The Duke was standing in front of a large window where the sunset was flickering.
The strong glow of the sunset made it impossible to see the Duke’s face. Unable to discern his expression, Olivia clenched and unclenched her fist.
The reception room was silent. Olivia took one more step forward, pressing her hand over her pounding heart.
I wonder how much my father heard. How I reacted. Not knowing where to begin, Olivia hesitated for a moment before parting her lips.
“Ah, Father.”
“Crown Princess.”
Olivia’s words were cut off, and a cold voice fell. The Duke looked down at Olivia. His face, backlit by the sunset, was as cold as ice.
“You were to become the Crown Princess; that was the only thing I asked of you.”
A sharply honed voice once, a gaze devoid of any affection again. It stabbed Olivia.
“You fail to keep that one promise, wear such disgrace, and try to overthrow the Crown Prince’s palace brazenly?”
“It’s not like that.”
Something was definitely misunderstood.
“I heard that the Empress sent a gift to console you, always alone. But you threaten the head eunuch after seeing just the card attached? And you still think you qualify as the Crown Princess?”
The Duke’s weighty voice sharply attacked Olivia, but she was rather relieved.
My father is misunderstanding me now.
“It was not a simple card. It impersonated the Crown Prince to deceive me, and it was a card that insulted Madelleine.”
“Why did that insult Madelleine?”
“What?”
“Did you not hear? I asked why you being deceived insulted Madelleine.”
Cold, dark purple eyes were emotionless, like looking at a stranger.
At the cold, cutting words, Olivia felt a stab deep in her lungs.
Really, it was my father I was seeing after a really long time.
Every morning he’d frown at my face, never once summoning me to the reception room, but that was because my efforts hadn’t reached my father.
My father, after all, brought me here when I was left alone.
He allowed me to spend time with a wonderful mother, even for a short while, let me meet my brothers and sisters, let me wear beautiful silk dresses, eat delicious food, and also…
Ah, right. He allowed me to sit in the precious seat next to Leopold.
My father knew I liked Leopold. He said it was a precious seat that I could not have sat in if I had not been a lady of Madelleine.
The more I thought, the more reasons I found.
“I am,”
Somehow, her voice trembling, Olivia clenched her fist.
“I am Madelleine too.”
The voice that exploded towards the Duke trembled.
The moment the Duke looked at Olivia emotionlessly, she realized.
“If you want to claim to be Madelleine, act like it.”
There is still a line between my father and me.
“Behave yourself. And those filthy rumors. Don’t drag them into Madelleine again.”
Bitter eyes, words that seemed to hate me, blaming everything on me. All these were the same situation as when I was a child, unable to speak with my arms held.
At that time and now, there was only one thing I could say.
Olivia murmured as if squeezing it out.
“……I did nothing.”
“You did nothing, and rumors cover you like that?”
“……Yes.”
“Then, what have you done in the prince’s palace?”
“It was just…”
…It was my effort to protect Madelleine. Even if I am ignored, Madelleine shouldn’t be that place.
If I protect Madelleine together, I thought I would get closer to my father by at least an inch.
The Duke looked down at Olivia as if scolding her. I wanted just one inch, but it became ten inches farther.
“……Leave.”
The Duke glared at Olivia as if he was fed up. Olivia stared blankly at the reception room, turning around.
Every time I looked at the oak door, I wondered what was here.
The portrait hanging above the fireplace was the same as it was painted 14 years ago, before I entered. The brightly smiling Duchess, affectionate father, and laughing Conrad and Jade. There was a fairylike Estella.
In this place, as if time had passed by, 14 years ago.
It’s just full of hatred for me.
Olivia breathed consciously.
It felt like I was suffocating.
.
.
.
I don’t know how I came up to the room.
Lying in bed in a dress, Olivia looked at the ceiling. The silk canopy filled with gorgeous lace slipped down, and everywhere I looked was full of value, but.
It was hollow inside. Did I skip dinner?
As Olivia pondered, she lowered her head and buried her face in the bed again.
The angular quilt wrapped my cheeks coldly.
In a state where all sounds seemed to have disappeared, Olivia thought that what I wanted was a very small thing.
Not affection that would bet anything like an epilogue.
You worked hard. Or you did well. I expected to hear at least that much.
At least. I thought my best effort to hide my trembling hands was worth that much.
Olivia looked at my hand. And suddenly thought.
It was fortunate to continue wearing gloves received from a man.
At least, my hand’s trembling would not have been visible to my father. The glittering gloves would have been seen first.
Then Olivia laughed faintly.
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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