To You Whom I Don’t Love That Much (Completed Main Story) - Chapter 023
23.
“Oh my goodness. If my eyes don’t deceive me, those two just over there…….”
“You didn’t know? It’s been all the talk lately.”
“Only three months after it happened? Could the lady have been waiting all this time just for the engagement to be broken?”
“Who knows. But she is the lady, after all. Ruling as the presumptive crown princess for over ten years, and then immediately turning to Cardier? Bolder than I imagined…….”
As Rosetta and Cardier passed a little closer by, the young noblewomen who had been casually gossiping suddenly flapped their fans and stifled their laughter. Their awkward change of topic was merely an added bonus.
Having experienced the same situation about ten times while circling half the ballroom, she no longer even felt hollow laughter rising. After all, the one they so diligently criticized was ‘Lea,’ not her.
For the first time, Rosetta felt relieved that Cardier was by her side. Had he not been there, she would’ve been stopped every three steps with a barrage of curious questions. The noble ladies’ gazes were no more than mildly ticklish—almost cozy—so she could simply ignore them. But their tongues were the most fearsome weapons of all.
As she glanced around, using Cardier as a shield, a long trumpet blast rang out not long after. It was the signal that members of the royal family were entering. She curiously stretched her neck to sneak a peek at the crown prince and his fiancée. The prince was reasonably handsome, but certainly not a man so extraordinarily beautiful that a woman as lovely as Lea would give up her life for him.
Then again, if she had fallen for looks alone, she wouldn’t have chosen the crown prince over Cardier. And if she’d merely coveted the title of crown princess, she wouldn’t have resorted to suicide out of despair…… So the prince must have some exceptionally remarkable personality traits.
Was it because she had scrutinized everything too thoroughly? She absentmindedly turned her head toward the direction of a gaze she felt, only to lock eyes directly with the crown prince. For a moment, his pupils widened, then his expression slowly filled with something close to shock.
“……What? He looks like he’s seen a ghost.”
Ros muttered dryly, tilting her head. Lea’s attendance was common knowledge—why was he so surprised? Momentarily distracted by the surrounding situation, Rosetta jumped when the emperor suddenly burst into loud laughter.
“Now then, let’s skip the tiresome speeches and start the ball instead!”
At those words, the small sounds of the orchestra tuning their instruments ceased. The nobles began to move outward in a circle, clearing a large open space. The formal ball was about to begin.
The Male lead Always Seduces Her with His Beauty (Matriarchy)
Xin Jiao Zhou is the leader of the world’s premier sect. She has just experienced betrayal from all sides, was poisoned in an assassination attempt, and faced death squad attacks while the poison was taking effect. After finally clearing out the scum from her sect, she was drugged again while trying to detoxify.
After waking up from a night of unconsciousness, she gained a “beautiful and kind-hearted” husband.
Xin Jiao Zhou: “???”
He fell ill.
She came to see him, bringing breakfast.
As she put down the breakfast and was about to leave, his hand slipped while holding the spoon. “Clank!”
She turned around upon hearing the noise.
He looked up at her, his eyebrows drooping: “My hand… has no strength.”
“Shall I… feed you?” she asked tentatively.
He opened his mouth cheerfully: “Ah—”
Thinking she was drowning, he jumped in without hesitation to save her, but nearly drowned himself. In the end, it was she who swam over to rescue him, giving him air underwater.
After emerging from the water, his ear tips turned red. He lightly brushed his cheek, tucking his sideburns behind his ear, revealing delicate, pink-tinged ear tips. He lowered his gaze, too embarrassed to look at her.
Xin Jiao Zhou: He’s truly beautiful, kind-hearted, and adorable.
A certain someone when disciplining subordinates behind the scenes: “If they don’t obey, just kill them.”
What’s that? She might already have someone she cares about in her heart? A certain someone: Find out who it is, kill them, and then there won’t be anyone.
What? She met a man by the riverside? What? That man even hurt her? A certain someone: Whichever hand hurt her, chop off his entire arm.
Love at first sight without realizing it, gradually falling in love, slowly getting closer…
Family and national grudges, schemes and desires, good and evil, crime and punishment, she and he face the future together, seeking justice with passion!
A naturally dark female lead who could accidentally destroy the world but is actually an honest person VS a weak, pitiful, and helpless but skilled fighter, beautiful white-cut black male lead
My heart is not of stone, how steadfast is your love? — Tao Yuanming “Imitating the Ancients (No. 3)”
— Reading Guide —
Cold female lead & dramatic black lotus with hidden yandere traits male lead
A very interesting story. I’m delighted.