Lunch had been mentioned, so naturally, one would assume they were heading to a restaurant. Surprisingly, Callis led the way to the northern greenhouse garden.
The very place where she and Callis had pretended to be lovebirds in the past.
The greenhouse garden was still beautiful, and for a moment, Irene could forget her worries and fears about having lunch with Callis.
“Sit.”
That moment was short-lived. Irene’s face hardened at the deep voice that came from behind her. She slowly turned around, her hands clenched together.
Callis had already positioned himself in front of a table set up in one corner of the greenhouse garden.
The table was perfectly arranged with sandwiches and fruit juices for lunch.
After glancing at the food laid out on the table, Callis quietly gestured for Jessie to come closer.
When Jessie approached and nodded politely, Callis gave an order.
Obeying the order, Jessie swiftly left, and Zerdin filled his place.
“What’s going on?”
Callis sat down without saying a word.
Zerdin shrugged, not expecting an answer, and gestured to Irene, who stood there like a statue.
“Don’t just stand there. Come and sit.”
Although the prince, whom she would have hardly dared to make eye contact with in the past, was pulling out a chair for her, Irene remained immobile.
The mere thought of moving because Callis was intimidating had not even crossed her mind.
“Sit.”
Hearing Callis’s voice made her body freeze, but oddly, it was that very voice that released her.
Irene quickly moved to the chair and sat, placing the book she had brought on her lap.
After Zerdin took his seat, Jessie returned and placed a nearly empty, watery soup in front of Irene.
Seeing this, Zerdin asked her, puzzled.
“Are you sick?”
Irene replied in a small voice.
“I’m just feeling a bit queasy.”
“Oh, I’m sorry. I shouldn’t have insisted on eating lunch together.”
The person who had suggested lunch was Callis, but for some reason, Zerdin was the one apologizing.
“Do you want to leave now?”
Could she? Irene hesitated and glanced at Callis. He was undoubtedly aware of her gaze but remained silent, sipping water.
“I’m fine.”
Hearing her answer, said in a somewhat defeated voice, Zerdin clicked his tongue and looked at Callis.
“Smile a bit, Master. The lady can’t express herself properly because she’s afraid of you.”
Feeling accused, Callis furrowed his brows.
“No, that’s not it!”
Panicking that Zerdin might further irritate Callis, Irene hastily denied it.
“It’s not like that. I am, I am…”
The Duke is not scary.
She wanted to say that but couldn’t. It was an utter lie.
The fear that had been submerged in her luxurious life resurfaced with the death of the priest, making her unable to lie.
“…”
Unable to say anything, Irene closed her mouth.
Zerdin, who had been looking at her sympathetically, suddenly noticed the book neatly placed on her lap.
“What’s that?”
Startled, Irene clutched the book as if to hide it.
“It’s just… a book. I borrowed it to read before bed.”
“Is that so?”
Zerdin had seemed curious, and she’d worried he might press her, but fortunately, he moved on.
What a relief. While Irene felt relieved, she also found her own relief strange.
It’s not like Callis forbade me from learning magic, so why am I being so fearful?
Lost in her thoughts, toying with the book, an indifferent voice came from above her.
“Eat.”
Although it sounded like a suggestion, to Irene’s ears, it was a command or something more compelling.
For instance, something like a threat saying what would happen to me if I didn’t eat.
So Irene almost force-fed herself the soup. Fortunately, there were no chunks, and since she was hungry, it went down easily.
When Irene emptied the soup bowl, Zerden softly whistled.
“You said you weren’t feeling well, but you ate it all. You must’ve been really hungry.”
She was indeed very hungry. She’d only had a bowl of consommé since morning. What she’d just eaten wasn’t satisfying enough.
“It’s fine.”
But she didn’t want to eat any more. She was sure that if she ate more in this situation, she’d feel as overloaded as she did yesterday. She preferred to avoid the same trouble.
“Come on, it’s obvious to anyone that you were gobbling down food because you were hungry.”
Assuming Irene was pretending just like other noble ladies, Zerden placed a sandwich on Irene’s plate.
“You’ll still be hungry if you only have soup, so eat a sandwich as well.”
“….”
Irene looked down at the sandwich, which was generously filled with fresh vegetables and red ham.
Although she didn’t want to eat just a moment ago, now that she saw it, her mouth watered. Her stomach, which had only had watery soup all day, grumbled.
When Irene couldn’t take her eyes off the sandwich, Zerden chuckled mischievously.
“Don’t just look, eat up. The chef here would also want you to enjoy it.”
With the prince insisting so much, it wouldn’t be rude to eat at least one.
It was also a courtesy to the chef who had worked hard on the meal.
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.”
