The Countess Harrington was worried that she, who had grown up among commoners in a rural area without the concept of territory, might be cheated because she couldn’t adapt to the cost of living in the capital. Instead, whenever Carina needed something, the Countess followed her around, choosing and paying for it herself because she ‘had a dream of shopping with her daughter’.
There had been no complaints when she had received gifts of dresses, hats, parasols, perfumes, and even small pieces of jewelry. However, Carina was not in a good mood having to wait for Lona, who she didn’t even know would show up at this place, because she didn’t have the small amount of money to maintain her dignity.
“I thought a happy future was waiting for me.”
That’s right. Carina was not happy at the moment.
‘Soon you’ll live a new life. A strong destiny is waiting for you. You’ll have a very fateful and passionate love. The man is tall and has black hair. His eyes are… cough, cough.’
She thought she had met the partner led by the strong fate while living a new life.
But destiny had betrayed her.
‘Saviel.’
When she thought of him, Carina clenched her teeth. She couldn’t believe that she had been so deceived by a few sweet whispers.
In the Empire, the marriages of nobles were divided into arranged marriages and love marriages. Usually, noble women with wide connections and admired for their virtue would come forward as matchmakers. It was about making a relationship that could be helpful and supportive to each other through marriage, taking into account the unspeakable circumstances of both families.
Love marriage is, as the word suggests, where they agree to marry after mutual agreement and ask both families for permission. As the intention of the marriage partner is already firm, it often leads to a good outcome unless there is a significant reason to object.
The problem was that a woman’s virtue was highly valued in arranged marriages. In a love marriage, it ends when the parties understand and cover for each other when they are burning with passion. But in an arranged marriage, if the bride is not pure on the first night, it could be grounds for divorce.
Carina couldn’t believe that she, a few weeks ago, had made such a reckless and foolish choice. She felt like going mad thinking of the Count and Countess Harrington, who were expecting many marriage proposals from good families now that a beautiful daughter had been born.
‘Your destiny is at a crossroads. There are two men who can have a big impact on your life. Both are noble. If you feel something is not going your way, always look around. Because you can have everything you want.’
There was one thing Carina wanted to ask Lona.
Looking back, she had been at a crossroads while she was captivated by the crown prince. And now, she was filled with regret and lingering feelings.
So who was the ‘second man’ that was supposed to be her fate?
She said that if she looked around, she could have everything she wanted.
But right now, Carina could only see a bleak future. She was furious thinking of Saviel, and she didn’t know where to meet a good match, so she wanted to meet Lona again to get a hint.
“Ha ha ha ha!”
“If you put it that way….”
Watching these loud people, Carina slightly furrowed her brows.
‘Noisy.’
Café Cardinal was indeed a lowgrade establishment.
The tea was substandard, let alone the taste, and the main customers who used the café were mostly commoners or poor nobles.
The shop was dirty and grubby. If the seats for customers were this grimy and dirty, she didn’t need to see the kitchen hidden behind those curtains to know how unclean it was.
The annoyance was creeping up on her just thinking about coming back here tomorrow if she couldn’t meet Lona today.
Carina was originally a bold and free spirit who would venture into the mountains to pick wild fruits she could eat, and she would comfortably sit in place even if there were rats or spiders, kicking them away with her foot. However, her extreme luxury and shocking romantic experience completely changed her.
When she first came to the capital, she certainly felt the structured life was stifling for a while, and if she had encountered such a bustling and lively cafe filled with people’s energy, she would have been happy to rest her legs and enjoy a cup of tea.
Now, the big problem with Carina was that she was unaware of how worldly her face had become. Unaware that her changes would alter the flow of destiny, she was being swept somewhere.
That’s when it happened.
“Hey, miss.”
Three unfamiliar men approached her, messing with her.
“We’ve been watching you. Did you come alone?”
“My friend will come.”
“A friend? You don’t seem to have any friends.”
Carina flared up. Feeling offended, Carina lashed out at them.
“What are you guys? Can’t you just get lost?”
“What? You? How dare you speak so casually having seen us just once?”
“Do you guys know who I am? Just pass by quietly.”
At Carina’s sharp words, the men’s eyes changed drastically.
“We were trying to be friendly because you’re beautiful.”
“Come here.”
Carina, who was sitting on the terrace in the open air to see Lona coming, was half dragged by the hands of the helpless and disgusting men.
“Will you not let go?”
“The dispute is what you started!”
“Help, help me!”
However, the customers who had inadvertently been listening to Carina consistently disparage the level of the cafe, turned a blind eye to her. Carina was trembling in fear.
“Remove your hand.”
“You are, what…….”
The men who turned around opened their eyes wide.
Carina’s eyes also widened.
It was the first time she saw such a cool man.
He was very tall and had an excellent physique. Under his black hair were red eyes, he looked like the legendary warrior Oder.
“Isn’t it rude to a lady?”
At his words, the men flared up.
“This woman started the dispute first!”
“Yes. We just wanted to have a cup of tea together.”
“I see.”
The man said.
“Still, it is gentlemanly to back off when she says she doesn’t like it.”
He had dignity, so each of his words was intimidating. The thugs who were holding Carina’s arm let go and stepped back hesitantly.
“We’ll let it pass this time.”
“Unlucky woman.”
Carina cursed them internally as cowards.
“Are you hurt anywhere?”
“No.”
The moment she raised her head and made eye contact with that man.
Thump.
Carina’s heart moved.
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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