“Warm bathwater and heated spirits have been prepared, correct?”
“Everything is ready, and as you instructed, only the minimum number of people have been left behind.”
“You’ve been on the battlefield for a long time, so you’re sensitive, and even the slightest noise can easily wake you. Be cautious not to disturb you as much as possible.”
“I will keep that in mind.”
This is probably the limit of what I can do.
I stared at the detached building visible through the window. There, Duke Pieren was staying.
“You did well. If you need anything, go and check.”
“Yes, if there’s anything inconvenient, please feel free to call me at any time.”
After the butler left, I immediately inspected the room.
Despite accommodating a special guest, Nagata was unexpectedly not strict in terms of security.
Or perhaps he was pretending to be so.
Either way, what was certain was that Duke Pieren’s time would pass anxiously.
He might have succeeded in infiltrating even the interior under the pretext of helping me, but exploring the castle’s interior relying solely on old blueprints was not an easy task.
“Rivianna!”
There were those who couldn’t stay still with news about me.
I took a short breath as an uninvited guest barged in without even knocking. Even without turning around, I could see my husband’s face through the window glass.
Nevertheless, I pretended not to notice and turned my body with a feigned surprised expression.
“Why are you here?”
“It’s your matter. Of course, I should check it out.”
“…….”
“Are you okay?”
Bake reached out to me with a worried expression.
I instinctively stepped back, avoiding him. Even in the midst of this, his steps momentarily hesitated, as if my actions reminded him of past events.
“We had some unpleasant incidents between us. But in times like this, you should rely on me a bit, right?”
“…….”
“I’m your husband.”
“You’re Crayton Viscount before being my husband.”
I coldly raised my head to the man approaching me.
“What do you mean by that?”
“The attackers were Crayton’s slaves.”
“Rivianna.”
If he thought I would embrace him, crying and bursting into tears, that was a miscalculation. I glared at Bake with sharp eyes.
“Crayton’s slaves! Do I need to explain in detail what thoughts crossed my mind when I heard that?”
“There seems to be a misunderstanding.”
“A misunderstanding?”
“The slave issue wasn’t my intention.”
Bake surrendered, showing both palms as if giving up.
“Don’t say unreasonable things. This is Crayton. And you are Crayton Viscount, the owner of this place.”
“This is a border area. There are things beyond my reach.”
“Then, you didn’t know?”
Even though the outcome was clearly visible, I couldn’t help but let out a sigh of frustration at Bake, who withdrew his foot pretending not to know. He was always like this.
“This is the border area, where Crayton has multiple estates, and among them, there may be those with different thoughts.”
“Is that so?”
“In regards to this issue, I will thoroughly investigate and confirm the details before deciding on the appropriate punishment. So, stop being angry now[Dash].”
“The ones who attacked me weren’t just Nagata’s slaves.”
“…….?”
“Do you want me to explain how many slaves from various estates I’ve seen? Or should I pass this off as if I didn’t know about it?”
Raising my eyebrows slightly, Bake eventually couldn’t look straight at me and turned his head away.
I lowered my voice even colder.
“Don’t think about brushing off the high-handed actions of those under you as if nothing happened. I may have lost my memory, but I’m not a fool.”
“…It was inevitable in the course of business.”
“Business?”
“You only use people below you. You don’t know how much to pay them when hiring. That’s why I can say such things.”
“…….?”
“I’m a businessman. Naturally, I have to seek profit.”
Although Bake spoke as if appealing, I felt no sympathy whatsoever. Instead, I openly mocked him.
“Business? If that’s the case, I might have misunderstood you all along. I thought you were Viscount Crayton, not a businessman.”
“Rivianna.”
“Don’t treat me like a fool. Anyone with common sense knows that owning slaves is more cost-effective than paying a fair price to employ them.”
“…….?”
“Don’t be deluded. The reason previous Viscounts of the Crayton family gave up profit was that they recognized the value of honor. Does that mean I have no honor?”
“That’s what you mean?”
“At least, that’s how it appears to me now.”
Bake’s face turned as red as a ripe apple at my disdainful words.
Without pausing, I continued speaking.
“Give me the list of slaves you currently have.”
“You want the list?”
“I’ll personally confirm them with my own eyes and restore their status. Do you think they’ll be grateful to you for that?”
“I’m not asking for their gratitude. I’m just trying to help them reclaim their rightful rights.”
While there might be other intentions, it was not false that I was determined to free the slaves. I couldn’t tolerate actions that tarnished the honor of Viscount Crayton.
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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