On the way home after getting off the bus.
Taeeun stopped in her tracks as a businesslike voice flowed through her phone. The call was from the nursing hospital where her grandmother was hospitalized. Therefore, it was a call she couldn’t ignore.
“It hasn’t been deposited? That’s not possible…….”
[We’ve waited for a week. So we were wondering if there were any other plans…….]“No. I’ll deposit it right away. Please send me the account number and amount to my phone.”
[Oh, yes. Okay, I’ll send it right away.]A short while later, the account number and amount arrived as a text message. Taeeun promptly transferred the money she had saved up from her part-time job.
For her, it was a significant amount that could only be saved by working tirelessly for a month. But it was not a waste for her grandmother.
Her grandmother was a presence more valuable to her than her own life. Despite the tough life that couldn’t be exchanged for anything else, her grandmother was the sole reason she had to live.
After completing the transfer, Taeeun silently raised her gaze into the quiet street illuminated by streetlights. Although her house was just a little further, it felt like an incredibly long and treacherous journey to her. That’s how heavy her steps toward home felt.
Her grandmother was in a situation where professional care was needed due to pulmonary disease and severe dementia. Since her father, Minkyunghoon, had placed her grandmother in a nursing hospital with his help, she had never received such a call until now. Minkyunghoon hadn’t crossed that line with her, knowing what kind of existence her grandmother was to her.
However, today, was receiving this call just a coincidence?
She hoped it was. Perhaps Minkyunghoon, who seemed unusually busy these days, had momentarily overlooked it.
But ominous premonitions always boasted an impeccable accuracy. As soon as she entered the front door, she received a call from her father. In the study, her father Minkyunghoon and her stepmother Jung Jieun were waiting for her with bright expressions.
When Jieun saw her, she furrowed her brows as if a thorn had pierced her eyes. However, Taeeun didn’t pay attention. The air, swollen as if it would burst at any moment, only felt oppressively heavy on her shoulders.
“Le An, Cheongdam-dong restaurant, tomorrow at 8 p.m. Yes, it’s a blind date.”
“A blind date…?”
At the unexpected remark, a small hesitation flickered in Taeeun’s black eyes.
“You’re twenty-eight. You should get married.”
“But…”
“Jangwon Group’s Seo Woojin. If you marry Seo Woojin, your grandmother will receive the best care at the best nursing hospital.”
For a moment, her breath seemed to be cut off. Now she knew the reason why Minkyunghoon hadn’t deposited the hospital bill for this month.
It was despicable. To dangle her grandmother, her greatest weakness, in front of her like this.
However, she couldn’t bring herself to refuse that offer. It was because, with her part-time job tutoring high school seniors preparing for art school admission, she couldn’t handle her grandmother’s hospital bills.
But she couldn’t find employment elsewhere either. Although there was someone providing professional care for three days a week, for the remaining three days, she had to personally take care of her grandmother, making it impossible to have a normal job.
All of this was a cunning scheme devised by Jieun. She chose to willingly accept it without exposing and extracting it like a thorn in Taeeun’s eyes. To achieve this, it was essential to tie Taeeun to her grandmother for three days, preventing her from achieving economic independence.
Knowing all this, she could only be manipulated. Yet, she couldn’t abandon her grandmother, who needed 24-hour care due to dementia.
Without being able to speak, Taeeun tightened her lips, and Jieun, who had been standing coldly by the sarcophagus, looked at her with chilly eyes and said one more thing.
“No, why aren’t you answering? If you have any decency, you should answer confidently. I raised you this much, and you can’t even contribute to the household expenses? It’s Jangwon Group. Do you know how much of a backing your dad can be for political advancement? Can’t you do that much for your dad?”
Anger erupted. It was a moment when the hands on her knees involuntarily clenched.
Her father, Minkyunghoon, was once a human rights lawyer. However, after Taeeun’s mother passed away from cancer and he married Jieun, his current stepmother, Taeeun became a thorn in the side for both of them. It was because Jieun, who had become a wealthy real estate mogul, was dissatisfied with the situation of Minkyunghoon, a father with a child.
Then, one day, things finally exploded. On the day Taeeun left holding hands with Jieun, she lost her way. No, to be more precise, she was abandoned by Jieun with clear intent.
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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