“Well… I like your honesty. I also appreciate the lack of pretense.”
As far as she knew, the daughter of Duke Blatnik was one of the nobles whose outer and inner selves were not very different.
So she probably wasn’t lying right now.
The situation seemed to be unfolding differently from what the daughter of Marquis Howard had expected.
At that moment, the daughter of Duke Blatnik continued speaking.
“If you want, I can tell you about House Blatnik’s position. But first, I’d like the daughter of Duke Amaterasu to give me some information.”
[This is the timeline separator]In the carriage returning to the Cardia ducal residence.
Jieselgrante was deep in thought, reviewing her conversation with the daughter of Duke Blatnik.
‘I want to know about Crown Prince Joshua. Not the inflated fake rumors meant to praise him, but about the real Crown Prince Joshua.’
Jieselgrante immediately understood what the daughter of Duke Blatnik wanted.
Given her curiosity about Joshua, it seemed she was at least considering the position of Crown Princess.
‘She probably wanted to know if he has a personality tolerable enough to marry and live with.’
Certainly, it would be rare for a young lady to be curious about the Crown Prince’s personality, but it would also be difficult to find someone who would tell the unvarnished truth when asked.
One wrong word could result in severe punishment for insulting the royal family.
In that sense, the daughter of Duke Blatnik’s choice of Jieselgrante as the person to hear the truth from was a very wise decision.
‘There’s probably no one in the palace who knows Joshua as well as I do.’
So Jieselgrante revealed Joshua’s true face without hiding anything, kindly.
Focusing on the disqualifying factors a woman about to marry might consider in a husband.
She made sure to include, exactly as it happened, the incident on the terrace during the palace ball.
It was a delicate matter to bring up an event that could be used as her own weakness.
The fact that she could do so was because she had faith in the daughter of Duke Blatnik.
She knew the young lady was not the type to carelessly spread others’ pain.
The expression on the face of Duke Blatnik’s daughter after hearing everything Jieselgrante had to say was quite a sight to behold.
She looked surprised, then frowned, and by the time she looked like she was about to cry, Jieselgrante was certain.
From this moment on, House Blatnik would feel uncomfortable about this marriage proposal.
But it wouldn’t be easy for them to refuse the royal family’s proposal either.
The fact that the Empress was pushing for this marriage despite her long-standing feud with the Duchess of Blatnik meant that the Empress must be in quite a predicament.
[This is the timeline separator]Upon returning from her outing, the daughter of Duke Blatnik was lost in thought for a while.
Naturally, her thoughts were dominated by her conversation with the daughter of Duke Amaterasu.
“Young lady, the masters have returned home.”
It was the maid’s voice that broke her reverie.
“I see.”
The daughter of Duke Blatnik immediately left her bedroom. She then addressed Duke Blatnik, who was climbing the stairs.
“Welcome home, Father.”
“Yes. You said you had something to tell me?”
As he said this, Duke Blatnik looked back at the butler.
He had already been informed beforehand. That when the Duke and Duchess of Blatnik returned home, there was an urgent matter to discuss.
“Yes. I think it would be better to make a decision as soon as possible.”
The Duchess of Blatnik, who was coming up the stairs later, asked with a puzzled expression.
“Why is everyone standing here?”
“I have something to tell you.”
After briefly looking at her husband with a confused expression, the Duchess of Blatnik soon nodded.
“I see. Let’s move to a more suitable place then.”
“Let’s do that.”
Without even changing their clothes after returning home, the Duke and Duchess of Blatnik sat down facing their daughter.
“So, what is it you wanted to say?”
“I heard some important information today. I think you both should know about it.”
At their daughter’s somewhat meaningful words, Duke Blatnik furrowed his brow, and the Duchess’s expression also became serious.
“I know you’ve been trying to find out about His Highness the Crown Prince. I’ve also been asking around about his character, but everyone just parrots the same things.”
“…”
“But today, by chance, I heard about his true nature. Contrary to the rumors, he’s quite the scoundrel, isn’t he?”
The Duchess of Blatnik frowned at her daughter’s blunt statement.
Although it was certainly a private family setting, one never knew who might overhear and how it might be relayed.
“Mind your words.”
Duke Blatnik immediately admonished his daughter.
“The story I heard today was so shocking… I made a mistake.”
Seeing her daughter’s quick repentance, the Duchess of Blatnik asked in a chiding tone.
“Tell us where you heard such things and what exactly was said.”
The daughter of Duke Blatnik then shared the story she had heard at the Marquis Howard’s residence earlier that day.
About how Crown Prince Joshua had tried to violate Jieselgrante at the recent palace ball, and how Cabelased, who happened to be there, had saved her.
She also mentioned how after that incident, the Crown Prince had people follow and investigate both Cabelased and Jieselgrante.
To the shocked Duke and Duchess of Blatnik, she continued.
“Actually, if this marriage were to happen, I thought it would be important whether I could tame the Crown Prince well. Like Her Majesty the Empress is doing now.”
“…”
“In fact, when I met His Highness the Crown Prince in person at my request, I felt it… but it seems there’s no hope. If I were to refuse this marriage proposal, would it cause trouble for you, Mother and Father?”
At her question, Duke Blatnik remained silent, while the Duchess shook her head.
“From the beginning, I was against this marriage. If you don’t want it, we won’t force it. Dear, what do you think?”
Despite the Duchess of Blatnik’s words, the furrow in the Duke’s brow remained.
This marriage proposal wasn’t just the Empress’s idea alone.
The Emperor had also expressed his agreement.
It was true that the alliance between the Amaterasu and Cardia ducal houses had tipped the balance of power, so if House Blatnik were to refuse this proposal, there was a high chance that the Emperor would suspect they had other intentions.
Therefore, they needed to refuse the proposal in a way that wouldn’t fall out of the Emperor’s favor.
But that method seemed elusive at the moment.
“It might be better to wait and observe a bit longer before making a decision on this matter.”
At the Duke of Blatnik’s words to postpone the decision, the Duchess of Blatnik became indignant.
“How can you say that when we know full well our daughter would be living with and suffering at the hands of such a shameless person?”
“No, dear. That’s not what I meant…”
The Duke of Blatnik tried to soothe his wife uneasily, but once agitated, the Duchess of Blatnik couldn’t easily calm her anger.
The daughter of Duke Blatnik, watching this familiar scene quietly, carefully interjected.
“I have a wise solution to this problem. Would you like to hear it?”
“You have a solution?”
The Duke of Blatnik asked, almost embracing his sulking wife who was still very angry.
“Yes.”
The daughter of Duke Blatnik nodded. And she recalled her conversation with the daughter of Duke Amaterasu earlier that day.
‘Cutting it off completely is dangerous. You could incur the resentment of not only the Empress but also the Emperor.’
When she expressed her unwillingness to marry the Crown Prince, the daughter of Duke Amaterasu had casually said this.
‘If it were me, I would first offer to become the Empress’s lady-in-waiting.’
From there, the daughter of Duke Blatnik found a clue to escape the marriage to the Crown Prince without offending the imperial family.
[This is the timeline separator]After the party ended, Cabelased was secretly stealing glances at Jieselgrante, who was lost in thought without saying a word, as the carriage sped towards the Cardia ducal residence.
She seemed to be deep in thought with a serious expression, but occasionally her eyes would flash wickedly, which was enough to make Cabelased’s heart race.
He was satisfied with her villainous side, which contrasted with her pure appearance, as she seemed to be plotting schemes internally.
He basically liked good people. But he was wary of those who only got taken advantage of.
After all, one needs to value oneself to be able to consider others.
“Why… are you looking at me like that?”
Jieselgrante, who had been lost in thought for a while, belatedly noticed his gaze and asked.
“I’m curious about what you’re thinking so deeply about.”
“Ah…”
Jieselgrante let out a low sigh and covered her mouth.
She seemed embarrassed, realizing that she had been so absorbed in her own thoughts that she hadn’t been aware of her surroundings.
“I had a conversation with the daughter of Duke Blatnik earlier, you know? She seemed curious about the Crown Prince.”
“Did you bitterly criticize him as a bad guy?”
Jieselgrante let out a small laugh at Cabelased’s words.
“Since we don’t know what position House Blatnik will take yet, I refrained from saying too much. But I answered honestly about the aspects the daughter of Duke Blatnik wanted to know about.”
“Well done.”
Cabelased, who had been looking at Jieselgrante’s profile with a faint smile on his lips, reached out without much thought.
He didn’t like how her soft golden hair was covering her face.
After tucking the fallen golden locks behind her ear, Cabelased leisurely admired Jieselgrante’s profile.
The smooth curve from her round forehead to her high nose bridge and down to her jawline was captivating.
As Cabelased kept staring without taking his eyes off her, Jieselgrante’s pale cheeks turned as red as a ripe apple.
Deliciously so.
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.”
