Larisa, in a dress that gradually faded from deep pink to orange to yellow, looked like a single Apeldoorn tulip from afar.
‘I bet it would look pretty on Ari.’
Feeling sorry for his daughter who rarely wore bright colors, Prince Alfonso put his hand on the waist of Grand Duchess Larisa.
They began to step to the quick tempo of the San Carlo waltz, with one hand raised in the air and their hands clasped together.
As the prince and grand duchess couple began their first dance, other young people gradually joined the floor.
“Why don’t you youngsters go and dance?”
Bartholini Count offered to Isabella. Isabella declined with a smile.
“No, I’m too shy to dance from the first song.”
It wasn’t something that Isabella, who had swept the first dance of the ball, should say. She didn’t want to show others the sight of her dancing with someone like Jacopo Attendoro.
Isabella looked at the prince of this country, who was leading the dance in a polite manner, while sitting next to her partner like a broomstick, and the foreign woman turning at a fast tempo in front of him. Everything in the world was dissatisfactory.
‘I’ll get out of this pit soon!’
[This is the time separator]Isabella wasn’t the only one staring at the couple, Prince Alfonso and Grand Duchess Larisa. Ariadne, too, was standing on one side of the ballroom, watching her man and his official future wife.
Although Alfonso and Ariadne agreed to ignore each other at official functions, fortunately or unfortunately, Alfonso was the only prince of the Etruscan kingdom and was dancing the first dance at this palace ball.
It wasn’t at all unnatural for Ariadne to stare at Alfonso among the crowd.
However, the man standing next to her knew what was going on.
“Miss Ariadne.”
“Yes?”
“You seem uncomfortable. Are you alright? Shall we go to the balcony for some fresh air?”
Raphael wanted to change the place so that Ariadne couldn’t see the sight of Prince Alfonso and Grand Duchess Larisa dancing hand in hand. Ariadne wiped her face, wondering if it was showing.
“No, it’s fine.”
Raphael quietly looked at Ariadne.
“Are you really okay? You don’t need to pretend to be strong. Anyone would be upset.”
Considering there were many people around, he skipped explaining the situation, but Ariadne understood immediately. Anyone would be angry to see their boyfriend dancing with another woman.
However, she shook her head. It was a kind of stubbornness. And Alfonso had even made it a condition not to go to the balcony or garden alone. It seemed that the only prince of the Etruscan kingdom could not even trust his friends.
“No, it’s necessary. I don’t mind.”
Raphael smiled, bent his waist, and held out his left hand.
“Then, would you grant me the first dance?”
She would feel better dancing than just standing around and seeing that sight.
In the large hall illuminated by thousands of candles, the mirrors hung on the wall reflected the candlelight, and a yellow warmth rose in the face of the pale successor of Baldesar.
Ariadne politely put her right hand on top of his with a smile. As she promised Alfonso, it was a hand in the thickest ballroom glove.
“Let’s go, signora.”
Raphael led Ariadne to the center of the floor. He put his hand on her waist and began to step in rhythm with the music.
“Is the pace okay?”
He kept talking to Ariadne so she wouldn’t be distracted elsewhere. Although the San Carlo waltz had a fast tempo, Raphael moved his feet as comfortably as if he had been dancing since birth.
“You are a very good dancer.”
“I was rigorously trained by my grandmother when I was young.”
He shrugged his shoulders. When Ariadne heard about his grandmother, she realized. It was the story of the old lady Baldesar that Julia had told her before.
Raphael was a captivating storyteller, and Ariadne was immersed in his tales.
“In her younger days, my grandmother loved to frolic at balls and parties, but when she fell ill in her old age, she seemed lonely during her convalescence in the countryside. She made us three siblings stand in the reception room and dance the waltz all day. If our steps faltered even slightly, she would slam the table and yell.”
Madame Valdesar wanted to get her sickly second grandson moving. However, the second grandson had a unique constitution where he broke out in hives when exposed to sunlight.
She had no choice but to gather her three grandsons in the reception room and made them dance all day.
Ariadne laughed as she pictured the scene.
“It seems your grandmother was a strong woman. She seems to have enjoyed the bond between her grandchildren.”
“It was great when my older brother was still alive. We three were always together. Now… whenever Julia and I see each other, we snarl.”
Barely able to hold back her desire to comment on the truly snarling siblings, Ariadne forced a social smile.
“You talk about your brother a lot.”
“Of course. The root of all my troubles is my brother’s absence.”
“Oh, he must have been your mental pillar.”
“No, no.”
His next words were unexpected.
“He was a naive, foolish idiot.”
Male lead is reincarnated to save his wife
I’ve also read this one twice already. The female lead is kinda soft and gets embarrassed easily—not really my type, but the plot is definitely worth reading. Hurry up and read it, y’all!
Intro
When Shen Yuan encountered Su Jin again in his previous life, she had already become the Prime Minister of the current dynasty. As for him, the former top young master of the capital, he had long since fallen into the abyss, becoming a singer on a pleasure boat.
After a song ended, he was redeemed and sent to the Su Residence.
Su Jin respected and cherished him, gave him a roof over his head, and bestowed him with warmth. Shen Yuan fell deeper and deeper, but before he could express his feelings, Su Jin passed away.
Shen Yuan died to follow her in death, but instead, he returned to when he was fifteen years old.
At that time, he was not yet engaged, and Su Jin was just a poor scholar.
Shen Yuan gritted his teeth, casting aside all his pride, and thought of ways to coax and entice her every day.
The colder and more indifferent Su Jin was towards him, the more proactive Shen Yuan became.
He was not afraid of being mocked by the world, only wanting to marry his Wife-master early, to hold her hand and never let go for a lifetime.
[Note: This story will not specifically point out the male lead’s reincarnation time point; it’s all in the details. Whenever you feel that the male lead is acting strangely, he has most likely been reincarnated.]
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
