Amy lay curled up on the damp and dirty prison floor. Having been kidnapped by Lady Esmeine and awaiting her death, she had been forcibly silenced the previous day by a sudden intruder who cut off her tongue.
“…….,”
Her trembling hand was raised into the air, illuminated by the bright moonlight. She had been imprisoned for so long that her bones had become visibly thin. Even that effort was too much, and she let her hand fall weakly.
‘How much longer must I live like this? Why doesn’t Lady Esmeine just kill me with a single stroke?’
In her hazy state of mind, she recalled a memory of the young prince, frightened by a thunderous night, sneaking into her room with a pillow. She chided him for being afraid, but still lifted the corner of the blanket to tuck him into bed.
It was she who could sleep soundly, comforted by the warmth of his hand and his peaceful breathing. The prince she knew was never afraid of thunder.
‘Maybe the prince will come to save me because of our past…’
That was the only reason she couldn’t abandon hope, even in such dire circumstances.
Then, she heard a voice from the stairway.
“What exactly is supposed to be here?”
Amy’s breath caught. It was the voice of the prince she had been longing for.
Too weak to move, she only managed to open her eyes wide, staring at the prison entrance. There stood the prince, pale-faced, with Lady Esmeine clinging to his side, smirking at Amy.
“Oh, Your Highness, don’t you know?”
Lady Esmeine’s eyes twinkled mischievously. Amy could only stare intensely at the prince, her heart ablaze with joy.
Finally, he had come to rescue her!
“…….,”
The prince’s golden eyes casually scanned the prison and then frowned.
“What is this smell… Tsk, it’s unpleasant. Let’s go back.”
“!”
As he turned away, Amy involuntarily gasped for air. At that moment, the prince twitched his shoulder as if he was about to look back, but Lady Esmeine clung tighter, laughing.
“I shouldn’t have bothered with this. But well, it was amusing.”
“What’s so amusing about this?”
The two of them left the prison just like that.
“…….,”
Once the prison was quiet again, Amy gathered her shattered mind to grasp the situation.
‘He didn’t see me?’
That was impossible. Although the prison was underground, a small gap near the ground allowed moonlight to stream in through the iron bars, clearly illuminating her. Anyone who knew Amy couldn’t have missed her.
‘So, the prince…’
Her reason coldly concluded.
‘He saw me… and just left.’
The prince, who had grown up with her and often pestered her about marriage, had now seen her in this wretched state, wrinkled his nose at the foul smell, grumbled, and left without a second thought.
Amy slowly opened her eyes. The memory from long ago still tainted her mood.
‘I actually didn’t die until several years later, but…’
She silently surveyed her surroundings. The scene was exactly as in her memory.
‘It’s still bone-chillingly cold here.’
The shackles around her ankles were the same, almost making her laugh. Sitting on the icy floor, Amy straightened her back. With each breath, her white breath puffed out.
After a while, she finally heard the sound she had been waiting for.
Click-clack, someone was approaching. Eventually, the footsteps stopped in front of the prison.
“…….,”
The woman slowly opened her eyes. A nobly dressed lady stood in front of the prison bars, covering her mouth with a fan, looking down at her.
“How dare a lowly creature like you summon me here?”
The voice was thick with anger and contempt. The woman imprisoned in the dungeon, Amelia, also affectionately known as Amy, had been the housekeeper of the Crown Prince’s palace and was currently serving in the same role for the Second Prince.
“Didn’t you want to hear a confession, Lady Esmeine?”
“…….,”
There was no reply, but Amy could feel that Lady Esmeine was flustered, having her identity exposed. Amy sneered inwardly.
‘You always get so worked up about the Crown Prince’s affairs. As if I wouldn’t know what you’ve done.’
Externally, Amy spoke with courteous restraint.
“As I’ve said from the beginning, it’s a misunderstanding, Lady Esmeine.”
“……Lady?”
The noblewoman sharply raised her tone at the end. Amy inwardly clicked her tongue. Was she going to be so blunt now that her cover was blown? Amy corrected herself, still with a kind tone.
“Oh, my mistake. Your Highness, the future Crown Princess.”
“……Hmph.”
Although still hiding behind her fan, Lady Esmeine couldn’t conceal her satisfied snicker. ‘Disgusting,’ Amy thought to herself, but continued speaking calmly.
“You said I harbored feelings for His Highness the Crown Prince, but I have never once held any affection for him.”
“Denying it verbally is easy,” retorted Lady Esmeine coldly.
‘As expected, she won’t believe me easily.’
Amy bowed her head, hiding her annoyed expression, but soon continued.
“If we’re to be specific… Your Highness, don’t you have a younger brother? Baron Dorian, the future Duke Esmeine…”
“Why bring him up now?”
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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