As the time for the Salon de Madame approached, the ladies began preparing to impress the new host in the lounge, whether it be freshening up their looks or having their servants fetch jewels.
Just the name of the new host of the salon would have a significant impact on society for a while, and it was certain that a family that had cleared such a large sponsorship would also be rich.
‘I mustn’t look cheap, I have to stand out well.’
‘If we foster a good relationship, we can get a lot of help for our son’s debut.’
‘It would be nice to arrange a marriage with our daughter if they’re from a decent family.’
Underneath their fans, behind their extravagant makeup, the ladies each hurriedly schemed.
In a world where camaraderie with the strong equates to status, only when standing in the center can one enjoy a peaceful world.
That was indeed the social circle.
[Star Icon][Star Icon][Star Icon]Inside the duke’s carriage, now many times more luxurious since the birth of Evelia.
“I’ve decided to become a dignified princess. I’ve grown enough to go to the salon now!”
‘Then you should start by calming those jittery legs.’
Elysia thought, shifting her gaze to the legs that shook restlessly, not even touching the floor.
“From today, I’ll only eat a little jelly, I won’t play rough with the knights, and I will stop poking Enril’s tail.”
It wasn’t a bad thing to eat jelly, play pranks, or even occasionally show her teeth if she kept her promise. So, Elysia simply stroked her daughter’s head gently.
‘Anyway, it’s a resolution she won’t be able to keep.’
“Everyone will be surprised when we get home. They’ll be shocked when I come back all grown up.”
The salon. She felt like she had already become a grownup lady. Evelia grinned proudly and reached her hand into the jar of jelly next to her. As she habitually spread her small hand wide to scoop out a big handful, she hesitated.
‘Oh, a dignified young lady doesn’t scoop jelly indiscriminately.’
As Evelia placed the jelly jar on her lap and picked out the jellies one by one with her short fingers to eat, she asked,
“Who comes to the salon? Will Rellian be there too?”
“I’ve contacted the duchess, so she should attend.”
“What about the pesky Nepher?”
“Well, at least the duchess won’t bring him.”
“What about that bratty Seres?”
“My lady, the words ‘bratty kid’ don’t quite match with ‘dignified noble lady’.”
Evelia bit her lip. That’s definitely true. Just 30 seconds ago, she pledged to become a dignified noble lady.
She pinched her lips and pondered something. Evelia’s face gradually turned red. When she finally opened her mouth, she was almost snorting.
“I’m going to take a break from being a dignified noble lady for a moment. I haven’t forgotten! That brat tried to kill me! Watch out, I’ll definitely get back at him.”
Having heard of the relationship between the Duke of Artina and the Duke of Defont while growing up, Evelia easily knew who the mastermind of the terrifying experience from her childhood was.
Undine, summoned to clean her messy hands from eating jelly, wagged its tail refreshingly in response.
[‘Good job, our chick! Kick him right in the butt! Make them kneel before our chick!’]“Kick him in the butt! Make them kneel!”
“My lady, being dignified… Never mind.”
The dignity was buried in her language. Elysia, who was about to say something, gave up.
It wasn’t easy to correct the rough language of their daughter, who grew up receiving endless love from her father, brothers, and the knights.
‘Besides, who should she speak prettily to impress?’
A noble lady like the one from Artina, to some extent, her own way of speaking is not even a drawback.
Evelia, who was reminiscing about the past and puffing up her chest, eventually put the opening of the jelly jar to her mouth and began to pour the contents in.
“Never give up. For life…!”
She could vaguely guess that the bearshaped, multicolored jellyfilled grumbles were directed at Seres. Undine slowly swam around Evelia, echoing her grumbling.
“[Grumble, grumble, grumble Yes, yes. Everything our chick says is right.]”
“That’s right. We can’t leave it be.”
Elysia was also far from being gentle. It was an incident that left a deep scar on her daughter’s childhood. She could have lost her life.
Everyone from Arthina swore on the carriage home that day. Someday, they will not escape the wrath of extinction.
“There is not entirely no purpose in attending the salon, my child.”
If Evelia continues to avoid the salon as she does now, it may be difficult to compete with Seres, who later dominates the social circle based on the salon.
Even now, the duchess deliberately brings up the story of the salon at tea parties or balls. The Arthina family is more obsessed with it because they are being ostracized.
So, the main purpose of attending the salon today was to create a stepping stone for Evelia’s successful social debut, and the secondary purpose was that they were tired of seeing the Defonte duchess who was acting like the owner of the salon.
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.”
