I Didn't Really Want to Do Farming! (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 26
The carrots Stella had covered with soil numbered fewer than ten. Earth sprites, swift of hand, had begun gathering one by one to help, and before she knew it, they’d swarmed in a noisy crowd and finished the task in an instant.
By the time Mila approached, Stella had already washed her hands clean with water gathered by Esta.
“Princess, what are you doing there?”
For some reason, Mila felt as though she’d asked Princess Stella the same question many times before.
“I was just looking at the carrots.”
Stella gave a vague answer, knowing full well Mila would surely disapprove if she learned Stella had touched the soil herself. There would come a time when she’d tell Mila the truth—but not now.
“They’ve grown quite a bit already, haven’t they?”
The last time Mila had seen them, only spindly sprouts had poked above the ground. In just a few days, the carrots had grown astonishingly.
Though Mila had neither interest in nor knowledge of gardening, she could tell this wasn’t normal.
“Yeah. Carrots are supposed to grow fast.”
Mila nodded at Stella’s words, even letting out a small “Hmm” of wonder, as if hearing this fact for the first time.
Stella couldn’t have been more relieved that there was something Mila didn’t know.
She’d told Mila the seeds came from her homeland. Fortunately, Mila hadn’t pressed for details.
“We’ll be able to eat them soon. Let’s ask Rian to make carrot pie.”
Rian was the cook at Verdura Castle. She also doubled as a maid, and was so diligent she’d flash from east to west in the blink of an eye. There was nothing Rian couldn’t do—cleaning, sewing, cooking, you name it.
“Yes. I’ll inform her right away.”
Milla replied in a calm voice.
[This is the timeline separator]“Did something pleasant happen, Your Majesty?”
The Emperor’s lips curved into a smile. Usually, his mouth stayed rigidly straight, as if pulled taut by invisible strings, or else frowned—but today was different.
Seeing the Emperor in good spirits, Harmann felt as light as if walking on clouds.
“I slept soundly for the first time in a while.”
Kai’s skin even gleamed with a healthy sheen as he answered.
“Your complexion looks remarkably better. Rest truly is the best medicine.”
Harmann beamed.
With his improved condition, Kai’s work efficiency rose as well. He finished his tasks faster than usual and stood up from his desk.
“Shall I prepare lunch, then?”
Harmann asked eagerly. The Emperor, who normally skipped lunch or made do with a crust of bread while working, had actually left his desk right on schedule for lunch today—a perfect chance to serve him a proper meal.
“Yes.”
“Yes, understood. Is there anything special you’d like to…”
Harmann twitched as if ready to bolt out the door immediately.
Kai’s unusual behavior made even the guards standing nearby exchange glances filled with both confusion and relief.
They knew the Emperor had ironclad stamina, but they’d secretly worried seeing him skip meals so often.
“Carrots.”
“Pardon?”
Harmann thought he’d misheard. Carrots? Out of nowhere?
“Tell the kitchen to bring me anything made with carrots.”
“W-w-wholly with carrots?”
He hadn’t misheard. Though it struck him as odd—the Emperor suddenly craving carrots like a rabbit—Harmann dared not ask further. He feared pressing the matter might sour the Emperor’s mood and lead him to refuse food again.
“Yes, I’ll instruct the head chef at once.”
Harmann replied calmly and signaled to the servant standing beside him. The servant bowed quickly and backed out of the office. The moment the door closed, his footsteps faded rapidly into the distance.
Soon after, the Emperor’s dining table was laden with every imaginable carrot dish.
Carrot soup, carrot raita, grilled beef with carrots, carrot juice, carrot salad—the entire table glowed crimson.
Since the Emperor had never once requested a specific dish before, the moment the servant relayed the lunch order, the royal head chef nearly lost his mind.
He selected the freshest carrots from the pantry, prepped them meticulously, and berated his subordinates as fiercely as if stir-frying carrots himself.
It was his duty to ensure the Emperor enjoyed his meal to the fullest. He discarded all the dishes originally prepared.
Neither the impossibly short timeframe nor the abrupt menu change could serve as excuses. The kitchen became sheer hell until dozens of carrot-based dishes were completed.
After the storm passed, the kitchen lay strewn with scattered utensils, shell-shocked cooks, and carrot scraps—like the aftermath of battle.
“Your Majesty, here are the carrot dishes you requested. The royal head chef prepared them with utmost care for you.”
At Harmann’s explanation, Kai glanced over the array of dishes set on the table.
True to Harmann’s words, the table overflowed with carrot creations. Recalling yesterday’s sweet, crisp bite of raw carrot, Kai first took a spoonful of soup.
Harmann watched Kai eat with grandfatherly fondness—never before had the Emperor shown such eagerness at mealtimes.
But the Emperor’s gentle smile vanished the instant the soup touched his lips; his thick brows furrowed sharply.
The head chef, who’d just delivered the dishes, froze in alarm, breath caught in his throat. Was it too hot? Did the soup taste off? Had sugar been mistaken for salt? Or worse—had someone poisoned it?
Though only a split second had passed since the soup entered his mouth, the chef’s mind flooded with every possible disaster.
While the chef stood there, face as pale as a boiled carrot, the Emperor sampled dish after dish. Despite the variety, he never took a second bite of any. The chef squeezed his eyes shut.
This is the end.
Bracing his trembling legs, the chef prayed desperately to leave the palace in one piece—only then could he still feed his family.
As the Emperor meticulously tasted each dish, the chef’s face grew yellower by the second. Harmann, who knew better than anyone the chef’s dedication and effort, couldn’t hide his sorrow.
“Why doesn’t it taste right?”
After sampling a bit of everything, the Emperor spoke with a stiff, disappointed expression.
*Hic.*
The chef started hiccupping. Harmann quietly shifted to stand in front of him.
“Is there a particular carrot dish you’re craving, Your Majesty?”
Harmann asked carefully, shielding the hiccupping chef behind him. Instead of answering, Kai tilted his head slightly, then turned toward where the chef stood.
Though Harmann tried to block him, the broad-shouldered chef remained plainly visible. Meeting the Emperor’s icy gaze over Harmann’s graying head, the chef’s breath hitched sharply.
“Bring me a raw carrot.”
“…Pardon?”
“Bring the carrots used to make these dishes.”
The chef stammered, unable to grasp the Emperor’s intent. In over twenty years as head chef, he’d never heard such a request.
It was a mercy the Emperor hadn’t ordered him dismissed or his hands severed—but to ask for raw carrots?
Frustrated by the chef’s stunned silence, Harmann sent a servant to the kitchen.
The servant dashed off and soon returned with the carrots used in the dishes, placed on a silver platter with a lid.
Kai’s eyes sparkled with anticipation—but the moment the lid lifted, the faint smile lingering on his face vanished like a snuffed candle.
The chef’s legs gave way, and he sank slowly to the floor, only barely kept upright by Harmann’s support. Tears already soaked his cheeks. His plump, sorrowful lips trembled, creasing his chin like walnut wrinkles.
The instant the silver lid lifted, Kai realized these weren’t the carrots he’d been waiting for.
The luminous orange body, the crisp freshness flooding his mouth with each bite, the sweet juiciness and rich carrot aroma bursting between his teeth—just imagining it made his mouth water.
But what awaited him now was merely a carrot.
Just an ordinary carrot.
“Sigh…”
The Emperor rose from his seat with a deep sigh and walked out of the dining room without another word. Harmann’s regretful voice trailed after Kai’s heavily disappointed steps.
“Your Majesty!”
Kai stopped and turned, his hollow eyes fixed on Harmann. Alarmed by the Emperor’s desolate expression—as if he’d lost the world itself—Harmann still couldn’t let the chef go unpunished.
The man had guarded the imperial kitchen since the previous Emperor’s reign.
“Please, Your Majesty, spare Head Chef Leo!”
Harmann dropped to his knees, pleading.
“Leo?”
Kai’s gaze shifted to the sobbing chef. Seeing the man standing with eyes tightly shut, tears streaming down his face, Kai’s eyes narrowed as if crumpling paper.
“The head chef has devoted his life to serving you, Your Majesty. Couldn’t you grant him just one more chance?”
“What are you talking about? Who said anything about punishing Leo?”
Leo was special to Kai too—he’d been the one preparing meals for him since childhood.
At the Emperor’s words, both Harmann and Leo stopped sobbing and stared at him blankly.
After watching them for a long moment with a puzzled expression, Kai tilted his head again and walked out of the dining room.
“What even are these carrots?”
He was about to lose his mind.
When male lead is the homewrecker
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
I’ve read the novel below twice already. Girls, I’m highly recommending it to you!
The female lead? Not a good person.
The second male lead? Not a good person.
The male lead? Willingly plays the third party, breaking up the female and second male lead’s relationship despite all the warnings from his friends—so yeah, he’s definitely not a good person either.
Basically, nobody in this novel is simple-minded or without scheming.
The female lead starts off as the male lead’s secretary, but don’t worry—later on, she takes over the company while the male lead steps back to support her. He won’t steal her spotlight, overshadow her, or dull her shine.
I love novels where men are out here snatching wigs, tearing each other down, and going to war just to win the female lead’s affection. And this is exactly that kind of novel. Most of Hai Dai Ran’s works have this dynamic. You’ll see the male characters’ emotions being pushed to the absolute extreme.
There’s even a scene where the second male lead exposes the male lead online for being a homewrecker. The brotherhood immediately gangs up on him, dragging him through the mud. I find it compelling —it completely flips reality on its head, where usually, women are the ones fighting over a man and getting torn apart by the sisterhood.
For me, female leads in the novels I read should only struggle in their careers, not in love. But if the brainless romantics in the story are all men? I have zero complaints.
I’ve pretty much read all of Hai Dai Ran’s novels and even translated all of them—her works are just my thing. I’ll slowly upload everything here. One day, when my website is official, I hope I can invite her to join as one of the star authors.
Here’s the story synopsis:
One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.
Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead
Intro 1:
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
With blood trickling from his clenched fist, Rong Xiu gazed at the woman before him, his eyes clouded with anguish. Hidden in the wardrobe, he had witnessed Fan Xia – the woman he desperately loved – in an intimate embrace with her fiancé. Yet his heart still yearned for her, defying all reason.
Fan Xia, the elegant and composed assistant, carried something mysterious in her eyes whenever she looked at her fiancé, Wen Lan Sheng. Strange occurrences began to surface – secret meetings with the young Gu Jin Yi, an unexplained withdrawal of 5,000 yuan… Then suddenly, her fiancé’s sister, Wen Jing, violently attacked her.
In this matriarchal society, Rong Xiu had risen to become the chairman of a powerful healthcare conglomerate, breaking through gender prejudices. But for the first time, he willingly stepped into the shadows as the other man, disregarding his friends’ warnings to become her secret lover.
Because he had discovered the truth – Fan Xia wasn’t the pure angel everyone believed her to be. And perhaps, he was the only one capable of helping her execute her mysterious plan…
Intro 2:
Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.
He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.
Watched her go public with her boyfriend.
Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.
Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.
The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.
Fan Xia, how can I have you!
【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】
1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy
2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition
_____
Please help me, I want to bring you the best possible things.
If you find any chapter or novel with poor translation and editing quality, let me know by commenting directly under that novel or chapter. I will retranslate it as soon as possible.
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