“Is it really true?”
Ariante’s eyes sparkled like newly opened stars. Seeing her like that, Cediloy felt a sudden surge of emotions.
Looking at Ariante properly now… it finally dawned on him that this girl could only be his daughter. As he thought about it, the face of Meianna suddenly came to his mind. He wanted to tell her about these emotions too. What would he say? She might give him a snide remark about bringing it up now. But she would be pleased. For no one else but Ariante.
“Ariante.”
“Yes, Father.”
Cediloy, who had paused for a moment, nudged the teacup slightly to the side.
“I’m trying to find a new tutor for you.”
Ariante, who was about to put jelly in her mouth, paused. Ariante, who had slightly lowered the fork, pouted her lower lip and tilted her head.
“Father, do we really need a tutor?”
A faint smile appeared on Cediloy’s lips.
“Is it because you don’t want to study?”
Ariante quickly raised her head.
“I like studying. It’s fun to learn. But… I don’t like someone like Mr. Bimon.”
Cediloy learned from Meianna what Bimon had done to Ariante. Jocelyn must have known too, but she probably didn’t mention it on purpose.
Leaning over the table, Cediloy spoke seriously.
“Ariante, this time I will never choose someone like Mr. Bimon. Whatever teacher comes, if they unfairly punish you or try to hit you, tell Father right away. You don’t have to endure it anymore.”
“Really? Can I really do that?”
Cediloy nodded slowly.
“But you have to listen to the teacher. Can you promise not to play pranks during lessons or run away after skipping homework?”
“Yes, Father. I promise! I can do it.”
Ariante’s smiling eyes turned toward the window again. At that moment, Meianna, who was coming in through the inner gate of the garden, was visible.
“Father, Meianna is here!”
Ariante’s face flushed with joy and excitement. She was fidgeting, wanting to get up from the table right away. Cediloy, looking at Ariante with affection, gently straightened her disheveled hair and said,
“Go and greet Meianna, and tell her to come to see Father. Can you do that?”
“Of course! I can do it.”
Ariante quickly ran outside, and soon the servant’s voice was heard, shouting, “Milady, be careful!”
Whether she ran down the stairs or slid down the railing, her mischievous nature was unmistakable, just like Verbo, wreaking havoc on the entire mansion.
Cediloy’s head, sitting in the chair, slowly leaned back. After exhaling a long sigh, he closed his eyes. As he straightened his body, a rustling sound emanated from the pocket of his jacket, where the mourning letter still resided. It felt as if an urgent plea not to forget echoed in his ears, sending a sudden chill down his spine.
What to do about Swan? Cediloy closed his eyes, deep in thought.
If he left the child alone in the vacant mansion, among relatives who were like vultures eyeing the Viscount’s property, it would only lead to ruin. Seeking help from King Elmerat had its limits.
But if Swan were to live at the Baltermister Marquisate…
Another long sigh escaped from Cediloy’s lips. He kept calling his brother’s name silently. If only he could hear, even for a brief moment, it would be good if he could appear. Cediloy wanted to speak.
‘I’ll protect Ariante no matter what.’
Then Verbo would undoubtedly show his usual smile full of kindness and benevolence.
He hoped for that.
“Meiana!”
Meiana, who had just entered the mansion alone, was startled by Ariante’s ringing voice. Seeing Ariante sliding down the long railing in reverse, she ran to her in surprise.
“Lady! My goodness! What if you get hurt!”
However, before Meiana could embrace Ariante, she had already slid down the railing, laughing before she could be caught.
“I’m not hurt! I’m fine!”
Meiana pretended to squint her eyes gracefully.
“If you keep sliding like that, you’ll roll down the stairs like an acorn.”
“Acorn?”
Ariante giggled with her small head swaying.
“Oh, it’s what squirrels eat!”
Meiana couldn’t keep up the act and burst into laughter.
“That’s right, what squirrels eat. Did you have fun today?”
“Yeah, you know. I played hide and seek with Father, bet on who could jump farther in one place, and Father gave me a piggyback ride.”
“Did he really? Our lady must have had a good time. How about some snacks?”
“I had jelly! It had lots of fruits, so it was delicious. Hey, Meiana, Father told me to call you.”
Meiana looked up at the western part of the mansion with a puzzled expression.
“Me? Why?”
“I don’t know. But he told me to call you. Come with me! Huh?”
Ariante grabbed Meiana’s arms with both hands, pulling her with all her might. Even though she was only seven years old, her full strength made Meiana’s toes wobble.
“Wait, Lady! I just got back. Let me change my clothes, wash my face, and all.”
“It’s okay! Is it clean?”
Ariante grinned, and Meiana was left with no choice but to follow her.
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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