Serena sat on the sofa in the reception room after a simple dinner. Anna brought tea and Peter entered for today’s report, but the atmosphere was noticeably different.
“Peter, you spoke with Sir Cedric today, didn’t you?”
“Yes.”
Originally, it was Peter who had tried to converse with Cedric at Serena’s request to gather information, but the conversation turned to tales from his knightly days, and his enthusiasm hadn’t cooled yet.
“Just stop standing there so stiffly. Sit down and have some tea.”
“No, thank you.”
Peter’s mind had completely reverted to his days as a knight. His resolute expression and posture made Serena feel slightly uneasy.
“Your Highness, Sir Cedric is an excellent knight.”
Usually cautious and reserved, Peter spoke with an elevated tone.
“Having achieved such knighthood at the young age of twenty… I couldn’t help but be moved and impressed.”
Peter was sent for information gathering.
“Ah, I’m truly envious of Sir Cedric’s youth. The glorious battlefields both of you experienced, and the extraordinary scenes only the truly brave can witness…”
But now, their informant was completely smitten with the subject of his inquiry.
“Being a knight, traveling the world alone with your lord to strengthen oneself is a blessing. I was also filled with passion remembering the times I assisted the Duke.”
This was the first time Serena had seen Peter so impassioned. It was surprising that even their meticulous butler harbored such passion.
“His Royal Highness suffered hardships and overcame all sorts of crises alongside Sir Cedric.”
Even Lucas was being praised now.
“Usually, knights who assist royalty or high nobles must stifle large dreams and passions. But I was able to experience it all with the young Duke.”
Peter was unstoppable.
“The Duke disregarded his own noble status and embarked on a journey with me to uphold the path and chivalry of a man.”
There was a mix of passion and nostalgia in his eyes.
“From Sir Cedric’s stories, His Royal Highness underwent many adventures and long journeys for six years. Not a sham pilgrimage like other nobles claim, but a genuine journey for a man!”
“I know that.”
Serena spoke drily.
“One doesn’t grow mature like he is now without effort.”
“You’re right, Your Highness! Especially considering how he didn’t spare his own body and put in immense effort for self-improvement.”
What Serena wanted to hear from Peter wasn’t this, but there was no stopping him.
Moreover, she was internally curious if Lucas truly went on a pilgrimage without considering his royal status.
“But, given his status, he couldn’t have been completely like others…”
“No, His Royal Highness disregarded Sir Cedric’s warnings and directly engaged in battles to protect his subjects, every single time.”
Phew, someone had to stop this one-sided praise.
“Peter. Peter!”
Serena had to clap her hands to finally cut him off.
“Yes?”
Peter looked at Serena, puzzled.
“I understand the part about adventures and chivalry. So, what’s the conclusion?”
“Yes, the conclusion is that both His Royal Highness and Sir Cedric are exceptional knights for their age…”
“Not that!”
Frustrated, Serena raised her voice. But it was Peter who had forgotten his original objective.
“Did you find out about the contents of the letters? Or, His Highness’s intentions or plans about resuming this engagement?”
What she had asked Peter to do was to establish a rapport with Cedric through their shared knighthood and then find out what Lucas was thinking and planning.
Because Lucas was suddenly mentioning a six-year-old engagement, they needed some information from his side.
“Ah…”
However, Peter had forgotten his task after forming a rapport on the subject of knighthood.
“Did you really spend the whole day talking about this?”
“But it was such a good story… Besides, they couldn’t have gotten any information out of him. After all, Sir Cedric is a knight known for his loyalty.”
Clearly, Peter was on Serena’s side, but his expression was full of pride. There wasn’t a trace of regret for not being able to gather information; they all seemed proud of themselves.
“So, I’m currently suffering because of an engagement that ended long ago, and you’re telling me all you did was harmonize with Sir Cedric?”
“Hmm… Yes.”
Peter coughed awkwardly.
“Your Grace, there is one new piece of information, isn’t there?”
“What’s new?”
“His Highness the Crown Prince didn’t just go on a pilgrimage in name only. He is truly the inspiration for all knights, the true youth of this empire.”
Now Peter was openly siding with Lucas. Although Serena frowned in bewilderment, he was too engrossed in the glory of his knighthood to notice.
“Regardless of status, there won’t be another splendid man like him. Especially one who underwent all that training just to stand proudly in front of Your Grace.”
Hmph, Serena scoffed openly.
“Peter, whose side are you on?”
“I am always on Your Grace’s side.”
“It doesn’t look that way. Do you wish to bring the Crown Prince to the guest house right now?”
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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