“How wonderful it is that a noble person is handling this matter efficiently!”
Ariadne bowed her head once again in front of the old woman.
“I will be going now. My condolences.”
Ariadne handed a white rose to Mr. Scampa and stood up. The pure white rose was a funeral flower symbolizing respect, humility, purity, and youth.
She put on a thick robe and left the middleclass house in Castel Ravico, walking into the darkness.
[This is the time separator]The next morning, Cardinal de Mare was met not with satisfied bereaved families for the 300 ducats (approximately 300 million won), but with resolute bereaved families and an angry crowd.
“We demand blood money!”
Mr. Scampa, representatives from two local cooperatives, and members of the voluntary police force gathered in front of Cardinal de Mare’s residence in anger. They brought with them Loretta, a maid undeniably in hardship, tied up tightly with ropes.
The voluntary police force members who managed to catch the lead overnight and tormented Loretta considerably had obtained a useful statement.
‘The redhaired maid who died with Paola Scampa was pregnant with the little master’s child.’
‘Madam Lucrezia didn’t like that fact.’
‘At first, she just said to chase them away, but then she changed her mind and said to bring them in.’
The truth was up to here. Loretta, who had been severely beaten and threatened, even made up contents she did not know.
‘If they caught Maleta alive, they would have killed her.’
‘Lucrezia has killed many servants and maids in the past.’
‘Cruel Lucrezia has a hobby of collecting heads.’
Cardinal de Mare’s mansion was located in a quiet highend residential area with little pedestrian traffic, but it was impossible for this uproar to pass unnoticed.
For one thing, the rumor began to spread like wildfire among the middle class of Castel Ravico and the poor of Comune Nuova.
“Have you heard? Cardinal de Mare’s daughterinlaw killed someone!”
“She was a poor young lady!”
“She was a good daughter of my diligent friend. Why on earth did they kill her?”
“Did the Cardinal try to bring in a new daughterinlaw?”
“If so, it’s not even unfair! The son of that house touched the maid, and they tried to kill that maid but mistook a young lady who was returning from volunteer work and killed her!”
“Oh my, how wicked!”
“Even if she is a maid, they killed the maid who gave birth to their son?”
“The daughterinlaw is not a legal wife but a concubine, so she behaves like that!”
“She herself got in that way, but she seems to dislike her daughterinlaw doing the same!”
“What? Did Cardinal de Mare’s daughterinlaw also get in that way?”
“You’re young and from San Carlo, you might not know! This is a story only people from Taranto know, Lucrezia went to Cardinal de Mare while she was young and pregnant! The child born then is the illegitimate son of the rumor, poor childrearing, tsk tsk!”
“Aren’t there no reasons to blame a child who follows exactly in their parents’ footsteps? It’s the seed and the field that yields the crop.”
“You’re right, indeed!”
And this story began to spread among the upper class society through the servants working in each noble family and the market merchants who deal with the noble families.
Cardinal de Mare, having met with the lower nobles and merchants remaining in San Carlo due to preparations for the ‘Spring Festival’ and the Mass of conception, returned home early in fury after experiencing their insinuations, unable to directly confront him.
“Niccolo!”
Housekeeper Niccolo crawled out in an incredibly humble posture. Despite having heard to take responsibility and manage, he was quite crestfallen because he had failed to successfully negotiate with the relatives and the local cooperative.
He greeted Cardinal de Mare, who looked sullen, with great caution.
“Yes, Your Eminence.”
However, Cardinal de Mare’s target was not housekeeper Niccolo.
“Tell Hippolytus to come to my study right now!”
“Yes, understood, Your Eminence.”
[This is the time separator]Hippolytus, called by his father, went to Cardinal de Mare’s study, located in the east wing of the second floor, full of tension.
‘Did he find out about my contact with the vagrants?!’
Sinister thoughts continued one after another.
‘Or did he find out that Maletta is carrying my child? I must insist it’s not my child. I don’t know who she’s been with.’
There was something that Hippolytus feared most.
‘Surely he hasn’t found out I failed my degree?’
With a heavy heart, he knocked on the door of his father’s study.
Knock knock.
“Come in.”
Cardinal de Mare’s annoyed voice greeted Hippolytus. It was so curt that Hippolytus felt a shiver down his spine.
‘Could my father have discovered the fact that I might not be his biological son?!’
But fortunately for Hippolytus, what Cardinal de Mare interrogated Hippolytus about was completely different.
“Hippolytus de Mare, when you brought your mother from the Bergamo farm, you said, ‘Father, I will take responsibility.'”
At the fact that his father called him by his full name, Hippolytus first felt relief and didn’t properly listen to his father’s words.
“That, I did.”
“Is the result of the responsibility you claimed this situation?”
‘When did I take responsibility?’
With a bewildered Hippolytus in front of him, Cardinal de Mare pressed Hippolytus sharply.
“I thought then that you understood the roles and responsibilities you had to perform as the future head of the de Mare family and sacrificed for your mother!”
‘I did?’
Hippolytus was taken aback.
“But look at the situation now! Your mother is out of control again and has caused a huge accident! You, who bragged about stopping that, are sitting here rolling your eyes! I am very disappointed in you!”
At the word ‘disappointed’ from Cardinal de Mare, Hippolytus automatically straightened up. Disappointed, he’s disappointed in me!
“No, Father! I can fix everything!”
“You! How dare you talk big when all this has happened!”
In fact, because there was no way to correct it, Hippolytus was pricked by Cardinal de Mare’s rebuke and just lowered his head.
“As the future head, do you have an opinion on this situation?”
“……”
Hippolytus was in a state where even his own future was uncertain. The one who is being pointed out as the culprit of the murder in the lower streets is Lucrezia.
But strictly speaking, the vagrants who committed the murder were those prepared by Hippolytus. The order to kill was also given by Hippolytus.
The reason Lucrezia decided to kill Maletta was also entirely because of Hippolytus. Hippolytus should rightfully take at least half the responsibility.
But he was neither cunning nor ruthless enough to sacrifice his mother to the public and save himself. Nor was he pious enough to sacrifice himself for his mother. In other words, he was indecisive.
Seeing his son saying nothing, Cardinal de Mare revealed his thoughts.
“Hippolytus. It might be better to give up your mother for your future.”
The ruthless and cunning one was not the son, but the father, who did not share his blood.
Male lead is a Destined Young Husband (Female-dominant)
One-sentence summary: Wife-master, listen to my explanation!
Li Ruantang, a young lady from a prestigious family, stumbled and fell. When she woke up, she saw a noble and beautiful young man sitting by her bedside, wiping away tears.
The young master had slightly reddened eyes, and his every move exuded charm.
The sight made Li Ruantang’s eyes hot and her heart flutter. After all, she had made a bet with the young master Meng from the neighboring family. If she couldn’t marry a husband before the end of the year, she would have to admit defeat and give up the jade she had worked so hard to obtain.
Outside the window, the flowers were in full bloom.
Rather than losing the bet, the jade, and her face, Li Ruantang calculated that it would be better to seek marriage with the young master in front of her, killing three birds with one stone.
…
Meng Jun never thought that an accident during a spring outing would lead to them rolling down a cliff and into a river, yet still survive.
Now they were trapped in an unknown village, and Meng Jun had overheard that the family who had rescued them had their own intentions.
After all, it was Li Ruantang who had lost her mind and sought marriage first. He was only trying to protect himself!
Glancing at Li Ruantang, who was listing her own merits, the young husband’s voice softened, and he blushed as he lied, “W-wife-master, Wife-master, don’t you remember me?”
The young husband’s voice was clear and handsome, coaxing Li Ruantang’s heart to be soft and sweet, and she spared no effort to protect him.
It wasn’t until they returned to the capital that Li Ruantang suddenly remembered.
When they had fallen off the cliff, in order not to implicate Wei Yunruo, whom he secretly admired, the young husband had instead pulled her, who was slightly farther away, down the cliff with him…
Short summary by Yuushi L: Initially, the male lead (ML) liked another girl, while the female lead (FL) liked the ML. Both fell off a cliff. The FL temporarily lost her memory, and the ML, fearing others might take advantage of him, claimed FL was his wife while they were staying in a village. Later, when they returned home, the FL regained her memories and remembered that the ML liked someone else, so she kept her distance from him. However, during their time living together in the countryside, the ML’s view of the FL had completely changed. From this point, his pursuit of the FL begins.
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