‘What? What’s going on? Why is this happening?’
At that moment, her phone rang, and a message arrived.
A brief message with an unfamiliar address.
As Se-ah read the contents, she sat down on the floor, overwhelmed.
Amidst the continued warning sound and the sharp noise of the security device, residents of the villa gathered one by one, and in the distance, the security team was seen rushing over.
“I’ll send all your belongings to this address, so be aware of that. Since Minwoo’s house has been handed over to someone else, there’s no point in holding on there; it’s only a loss for you. Whether you accept this house or not is up to you.”
The next day, Se-ah went to the address provided by Kang Juran and, upon entering the house, was bewildered.
It was a place far from Seoul, taking a two-hour drive to reach.
In an old apartment, about 15 square meters in size, her belongings were haphazardly piled up.
Se-ah crouched down on the living room floor in the midst of it all.
There were no furniture at all, and her clothes, shoes, accessories, and various other items were jumbled up in boxes.
“Your belongings are all delivered to the house at the given address. We’ve disposed of all the furniture and items left when Minwoo sold the house, so don’t bother looking for missing things. You should consider yourself lucky to get that much in an empty house you came into. I’ll send you about 200,000 won every month until you give birth, so use that for hospital visits and take good care of the baby in your belly. Send me reports every month on the baby’s condition and your hospital visits. I’ll also send living expenses, so don’t casually neglect taking care of our Minwoo’s child. I’ll visit soon.”
Reading the message from Kang Juran upon arrival, Se-ah burst into laughter.
“Ha! 200,000 won per month? Is this a joke, considering I used to spend thousands every month with Cha Minwoo? Are you kidding me now?”
After reading the message, her mood worsened, and she threw her phone into a box piled with clothes.
‘How am I going to repay this? What should I do to get proper compensation? You discard me like this and live happily with a new woman?’
In the overwhelming anger, Se-ah felt her head throbbing as if it would explode.
But one thing was clear – sitting in a corner and lamenting alone wouldn’t solve anything.
‘I need to take action, repay something, gain something… I have to act.’
A short while ago, she had sold expensive jewelry, accessories, bags, etc., to make cash and had enough to get by for a few months.
To someone, this house might be cozy and enough for living alone, but not for Se-ah.
Now, in her eyes, the house where she lived with Cha Minwoo, full of spacious and top-notch furniture, had become the standard, making everything else seem old and shabby.
‘The place for me is not this old and small house. Definitely not!’
Se-ah immediately got up, grabbed the money, and left the house.
As it was an unfamiliar place nearby, she first hailed a taxi.
“Where would you like to go, ma’am?”
“Take me to the nearest shopping mall.”
After about 15 minutes, they arrived at the front of the shopping mall, and Se-ah rushed inside.
The place she headed straight for was the electronics section.
“Ma’am, are you looking for something specific?”
“Show me the best-performing laptop here. Something I can use right away!”
For the next few days, she stayed up all night searching the internet.
Without organizing the piled-up belongings, she placed the newly bought laptop on a small table, crouched down, and searched day and night for something.
Not adept at internet searches unless it was for shopping, but with determination, the more she looked, the more things came to light.
In the meantime, she had become so disheveled, resembling a beggar.
She filled her meals with instant noodles and convenience store foods, and for days, she didn’t wash, leaving her hair and face greasy.
On top of that, unable to sleep properly and constantly waking up, her dark circles intensified in just a few days.
In a semi-dazed state, while searching aimlessly online, a message from an unknown number arrived on Se-ah’s phone.
Initially thinking it was a spam message, she was about to delete it but opened it when she saw the name.
[Without the invitation, attendance at Vice President Cha Minwoo’s engagement ceremony is not possible. Please download the attached image in this message and bring it along. Each invitation allows entry for two people. I’ll send two just in case. Please confirm and delete the message.]Upon opening the attached images, there were online invitation cards for Cha Minwoo’s engagement ceremony, each with a QR code as if it were a significant event.
Surprised, Se-ah immediately called the number that sent the message but only heard the recorded message, “The phone is turned off.”
“Who on earth sent me this information? Eun Jiyeon?”
It couldn’t be Jiyeon. If it were her, she would have mentioned it when they met.
And she would never help her.
With unanswered questions swirling in her mind, she soon shook her head and stopped dwelling on increasing thoughts.
What if it were Jiyeon or what if it wasn’t? And who else could it be?
If the person knew about her and Minwoo’s relationship, they could help.
She gazed at the bright and happy photos of Minwoo and his new fiancée inside the engagement invitation.
When Jiyeon still lived with Minwoo…, it looked similar to the wedding photos she had seen in that house.
The two most beautiful and wonderful people in the world seemed to be embedded in the photos like movie protagonists.
Looking at the photo, anger resurfaced.
“I should congratulate you too, Minwoo. Since you’re starting a new, happy journey, I, the mother of your child, should be there. Don’t you think so?”
Se-ah, venting her anger with clenched teeth, searched the internet again.
How much time passed?
Forgetting even to go to the bathroom, she spent her time sitting in front of the computer, then she muttered softly.
Finally finding what she wanted, she called the contact number written in the online material.
Looking at the just-sent phone message, Kim Jiwon smiled.
Seeing that the indicator next to the sent message disappeared, it was clear that the other person had read it right away.
“I hope you liked my gift, Ms. Jung Se-ah. I noticed your passion when I saw you last time, and I quite liked you as Minwoo’s match. It’s unfortunate it turned out like this. So, I thought I should give you a gift at least.”
Muttering to herself, Ji-won turned off the power on her phone and then placed it inside a large cup that had contained hot coffee.
“Since you’re making an effort, do it well. My expectations are quite high, so I hope you live up to them.”
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
