Today, Chloe was somehow strange. Her uncooperative attitude was very apparent, and not a trace of consideration for Callis could be seen.
It was common when a couple attended a banquet for the husband to gently hold his wife’s hand as they entered the banquet hall.
Chloe, who valued manners, could never forget that, yet she walked briskly, leaving Callis behind.
Unfortunately, Chloe also had the invitation, so Callis could only enter after pointing her out to the guards. It was indeed an embarrassing situation.
Chloe’s petty pranks did not stop there.
Every time she greeted another family, she left Callis out. Even when he subtly stuck by Chloe’s side, she ignored him, treating him like he was invisible all the time.
Furthermore, Callis was completely left out even during the slow dance.
“Chloe, won’t you dance the next one with me?”
Callis, who couldn’t bear it any longer, approached her and asked.
Chloe, who had been sitting quietly, soon turned her head. Callis quickly reached out his hand, as if surprised by her gaze.
‘If I do this much, her heart will soften.’
Even Callis, who ruled over all, bent his pride to his enemy. And that too in front of everyone.
But what he held was not his wife’s hand.
When he came to his senses, he realized that he had grabbed a cold champagne glass instead.
“If you want to dance so much, dance with another woman.”
“…What?”
“Or call Helena now.”
At Chloe’s words, Callis’s face turned bright red. His hands and legs, unable to bear the shame, also shook.
But this was not his ducal house. If he yelled at her as he did at home, it would only bring disgrace.
Barely containing his anger, he led Chloe out to the terrace.
“Chloe. Why on earth are you doing this? Why are you acting so reckless lately?”
Chloe had shown several times that she didn’t want to go, but he kept nagging.
That was his bluntly thrown question.
“Are you in a position to say that, Your Highness?”
“What else could be my position? Helena is my……”
Chloe opened her mouth as if tired, cutting off Callis’s following words. She utterly ignored the rest of his sentence.
“Yes. She was your first love. So even after marriage, you insistently brought her along. Indeed, you are in such a great love.”
“What?”
Chloe’s mocking words made Callis ask in surprise.
Her behavior had been strange lately, but it was the first time she had shown such resentment towards him.
‘Why is she acting like this?’
If things had gone according to his plan, she would have submitted to him by recalling the guilt she had forgotten. As she had done for the past six months.
Upon returning to the banquet hall, she should have been busy taking care of Callis as usual. Introducing him to highranking nobles, telling him stories circulating among the people.
But she left Callis mercilessly, ignoring him and chatting with familiar nobles.
Originally, he was supposed to find a likeminded noble here and get an investment for his business.
At the very least, he should have learned about business, or have his ideas evaluated.
But the people Callis wanted were all by Chloe’s side. A woman thoroughly excluded in the ducal house was receiving attention that could overwhelm her here.
In reality, Callis was nothing. Left alone, he wandered the banquet hall in loneliness.
He found a group to welcome him, but the people in the group did not satisfy Callis.
A lower nobleman like him. A rural nobleman who had hardly attended by showering with extravagant gifts. A noble whose fame had fallen and was declining.
Surrounded by a miserable group, all he did was tell his heroic tales.
(This is a time separator.)
“…What kind of newspaper is this?”
Chloe couldn’t hide her astonishment the next morning when she received a newspaper from Jane.
“Secret Tryst of Duke Argen and His Wife”
The title was quite provocative. There were drawings of two people on the huge headline.
It seemed like the two were together on the terrace.
They were close together, perhaps in the process of raising their voices; if you didn’t know the situation, it looked like they were sharing an intimate moment of affection.
Finally, the two are beginning to love. The relationship they start by overcoming difficulties is cool……
He was asked to write an article, but he was writing a novel of his own accord.
A newspaper that had never been heard of; it was clearly a thirdrate newspaper.
Angry, she turned to the next page, but the next page was also plastered with stories about the two.
What a lack of things to write about, filling both pages 1 and 2 with the story of the Duke and Duchess.
Chloe was deeply worried about whether she should tip off the news as if she were anonymous.
‘But Helena’s rumors don’t seem to have leaked out yet.’
Seeing the romantic scenes of the two made into articles, it seemed that the fact that a new woman was living in the Duke of Argen’s house was not yet known to the world.
The fondness for her masters was great. It’s amazing that she’s holding back her instincts even though her mouth is itching.
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
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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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