I Became The Ex-Wife Of A Regretful Male Lead - Chapter 41
After the recent incident with Count Vietsa’s corruption, I studied a bit about the North and the Richter territory.
Not knowing when I might leave, I had decided to fulfill my duties as long as I held the position of duchess.
But when I actually faced the Count Vietsa incident, I felt I had been too indifferent.
I realized the need to learn more about the North.
There were more nobles living in the North than I had expected.
Of course, not as many as in the capital or other regions, but still quite a number.
Most of them were either managing part of the northern territory as proxies or sharing some of Dante’s work.
Well, it makes sense. With such a large area, it would be impossible for Richter to manage it alone.
Thinking of it as a company-like structure made it easier to understand.
Then my position would be something like the chairman’s wife.
It feels somewhat proud, but also uncomfortable…
As I studied, I suddenly remembered an episode related to northern nobles in the original story.
It wasn’t a major episode, more like a scene that flowed by.
…Ah. That’s it.
When Flora attended the imperial ball with Dante.
The nobles of the capital openly avoided Dante. Muttering the usual things about him being a monster and such.
Naturally, Flora received similar treatment.
Oblivious Dante didn’t even notice this, and left first thinking his presence would make Flora more uncomfortable.
In the end, Flora was left alone at the party, having to endure looks of contempt.
And then, the northern nobles appear briefly in passing.
It was a scene that starkly showed Flora’s current position.
A duchess ignored in the capital and properly resented in the North.
…Ah, I feel guilty.
Thinking of the depressed Flora in the original story, I felt my conscience being stabbed and sliced.
After all, my influence was a big part of why she received such treatment.
The previous duchess who never adapted and fled.
Because of this, the North became ridiculed as ‘a land even duchesses run away from’, and the northern nobles’ resentment and indignation became Flora’s burden to bear.
Thinking about the future where Flora would be attacked because of me, I felt I couldn’t just leave things as they were.
So what I planned was a ‘Tea Party for Northern Noble Ladies’ Exchange’.
By creating a plausible regular gathering, Flora would be able to easily form connections with northern nobles in the future.
Of course, there are concerns about whether it will be a positive relationship…
I had a countermeasure for this as well.
While I attend the gatherings, I would build a positive image among the northern nobles!
Then even if I divorce Dante later, they won’t think I ran away because I hated the North, but rather ‘Hmm. They must have divorced due to personality differences. The duchess didn’t dislike the North after all.’ and think positively.
If it’s not because I hated the North, the northern nobles won’t harbor any particular resentment towards Flora either.
Moreover, I can fulfill my resolution to do my duty while in the position of duchess.
It seemed like a perfect plan no matter how I looked at it.
However, one worry was the overprotectiveness that had recently intensified.
If I say I’m going to do something, everyone seems like they’ll jump in to stop me.
That’s why I first bribed Barhan to my side…
This turned out to be the right choice.
Barhan helped persuade Dante, who looked like he wanted to dissuade me out of concern.
In the end, it was Dante who surrendered.
He allowed the tea party on the conditions that I shouldn’t overdo it and leave all the party preparations entirely to Barhan.
I immediately sent out invitations to the nobles, and soon replies expressing their intention to attend arrived one after another.
And time flew by quickly until the day of the tea party.
[This is the timeline separator]The day of the tea party.
The noble ladies attending the tea party all had bewildered expressions.
“A tea party at the Richter Duke’s mansion. What could this be about?”
“That’s right. Isn’t this almost the first time the Richter family has sent out invitations directly?”
It couldn’t be helped.
The Richter family had been a closed-off family for generations.
Given the public gaze and rumors, it was understandable that they were reclusive, but for the nobles who had long put down roots in the North, there was some regret.
No matter what others said, to them, the Richter Duke’s family was no different from the representative nobility of the North.
It meant they were the masters of the North who had to be followed, whether they liked it or not.
As the saying goes, ‘crabs side with crabs’.
When they heard people elsewhere calling the Richter Duke a monster or whatnot, their blood would boil on his behalf.
‘Even though they all benefit greatly from the Richter Duke’s help.’
But what did it matter what they thought?
The Richter family didn’t seem to think of the northern nobles as anything special.
Unlike the northern nobles who took pride in the Richter Duke, the Richter family undoubtedly viewed the northern nobles similarly to other nobles.
Moreover, their dissatisfaction didn’t end there.
Usually, nobles living in the same territory had good solidarity.
High-ranking nobles would host gatherings and lead social events, providing opportunities for nobles to interact.
In the North, Richter should have been the one to take on that role.
But how could such a role be expected from Richter, who not only firmly locked their doors but had no interaction at all?
The more active the exchange, the greater the standing in social circles.
After all, social standing is built on connections.
Naturally, the social position of northern nobles had no choice but to be lower compared to other nobles.
When attending social events hosted by the imperial family or elsewhere, they were often dismissed like this.
They would seethe inside but couldn’t dare to rebut.
If they messed with those who stuck together, the nobles backing them wouldn’t stand idly by.
In contrast, the Richter Duke showed no interest at all even if northern nobles were slapped in the face elsewhere.
In short, the northern nobles had been ignored both inside and outside the North until now.
Naturally, resentment towards the Richter Duke was bound to develop.
And now, for that Richter to invite noble ladies under the pretext of ‘Northern Noble Exchange’…
“What on earth could this be about?”
Saying that tomorrow the sun might rise in the west, the noble ladies moved their steps.
The place they arrived at, guided by maids, was the spacious garden of the Richter Duke’s mansion.
Contrary to expectations that it would be dark and gloomy, the duke’s garden was elegantly and neatly arranged.
Perhaps thanks to the white tables and chairs prepared for the tea party, it even exuded a fresh atmosphere at a glance.
While everyone was surprised and admiring, someone made an appearance.
Golden curls neatly braided and verdant green eyes.
“Everyone has arrived without delay. Thank you all for responding to today’s invitation.”
The guests were momentarily lost at the fairy-like woman who greeted them cheerfully with a bright smile.
Regardless, the fairy-like woman smiled brightly and personally guided them to their seats.
“Come, come. Everyone this way please.”
Those who had been following her in a daze finally realized the woman’s identity and hurriedly bowed their heads.
“Thank you for inviting us, Madam.”
“It’s truly an honor.”
Serpina responded with a beaming smile.
Before long, other nobles arrived one after another.
When the time came, the gathering officially began.
Serpina was smiling on the outside, but she was quite perplexed.
‘Wow. They’re more tense than I thought.’
Being their first time in such a gathering, everyone’s unfamiliarity and wariness could be felt on the skin.
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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