Idel woke up in complete darkness.
‘Where on Earth am I?’
It was a space where not even a glimmer of light entered. As she moved her bound body, she immediately collided with something cold and hard. It felt as if she was trapped in a narrow box, unable to move.
‘So stifling…’
Moreover, it seemed as if a cloth had been stuffed into her mouth to prevent her from making any noise. The foreign feeling filling her mouth and the stifling sensation of being trapped in a narrow space made it feel as if she was suffocating.
In the darkness where she couldn’t see even an inch ahead, an indescribable sense of dread overwhelmed her. Due to that, the sound of her racing heartbeat reverberated in her ears as if it was about to burst.
‘…Calm down.’
Idel struggled to steady her trembling body and mind. Closing her eyes and taking deep, even breaths, her rapidly pounding heart gradually found a stable rhythm.
Then, through her sense of hearing and touch, she began to perceive some information about her surroundings.
‘I can hear the sound of waves in the distance. The floor is also shaking.’
A memory from her honeymoon resurfaced. It felt the same as the first time she had boarded a ship. The vibration she felt was due to the ship colliding with the waves at a constant rate.
‘So, I’m inside a ship.’
Realizing this, a shiver ran through Idel’s body. Being on a ship meant that she was leaving Maris and heading to the Duke of Shale’s territory.
‘Fortunately, it seems we haven’t set sail yet.’
If the ship were moving, the inside would be shaking even more. Judging by the level of vibration she felt, it seemed they were still anchored.
Then, the sound of footsteps and conversation reached her ears.
“Damn it! We should have left before the harbor closed! We’ve been delayed trying to accommodate that greedy Duke!”
“Right now, the security forces are inspecting all the ships in the harbor. They’re searching thoroughly for contraband.”
It was the voices of Douglas and Dylan. Idel focused intently on their conversation so as not to miss a word.
“Even if the search begins, they’ll never find this place.”
Douglas stomped on the floor. Simultaneously, Idel felt the space she was in reverberate.
“They’ll never know that there’s another floor beneath this one at the very bottom of the ship.”
Douglas declared with a cunning laugh. While it appeared as an ordinary trading vessel, it was specially designed. In most ships, the engine room would be at the bottom.
However, this ship had a double floor underneath the engine room. It was a secret compartment divided into sections, designed to hide contraband effectively.
“Even if they search this engine room, they’ll never suspect that there’s a noble hidden beneath the floor.”
“You should hide yourself too, Douglas. There are rumors that they’re discreetly investigating your whereabouts in the eastern regions.”
“They’ll be investigating those who might have a grudge against the Duke first. I’ve already taken sufficient steps to erase my traces.”
Dylan, laden with worry, received a confident reply from Douglas.
“Once the search of this ship begins, I’ll hide here as well. Make sure everything is smooth on the outside.”
“Understood.”
Taking Douglas’s command, Dylan left the engine room. After he left, Douglas once again stomped on the floor where Idel was hidden.
“Duke Idel.”
Idel’s body twitched at the call.
“Stay hidden there obediently. You might as well get used to the bottom of this ship.”
Douglas concluded his words accompanied by a snickering laugh.
“You’ll soon be leading a life as dismal as that bottom.”
“…!”
Idel’s eyes widened at Douglas’s words, which settled like a curse. Through the conversation between Douglas and Dylan, Idel realized the situation she was in. At the same time, her eyes began to shake uncontrollably.
As Douglas had said, this place was the engine room at the very bottom of the ship. Since the engine room wasn’t used for storing cargo, there was no reason to meticulously search it.
Moreover, as confidently as Douglas had spoken, one wouldn’t imagine that the engine room’s floor would be doubled. He himself had never thought he would be trapped in a space with such a structure.
‘Could they find this place……?’
He had done all he could for his rescue so far. All that was left was to wait for the search to commence, based on the clues he had sent through Zoe. His worry grew as much as his desperate waiting.
‘Please… come find me.’
Only one person she was waiting for—thinking of Caeron’s face, Idel tightly closed her trembling eyes as if trying to shake off her anxiety.
(This is a time delimiter.)
The police had arrived at the trading ship hiding the duchess. Dylan greeted them on the deck.
“Welcome.”
Disguised as a merchant, Dylan wore a seemingly friendly smile.
“We’ve received an official document stating a search for contraband goods. The cargo hold is over there; feel free to take a look.”
“Thanks for cooperating.”
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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