When the four were deeply engrossed in their thoughts with somewhat serious expressions, Arianthe and Swan rushed in with one cheek puffed up. Following them, Ash, who had prepared tea, came with the servant, and Cedaloi hesitated and stopped upon seeing Arianthe, Swan, and other guests.
Cedaloi gently touched Arianthe and Swan’s cheeks, swollen from melting caramel.
“Arianthe, Swan. It would be good to go to the forest with Ash today.”
Arianthe, who had been puffing up her cheeks while melting caramel, widened her eyes.
“Can we go to the forest?”
“It’s fine if you go with Ash.”
“Can Meianna go too, Father?”
“Of course. Go and ask Meianna to prepare a lunch for you in the forest.”
Arianthe, filled with joy, shouted and grabbed Swan’s hand.
“Let’s go, Swan! Let’s ask Meianna to make sandwiches! We should ask for butter and caramel in the sandwich!”
“Eek, that would be weird…”
“No, it won’t! It will be delicious!”
As the children ran up the stairs, Cedaloi sighed lightly and smiled.
“We should go up too.”
Meianna understood Arianthe’s rambling, repeatedly shouting “Father, forest, Ash, lunch.”
When Jocelyn arrived, Cedaloi didn’t want the children to be in the mansion. Meianna agreed, and honestly, he felt a bit proud that Cedaloi had such thoughts before he could speak.
“You have to put caramel in the sandwich, Meianna!”
As Arianthe held Meianna’s hand, who held her hand while going down to the kitchen, Meianna said, “Have you never seen a sandwich with caramel, milady?”
“I invented it.”
Meianna bit her lip to hold back laughter.
“You invented a caramel sandwich?”
“That’s right! Inside, there’s butter, and, um… chicken.”
“Does chicken go well with caramel?”
“It does!”
Upon reaching the last step, Arianthe jumped down with both feet and then let go of Meianna’s hand, rushing into the kitchen.
“Lady, have you come?”
Seeing Arianthe rushing into the kitchen, the chef greeted her politely and gently blocked the child.
“What did I tell you, milady?”
Arianthe replied confidently to the chef’s words.
“You’re not supposed to run in the kitchen!”
“That’s right. Why was that?”
“Because there are really, really dangerous things!”
The chef almost smiled, seeming to say or not say, and nodded his head.
“Understood. If you don’t run, you’re welcome to look around the kitchen. Just be careful not to go near the cooks using knives.”
“Got it!”
Then, Arianthe cautiously walked around the kitchen with careful movements. Meianna, who was watching Arianthe innocently asking the chef, who was trimming herbs, what she was doing, looked at the chef with renewed eyes.
“Chef Kelup?”
“Why, Meianna?”
Meianna blinked her eyes a couple of times.
“Have you always treated the lady like this when she comes to the kitchen?”
The chef, who was making sauce, looked at Meianna with a puzzled expression.
“Is there a problem?”
Meianna quickly raised her hand.
“No! No problem, no. It’s just that… when the lady comes down to the kitchen, you’ve always taken good care of her, I thought.”
“There was a big incident last time. Not only the cooks, but I couldn’t say anything even if I got injured.”
Meianna, who had been lost in thought, spoke cautiously.
“When the lady… got lost in the forest?”
“Yes, that’s right.”
Kelup, who was stirring the sauce, shrugged his shoulders.
“I lost my younger brother like that when I was young. I didn’t pay much attention.”
“Goodness.”
“Fortunately, he came back safely. He’s all grown up now. But he wandered through the forest for a day and a half, and our family, even our parents, thought he might have been bitten by a wolf or fallen off a cliff. It was chaotic. And I… I was nine years old at the time. My brother was six. Can you imagine how I felt?”
Even though it was imaginable, there was still something left. Kelup looked at Meianna’s expression again and added a bit more herbs to the sauce.
“To be honest, I wasn’t very interested in the lady. I mean, I just thought of her as a master I had to serve to earn money… that’s about it. The previous chef was a bit different. You know that too.”
“Chef Kelup could have felt the same way.”
Kelup also worked at the Duke’s mansion for quite some time. He couldn’t have been unaware of Arianthe’s secret, the fact that she wasn’t Cedaloi’s daughter.
Meianna’s intention was to ask why Kelup didn’t ignore it like other people.
Kelup said, “Well… I didn’t want to bother with a kid. I mean, if I did that, Meianna, you wouldn’t have stayed quiet. Right?”
“That’s true.”
Kelup smirked as if to say see, and after tasting the completed sauce, he banged the ladle and put the pan down from the fire.
“I don’t know about other employees, but at least the kitchen chefs can rest assured. Whether it’s the lady, Young Master Swan, or anyone, you can come down here anytime and be safe. As long as I’m the chef.”
Meiana felt a swelling sensation in a corner of her chest like a balloon. It was an indescribable emotion, not exactly joy and a bit shy to be called delight.
“Thank you, Chef Kelup.”
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.]
