“A letter?”
“Yes, a letter has arrived for you, ma’am.”
The letter placed on her desk was unlike the ones she usually exchanged with her close friend.
Initially, this letter didn’t even come by anyone’s hand.
At first, she thought it was sent by Jane, but when the letters kept coming even after she had left the mansion, it must have been through other means.
“Understood. I will look into it; you may leave now.”
“Yes, please let me know if you need anything.”
The maid bowed politely and cautiously exited the room.
Had it been like before, she would have vanished as soon as her task was done, but now she had become incredibly docile.
Following the maid’s footsteps, Chloe burst into laughter. The letter casually placed on the table was simply ridiculous.
Upon opening the letter, a musty smell of paper filled the air, quite distant from the usual fragrances.
‘Right, there shouldn’t be any letters coming now.’
Whether she was secretly hoping for one, her heart was pricked by disappointment. Losing her only close friend couldn’t be easily described.
Perhaps because she knew the content would be different than expected, Chloe hesitated to read the letter and only touched its surface.
‘Did His Majesty know my identity from the start?’
Their first meeting began with a kind young man who insisted on returning her wallet. Whether that was a coincidence or a thoroughly planned act, she couldn’t tell.
If he wanted to assist Chloe in her divorce, inviting her to the palace like this would have sufficed. A much more clean and simple resolution.
‘…Wait, how did he know about my time on the battlefield?’
Three years ago, during the war with the empire, Chloe volunteered to nurse the soldiers; a fact even the royal family wasn’t aware of. How did the emperor, then an enemy, know?
Upon reflection, several things seemed odd. Her own innocence was almost suspicious.
After some commotion had settled and she felt somewhat safe, Chloe’s thoughts spiraled one after another.
If it continued like this, she would spend hours agonizing over her proliferating doubts.
‘Enough, I’ll ask later.’
Speculating now wouldn’t help her understand the emperor’s moves.
After the divorce process, when he no longer needed her, she could freely ask everything.
As she put away her unresolved issues, her mind lightened.
Only then did she find the time to read the letter. She carefully pulled out the paper from the envelope.
The royal family’s crest was stamped at the top of the letter. Chloe’s once-settled heart wavered.
Suppressing her churning insides, she read the letter line by line.
‘To my beloved daughter,
My dear Chloe, how have you been? I have been worried, not hearing from you.
If you have time, would you show your face to your father?’
The king inquired about her well-being and invited her to visit the royal residence.
‘I was planning to visit the royal family soon anyway.’
It might have been audacious for him to send the letter first, but it was better than her asking for permission.
Upon finishing the letter, Chloe called the maid to ready a carriage.
Instead of a reply, she planned to go herself. If she left now, she could make it by dinner.
She had no reason to care about their plans.
Chloe arrived earlier than expected, with much time left before dinner.
Having no appointment, Chloe was initially stopped by the guards. A few minutes later, the chief steward hurriedly arrived to assist her.
“Your Highness? What brings you here without notice?”
“My father wishes to see me, so I’ve come. Is dinner time acceptable?”
“Yes, yes. There are no dinner plans set for today. Please, come in.”
Guided by the steward, Chloe waited in the reception room. While conversing with a maid there, the King of Valront soon appeared.
“Chloe! Did you come to see your father on a whim? What a delightful surprise.”
The king, grinning playfully, promptly sat on the opposite side and began to pour tea for his daughter.
Chloe absentmindedly stared at the steam rising from her cup. Beyond the moist mist, a bitter herb scent wafted.
The king had prepared her favorite tea for her.
“…Why did you want to meet?”
“Is there a reason needed to see family? I wanted to see you, that’s all.”
Affectionate voice. When Chloe lifted her head, she was greeted by an equally affectionate gaze.
She had forgiven her parents due to that gaze, even ‘that time’. She had naively blabbered on when she came to request a divorce because of that gaze.
But this time?
This time, she didn’t care what his intentions were. Chloe also had business with the king, the reason she had come herself.
“Yes, me too.”
Chloe lifted her teacup, her face one of a loving daughter. It used to be her favorite tea when she stayed at the royal palace, but now, only the bitterness lingered on her tongue.
“Speaking of which, I heard you went to the imperial palace.”
“Ah, yes. How did you find out?”
“Count Briot entered the imperial knights and said he saw you there.”
“Ah…”
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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