“Co……Hm!”
Lea covered her mouth with both hands as she almost accidentally referred to the man as a count. Teo cautiously asked amid the strange atmosphere surrounding the two.
“Lea. Do you know him?”
“Ah, that person is.”
How could she explain? She couldn’t exactly tell them that Count Heidern had followed her on her vacation.
Just as Lea was thinking hard to find the right answer, the count stepped closer to the pair and said,
“I am, that apothecary’s…….”
‘Surely, he’s not about to reveal that he’s the count?’
He was definitely going to head straight to the lord of Tren soon.
Lea swiftly intercepted the count’s words, worried that the orphanage would be put in an awkward position by the knowledge of the count’s visit.
“He’s my assistant!”
Although it wasn’t a good answer, it was the best one Lea could give.
“What?”
“What?!”
Both individuals responded simultaneously.
One had a stunned expression, while the other….
“An assistant! Already, you have an assistant? That’s really amazing, Lea!”
Teo, with his eyes wide open, grabbed Lea’s hand.
She avoided the gaze of Teo, who was looking at her with sparkling eyes.
‘It’s a good thing Teo is so clueless.’
Although the count was behaving quite rudely for someone who was supposed to be an assistant, the innocent Teo didn’t suspect a thing.
‘The problem is the count….’
Glancing at him confirmed her suspicions. His expression was as if he had eaten something disgusting.
‘Yes, it’s shocking. Being referred to as an assistant by your employer.’
Sweat was trickling down her back as she smiled awkwardly at Teo.
Even if the count was upset, what could she do about it? Lea did her best to ignore the count’s burning gaze.
“Nice to meet you! My name is Teo. I’ve grown up together with Lea since we were children.”
Count Heidern reluctantly shook Teo’s outstretched hand.
“……James.”
Apparently, he had no intention of revealing his identity either, and nonchalantly mentioned the name of a gardener who works under Count Heidern.
However, his cold demeanor, devoid of any basic greetings, made Lea step forward to speak on his behalf.
“My assistant is a bit shy…… haha.”
“Well, that’s possible.”
Teo scratched his head with his awkward hand, picked up the luggage he had set aside, and said,
“Let’s go already. Everyone must be waiting.”
“Oh? Right. Then Co……, James, you should leave?”
That was when Lea gave him a signal to leave.
“Your name is James, right? Would you like to join us for dinner?”
‘Teo, the count wouldn’t join us for a meal at a shabby orphanage.’
Expecting him to decline, Lea was nodding her head when an unexpected answer came from the side.
“If you’re okay with it, I’d be happy to.”
“Huh? You’ll join us for dinner? Why?”
She would be able to enjoy a feast if she went to the lord’s mansion, so why?
Even with Lea’s questioning gaze, the count only smirked.
“Haha. Alright.”
Teo chuckled at the fact that Lea had such an interesting assistant.
“Teo, my assistant has somewhere to…….”
“James. Welcome!”
Lea was trying to explain something to Teo, who was ahead of her, but it seemed he couldn’t hear her.
Really, Teo was truly clueless.
[This is a time delimiter.]When they entered the orphanage, an elderly woman greeted Lea.
“Director!”
The director of the orphanage, Maribel, was like a mother to Lea. As soon as she saw Maribel after a long time, Lea rushed over to hug her tightly.
“Have you been well all this while?”
“Yes! Of course!”
“Good. I heard you’re working in the Heidern territory? How’s work?”
“Well, about that….”
Lea glanced sideways at the count who was standing beside her.
‘If you ask about work in front of my boss…’
“Very good!”
Answering that everything is fine is a given. The answer to that question was already predetermined.
“But who is this?”
Maribel gestured toward the count, who had followed Lea.
“That person, no. That’s my assistant. He came down with me to help with the matters of Magnolia’s orphanage.”
“The one assisting Lea. Please take care of us. The name is…….”
Again, Lea stepped forward to introduce the Count. However,
“Nice to meet you. My name is James.”
Unlike with Teo, Akia answered first. Even bringing Maribel’s hand to his lips.
“Oh my.”
‘Why is he suddenly like this?’
Lea, surprised by the sudden change in the Count’s demeanor, followed Teo’s lead and entered the dining room with James.
Mealtime was always hectic. Warm bread and soup. And even a wellcooked chicken.
The children, who had only eaten potatoes and gruel recently, could not hide their excitement at the delicious food they hadn’t had in a while.
“Chew it slowly and thoroughly.”
Lea was busy taking care of the children, not even touching her own plate. Akia, who was watching Lea, aimlessly fiddled with his chicken.
‘Tch. I sent her on vacation.’
She’s been working at the orphanage all day. As soon as she entered here, she started preparing meals and taking care of the children.
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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