing they were supporting the same CP. And the fact that Yan Ting paid money to suppress the Li Yu supertopic on Weibo and to promote his own CP with Zhao Zhao.... I died!!!

Here are some quotes from the story I found hilarious:

Soon, the story of the Cang Li CP started to circulate among the netizens. Painters started to make many cute pieces for this CP and the limelight completely suppressed that of the Li Yu CP who had their super topic blocked.

The Li Yu fans, “??”

There wasn’t even a photo of the boss of Canghuan, let alone Li Zhao being in the same frame as him. What were these CP fans doing? The love story of the domineering president and the beautiful star? Oh, superficial. Their Xiao Yu was also a rich second generation.

“Sir.” Qin Xiao sent a screenshot of the popular Cang Li CP Weibo post to Yan Ting. “On the Internet, the degree of discussion about you and Mr Li is already very high.”

Yan Ting saved the screenshot. "Control public opinion so that everyone knows this is just a brain hole and isn't actually real. Don't let it affect Zhao Zhao's professional development."

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

This year, he went out with Ting Ting and deliberately didn’t hide in. However, in the eyes of the media and netizens, they had always been good brothers and there was nothing to do with dating.

Only the CP fans silently ate sugar but between the Cang Li CP fans and the Chai (demolition) Li CP fans, there were frequent arguments. This made the secretly watching Li Zhao laugh and cry.

The same was true for today’s popular comments area.

“Cang Li fans, don’t be ashamed. The one that Zhao Zhao mentions the most is his demolition tyrant friend. As for the boss you are imagining, who knows what he looks like or what his relationship is with Zhao Zhao. Haven’t you read stories of overbearing presidents?”

“Perhaps Zhao Zhao didn’t mention Canghuan’s boss to prevent him from falling into public opinion. Chai Li fans, don’t you know? Didn’t the boss of Canghuan attend the annual meeting last year for Zhao Zhao? It is said that he has never participated in the annual meeting before but last year, he made an exception for Zhao Zhao.”

“Are the Cang Li fans crazy? Is Zhao Zhao the only one who participated in the annual meeting last year?”

The All Li fans: Don’t quarrel, don’t quarrel. Perhaps the demolition tyrant and Canghuan’s boss are the same person?”

Cang Li fans: Get lost!

Chai Li fans: Get lost!

The All Li fans: …

What was this attitude? Couldn’t they be a bit friendly?

The Li fans watching the entire thing, “……”

Please pay attention to Zhao Zhao’s upcoming movie! This was obviously a touching brotherhood. What strange things were these people making up?

[Jess · Rating 3 out of 5]

The novel started out okay. Like any typical Danmei novel set in the entertainment industry, it had a MC, ML, many antagonists and many more face-slapping scenes.

I liked Li Zhao (MC) because he was basically sunshine personified; no matter what challenges he faced, as long as he had food then he was happy. LZ was a character that activated my protective mode because he had gone through so much sh*t growing up so I just wanted him to find some happiness. He grew up in an orphanage so his outlook was different from the rest of his peers and because of his low background, he had to face being ridiculed and being taken advantage of in the industry. But everything changed when he met Yan Ting (ML).

I liked YT.. somewhat. Even though he was the ML, I have to say that I didn't really care about him? As in, when he showed up, then he showed up but it wasn't like I was especially looking forward to him. I think it's because he also had an incredibly tragic background and that made him suspicious towards others so he didn't have good communication skills. But the lack of character development for the ML disappointed me. I mean, YT did experience some changes throughout the story but it was subtle even though I thought it would be more obvious since the author made him out to be somebody who had some heavy baggage.

Regarding said baggage, the author introduced the ML's affliction and I thought it would play an integral part in the story but it didn't and was quickly resolved towards the end. At first I was confused but then I later realised that the author didn't want this "sickness" to be at the center of LZ and YT's relationship, which I think was a good decision.

The side characters to me, had more presence than the ML. Especially Qin Xiao and Song Yu because they added something different to the story. And even though I like my fair share of face-slapping, it got kind of redundant in this novel when the author kept introducing characters just for the sake of being cannon fodders. These scenes became boring to me because they were all the same -- LZ gets blackened by his enemies and YT just does something to ruin their career, lives, etc.

And when the author suddenly added a character that apparently had been reborn and his only role was to pit against LZ... I was just so confused. Like what was the point of doing that? The story became quite messy at that point and I just wanted to quickly finish reading so I could move on to something better.. Overall, this novel was sweet, funny and entertaining enough for some light reading and the ending was good because everyone got what they deserved.

[Staring At A Star · Rating 5 out of 5]

The best way I can describe the experience of reading this book is "rolling around in a bed of sugar" - sweet and comforting. This is not one of those books that I felt compelled to keep reading until I was bleary from the lack of sleep. I felt I could happily stop or start at any point, with whatever I read reliably giving me a mood boost.

I loved the main relationship in the book. It starts out at pure friendship, and stays that way for much of the book. There's a bit of dependency in the relationship that might make it feel suffocating and even a bit dangerous in real life, but which comes across as endearing in a fictional romance. I was worried that the story would be too depressing in parts, but I think the author does a really good job of mixing some happiness when dishing out the sad. The characters have gone through some tough situations, but the current life helps mitigate the pain from the past.

This book is slice of life at its best - conflict comes and goes naturally and the characters are smart enough to not make extra drama for themselves. There's even a humorous bit where Yan Ting and Li Zhao agree to never be a romantic couple if being romantic means a bunch of miscommunications and separations.

If there was a downside to this book, it's that it will go by too fast and that there are some unexplained threads. For example, why is there a random re-birth and dream of the future? Why does the re-birther hate Li Zhao so much? If you don't realize you're reading a Chinese novel, the blatant ego boosting of Chinese national media will also be a bit surprising.

Regardless, this is a lovely book lovingly translated and with a crowd of dog food loving spectators in the comments.

[TofuBao · Rating 3 out of 5]

Rating: 3/5- This fell short because the interaction between the ML and MC is actually only about 30% of this book, the ML and MC still felt like friends even at the end and some plot holes were too big to be overlooked.

Overall the story was still heartwarming and my desire for both characters to be together got me reading to the end. I enjoyed everything about the MC but I wished the ML could have been better defined for me. Too much mystery surrounded him and a lot was left unexplained even at the end. He was described as tragic and had even died in his previous life but I never really understood why.

Also the commentary throughout the book was a bit excessive, especially because I enjoy reading about the couple more than anything else.


The conclusion of the story, in terms of the reunion was also a bit unrealistic for me. In fact, I’d have been happier without it.

Overall this read will please you, but it can also easily bore you. Also if you’re looking for couple fluff, this story will probably cause immense hunger and thirst, so go in preparing to read an MC centric plot with very minimal interaction with his ML.

[Laketica · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was recommended by a friend... and about 100 chapters in, I was still confused on why this story was even worth a recommendation. But the last part of it totally turned it around, it became a touching, wholesome story that brought tears to my eyes... really a fantastic story. No smut but I do think the plot synopsis has it flipped, it should be not happy x happy.

Reason for 4 stars is the ending felt.... not abrupt, but I did feel like there were some elements that were brushed off. Many many side characters, either in the celebrity world or family members that felt neglected as the author tried to finish off the story.

Still though, heartwarming, fluffy, and wholesome. That is all.

[blub · Rating 4 out of 5]

Cute read. It's as the title suggesr MC is very happy doesn't let the bad in life get to him and it's because he's dirt poor (not making fun of him, it's just the state he's in) and is appreciative of all he had in life. He's in the entertainment industry but doesn't get roles. But his luck is starting to change when he catches the mysterious ML eyes.

This one was a bit unique in that minor characters are rebirthed and they turn out to be villains who hope to take advantage of certain situations but things go even more sideways for them. The secondary characters were very likable.

[Abi · Rating 4 out of 5]

This was a good read. Entertainment circle, yaoi romance, but respectful and cute and fluffy. Funny and entertaining overall. Loved the MC and the male lead really grew on me throughout the story. Binge-read. Even the side characters had development, which I loved. My favorite of the side characters was Song Yu. I loved his character growth! In general, this was a well-paced and excellently translated story. Quality entertainment!

[Mia · Rating 4 out of 5]

Ceritanya sweet. Konfliknya juga gak terlalu heboh. Zhao Zhao yg selalu positif dan super duper lucky selalu bisa menyelesaikan masalah dengan baik. Ting ting sebagai dominering super tyrant selalu melindungi Zhao Zhao. Hubungan mereka berdua cute banget. Author note juga jadi salah satu yang dinanti2, tentang baby Zhao zhao dan baby Ting ting di TK

[eggtart · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing was messy and left me confused at times. I was also super freaking bored towards the end and skimmed a lot. I felt as if we didn't ever truly get to know Yan Ting as a character which was very disappointing... But, when Ting and Zhao got together it was very precious and I loved the author's Lil theater notes at the end, so cute.

[tyki · Rating 5 out of 5]

4.5

warning: child abuse, suicide, mental illness

pros: mc and love interest have a very sweet relationship, side characters are nice too!, resolves pretty realistically and nicely, plot is fine, despite darker themes a pretty fluffy and light read

cons: age gap (20/28) but it’s handled pretty well

[Candy K · Rating 4 out of 5]

As always I'm a fan of good people winning and face slapping
Very fluffly but sad at the same time?
Slow burn
The author's note are the cutest

So sad knowing what could've happened if they didn't met
I love how gentle Yang Tin is

[Irissska · Rating 2 out of 5]

1.5
It was the usual face slapping of everyone (so many terrible ppl in Chinese entertainment industry) and netizens' talk. But main characters (and many supporting) were nice, so I even did not drop it midway or diagonally read it.
The translation was so-so but understandable.

[atomic · Rating 3 out of 5]

Fluff, some drama, nothing deep. Just cute. Love the characters~
However, it tries to deal with some complex themes but then dismisses them quite magically, which kind of ruined it for me. But it's ok to pass time as a light read full of fluff.

[Summer · Rating 5 out of 5]

Heartwarming, wholesome, and fun story about two lonely souls meeting and helping each other grow and heal and experience what it means to have a home with someone waiting for you...

[Rue · Rating 2 out of 5]

Two stars because dropped since couldn't get into it after about 10 chapters .. seemed a bit stereotypical and writing style was also meh so didn't feel compelled to continue it

[Melissa · Rating 3 out of 5]

The author's note at the end of every chapter was super cute!

[⋆˙⟡♡ sam ♡⟡ ⋆˙ · Rating 4 out of 5]

“No matter your past, your future… will always have me.”

[Zainab · Rating 3 out of 5]

This book is, indeed, very good. No tension, no high stakes: just a feel good plot to happiness.

[Nerea · Rating 3 out of 5]

The main characters are lovely!

The last part of the book was a bit too slow for me... I wish they got together sooner ;_;

[aesop ˚ʚ♡ɞ˚ · Rating 4 out of 5]

"very happy" my ass his backstory and all the MC suffered made me sad as shit