As soon as Jaeyin closed the bathroom door, there was a click, and the door opened again, and Dohyuk entered the room.
If she had been even a little late, Jaeyin would have been caught as a red-handed criminal.
“Phew, I can’t live like this, trembling with fear.”
Her heart was pounding like crazy, and her pulse had long surpassed dangerous levels.
“I have to find a way to get out without being caught!”
Jaeyin pressed her ear to the bathroom door, trying to catch any sounds from outside.
“Yes, Director Kim.”
Dohyuk answered the phone.
“I’m fine. Please go ahead.”
As expected, Dohyuk immediately walked into the bedroom.
Soon after, she could sense him changing clothes.
“Phew. If I had hidden in the closet, I would have been in big trouble.”
Cold sweat ran down Jaeyin’s back.
Had he finished changing his clothes? Outside, it was eerily quiet.
Jaeyin’s heart raced with anxiety.
Afraid that Dohyuk might suddenly open the bathroom door,
She regretted entering Dohyuk’s room secretly and enduring this hardship.
She even blamed herself for not being able to overcome her curiosity.
“Seo Jae In, since when have you been pursuing the truth like this! I’m dying of curiosity, but I should have just endured it. What are we going to do now? The situation has only gotten bigger!”
At that moment, as Jaeyin tormented herself with self-blame and distress,
Dohyuk’s voice softened and he said,
“What can we do? It’s all because of their own actions; they will have to pay the price.”
Feeling sheepish,
Jaeyin was shaken by his words, which seemed directed at herself.
“Understood. Please continue to keep an eye on it. That’s all for now.”
She thought he might hang up now, but then a concerned voice followed,
“What? Could it be that Grandfather also discussed Seojin Trading with Director Kim?”
For some reason, there was irritation in Dohyuk’s voice.
“On Wednesday? Fine. Don’t even think about convincing Yoon Sejeong or whoever it is. I won’t meet her.”
“Yoon Sejeong? Ah, the chairman asked Manager Kim to introduce Yoon Sejeong from Seojin Trading to Team Leader-nim. Seojin Trading is a major conglomerate, after all. As expected, marriages are also arranged within families.”
Suddenly catching on, Jaeyin was engulfed in a strange, bitter feeling.
“Ugh! What does it matter to me who Manager Kim meets or marries? It’s none of my business.”
Anyway, someday, Manager Kim would likely meet a similar woman from a wealthy family and get married.
But why did a stifling feeling settle in her chest?
Then, Dohyuk said firmly,
“I don’t want to go out for the sake of appearances. Manager Kim knows, right? I already…”
Already?
Jaeyin involuntarily perked up her ears.
“Anyway, please let Manager Kim handle that conversation with Grandfather. I’ll really hang up now.”
When Dohyuk ended the call, silence once again filled the room.
Jaeyin’s cheeks were flushed, unbeknownst to herself.
She felt somehow like the subject of Dohyuk’s unfinished sentence.
As the sound of Dohyuk’s footsteps seemed to grow distant, there were two soft clicks, as if something was being opened or closed.
Jaeyin cautiously cracked open the bathroom door.
Dohyuk, in lounge wear, revealed himself inside the minibar.
If it hadn’t been for Seongjun’s call, he would have hidden in the minibar, nearly caught without a chance to move.
Jaeyin’s hand holding the bathroom handle trembled.
Dohyuk half-filled a wine glass with red wine, then collapsed onto the long sofa as if he’d lost all strength.
Leaning on the armrest, Dohyuk, with a sip of wine still lingering on his lips, soon rested his chin and closed his eyes.
His demeanor resembled a scene from a splendid movie, making Jae In unable to tear her gaze away.
“‘Eyes being happy’ means moments like this,” she thought, even though she was reluctant to admit it. Cha Dohyuk, merely breathing quietly, was the owner of an overwhelming, radiant charm.
As she gazed at him, almost entranced, Dohyuk suddenly opened his eyes wide.
Inhale!
Startled, Jae In fell back from the bathroom door.
“Could it be, did our eyes meet?”
Why did her ominous premonition always turn out to be true?
Jae In heard the sound of Dohyuk getting up from his seat.
Step by step.
Step by step.
The footsteps grew progressively closer.
“What do I do? What do I do?”
Trapped like a bird in a cage, Jae In desperately opened the glass door and slipped inside.
Swoosh.
The bathroom sliding door opened.
A large figure was seen walking into the powder room.
There was no way to escape.
Pale with fright, Jae In continued to step backward, trembling.
And then,
“Ouch!”
Thump.
Her leg got caught on the edge of the bathtub, causing her to tumble backward.
As Jae In fell, she accidentally knocked over the toiletries around the bathtub, spilling them into the tub.
Rustle.
The bathroom door swung open, and Dohyuk rushed in.
“Seo Jae In?”
Seeing Jae In lying sprawled in the bathtub, Dohyuk couldn’t help but burst into laughter, finding the situation quite amusing.
“What are you doing in here?”
When male lead is the homewrecker
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
I’ve read the novel below twice already. Girls, I’m highly recommending it to you!
The female lead? Not a good person.
The second male lead? Not a good person.
The male lead? Willingly plays the third party, breaking up the female and second male lead’s relationship despite all the warnings from his friends—so yeah, he’s definitely not a good person either.
Basically, nobody in this novel is simple-minded or without scheming.
The female lead starts off as the male lead’s secretary, but don’t worry—later on, she takes over the company while the male lead steps back to support her. He won’t steal her spotlight, overshadow her, or dull her shine.
I love novels where men are out here snatching wigs, tearing each other down, and going to war just to win the female lead’s affection. And this is exactly that kind of novel. Most of Hai Dai Ran’s works have this dynamic. You’ll see the male characters’ emotions being pushed to the absolute extreme.
There’s even a scene where the second male lead exposes the male lead online for being a homewrecker. The brotherhood immediately gangs up on him, dragging him through the mud. I find it compelling —it completely flips reality on its head, where usually, women are the ones fighting over a man and getting torn apart by the sisterhood.
For me, female leads in the novels I read should only struggle in their careers, not in love. But if the brainless romantics in the story are all men? I have zero complaints.
I’ve pretty much read all of Hai Dai Ran’s novels and even translated all of them—her works are just my thing. I’ll slowly upload everything here. One day, when my website is official, I hope I can invite her to join as one of the star authors.
Here’s the story synopsis:
One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.
Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead
Intro 1:
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
With blood trickling from his clenched fist, Rong Xiu gazed at the woman before him, his eyes clouded with anguish. Hidden in the wardrobe, he had witnessed Fan Xia – the woman he desperately loved – in an intimate embrace with her fiancé. Yet his heart still yearned for her, defying all reason.
Fan Xia, the elegant and composed assistant, carried something mysterious in her eyes whenever she looked at her fiancé, Wen Lan Sheng. Strange occurrences began to surface – secret meetings with the young Gu Jin Yi, an unexplained withdrawal of 5,000 yuan… Then suddenly, her fiancé’s sister, Wen Jing, violently attacked her.
In this matriarchal society, Rong Xiu had risen to become the chairman of a powerful healthcare conglomerate, breaking through gender prejudices. But for the first time, he willingly stepped into the shadows as the other man, disregarding his friends’ warnings to become her secret lover.
Because he had discovered the truth – Fan Xia wasn’t the pure angel everyone believed her to be. And perhaps, he was the only one capable of helping her execute her mysterious plan…
Intro 2:
Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.
He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.
Watched her go public with her boyfriend.
Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.
Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.
The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.
Fan Xia, how can I have you!
【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】
1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy
2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition
_____
Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.
If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
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