10.
The Duchess jabbed Rosetta’s side with her elbow. A sharp glare through her fan was an added bonus. Under that pressure, Rosetta awkwardly coughed a couple of times.
“Cough, hack! Cough-hack!”
“……Is that so.”
“Even if you’re busy, surely you can spare time for a cup of tea with our Lea?”
“It’s already quite late. That would be difficult.”
Cardier cut her off firmly, leaving no room for negotiation. The Duchess snapped her fan open and fluttered her eyes coquettishly.
“Don’t say that. Women naturally take time to prepare, don’t we? Especially when meeting someone as distinguished as Lord Yingyun.”
“…….”
“A single cup of tea would leave the Duchess of Montrosa utterly satisfied.”
Their practiced gaze clashed with icy precision. The Duchess added smoothly,
“So satisfied, in fact, that she might not send engagement letters to other young ladies for quite some time.”
Cardier let out a sigh.
* * *
Under the Duchess’s insistence, the two were ushered reluctantly into the parlor and seated at the table.
Fresh refreshments were laid out in an instant, and a musician—appeared from nowhere—began playing violin and piano to fill the air.
This display was on an entirely different level from previous suitors’ visits… clearly revealing the Duchess’s desperate determination to secure this engagement.
Rosetta noticed the tea in the pot was boiling as fiercely as molten metal in a furnace. At this point, it was practically a veiled threat: Sit quietly and face each other until it cools, or risk scalding your throat.
Cardier remained indifferent, his downcast eyes not even lingering near Rosetta’s face.
This was in stark contrast to other suitors, who anxiously watched her expression and asked her endless questions. If apathy could take human form, it would look exactly like Cardier at this moment.
Under Anna’s silent pressure, Rosetta reluctantly opened her mouth.
“Um… uh, Cardier?”
“Address me as Lord Montrosa, the Viscount.”
The underlying meaning—that she hadn’t even learned basic etiquette—was unmistakable, even to someone unaccustomed to high society’s subtleties. ……Stay calm, stay calm. Rosetta widened her eyes and barely managed to twist her lips into something resembling a smile.
“Well… if you have any questions, feel free to ask.”
“None.”
“You really have absolutely nothing you’re curious about?”
“Yes.”
“…….”
For as long as Rosetta had known him, Cardier had always been the one chasing the relationship. It had been one-sided affection to that degree. She pushed away; he pushed forward.
Had he never harbored such feelings from the start, perhaps it wouldn’t hurt—but now, facing this utterly indifferent expression, devoid of even a trace of lingering attachment…
“……Is there something on my face?”
“No.”
For some reason, she had felt increasingly insulted since a moment ago, to the point of unbearable irritation.
This bastard… acting like he’s lived a thousand years of love, honestly. What an idiot, a fool, a moron, a spineless starfish—just because her appearance changed, he couldn’t even recognize her…
Though hurt, she was relieved he hadn’t recognized her. She absolutely refused to endure being betrayed twice. She had decided she would trust no one ever again. A life built firmly on her own, without relying on others, was the only true path to victory in any circumstance. Her one defeat had come from failing to live by that.
Nick, that damn traitor—surely even the Sea God couldn’t have predicted his betrayal. So how could she possibly know what Cardier, who once agonized over his passion for her, was thinking now?
Her throat felt parched. Carelessly, Rosetta grabbed the teacup in front of her and gulped it down in one go. Immediately, she spat the tea out into the air with a sharp “pfft.” A mist of droplets settled like fog over the tea table.
“Ahh, h-hot, h-hot, h-hot…!”
The culprit was the tea, boiled furiously by the kitchen maid. Her scalded palate and tender flesh screamed in pain. Her vision blurred, tears welled up, and snot streamed down her nose. “Uwaaah,” she groaned, hopping up and down right where she sat.
“W-water… water over there…!”
Desperately reaching for the water glass through her tear-blurred vision, she inevitably knocked over the silver tray.
Teacups and saucers crashed loudly to the floor. The three-hundred-year-old tea set, inherited by the Duchess from her grandmother, shattered into pieces upon the marble.
The Duchess’s icy glare flashed through her mind like a slideshow. Rosetta froze, instantly pale with terror. She was ruined. And dead.
“Damn it, I’m going to die from this stupid, idiotic mess…”
At that moment, their eyes met. Cardier’s gaze, which had been idly wandering over the table with utter indifference, was now fixed precisely on her. That penetrating stare made her heart drop like a stone.
“Lady Rosetta! Are you alright? Are you hurt?”
While she was still frozen, Anna rushed over dramatically and began inspecting her body.
“My goodness! Are you injured anywhere? Can you walk? Try holding onto my arm!”
Supported by Anna, Rosetta stepped a few paces away from the table. Cardier’s gaze followed her movements like a dog tracking its master—so naturally that Rosetta deliberately ignored it, answering with forced calm.
“I’m fine. It’s okay, it’s okay.”
Now Cardier stared at her without blinking. Damn it, where had that naive, transparent fool gone? Now he felt like facing some sinister beast. It was impossible to guess what was going on in that handsome head of his.
Misreading the tension, Anna suddenly shouted in a loud voice, switching her gaze between them.
“Oh no! Our Lady Rosetta! Her ankle is completely sprained! It’s swelling terribly! She won’t be able to take a single step like this!”
……Seriously? Rosetta sneered, glancing up and down at Anna. Her palate was burned, yet suddenly her perfectly fine ankle was broken.
“It would be wonderful if someone could escort her to her private chamber! I’m not strong enough! She must be in so much pain! What are we to do?”
While her words expressed concern for Rosetta, her eyes kept darting rapidly toward Cardier—her intentions were completely transparent. Rosetta instinctively wrinkled her nose. Yes, yes, I see your loyal yet suspicious intentions, but not even a dog would fall for such a clumsy trick…
“I’ll assist her.”
……Right. I forgot. This guy’s a dog. Rosetta clutched her throbbing forehead. Cardier, now standing close, politely took hold of her arm.
“Can you put weight on your foot?”
Anna poked her in the back. When Rosetta reluctantly nodded, Cardier gave a slight nod toward Anna.
“Lead the way to the lady’s private chamber.”
Rosetta exaggeratedly limped on her perfectly healthy leg as Cardier supported her out of the parlor.
Come to think of it, it was absurd. Leaving aside the countless servants in the mansion, being escorted by Cardier was strange enough… but even stranger was why he was playing along with such an obvious lie.
Whatever. After today, they’d likely never see each other again. He’d probably assumed she was dead, so seeing her alive and well removed any lingering sentiment. Rosetta stopped at the staircase leading to the third-floor corridor.
“This is far enough.”
“It’ll be difficult to climb alone.”
“I’ll do it myself, myself, myself.”
Shaking off Cardier’s support, Rosetta hesitated briefly at the foot of the stairs. Should she limp dramatically while climbing? Before she could take a single step, Cardier seized her wrist again.
“My lady.”
“Why do you keep doing this?”
Rosetta tried to signal Anna for help. But Anna had already vanished. Not just Anna— the entire corridor was eerily silent. Not a single maid or servant in sight. This was clearly a setup. A desperate struggle to hand their mistress over to this fool…
While Rosetta clicked her tongue in disbelief, Cardier tightened his grip on her wrist slightly—not enough to hurt, but firm enough to command her full attention.
Just as Rosetta snapped her eyes open in irritation, Cardier leaned in and whispered, his gaze sharp and probing,
“Call me… bastard, once more.”
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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