“I’ve said what I wanted, so I’ll go now. I can’t accept the phone, either. I’ll return it. And I’ll return the ring you gave me, too.”
So-eun placed the newly received phone and the couple ring she had been wearing on the table.
“Take care.”
“Wa, wait! So-eun, wait!”
As So-eun stood to leave, Hee-wook quickly grabbed her, causing her to sit back down.
“Ha… I’m so confused, I don’t know what’s going on. Let’s sit down and talk calmly.”
Hee-wook’s voice trembled as he tried to persuade So-eun, then buried his head in his hands.
After a moment, he looked up and asked.
“Are you… breaking up with me impulsively to go tell Hyun-ji?”
“Tell what? What are you talking about?”
“Ha… So-eun.”
The thought of his secrets being exposed, and the fear of it, made him seem so petty.
“I won’t tell. As long as you don’t bother me.”
“……”
“Is that okay?”
It wasn’t for him. So-eun made the promise for herself.
Relieved by So-eun’s promise, Hee-wook finally exhaled.
“Okay. So-eun. It’s regrettable how things turned out.”
The breakup he wanted. Although he couldn’t spend a hot night in the hotel room, it was a clean conclusion. He should’ve ended it quickly when Han So-eun was determined.
“I was ready to book a wedding hall even tomorrow, but it’s sad it turned out this way. Okay. I understand your wishes. Let’s end it here, then.”
Hee-wook’s empty consolation didn’t sit well with So-eun.
But finally, it was over.
So-eun slowly parted her lips and sighed softly.
She thought she had emptied her heart before arriving at the hotel lounge, but hearing his words made her chest ache.
That made So-eun miss her chance to leave.
Hee-wook rambled on.
“Even though we broke up, I’ll always be grateful to you. Every time I see our mom, I’ll think of you.”
Hee-wook extended his hand for a handshake.
“I was sorry and thankful. Regardless of what anyone says, you are my first love, So-eun. Maybe even my last love.”
Hmm. Cancel that. What I thought was an aching chest was just discomfort.
As Hee-wook droned on about a dramatic, beautiful breakup, So-eun felt she could let go of the last bit of sentiment she had left.
“I’ll never meet another woman like you in my life.”
“That’s right.”
Instead of shaking hands, So-eun foretold his future.
“You’ll never meet someone like me in your lifetime.”
That was who I was.
I gave you my best in abundance. I was more than enough for you.
To some, I might seem foolish, and to others, frustrating, but I was genuinely a good person for giving it my all.
So-eun bid farewell with a sense of relief.
“I’ll go first. Don’t contact me again and delete my number. Take care.”
She didn’t accept the handshake, but her wish for him to be well was sincere.
Your family was toxic, but the liver detoxifies.
I hope the part of me that I gave to your mother stays healthy for a long time, detoxifying your family.
So they don’t become harmful to the world.
Ha. What a relief.
Why did I suffer in silence all this time instead of speaking out like this?
It was a relief, but somehow my head hurt. It felt dizzy, as if blood suddenly started flowing through a blocked vessel.
Struggling not to fall, So-eun walked briskly, only to encounter Tae-jun again.
He had parked his car at the hotel entrance, handed out his business card to the staff for understanding, and waited for So-eun.
So-eun’s blurred vision cleared.
“Were you waiting all this time?”
“I wanted to hear the aftermath.”
Wow, what kind of man is this?
It was so absurd that she couldn’t even laugh.
Despite wanting to ignore him and walk away bravely.
Now that she had let go, her legs had lost their strength.
Uh-oh! So-eun stumbled, entangled in her own feet. Tae-jun quickly ran to support her.
Somehow, she ended up in his arms. To add to that, he gently patted her back.
She hadn’t intended to be comforted.
Yet, being held in his warm embrace and receiving rhythmic pats like a heartbeat, she felt an odd obligation to share her experience.
“I finished it.”
“And your thoughts?”
“It’s a relief.”
“Well done.”
Only then did So-eun understand why her colleagues sang praises of Kim Tae-jun being a kind person.
His embrace was so comforting and warm that she wished she could just fall asleep in his arms.
[Star Icon]After breaking up with So-eun, Hee-wook felt conflicted and lost his appetite.
He had prepared thoroughly to take So-eun to the hotel room after giving her a phone and a bouquet, but she abruptly said she wanted to break up.
It was a pity he couldn’t hold her, but he still had Hyun-ji.
It was fortunate that So-eun decided to leave on her own, for Hyun-ji’s future and his.
But why did he feel uneasy?
Was it because he couldn’t delete the data on So-eun’s phone?
Or because he regretted paying for the hotel already?
Hee-wook furrowed his brows, trying to sort out his thoughts, then suddenly stood up.
‘Will Han So-eun really keep her mouth shut?’
A doubt crept in.
Hee-wook hurriedly left the hotel to find So-eun and stumbled upon an unexpected scene.
“……Why is that bastard there?”
Kim Tae-jun, the sole grandson of Chairman Kim Jae-pil of K Group, and the second heir.
That guy was supporting a staggering So-eun, holding her tightly as if she was his woman.
After Being Cheated On, She Picked Up a Treasure (Female-dominant)
One-line summary: The husband I married on a whim had been secretly in love with me for a long time.
On the day when Jun Shao finally obtained the imperial decree for her marriage, Lan Qu, the person she had admired for six years, defied the decree and ran away.
Her gentleness and devotion, her promise of a lifetime together, were all disregarded by him. Instead, he dreamed of entering the palace to serve the Emperor’s sister as a sixth-rank attendant.
News of this incident spread throughout the capital, and the alleys in front of and behind the Lan mansion were crowded with people who came to watch the commotion.
Jun Shao should have been embarrassed and angry.
But someone stepped in to protect her dignity.
The figure was in a miserable state, yet still possessed an undeniable elegance and handsomeness.
The young lord struggled to climb the wall of the Lan mansion and shouted to her, “If he won’t marry you, I will!”
So, Jun Shao took advantage of the situation and married the person.
She thought the young lord did it to save the Lan family from the crime of defying the imperial decree, but never imagined that from beginning to end, what he coveted was her.
*
After the wedding, Jun Shao felt like she was living in a dream.
Her Wife-master was as beautiful as a fairy in a painting, skilled in the six arts, well-versed in poetry and literature, capable of being gentle and attentive, and also grand and dignified. Most importantly, she was the only one in his heart and eyes.
Jun Shao didn’t know how Lan Shiwu, as a illegitimate son without a father and blessed with beauty, had managed to preserve his purity, recklessly escape, and use his last ounce of strength to ruin his own reputation, all because of his love for her, just to stand before her.
She could only see him gazing at her with eyes full of love, and when she bestowed a name upon him, his eyes shone like stars.
“You have come to me like a weary bird perching on a branch. I shall call you A Qi.”
