Slapping her cheeks with her hands to regain focus, Yuin slowly headed towards the entrance when suddenly her arm was firmly grabbed and pulled.
“Ah!”
Startled, she opened her eyes to a room scene and a chest clad in a white shirt and vest as the door closed behind her.
Before she could grasp the situation, her back hit the wall, and the face of the man who had practically abducted her from the restaurant loomed close.
“…Director.”
In a whisper, the confident abductor smirked, then opened his smooth lips.
“Nam Yuin is drunk again.”
His voice was deeply resonant.
Yuin, forgetting her intended words, licked her lips parched by the wine and swallowed hard.
“You’re using informal speech again.”
“I know.”
“You know but still do it?”
“Can’t I?”
His calm, black eyes made her speechless.
Trapped between the man and the wall, Yuin just bit her lip.
Instead of responding, she pushed against his shoulder, and the smirking Gyeon stepped back willingly.
“Why did you drink so much if you can’t handle it?”
“I didn’t drink much.”
Yuin, with cheeks as ripe as peaches, pressed them with her palms and grumbled.
“But can you just barge in here?”
“It’s fine if I’m with you.”
“Did you eat here?”
“No, not really.”
Yuin waited for more, but Gyeon only stared at her reddened eyes without continuing.
Unable to bear his unwavering gaze, Yuin looked away first, and Gyeon sighed, tilting his head slightly.
“Did you do that on purpose earlier?”
“Do what?”
“Pretend not to know me in the lobby.”
At his words, Yuin couldn’t hide her hurt, her soft eyes drooping sadly.
Surprised by her unexpected reaction, Gyeon was about to ask why, when she murmured softly.
“I thought the person with you might feel uncomfortable.”
“What? Who… oh.”
Gyeon, with a look of disbelief, stepped back from Yuin and then burst into loud laughter.
He continued laughing for a long while, only stopping when Yuin, bewildered and upset, asked why he was laughing.
“That’s not the relationship we have. That person is a friend’s fiancée.”
“…….”
“I was supposed to meet the three of us, but my friend got busy, so I ended up leaving and saw you.”
As Gyeon explained with laughter in his voice, Yuin’s face, already a bit red, blushed even more.
Seemingly unable to bear the embarrassment, she bit her lower lip so hard it almost bled and hung her head down.
Gyeon playfully tapped her reddened head and asked, “Did you understand now?”
Yuin, wanting nothing more than to vanish from the spot, remained unresponsive.
She couldn’t shake off the feeling that she shouldn’t have spoken. It was embarrassing, and she couldn’t remember the last time she felt so humiliated.
As Yuin hung her head in shame, Gyeon chuckled softly and called her, “Yuin.”
When she didn’t respond, he called again, “Nam Yuin,” and she reluctantly raised her head.
Seeing Yuin’s face flushed on the cheeks, eyes, and lips, Gyeon laughed as if he couldn’t help it.
Yuin, sensing some hesitation in his smile, finally faced him.
But before she could discern anything, Gyeon cleared his expression and asked, “Have you thought about what I said?”
“About what?”
“About it being your fault.”
Yuin rolled her moist, gentle eyes.
A few seconds later, Yuin uttered a small “Ah,” and Gyeon teasingly asked, “You forgot already?”
“I didn’t think about it. Was it just something you said?”
“Why would I say such a thing without a reason? I’m not that idle. Hasn’t Nam Yujin told you anything?”
Yuin, recalling many comments from her sister – mostly complaints – lowered her long eyelashes and kept her mouth shut.
Gyeon, with a slight smile, gently brushed back her stray hair from her temple.
“Start thinking about it from today, okay?”
“……Yes.”
Yuin nodded obediently, watching his fleeting touch on her shoulder.
Gyeon smiled contentedly at her response.
Then, he naturally moved behind her, lightly grasping her shoulders.
“I’d like to take you home, but your friend there looks like he’s waiting with fire in his eyes, so I’ll let you go today.”
“Fire in the eyes? Who, Jihan?”
“Ah. Is that friend Jihan?”
Yuin, suspicious of how he pronounced Jihan’s name as if he knew him, looked over his shoulder questioningly.
“……Do you know Jihan?”
“No. How would I know your friend?”
His playful reply left no room for further questions, as Gyeon reached out to open the sliding door.
Just as they were about to step into the restaurant corridor, Yuin felt hot breath near her ear and tensed as lips nearly touched her neck.
“If I don’t do it, you’ll contact me. That’s okay.”
The voice that whispered along her earlobe made the tiny hairs on Yuin’s neck stand on end.
Gyeon patted her shoulder, as if encouraging her, and then let her go.
As she turned around, she saw Gyeon’s face as he left the entrance, his dimples deeply set, exuding irresistible charm.
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.”
