The Credentials of a Couple (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 7
An eerie silence hung in the room.
Unable to find the right words, I simply glared at Bake standing before me, my hand pressed against my forehead.
His shirt, bowed low as he watched my expression, bore a smudge of pink lipstick—a shade I knew all too well.
It was the very lipstick I had gifted Margaret just last week.
As I dwelled on that fact, I felt even more wretched.
Who could have guessed that the gift I carefully chose to cheer up my friend, who seemed so down about her unexpected pregnancy, would be used for something like this?
“…I’ve known all along that you had another woman.”
My voice trembled despite my efforts to suppress my emotions.
I pressed my hand to my eyes, then slowly pulled it away.
The scene from just moments ago was seared into my mind, refusing to fade.
Entangled bodies, flushed skin, frantic breaths, and….
I irritably pressed my fingers to my forehead.
“Still, I held back. Even though I knew everything, I chose to pretend I didn’t. Because no matter what filthy thing you did, you’re still Meriel’s father.”
“……”
“If only you hadn’t used my daughter in your sordid affair.”
Would Bake ever understand what it cost me to endure all this?
I clenched my fists tightly, struggling to contain my rising anger.
Startled by my gaze, Bake took a step back, then abruptly dropped to his knees before me.
“I’m sorry! It’s all my fault!”
“……”
“I didn’t mean for it to happen like this—”
“Save your excuses. That’s not what I want to hear.”
I had so much more to say, but I held it all in.
I knew the longer this conversation dragged on, the more I’d lose control.
“Liviana.”
“I won’t make this long. You just need to choose. Because honestly, I doubt I’ll ever believe a word you say from now on.”
I tightened my grip even more.
The pain of my nails digging into my skin was almost welcome—it was better than this numbness.
“…What choice?”
“Will you divorce me?”
“Divorce? What are you talking about!”
Bake flinched in alarm and grabbed the hem of my dress.
Tears had already gathered in the corners of his eyes.
Seeing my husband’s pitiful state, I slowly continued.
“Or will you cut ties with Margaret?”
“Of course I’ll cut ties with her!”
“Are you serious?”
After dragging my daughter into this love affair of yours, I expected something grander—but this was all it took for you to answer without a moment’s hesitation.
A bitter laugh escaped me at Bake’s immediate response.
But Bake paid no mind to my mocking laughter; he simply clung to me.
“I never loved Mar—no! No! I never loved that woman! It was just a drunken mistake! And the meetings afterward were only because she kept threatening to tell you—”
“Enough with the excuses. I don’t even want to hear it.”
“Liviana.”
Instead of answering, I handed him a sheet of paper and a pen.
Blinking in confusion, Bake looked back and forth between the items and me.
“What’s this?”
“My final chance to you.”
“What?”
“If you don’t want to divorce me, write a sworn statement.”
“But even so, this is—”
“You don’t want to?”
I narrowed my eyes and glared at Bake.
After trembling for a moment, Bake couldn’t hold out and bowed his head deeply.
“If you don’t want to write the statement, then start preparing for a divorce. It’s going to be a very long fight.”
“Are you serious?”
“You know better than anyone. Things aren’t the same as they used to be.”
“…Because Duke Pierne has returned?”
“Who knows? Maybe.”
I lifted my chin haughtily.
I couldn’t let him find out I had no intention of divorcing him.
I crossed my arms and chose silence, and Bake finally couldn’t take it anymore—he grabbed me.
“It’s all my fault! Please, don’t leave me! You know how much I love you!”
“I can’t trust your words anymore. If you want me to believe you, prove it properly.”
“…..”
“You don’t want to?”
“No, of course I do! I’ll write it! I’ll do anything you ask!”
“If you say so.”
“Anything, as long as I don’t have to divorce you.”
Tears streaming down Bake’s cheeks soaked into my skirt.
Frowning, I looked at his reddened eyes.
Even now, the way he looked at me hadn’t changed at all.
It was still the same bashful, lovestruck gaze of a man utterly smitten with me.
The very thought of it made me sick to my stomach.
“Take the pen. Write exactly what I dictate. First, you will end things with Margaret and never see her again.”
“……”
“Second, you renounce all paternal rights and responsibilities toward the child Margaret will bear, and that child will inherit nothing from the Crayton family.”
“……”
“Third and finally, if you violate either of the previous conditions or something similar happens again, everything belonging to the Crayton family will be inherited by Meriel, and I will divorce you.”
“Liviana, this is…”
Bake’s hand, which had been writing smoothly, suddenly stopped.
I twisted my lips as I looked at the unfinished sentence.
“What? Don’t you think you can keep your promise?”
“No, it’s not that—”
“Then just don’t break it. Nothing will happen if you keep your word.”
“…..”
“If you don’t like it, you can always go back to Margaret right now.”
“Of course not! I’ll write it! I was just about to finish!”
I waited until Bake finished writing the statement and stamped it with his seal before taking it from him.
Normally, I’d be offended that the Marquess Crayton’s seal was used for something like this—but I didn’t have the energy to care.
Emotions aside, this would protect Meriel’s rights for life.
I was simply doing everything I could as a mother for my child.
“As you can see, it’s Bake’s handwritten statement, sealed with the Marquess Crayton’s stamp.”
“Liviana!”
Margaret urgently reached out toward me.
But instead of taking her hand, I tossed the statement toward her.
It flew through the air and landed right in front of Margaret.
Margaret stared blankly at the paper before suddenly lifting her head.
Tears hung heavily in the corners of her eyes.
I locked eyes with Margaret.
“I won’t ask anything. Not who the real father of your child is, nor what happened between the two of you. None of it.”
“…Why?”
“It’s all over now.”
“All over?”
I pointed to the statement with my index finger.
Margaret bit her lip hard, then crumpled the paper in her fist.
“Crumple it as much as you like. It’s just a copy anyway.”
“Livi—”
“Don’t call my name. I am the Marchioness Crayton now, not your friend.”
“…Did you ever once consider me a friend, even for a moment?”
Margaret sneered bitterly, her body trembling with barely contained fury.
But I paid her no mind and continued.
“If you weren’t my friend, I would’ve killed you long ago. What’s so hard about snapping your pretty little neck?”
“……”
“But even so, I won’t do anything. I’ll live as though none of this ever happened, and I won’t care what you do from now on.”
“But what about this child? Can you really ignore them too? Especially if it turns out to be a boy—”
“You’ll have to discuss that with Duke Pierne.”
“What?”
“You said it yourself—that Duke Pierne is the child’s father.”
“That, that was just—”
“I know. You meant to provoke me.”
I tilted my head slightly.
I didn’t even need to hear her answer.
Just looking at Margaret’s pale, stricken face was answer enough.
“Dropping the earring on purpose, whispering things into my ear to make me anxious, and scheming to tie me to Duke Pierne—everything.”
“……”
It was such an obvious ploy.
And yet I hadn’t suspected a thing—because I trusted you.
If I’d known that trust would lead to such utter ruin, I never would’ve believed you in the first place.
“But you know what? No matter what you do, I won’t divorce him.”
“……”
“I will remain the Marchioness Crayton until the day I die, and Meriel will be the Crayton heir.”
“……”
“Isn’t that right, Bake?”
I deliberately smiled and turned my head.
Margaret had no idea, but Bake had been hiding behind the partition the entire time.
“Bake, why are you here…!”
Margaret called out to Bake in panic.
But instead of answering her, Bake looked only at me.
It was the decisive moment when the fates of Margaret and me would be sharply divided.
Without taking my eyes off Margaret, I lifted one corner of my mouth.
“I asked Bake to choose. Between you and me—who he would pick.”
“……”
“And as you can see, Bake chose me.”
It wasn’t a choice that brought me joy, but I didn’t let it show—not even a trace.
My goal from the very start was to crush Margaret’s hopes completely.
“You started this, so you’ll end it yourself. Right here, in front of me. Perfectly.”
“Bake!”
“……”
“You can do it, right?”
“O-of course! I already told you! I’ll do anything for you!”
After only a brief hesitation, Bake finally turned toward Margaret.
He cared more about reading my reactions than protecting his mistress.
Placing my hand firmly over Bake’s, I glared at Margaret.
“I won’t share a single thing that belongs to Crayton. Only Meriel may bear the Crayton name—no one else will ever take her place.”
Anyone who dares covet that position—no matter who they are—will be crushed by me without mercy.
Amid all the complex, emotional stares directed at me, I clenched my teeth tightly.
Today, I lost both my friend and my husband.
All I had left was Meriel.
And for her sake, I would do absolutely anything.
“Mommy, when is Aunt Margaret coming? I need to make a bookmark with her.”
“Auntie can’t come anymore.”
“Why?”
“She’s become busy with something.”
“Is there something more important than playing with Meriel?”
Meriel puffed out her cheeks in protest.
I tapped her little round nose playfully and smiled.
“Adults have their own reasons, sweetheart.”
“Cheh…”
“I’ll make the bookmark instead. Let’s do it together.”
“Really?”
Meriel’s eyes sparkled brightly.
I gently stroked Meriel’s hair.
Her hair was as soft as downy fluff.
“Of course! How should we make it?”
“Pretty! And lots of them!”
Meriel flung her arms as wide as she could, waving them excitedly.
Her earlier disappointment had vanished, replaced entirely by eager anticipation.
“Lots?”
“I’ll make tons so I can give them to everyone I love!”
“What a wonderful idea.”
“Right?”
Meriel placed her hands on her hips and puffed out her chest proudly.
I laughed along with her and opened the book.
Inside were the flowers Meriel had carefully collected and pressed over time.
“You picked out only the prettiest ones and arranged them so nicely.”
“Yep! That’s exactly what I thought too!”
The child’s radiant smile was utterly endearing.
I gently caressed Meriel’s cheek and carefully began peeling the flowers off.
They were so dry that the slightest carelessness would ruin them instantly.
After removing about three or four blooms, I sensed someone approaching.
“What is it?”
“A letter has arrived from the Imperial Palace.”
Thud.
The petal I’d been peeling tore right off.
I stared at the torn flower for a moment, then slowly lifted my head.
Emblazoned boldly on the envelope held by the butler was the Imperial Golden Lion seal.
My Arch-enemy Sealed My Memory and Said That He is My Husband
This is an incredibly captivating story that you absolutely shouldn’t miss! I’ll give a brief introduction here, and below you’ll find a detailed synopsis of the plot.
The female lead is a fierce and powerful demon king. The male lead is a once-in-a-millennium celestial lord, admired by the entire cultivation world.
They are equally matched, legendary rivals who have battled for centuries.
In the final duel, the female lead is gravely injured. The male lead saves her, seals her memories, and hides her true identity. He tells her that he is her fiancé. His entire life has been flawless—except for the one thing he never expected, never controlled, and never wanted to control: falling for his greatest enemy. She is his inner demon, his obsession.
When the female lead regains her memories, she is furious at his deception.
She makes his life a living hell.
And somehow, the male lead—possibly a total masochist—doesn’t mind at all. In fact, he’s happy she’s paying attention to him.
Yep, we’re back to my favorite trope: male lead suffering. If you love this kind of story, jump into the pit with me now!!!
Intro
Dong Xia lost her memory.
Her handsome and extremely powerful fiancé Li Qing comforted her: “It’s okay if you can’t remember. I’ll always be with you.”
Everyone thought Dong Xia’s ancestors must have burned incense to get such a perfect fiancé. He was the number one person in the immortal realm, yet he remained chaste and only loved her.
…
The day before marrying her fiancé, Dong Xia finally remembered everything.
She wasn’t suffering from memory loss at all.
Her arch-enemy had made her fake her death, destroyed her cultivation, replaced her memories, and pretended to be her deeply in love fiancé.
No wonder he said, “It’s okay if you can’t remember”!
Dong Xia laughed coldly as she pulled out her long knife: Li Qing, prepare to die 🙂
*
Li Qing, as the supreme being of the immortal realm, was the people’s shining beacon.
The only unknown stain in his life was his affection for Dong Xia, the ruler of the demon realm.
In the final battle of the war between immortals and demons, the sky collapsed and the earth shattered. The ruler of the demon realm was finally slain under the sword of the supreme being of the immortal realm, and everyone in the immortal realm applauded.
The cultivation world lost a ruler of the demon realm.
And in the back mountain of Li Qing’s cave dwelling, he secretly hid away a fiancée.
Notes:
1. The female lead is white on the outside, black on the inside, and the queen of flattery; the male lead repeatedly tests the edge of darkness, a VIP guest at the crematorium.
2. Fantasy cultivation world setting.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
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