Seokwon pocketed his phone and grabbed his coat from the hanger.
“It’s fine.”
“I am not fine with that. Finish up, I’ll have the car waiting.”
Seokwon firmly ended the conversation.
Knowing that Kang Hyun, targeted by Chairman Tae Seok Kyu and the cunning executive team, would be receiving a barrage of drinks, Seokwon felt he couldn’t rest easy without ensuring his safe return home.
[Star Icon] [Star Icon] [Star Icon]Sitting in a café near the company, Ji An held a mug filled with hot coffee, her legs trembling.
“What’s got you so worried? Are you afraid you might have really been pregnant?”
Hearing the full story and accompanying Ji An to meet Hyuna, Ha Joon reassured her that it was probably nothing significant.
“I might have really destroyed a family. How pathetic have I lived.”
“Don’t worry too much. You didn’t hear such things at the hospital. You must have written it without much thought.”
Despite Ha Joon’s consoling words, Ji An couldn’t relax and kept her eyes fixed on the café entrance, stretching her neck with each ring of the door chime. Finally, her gaze met a woman looking around the café.
Seated at a table with Ha Joon, Ji An awkwardly smiled at the woman, who had tightly buttoned her beige coat and approached with hunched shoulders.
“Seo Ji An?”
“Yes, Hyun Ah, right? Thanks for coming.”
Park Hyun Ah, standing in front of them, nervously rubbed her arms and looked down.
“Please, sit. What would you like to drink?”
“No, it’s okay. I don’t plan to stay long.”
Ji An, feeling awkward at Hyun Ah’s clear disinterest in meeting, tried to invite her to sit.
“Who is this?”
“He’s my friend, Ha Joon.”
Hyun Ah took Ha Joon’s offered business card with a sharp look.
“A police officer?”
“Like I told you over the phone, I had a severe accident and lost my memory. Ha Joon is helping me to recover it. I wanted to meet you because…”
“Four years ago, you contacted me first after seeing the pregnancy test and ultrasound picture I posted on SNS. I sold them because I urgently needed money at that time. I don’t know what you’re curious about, but that was all there was to our connection.”
Hyun Ah quickly explained the past encounter as she placed Ha Joon’s card on the table, eager to leave.
“Why did you buy them?”
Ji An’s mouth opened in shock. She had never imagined something more surprising than the words ‘pregnancy’ and ‘affair’.
“I don’t know why. I contacted you after seeing the pictures you posted on SNS about your pregnancy.”
“And the story I heard that day?”
“You just took what you needed and left. There were rumors among our classmates.”
“Rumors?”
“About dating a rich man.”
“Oh, I see.”
Ji An’s eyes darted around, filled with confusion. She regretted not making more effort to recover her past, thinking she had been too casual in erasing it.
“Did I ever talk about the man I was dating?”
“You only took what you needed that day… There were rumors among our classmates.”
“Rumors?”
“Yeah, something about dating a wealthy man.”
“I see.”
Ji An’s dark eyes roamed restlessly, processing the revelations.
Already exhausted from staying up all night, Ji An felt dizzy from the shock of the meeting.
Feeling like her mental stability was splitting apart, she left the cafe with a heavy heart. Despite wanting to collapse somewhere, she didn’t feel like going home, unable to face her parents with a forced smile.
“Ha Joon.”
“Yeah?”
“My mom said she wishes my memory would never return.”
“That just shows how much she loves you now.”
Following her quietly, Ha Joon reached out to pat Ji An’s head, worried about her sinking back into a despondent state like during her listless days in the hospital.
“Do you really want to find your memory?”
“Yeah, I think I need to now.”
“Let’s start with hypnotherapy then. I’ll look into it, so stand up straight, okay?”
Ha Joon gently massaged Ji An’s hunched shoulders and lightly tapped her drooping back, trying to boost her spirits.
“Don’t worry. Just trust this oppa.”
“Oppa? Really?”
Ji An couldn’t ignore Ha Joon’s efforts to cheer her up, despite feeling gloomy.
“I am two months older than you. I’m naturally your oppa.”
“When will you stop with that childish talk? Hard to believe you’re a detective sometimes.”
“True story. Want me to handcuff you?”
“What happens if you report a police officer to the police?”
As Ji An and Ha Joon playfully bickered, footsteps approached and halted behind her.
“Seo Ji An.”
Seo Ji An?
Startled, Ji An quickly turned around. She instinctively recognized the owner of the deep voice, but the form of address was unusual.
“Director?”
Not ‘Secretary Seo’ or ‘Ms. Seo Ji An’, but just Seo Ji An.
Ji An felt her face tingle under the intense gaze from the cold eyes fixed on her. She inadvertently bowed her head, catching a glimpse of Kang Hyun’s slowly moving arm.
“Cut it out.”
Barely holding back the last three words, Kang Hyun grabbed Ha Joon’s wrist, which was still touching Ji An’s back. His patience, already thin, had finally run out.
When scheming men desperately battle for her favor in the male harem
This one’s also on my reread list! The rivalry, scheming between the men in the imperial harem are just as intense and thrilling as in classic palace drama novels, where concubines fight to the death. Give it a read, girls! I promise you won’t be disappointed.
Synopsis:
“I am not worthy of her… but I still want to be by her side, even if only as a loyal dog…”
Those were the painful whispers of Yue Guanyi – the proud Crown Prince of the Great Qi, who was torn between deep love and a guilty conscience. Despite holding the supreme power of the Imperial Guard, he still could not forget the dark past when he was sold into a brothel.
Fate played a cruel twist when Qiu Shuzhi – a young female official who had just passed the imperial examinations with top honors – stepped into his life. She did not know that she was the one who had saved him from a tragic fate many years ago. And now, her heart was the target of pursuit for both Yue Guanyi and the powerful Empress Dowager Qin Qing.
While Yue Guanyi only dared to silently care for and protect the one he loved from afar, the Empress Dowager Qin Qing openly expressed his feelings and did not hesitate to take advantage of his power to approach Qiu Shuzhi. The covert struggle between the two most powerful forces in the imperial court began…
Trigger warning: All men in this novel are yandere style.
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