How could I have such thoughts in front of her? He fumbled, not knowing where to direct his instinctively wandering gaze.
“Yezar?”
Julieta approached with a worried expression. Watching her skirt ripple with each movement, she seemed like a fairy before him.
Moreover, Julieta’s face up close was breathtakingly beautiful. She was already a beautiful person, but now her features were even more accentuated than usual.
It became harder to endure.
“…I apologize. I think I need to step outside for a moment.”
“Why? Are you feeling unwell?”
“That’s not it.”
“Then what is it?”
Her snow-white skin was visible just within his reach. For a brief, irreverent moment, he had impure thoughts. He felt he should go bang his head against a wall somewhere. He didn’t seem to be in his right mind at the moment.
“Is it because I’m too pretty and you don’t want to show me to others?”
Julieta asked teasingly with a smile. In that moment, Yezar considered canceling his plan to go out.
Of course, Julieta was just joking, but Yezar wasn’t.
She was truly so beautiful right now that he didn’t want to show her to anyone else.
“Yes. You’re so beautiful… I don’t want to show you.”
[This is the timeline separator]‘Oh?’
I was a bit taken aback. If we were alone it would be one thing, but with the maids present. It was a joke I made to show the cute and lovely couple image that matched the rumors.
His response seemed too sincere to be a joke. He should have just played along with my words appropriately. His flushed cheeks and shy face made me doubt myself.
‘I shouldn’t misunderstand. Could it be that I really look pretty in his eyes?’
Thinking that made my body stiffen involuntarily. To think that Yezar with his naturally radiant appearance would genuinely find me beautiful.
What on earth did the maids do to me? To elicit such praise from that perfect man.
Sometimes when I’m next to him, I worry if my head looks relatively big in comparison. I’ve had moments of concern about looking relatively plain next to his naturally luminous self. But his words completely washed away such worries.
“Julieta, would you mind staying still for a moment?”
His face was red as he said this. It really wasn’t my imagination, it seems.
Even if agreeing that he didn’t want to show me to others was just playing along, saying I was beautiful was sincere.
Feeling moved, I glanced at the maids who had worked hard these past few days. They nodded as if they had been waiting for this moment.
The maids’ sparkling eyes seemed to shout, ‘My lady! Did you see? The moment our efforts paid off!’ I felt like giving them a thumbs up right then and there.
‘Yes. I saw it well. Your hard work was worth it!’
I had been really disappointed about not being able to prepare a lunchbox together this dawn. But this made up for that disappointment.
“Yes, Yezar.”
I answered pleasantly and stood still as Yezar had asked. Then he brushed past me and took out a shawl from the wardrobe.
‘Why is he taking out a shawl?’
I watched curiously as he draped the shawl over my shoulders.
“Why are you putting this on me?”
When I asked out of curiosity, he cleared his throat and answered.
“The neckline and chest area are too low-cut, so like this… it didn’t seem right.”
I tilted my head, not understanding his words. While this dress did have a low neckline, it wasn’t so low as to show cleavage. Moreover, I heard that dresses with backs cut all the way down were in fashion in high society these days.
That was something I, as a Confucian girl, could never wear, so I had chosen this relatively modest one.
“This level of neckline is quite modest. Besides, this shawl is too warm for the current season.”
It wasn’t made of a see-through material, so it had some thickness to it. It might have been fine a month ago, but not now when the weather was getting warmer.
‘It’s not like I’m a snowman needing a scarf. But he’s just being considerate, so I don’t mind.’
Just like how he would thoughtfully provide a blanket when I wore a short skirt, Yezar must have prepared this shawl out of consideration.
“Don’t worry. When I looked in the mirror, my neckline was visible but not my chest area.”
As I was about to remove the shawl and hand it back to him, Yezar rolled his eyes awkwardly. I wondered why he was acting like that. Then he whispered softly so only I could hear.
“I apologize. From my position, it’s visible… my lady.”
What did he mean by visible from his position? And why did his face turn tomato-red as he spoke? I carefully went over his words. There was quite a height difference between us. So if he looked at me up close, he would be looking down at me from above.
Ah. So if he looked down from above, my cleavage would be clearly… My face suddenly felt hot.
“Eek! D-don’t look!”
“I-I’m sorry!”
I quickly wrapped the shawl I had loosened. Then I turned my head away. My heart was pounding. Since I don’t usually wear dresses with exposed necklines, I had never considered the perspective of someone looking down.
‘Oh no. Does that mean he saw everything?’
If that’s why his face turned so red… I shook my head vigorously. I didn’t want to imagine any further.
“I’ll wear a lighter shawl than the one you gave me.”
“Yes, understood.”
“And please make sure to forget about it.”
Though I didn’t specify what, Yezar seemed to understand and nodded.
“…Yes, my lady.”
As we were having a sweet conversation, we suddenly startled and turned our backs. I could feel the maids watching, wondering what was going on. I smiled as if nothing had happened, trying to calm my flushed face.
“I’m sorry, but could you bring out a thin shawl? Preferably made of an opaque material.”
Then Mei, who had enthusiastically recommended dresses earlier, replied with a dejected face.
“But this dress suits you so well, showing off your white neckline. It’s such a shame to cover it with a shawl!”
The other maids nodded in agreement. But I couldn’t show my cleavage to Yezar, so I was about to say no. However, the response came not from me but from Yezar.
“No. I don’t want other men besides me to see.”
Though he was blushing furiously, he spoke firmly. At that, Mei’s downturned lips curved into a smile. Somehow, Ember and the other maids’ faces also spread into pleased smiles.
“Oh my! If that’s the case, you should have said so earlier. My lady, please wait a moment. I’ll choose a shawl that will absolutely prevent other men besides the Duke from seeing!”
Was it just my imagination that she seemed to emphasize the word ‘absolutely’? And why did Yezar say such a thing? I glanced at Yezar. He was avoiding my gaze.
From what I could see, the tips of his ears were red and his fists were clenching and unclenching restlessly.
‘Was he just acting out a passionate newlywed scene in front of the maids? Or does he really not want other men to see me like this… No way.’
I immediately erased that impossible assumption. It couldn’t be.
Why would he be needlessly jealous of other men? I was just his contract wife after all. Moreover, it was an assumption I absolutely shouldn’t make about someone who still hasn’t forgotten his first love. Regardless of how my heart was quietly racing.
I had donned the dress with a shawl, and today’s weather was clear without a single cloud. Moreover, the lunchbox I had been looking forward to from Yezar was in my arms.
“I’m already excited about what it will taste like.”
“It’s nothing special, but I’m glad you’re looking forward to it.”
“Don’t say it’s nothing special! It’s a precious lunchbox you prepared from early dawn.”
When I spoke with mock seriousness, he nodded with a smile. That laughter sounded pleasant. The breeze was comfortably cool and the sunshine was warm.
‘A picnic with someone. How long has it been?’
Since I had been living in virtual seclusion in the mansion. I couldn’t even dream of a cozy picnic with someone.
Yes, I was excited. The lunchbox prepared for me was in my arms, someone to spend the day with was by my side, and the weather was clear as if it wouldn’t rain.
‘I’m looking forward to it. I’ve been desperately longing for this kind of daily life. Now it seems like this will become a frequent occurrence from now on.’
I preferred ordinary days that repeated rather than one special day. A single special day can be lonely, but in repeating daily life, there’s someone to share joy with by my side every day.
“I’m glad you seem to be in a good mood.”
“Of course. It’s a picnic with Yezar. I hope I’m not the only one looking forward to it?”
Then he replied.
“How could that be? I was looking forward to it too. An outing with you, my lady.”
Yezar smiled gently. Today especially, his face seemed too dazzling. Though there was never a day when he wasn’t dazzling, it was particularly difficult to look him straight in the face today.
‘Was I that happy about being called beautiful? No, this feeling isn’t that… it’s a bit more…’
“My lady.”
I came to my senses at the voice calling me. We had already arrived in front of the carriage.
“Ah, yes. I’ll get in the carriage.”
‘What’s wrong with me? Why am I like this?’
As I hurried to get in, he extended his hand to me.
“No. The carriage is high. I meant for you to take my hand as you get in. It’s dangerous otherwise.”
The warmth of our joined hands was comforting. Only then could I understand what this feeling was. This feeling that tickled my heart and made me feel elated was excitement.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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