Having shamelessly intercepted a gift intended for someone else and failed to deliver it properly.
Biyeong didn’t bother hiding his bewildered expression.
As if anticipating Biyeong’s reaction, Hwan showed a composed attitude.
“Feel free to laugh.”
Hwan poured a drink into his mouth. The bitter taste left an impression.
“What have you been up to since then? I took the hairpin, so you probably couldn’t give the gift.”
“I got another hair accessory and presented it as a gift.”
“Did she like it?”
In response to Hwan’s question, Biyeong recalled the moment he gifted the hair accessory.
The vivid image of Yeonwoo’s delighted expression, resembling a surprised rabbit, brought an involuntary smile to his lips.
“It suited her very well.”
As if a white lotus flower, reminiscent of Yeonwoo, had bloomed on her head, exquisite and lovely.
Any beautiful flower in the world wouldn’t match Yeonwoo’s beauty.
“And it fit her perfectly.”
“As long as it didn’t get tangled, that’s fortunate.”
Looking at Biyeong’s loosened expression, it seemed that things had worked out well for him, unlike Hwan.
However, not long after, the complexion darkened, indicating that things might not be that simple.
“I’m not much different.”
“Did she get angry?”
“No, it’s not that.”
“Then what is it?”
If she happily received the gift, why weren’t things working out? Perplexed by Hwan’s reaction, this time Biyeong poured a drink into his mouth.
The hot liquid seemed to burn through the esophagus, reaching the heart.
“I, too, was politely rejected, despite receiving a pleasant gift.”
After Biyeong put down the empty glass, Hwan, as if offering comfort, poured more drink into his glass.
Perhaps they shared a common interest. Despite only two meetings, Hwan felt a strange sense of camaraderie with Biyeong.
He sensed that this person might understand and empathize if he opened up his heart.
“Haha! Neither of us is in a good situation.”
They were both individuals who competed to win the hearts of women. However, in the end, there were no winners, only losers.
In a situation where there were no winners and only losers, the only thing they could do was pour more drinks into the empty glasses, soothing their empty hearts.
Gazing at the empty glasses, as empty as his heart, Hwan let out a hollow laugh.
“I’ve experienced everything I wanted in life. However, no matter how hard I tried, I couldn’t possess someone’s heart.”
Hwan had been making various efforts since childhood to win Heegyeong’s heart.
It wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that he had lived to gain her recognition.
However, no matter how hard he struggled and made efforts, he couldn’t win Heegyeong’s heart.
As Hwan tried to pour a drink into his glass with a bitter feeling, Biyeong blocked him and poured the drink instead.
Looking at the stream of alcohol flowing into his glass, Hwan uttered a bitter voice.
“…I didn’t need recognition from others. Only that person was important to me. If only that person could understand me, it would be enough.”
“…….”
“Why is obtaining someone’s heart so challenging?”
Biyeong filled Hwan’s glass with alcohol and calmly placed the bottle down.
Although his outward appearance was as composed as usual, the words coming from Hwan sounded as if it were his own story, making a noisy turmoil in his heart.
Only Yeonwoo looking at him. That was all Biyeong wished for.
He tried to win Yeonwoo’s heart, but Yeonwoo chose someone else.
Trying to gain her heart, all Biyeong got was a cold heart.
Now, thinking about it, there was no change even after considering it.
The inside of Biyeong’s head was filled with thoughts of Yeonwoo like a full glass of alcohol.
Where did this feeling go wrong? What should he have done to make Yeonwoo choose him?
With thoughts piling up on top of each other, Biyeong’s silence prolonged, and then Hwan lifted his glass.
“I guess I talked to myself for a long time. Shall we toast to our situation?”
“Sure.”
As Biyeong raised his glass, the surface of the alcohol in the glass shimmered.
Today, just like this, Biyeong would pour all his numerous worries into the glass and let them be blown away.
Today, just like this, he would try to forget the image of Yeonwoo in his mind.
The sound of two glasses clinking together was buried in the light snowfall outside.
In the early dawn, feeling the warmth against his back, Yeonwoo woke up.
Probably tired from crying and falling asleep, his whole body felt languid, and there was a sense of swelling in his eyes.
Rubbing his eyes to chase away the remaining sleep, he turned his head, and he saw Gwon, who had fallen asleep after comforting him throughout the night.
The comfortable bed made it seem like it had been a long time since he had fallen into a deep sleep.
It was the first time they had this time together since their sortie, and he felt sorry for using this precious time just for crying.
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.”
