“Everyone loves me, but not everyone has gained everyone’s trust?”
“Yes.”
“Is it the same for you? Do you love me as the imperial citizens love me, but can’t give me perfect trust?”
“My words don’t mean that.”
“Then what do they mean?”
Ines knows Carson’s reactions well. When he starts to talk like this and lets out a sigh, no one can beat him.
“How can my true feelings reach your broad-mindedness?”
As she sweetly smiled, a deep smile spread across Carson’s face.
“Are you trying to appease me now?”
“Because you’re in a bad mood.”
“That’s right, exactly. But I don’t feel sincerity from you.”
Ines felt a bit unjust as she bit her lower lip, feeling a little unfair because she had never once told a lie in front of him.
Whenever that happened, he always pressed down on her lower lip and pulled it out. It was a habit that didn’t improve even if he did it every time, making her breathless.
But this time, he didn’t reach out to her.
“How can my sincerity reach you? I’ll follow whatever you tell me.”
“Filling in the shortcomings of my subordinates is also the duty of the emperor. You just need to be grateful for my generosity?”
“Wouldn’t it be so, Your Majesty?”
“Get rid of the wrinkles between your eyebrows and say it.”
At that moment, the sound of adult men cheering filled the garden and the inside of the office. Soon, a giant tree rose in the middle of the royal garden.
As the golden light flickered in the hole large enough to bury thirty people, Carson smiled brightly like the sun as the roots of the tree settled properly.
The towering tree was overwhelming enough to change the surrounding scenery in an instant. The sunlight filtering through the light and leaves of the tree made everything forgettable.
“Ines.”
When he called her name softly, Ines looked at him as if enchanted. Even in moments like this, the man shining alone under the abundant sunlight was so beautiful that it could blind the eyes.
With a grin, he created a perfect smile that extended to his eyes.
Feeling the danger in that smile, Ines leaned her body back as if hesitating.
“This tree holds a lot of meaning. This sacred tree not only solidifies the dignity of the royal family but also instills a daily sense of vigilance in anyone who enters the palace. So, you don’t have to worry about the trust of the imperial citizens.”
Ines nodded, meeting his gaze without fear. The mysterious and subtle look in her eyes was so compelling that it was impossible to look away without permission.
“And above all…”
Carson reached out and grabbed Ines’s chin.
“I’ll remind you of the promise.”
“A promise?”
After that, he pressed his chapped lips, worn out from running all the way here, with his thumb. Then, the moment from a few nights ago, when he touched her, vividly came to mind. The sensations that kept Ines awake also became clear.
“Do you remember what I said at the temple?”
“What… what did you say?”
As Carson squinted and smiled with a soft voice, Ines couldn’t help but feel captivated by him.
“I told you to stop and get along with me.”
“…What?”
“Whether it’s Landhill, Edmont, or now the Imperial Palace, that man who persistently pursues you, I’m talking about him.”
Gasping, Ines was so surprised that she took a step back from him. But Carson didn’t allow that distance.
“How… How did you know?”
“Is that important?”
“…”
“If you’re going to wear a blanket another man laid out in front of my palace, it shouldn’t be so dazzling and beautiful, attracting too much attention. Don’t you think so?”
Only then did Ines realize the cause of the chilly feeling she felt that day when walking with Marcus. But Carson didn’t dwell on that day as if Ines had simply forgotten about it.
“As promised, I found a tree that I can’t overcome even if I hit it ten times. So now, I’ll do anything I want.”
“Anything you want?”
With a foolish face, Ines asked the same question as that night.
“Yes, anything… What I’ve wanted, what I want at this moment, and what I’ll want from now on.”
The man who spoke in a calm voice like gentle water took a step closer. Suddenly, his scent surged into the air as if it were radiating.
Ines, who reluctantly raised her eyes, met his gaze again. Her pupils shook as if she could feel it herself.
But Ines couldn’t move as if caught in a trap.
Unable to hold her breath any longer, she exhaled, and her body involuntarily moved backward. As she took a step back, he followed again. There was enough space for people to call it a distance.
His large hand supported Ines’s back. Breaking the remaining space, he tightly embraced her. At the same time, hot lips sealed her lips.
With a gasp, as her breath was blocked, something hot intruded between the lips that involuntarily parted.
It wasn’t a gentle movement filled with respect and worship.
It was a struggle mixed with desire and impatience. Like newly emerged butterflies, the two awkwardly moved, breaking down everything they had built up and rebuilding each piece from the beginning.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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