My Discarded Fiancé Returned (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 8
Serena, who had been looking through her notebook even in the reception room, absentmindedly brushed off the servant’s announcement that a guest had arrived.
“Yes.”
“Shall I bring them in now?”
“Mm.”
Because of that, Lucas immediately saw Serena upon entering the reception room—her hair tied high in a single knot, dressed plainly, frowning deeply as she read her notebook.
She even had a pen tucked behind her ear and moistened her finger to flip the pages.
“You’re still as rude as ever.”
At Lucas’s low voice, Serena’s movements stopped abruptly. She set down her notebook and slowly lifted her head to look at her guest.
His height, rivaling that of Grand Duke Farell—who was famed across the continent for his imposing stature—and his broad shoulders could not be hidden beneath his shabby hood.
“I see no reason to hear such words from a suspicious guest.”
Serena rose from her seat and glared at the hooded man. He was the first man she’d encountered since Grand Duke Farell who towered over her so noticeably.
“Especially not from someone who’s hiding something.”
Her blue eyes sharply met Lucas’s gaze. Lucas, for his part, was momentarily speechless—not out of anger, but from sheer emotion. The goal he’d pursued for six long years had finally been realized.
“You think I’m hiding something?”
That low voice had been echoing familiarly in her ears since he’d entered.
“Or perhaps it’s you who’s forgotten?”
From beneath the shadow of his hood, the man’s lips twisted into a smirk.
Though clearly a stranger, his distinctive low voice stirred something in her mind, instantly bringing back memories of her engagement ceremony six years prior.
“Surely not…?”
Despite her words of denial, Serena’s blue eyes trembled faintly.
Just then, the clouds parted, sunlight poured through the window, and every detail became vividly clear.
“No. That can’t… possibly be.”
The Crown Prince had forgotten Serena.
For the past six years, not a single letter had come from him, and he’d left their engagement unfulfilled even as she reached twenty-four—clearly signaling a broken betrothal.
“What, is it so unbelievable that I’ve grown taller than you?”
Lucas swiftly removed his hood, revealing a face exactly as Serena remembered. His sharp eyes, which had been keen even when he was much smaller than her, remained unchanged, as did his mischievously crooked smile.
Yet six years had brought change. His frame now dwarfed hers, his shoulders broad and strong, and above all, his Adam’s apple bobbed distinctly each time he spoke down to her, exuding an unmistakable aura of manhood.
“I still remember what you said to me at our engagement ceremony.”
His jet-black eyes looked down at Serena with unrestrained intensity.
“You clearly said you weren’t fond of men shorter than you, didn’t you? Well then, why not say it again now?”
“It was you who first claimed you disliked tall women, Your Highness. I merely replied.”
Admittedly, an angry Serena had indeed looked down dismissively at her childlike fiancé back then. But it had been he who started the quarrel in the first place.
“Hah. So we both remember that day well, it seems.”
“Yes. It was an unpleasant day for us both.”
Serena spoke coldly and stepped back once. Lucas then removed his shabby hood entirely and tossed it aside, making his broad shoulders and chest beneath his white shirt even more strikingly visible.
Six years might be a long time, but who could have imagined the Crown Prince—once so much smaller than his peers at fourteen—would return like this?
“And today?”
Lucas took a step forward, closing the distance between them once more.
“Is today another unpleasant day?”
It was obvious at a glance that he’d grown. Yet she couldn’t fathom why he’d gone so far as to infiltrate her home disguised as a wandering knight just to stand before her.
“You meet your fiancé again and offer no greeting?”
Lucas was clearly the rude one.
But Serena wasn’t foolish enough to flare up recklessly. After all, this fiancé—once merely a sharp-eyed brat—was the Crown Prince of the Empire. Moreover, she now had much she needed to protect.
“My apologies.”
Serena’s curt reply was followed by two more steps backward.
Then, lifting the hem of her dress, she performed a formal bow—as if their relationship were no different from that of strangers.
“Acting Duchess Serena Astel greets His Imperial Highness the Crown Prince.”
“Is that… all?”
Serena, with her head respectfully lowered, couldn’t see the flicker in Lucas’s eyes. She had never understood his feelings in the slightest.
“I beg your forgiveness for my earlier rudeness.”
After straightening from her bow, Serena looked directly at Lucas. Her sapphire-blue eyes were as beautiful as ever, yet this reunion was nothing like the countless nights he’d imagined.
“You haven’t forgotten our engagement, have you? Didn’t you wait for me?”
Lucas asked, unconsciously furrowing his thick brows. Six years had changed not only him—Serena’s height felt nearly the same as before, but his own eye level had shifted.
“I don’t recall ever making such a promise.”
Serena’s lips, though bare of any color, held a natural rosy hue.
Her platinum hair, loosely tied in a single braid, shimmered more brilliantly in the sunlight than in his memories.
“We did exchange vows of betrothal.”
Lucas spoke softly, his low voice steady as he gazed intently into Serena’s blue eyes.
“We swore we would marry and become husband and wife.”
It wasn’t just that he’d grown taller and stronger. The pampered fourteen-year-old boy of the Imperial Palace had journeyed through the world and returned a man.
Now, his presence radiated a distinctly masculine aura—somewhat rough, perhaps unrefined, but undeniably mature.
“Isn’t that vow weightier than any other promise?”
Lucas tilted his head slightly to meet Serena’s eyes, as if confirming the flustered look that had crept onto her previously icy expression.
“Where’s the spirit you showed at our engagement? Has your tongue gone mute?”
His dark eyes swept over Serena’s delicate features. His gaze burned so intensely that wherever it landed, her skin prickled with heat.
“You just bowed to me as Acting Duchess of Astel, didn’t you? That’s not why I came to see you.”
Each time his low voice resonated, it felt as if her breath caught in her throat. Though this was her familiar ducal residence, she felt cornered like prey with nowhere to flee.
“Serena.”
The name Lucas had whispered countless nights finally escaped his lips.
“I came to see my fiancée.”
She’d long believed their engagement had been nullified. Now, with the man himself appearing and calling her his fiancée, even Serena’s eyes widened in shock.
“Aren’t you happy?”
“No, not at all. By custom, our engagement is as good as void, isn’t it?”
Even flustered, Serena spoke with unwavering clarity, which made Lucas’s lips twist wryly.
“Your temper hasn’t changed one bit.”
Now Serena glared back at him. But circumstances were vastly different from their engagement ceremony.
As proof, Lucas reached out with his large hand and firmly grasped Serena’s wrist.
“Ah…!”
Had anyone ever seized her wrist so unilaterally? Moreover, Lucas’s hot hand pulled her toward him as if claiming her for his own. His strength was so great that Serena could barely keep her balance.
“This behavior… is most improper, Your Highness.”
Serena snapped, her eyes flashing upward. Yet no matter how hard she tried, she couldn’t wrench her wrist free from his grip.
“I’m no longer the fourteen-year-old boy you remember.”
For him to call himself a boy—Lucas had indeed matured.
“I’d say it’s entirely thanks to you, Serena.”
Seeing Lucas flash that mischievous smile, she knew better than to take his words at face value.
“I don’t recall doing anything for you.”
“Didn’t you say you disliked me?”
Lucas’s face drew closer.
“Because I was shorter than you.”
At the same moment, he tugged her wrist. Her already precarious balance gave way, and she stumbled into his arms.
“I disliked it too.”
The man whispering softly into Serena’s ear was no longer the fiancé from her memories.
“I loathed being shorter than you.”
His grip on her wrist remained firm. They stood so close she could hear his heart pounding fiercely.
“But not anymore.”
Each word Lucas spoke made his Adam’s apple move. Only now did Serena notice the calluses on the hand holding her wrist—and just how long those six years truly had been.
“Let go of me!”
Serena slapped the back of Lucas’s hand with her free one.
“Unless your training was meant solely to overpower me by force.”
Her defiant blue eyes still pierced through him as sharply as ever. Perhaps because of that, Lucas’s grip loosened for an instant, allowing Serena to finally wrench free and stand straight once more.
“Your Imperial Highness. There is no bond of marriage between us.”
Serena’s calm eyes met Lucas’s.
“Our engagement was unavoidable, and as it left only bitter memories for us both… it simply means we were never meant to be.”
Bitter memories? Lucas’s brows furrowed involuntarily.
“You claim there’s no bond of marriage between us?”
A bitter, almost resentful tone seeped from Lucas’s lips.
“Yes.”
He’d endured every humiliation and fury from that engagement ceremony, channeling it all into relentless training just for the chance to see Serena again.
“Why?”
He’d been born the Emperor’s only child and named Crown Prince immediately. If not for those blue eyes looking down at him that day, he’d never have chosen such a grueling path to grow stronger.
“Serena, you are my fiancée.”
Of course, not all his training over the past six years had been solely for Serena. But the reason he’d resolved to become stronger had undeniably been her.
“I…”
“Now I’m taller than you. Stronger, even. I’m no longer a fourteen-year-old boy, but your twenty-year-old fiancé.”
Overwhelmed by surging emotion, Lucas couldn’t hold back—he grabbed Serena’s shoulders and pulled her toward him.
“I…”
The scent of manhood and the sound of his pounding heart made Serena freeze for a moment.
“Not a single day passed without me thinking of you.”
His confession, rough and awkward, was unmistakably clear.
Male lead Asks for a Divorce Every Day
It’s not often you come across a plot like this in the female-dominant genre — make sure to check it out!
This is a novel I’m planning to reread as well.
The male lead is strong, skilled in martial arts, and not the usual fragile type you often see in matriarchal novels.
Meanwhile, the female lead is a scientist—rational and logical. Even when she falls for the male lead, she doesn’t let her emotions cloud her decisions.
If you push through the first few chapters, you’ll gradually find the story really intriguing.
It has a mix of mystery, detective elements, and romance.
The author’s writing style is like crafting a puzzle—except they deliberately leave out a few pieces, making it hard to predict what happens next, yet keeping you hooked.
In the end, everything will come together and be explained.
One-sentence summary: Wife, stop playing with beakers and look at me!
In a laboratory accident, research scientist Zhu Wansheng accidentally travels to a matriarchal world. The original owner of the body is an eighteen-year-old only daughter of a wealthy rouge merchant, already married with a handsome young man.
Zhu Wansheng grins: Nice! She always said she was heaven’s favorite granddaughter. After a life of toil in her previous life, she can enjoy blessings in this one.
However, her joy lasts no more than three seconds as bad news arrives: the original owner’s family is about to go bankrupt, and her husband wants a divorce.
Even worse, she’s stuck with a research system full of restrictions.
Zhu Wansheng: ? Is this the destiny of a research dog?
——
Faced with this mess, Zhu Wansheng pours herself a bowl of wine to drown her sorrows. In her drunken haze, her husband arrives.
His figure is imposing, holding a long sword, with a dignified air that captivates Zhu Wansheng.
Gu Yingqing, however, looks at the alcohol-reeking Zhu Wansheng with undisguised disgust and coldly asks, “Divorce or not?” The intoxicated Zhu Wansheng mumbles vaguely, “I think… it’s not… it’s not… impossible!”
——
The next day, after sobering up, Zhu Wansheng is full of energy, rolling up her sleeves ready to make a big move. As for yesterday? She has no memory of it.
Zhu Wansheng is ambitious; a research dog fears nothing!
Upgrading rouge, extracting fragrances, producing perfumes, researching lipsticks… all shall bow to the power of modern technology!
The original owner’s dying rouge shop is revitalized. Her mother is pleased and with a wave of her hand, passes on the family business to her. As she takes control and her experimental results gain popularity, it’s the pinnacle of her life…
——
But there are always those who can’t stand to see her doing well. Jealousy, scheming, assassination attempts – they want nothing less than her life.
The person who has always kept his distance from her suddenly holds her tightly in his arms, eyes full of concern.
She is unharmed, but he falls into a pool of blood…
Zhu Wansheng feels guilty, “I can grant you one wish.”
Gu Yingqing tentatively circles his arms around her, carefully resting his head in the crook of her neck, pleading softly, “I regret it. Can we not divorce?”
Zhu Wansheng: ? When did I agree to a divorce?
[Small Theater]
The newly developed rouge is beautifully packaged, and Zhu Wansheng is eager to try it.
Gu Yingqing suddenly appears: “My lady, may I apply it for you?”
Cool fingertips lightly brush her lips. His Adam’s apple bobs as he leans in for a light bite.
Zhu Wansheng: ?
Gu Yingqing: It smells so good, I wanted to taste it…
On a warm spring day, Zhu Wansheng tries a new perfume: “Spring Night.” Gu Yingqing corners her against a wall.
Warm breath lingers on her neck.
“My lady, from now on, may I test the fragrances for you?”
[Humorous female scientist vs scheming live-in son-in-law male lead]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
MANGA DISCUSSION
5 Comments
Chapter Comments (31)
I’m very happy. The engagement has already been automatically canceled.
Prince, you really are naive.Serena is very well prepared.
There is no need for the prince’s consent. hahahaaha (｡•̀ᴗ-)✧For 6 years, neither send a letter nor show any curiosity.
Serena won’t get married over this.
Inline Comments (14)
Could Lucas’s true aim really be Astel’s management secrets?
Dumb that’s just an excuse to speed time with you duh 🙄😒
That Lucas was the Crown Prince remained a secret within the duke’s household, a
I think it’s too late for you Serena 🤔😂😂 he took care of that
“Exactly. I was receiving a guest as acting Duke, not strolling as a young lady.
Disappointment? 🤔😏 What else was she expecting to? 😏😏😏
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agustus_orchid
Serena didn’t know the prince was coming. Should Serena hold a ceremony just because the prince is coming?
agustus_orchid
Do all couples who get married after taking the vow get married?
Prince still thinks like a child.
agustus_orchid
A formal bow is sufficient.
Do you want the prince to leap on top of Serena?
agustus_orchid
Prince is making excuses to hold Serena in his arms and keep her close.
agustus_orchid
Prince is a spiteful person. ¯\_ಠ_ಠ_/¯
Serena, good luck.