That illness was like a divine punishment gained from the pain of miscarriage.
Patients with vasovagal syncope need to be cautious in situations that can trigger stress or fear, as these can lead to temporary fainting. Arin had been fighting this frightening illness for three years. It was something beyond her control.
“Don’t think about him.”
“……Ji-yoon.”
“The more you think about it, the harder it gets for you. Just ignore it.”
“…….”
“Arin, I don’t think you will, but just in case, don’t waver.”
Ji-yoon looked at Arin with worried eyes.
After a brief silence, Arin spoke first.
“I… should I file a lawsuit?”
“……A lawsuit?”
“Yes. The lawyer said that a consensual divorce seems unlikely and suggested filing for divorce.”
“Ah…….”
“I didn’t want to go as far as a lawsuit…… maybe I was too complacent.”
Ji-yoon pulled the blanket up to Arin’s chest and covered her.
“First, take this chance to get a check-up and rest. We’ll go after that.”
“……”
“If this ambiguous situation continues, maybe filing a lawsuit would be better.”
“Yeah.”
“Don’t worry about the shop since Mom and Brother are handling it. Just rest well, okay?”
Ji-yoon spoke sternly, like a mother.
“Thank you.”
Arin felt overwhelmed with gratitude.
“I’m really glad you’re here, Ji-yoon.”
It was heartfelt.
If Ji-yoon hadn’t been there, she surely would have lived a dreadful life.
“I know, I’m glad you’re here too, Arin.”
Ji-yoon seemed to understand Arin’s feelings and smiled.
“Aaargh!”
Mrs. Jung vented her fury at the disconnected phone.
Jung Hyo-eon, the mother of Ban Jae-hyeok.
She was born as the eldest daughter of the family that founded Seodo Group, the origin of South Korea’s top conglomerate VAN Group.
It was her grandfather who founded Seodo Corporation, originally a food company.
Ban Ho-jun, who married her as a son-in-law, succeeded the group. It was under his leadership that ‘Seodo Group’ was renamed to the current ‘VAN Group’.
Ban Ho-jun was a man who was unyielding and cold in business, not bowing to anyone, except his wife, Jung Hyo-eon.
He couldn’t resist Mrs. Jung, so he actively covered up whatever wickedness or malice she showed.
In South Korea’s business world, her husband might be powerful, but in front of her, he was a gentle lamb, and her son was also obedient to her words.
Mrs. Jung feared nothing.
But, things started to deviate subtly.
With her husband and even with her son.
“It’s all because of Choi Arin.”
Eventually, unable to contain her anger, she threw the phone that had been unilaterally disconnected.
Everything went awry since Choi Arin stepped into her son’s life.
“You’re defying my warning.”
[We’re over. Just wait for the divorce day. Don’t do anything unnecessary.]Despite her direct warning, she was certain that Arin had tricked her naïve son.
Her tightly clenched fist made her red nails dig into her palm.
Mrs. Jung didn’t feel the pain, overwhelmed with rage directed not at Jae-hyeok, but entirely at Arin.
She should never have let them marry.
[You should marry this girl. Your son can have a successor.]Even if it was the words of the trusted fortune teller she still believed in, she should never have allowed the marriage.
Or, she should have pretended to marry them, got a grandchild, and then discarded her.
In the end, she neither saw a grandchild nor did her relationship with Jae-hyeok remain intact.
Mrs. Jung remembered what Jae-hyeok said when she told him to marry.
[“I’ll marry as you wish, Mother. But I have a condition. Don’t constrain me or Arin. Don’t force pregnancy upon us. If you agree to no three-year term, then I’ll marry.”]
Mrs. Jung initially doubted her son’s words.
‘Could it be, does Jae-hyeok have feelings for that girl?’
Although Jae-hyeok and Arin’s relationship had cooled off since he became a middle schooler, they were very close before that, despite her objections.
She briefly feared her son might actually have feelings for Arin. But it turned out to be an unfounded concern.
After three years of marriage, realizing Jae-hyeok lacked significant interest in Arin, Mrs. Jung sighed in relief.
She was convinced. His earlier demand, which seemed like a threat, was not for Arin’s sake but for his own.
But now, Jae-hyeok’s actions seemed inexplicable unless he had developed feelings for Arin.
Unable to contain her anger, Mrs. Jung screamed,
“How did this cunning girl bewitch you so that you can’t even recognize your own mother?”
The phone shattered on the marble floor.
As Mrs. Jung was stepping on the broken phone, imagining it as Arin, a man’s smooth voice interrupted her.
“What happened that has upset you so much?”
Mrs. Jung, who got everything she wanted from Ban Ho-jun, knew only one unforgivable sin: infidelity.
[“Even if our marriage wasn’t born of mad love, it’s based on trust. I can never forgive infidelity during our marriage. So don’t do it, and if you ever find yourself attracted to someone else, make sure I never find out.”]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
