“I want to avoid meeting.”
At his words,
Reyna stared blankly at Arthur.
Arthur also gazed at Reyna for a while.
Her heartbeat was silent, with her breath held.
However, gradually, anxiety mixed into that sound.
“…….”
Arthur silently looked at her, thinking of the excited heartbeat he felt from her outside the door.
The careful vibrations that were present disappeared, and only anxious pleading filled the space.
A face at a loss of what to do.
But unable to say whether she wanted him to meet or not, unable to say anything, she just stared at him blankly.
No words came out of her mouth.
Arthur felt her body temperature dropping.
Silently observing her, Arthur lowered his gaze with a wry smile.
“Have you not considered my proposal?”
“…….,”
Arthur spoke quietly.
“I want to avoid meeting… though I’m quite eager.”
In the midday autumn breeze, the curtains in the pharmacy fluttered.
Through the gaps, the glass-like white sunlight scattered.
In that space, Arthur looked at her.
Tap.
Taylor Lawrence closed the herb store.
Following the predetermined order of the recipe, herbs boiled, filtered, and burned in glass containers and between paper sachets.
In a calm gaze, the hands of the young doctor moved skillfully.
“While working for the Julius family, you won’t only see clean things.”
Yes, I know.
“There’s a prescription for the young lady that I send down every day, so prescribe that.”
“I appreciate your trust. I’ll continue to do my best.”
“Tell her about her grandmother’s health and listen to her stories.”
To Miss Christina? Not Lady Rayna?
“You’ll find out when you go.”
…….
“Black deer antler mushroom, bark of the dragon tree, Atacil fruit. And boil it in water after burning Aluchino roots.”
“…….,”
The gaze of Taylor, recalling the prescription her father taught her, sank.
It was the recipe for the ‘Crimson Water,’ known as the most successful contraceptive.
As is typical of this type of medicine,
It was an unavoidable burden on the body.
It was a medicine not meant for the noble young lady of a family where hands are precious.
“…There may be occasions that require adaptability and judgment.”
“Can I test you?”
“…….,”
The reason why the lady who went to war with her husband after eight years urgently needed to take contraceptive.
At first, he imagined the lady’s denial, but if she was taking it diluted daily,
The effect she sought through the Crimson Water was likely not contraception but fertility.
“…….,”
“While working for the Julius family, you won’t only see clean things.”
“Sometimes, there may be things that do not align with your values.”
“But you are a doctor, and doctors are not limited to us in this world.”
“If you refuse, eventually someone other than you will have to do it.”
“If you don’t help, it could be a greater misfortune for the patients right now.”
“……. ”
After silently handling the herbs in front of her,
Taylor began preparing an antidote that would mitigate the toxicity of the Crimson Water.
It was a medicine that helped reduce the toxicity and burden on the body while maintaining the contraceptive effect of the Crimson Water.
“……. ”
Taylor had already made such a medicine several times.
“…There may be occasions that require adaptability and judgment.”
“Go and see for yourself.”
“Can I test you?”
While the medicinal water filtered through the paper sachet,
Silently gripping the table, Taylor’s eyes were quietly sinking.
Like many parents,
Her father also thought of Taylor as more innocent than her peers,
Thinking of him as a son who grew up not knowing the dark side of the world.
However, like most children,
Taylor had seen and heard more than Alvin Lawrence’s thoughts.
The maids often preferred Taylor over Mr. Lawrence, who was likely to report to the lady of the house, and would make more secret requests to him.
Among them were desperate and desperate requests for the ‘Crimson Water’ several times.
From ladies or mistresses of other families unrelated to the Julius family, from people in the territory,
There were also numerous requests for similar types of secrets.
Naturally, he had observed the outcomes several times.
Some outcomes were fortunate, but others were not.
The ‘Crimson Water’ was a dangerous medicine.
“Can I test you?”
“……. ”
Tap… tap.
The black water, cooled by the herbs, dripped one drop at a time into a transparent glass flask.
Taylor’s memory went back a little earlier than that.
“…There are circumstances, so the Marquis has decided to specially bestow favor from now on.”
“A child named Reyna Astarin.”
“This is confidential from now on.”
Taylor’s gaze, which had quietly sunk,
paused on the illustration of ‘Christina’ in the news she had brought for someone.
“……. ”
Reyna couldn’t say anything and just stared at him blankly.
She seemed confused.
Arthur stared at Reyna intently, then lowered his gaze with his hands.
“…I subjected you to a test.”
“……. ”
And then, Arthur faintly smiled.
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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