“Yeah. It was nice to see because it was just like the old you I knew.”
“….”
“I was surprised because your face looked dark due to worrying about your aunt. We haven’t seen each other for a long time, but the Eun Soo I knew wasn’t such a dark child.”
Eun Soo averted her gaze slowly and sipped her water.
It showed on her face, despite her attempt to hide it.
She thought that if she didn’t show her emotions, others wouldn’t notice. But Hwang In Woo, whom she met after a long time, pointed out her dark inner feelings at once.
But that didn’t mean she could tell him everything.
Having taken a sip of water, Eun Soo spoke as if nothing was wrong.
“It’s because of worrying about mom.”
“If she only gets the necessary treatments, the hospital fee would be this much. The room cost is quite high.”
“….Ah, it’s more than I thought.”
Eun Soo quietly murmured the number of digits that In Woo had written down on paper.
It was not a small amount.
“There are ways like moving to a shared room or staying at a nursing home, but you won’t do that.”
“Yeah. I’d prefer a single room.”
“Then, you can expect to spend this much money each month.”
“Thanks for letting me know.”
Eun Soo put the paper with the estimated monthly medical costs into her pocket.
If she was the first to speak of divorce to Hyuk Joo, he would surely give her a decent alimony without being upset. But her motherinlaw’s thoughts would certainly be different.
The reason Eun Soo could get married was as much due to Hyuk Joo’s decision as her motherinlaw’s influence.
Her motherinlaw once casually mentioned something to Eun Soo.
If it was the temperament of Eun Soo, who had been nursing her fallen mother for quite a long time, her motherinlaw believed she could withstand all situations harshly by Hyuk Joo’s side and strongly pushed you as her daughterinlaw.
However, if her motherinlaw knew that Eun Soo was the first to mention divorce, there was a high chance she would say she would kick her out penniless.
Even the financial assets in Eun Soo’s name, she would have blocked from being used recklessly.
“What are you thinking so hard about?”
“Nothing.”
“Let’s eat knifecut noodles.”
In Woo pushed the bowl of knifecut noodles towards Eun Soo.
The knifecut noodles topped with chives, green onions, and mugwort looked tasty, even though they didn’t look like such an extraordinary dish.
Saliva automatically pooled in her mouth.
Eun Soo tasted the soup with her spoon.
Her appetite came back at the clean and hearty flavor of the anchovy broth. It felt like she was eating real food after a long time. Her complicated mind, which had been filled with various thoughts until a moment ago, felt relaxed after eating the hot soup.
“Do you want to try a roll of kimbap?”
In Woo handed her a roll of kimbap topped with finely chopped spicy pepper. Eun Soo picked up the kimbap he offered with her chopsticks and ate it.
The modestly spicy and simple kimbap strangely paired well with the knifecut noodles.
“I often come here to eat when I’m on duty. They also sell cold soybean soup here in the summer.”
“I didn’t know there was a place like this because I rarely eat near the hospital. If I had known, I would have come often.”
Eun Soo lowered her head slightly and looked at the bowl of knifecut noodles.
“Let’s come together in the future.”
“Huh?”
“Ah, only when Vice President Moon Hyuk Joo is busy like today.”
“….Yeah.”
Eun Soo bit her lip hard.
Even when he wasn’t busy, there was no reason for him to come to a place like this with her.
Hyuk Joo sometimes said that Eun Soo was in the hospital, and he would come to the hospital after work to have dinner together. But the dinners he had with her were always at reservationonly traditional Korean or Japanese restaurants, or hotel Western restaurants.
And it was always in a private room.
Come to think of it, she didn’t remember having a meal with Hyuk Joo in such an open restaurant.
As if they would be caught by someone if they ate together.
Anyone would think I was not his wife, but his mistress.
At the bitter thought, Eun Soo gave a dry laugh.
What kind of meal would the man Moon Hyuk Joo, not the Vice President of Myung Jin Group, have with the woman he loves?
Eun Soo was suddenly curious.
“I sprained my ankle while cleaning the wardrobe.”
“I can’t move now. Can’t you come?”
That woman’s voice rang in her ears like tinnitus. And soon, that woman’s face came vividly to mind.
How would Moon Hyuk Joo be when he met that woman, Seo Yeon Ji?
If he rushed to her side just because she said she sprained her ankle, cooking a dish for her would be nothing.
As she thought that, the knifecut noodles she was enjoying seemed to prick her throat as if they were the stem of a thorny plant.
If she had known this, she wouldn’t have met her when that woman suggested they meet.
Regret came much later.
When she knew nothing about that woman, she thought she was an existence that Hyuk Joo couldn’t forget. Perhaps she didn’t come across as a clear entity.
However, once she knew the woman’s name and face, she kept having strange imaginations like just now.
Maybe it would have been less miserable if she didn’t know her name and face.
Heat suddenly surged throughout her body.
Eun Soo put down the chopsticks she was holding.
“Are you done eating?”
“….Yes. I ate a lot.”
Eun Soo reached out her hand to take a napkin and wiped her mouth.
Whether she was full, or still not full, she seemed to have lost the sensation of feeling satiated. And she didn’t feel the appetite to eat more knifecut noodles.
Eun Soo lifted her head. Through the glass door of the store, she could see the rain pouring down noisily.
She wanted to run out as she was and stand still in the cold rain. Then, this fever of unknown cause might subside instantly.
While she was looking at the rainy scenery with a dumbfounded expression, the mobile phone she had put in the pocket of her jumper rang.
She took out her mobile phone.
It was a call from Hyuk Joo.
It seemed that he had just seen her message saying she would sleep at the hospital and go.
“Brother, just a moment.”
Eun Soo excused herself to In Woo, who was eating, and answered the call.
“Yes, it’s me.”
Where are you?
“I’m at the hospital.”
At Eun Soo’s answer, Hyuk Joo was silent for a moment.
It was strange why he kept this silence even though he had confirmed the message that she was at the hospital. After a long silence, Eun Soo spoke.
“Are you at the company, Hyuk Joo?”
I’m at the hospital.
“Ah….”
Eun Soo, where are you?
With a dull sigh, Hyuk Joo asked in a subdued voice.
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
_____
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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