Siyoon tightened his grip on the wrist he had grabbed, seating Mijoo back on the sofa with gentle yet restrained movements. Mijoo entrusted her body to his guidance.
“Two years ago, my father passed away.”
Mijoo’s ears perked up at the sudden mention of family, but she quickly regained her composure.
“I’m sorry, but I don’t see how your father’s passing is related to this marriage proposal.”
“My father was a potter, well-known if you mention his name.”
Mijoo recalled the famous potter, Kim Jae-jun, who passed away two years ago.
“Could your father’s name be…”
“The potter Jeongdam.”
Mijoo covered her mouth with her hand to hide her surprise. Realizing that even this gesture betrayed her astonishment, she quickly lowered her hand and sat up, pretending to be unaffected.
Even those unfamiliar with art knew of the world-renowned potter who often appeared in the news and interviews.
“You must have been busy, but if you had any interest in Korean news, you would have heard at least a snippet.”
“Yes, there’s a lawsuit over his posthumous works.”
“My father left some of his works to my uncle, so we filed a claim for a reserved portion. I’m trying to get my share.”
Mijoo couldn’t believe that someone involved in the lawsuit she had heard about was right in front of her.
Moreover, the parties to the lawsuit were from one of our country’s most prestigious educational foundations.
They owned a vast educational corporation, encompassing everything from private elementary schools to high schools, special schools, and university hospitals, with rumors of their immense real estate wealth in Seoul and Gyeonggi Province.
“How could you, even with your uncle…”
“I might seem materialistic.”
“…”
“That’s right. I’m materialistic, and I must have whatever I want.”
Siyoon’s gaze at Mijoo flickered strangely.
His eyes were fierce, as if he had to possess even what was before him.
But Mijoo’s eyes also sparkled.
‘This man’s father not only crafted fine ceramics but also shaped his son into a masterpiece.’
Siyoon, deeply immersed in conversation, looked like a beautiful painting from the side.
“I won’t put my father’s works up for auction just to increase my wealth.”
“What about your uncle?”
“Let’s leave the long family history.”
Mijoo couldn’t ask further in front of Siyoon, who kept his private life away from the internet.
“Anyway, I need to inherit the cultural foundation and file a lawsuit to protect my father’s works. To do that, I need to marry someone before returning to Korea, as my grandfather threatened.”
“You talk about preserving your father’s works, but isn’t this ultimately about greed for money and power, leading to a forced marriage?”
Even over trivial matters, Siyoon, who blushed and apologized, seemed amused by Mijoo’s straightforwardness and smiled subtly.
Meanwhile, Mijoo felt a twinge in her heart every time Siyoon smiled.
‘A man who can’t love women.’
The man proposing a contractual relationship without any personal interest or hesitation. Mijoo felt ashamed for harboring feelings for such a man.
“Don’t laugh. We’re having a serious conversation.”
Mijoo, trying to conceal her feelings, spoke sharply to Siyoon with a serious expression. Her face reddened with the effort to hide her emotions, and her forced, awkward expression was evident.
“Why did you suddenly change your mind after abruptly standing up earlier, refusing to hear anything?”
“It’s not that I’ve changed my mind…”
“Right now, I’m being threatened by my grandfather.”
Siyoon reiterated his situation, hoping to make an impact. Mijoo couldn’t help but laugh at the mention of ‘threat.’
Siyoon wasn’t sure what made Mijoo laugh, but he liked seeing her burst into laughter at his story.
Perhaps, even if it was a contractual relationship, the thought of having such a bright woman as his bride seemed appealing.
“You won’t misunderstand me now, thinking I’m making frivolous jokes or playing pointless pranks on Miss Choi Mijoo?”
“I’m sorry for the misunderstanding.”
“So, will you consider the contract with me?”
Siyoon leaned in closer to Mijoo. They were close enough for her to feel his breath.
‘Dangerous.’
She should push away this man who suddenly invaded her personal space.
‘I’m not the one in danger. It’s only him, looking at my lips with desire.’
But Mijoo couldn’t turn her head away.
Her eyes remained fixed on Siyoon’s thick lips, trying to maintain a calm expression despite her racing heart.
Siyoon’s heart throbbed.
‘Does she really not know how dangerous it is to look at me like that?’
The risk of being this close to a man she had only met twice.
Siyoon thought it wasn’t bad to have Mijoo by his side, even if the marriage talk was just for the sake of the contract.
“Is there really no one else you can ask?”
“Currently, it’s only you.”
“You’re so handsome and well-groomed, are you sure there’s no one?”
Caught off guard by the sudden compliment, Siyoon laughed loudly and rested his forehead on Mijoo’s shoulder before pulling away. He wanted to create even a small, seemingly accidental contact.
Male lead is a Divorced Husband
She said to him: “Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change it!”
Liu Changning transmigrated into a female cannon fodder character in a female-dominant novel.
After reading the first half of the novel’s plot, the first thing she did upon transmigration was to divorce the Pan Jinlian-style male protagonist she had just married.
She indulged herself, pretending to be ugly and poor.
But as time passed, the way that man looked at her became more and more unusual…
Liu Changning was dumbfounded: Tell me, what makes you like me? I’ll change!
――
This lifetime, Pei Yuanshao was rejected by the same woman twice!
The first time, she drove him away. Forced by the situation, he endured the waves of anger in his heart, yielding and humbling himself.
That person lay slanted on a rocking chair, her sallow face emotionless: “If you don’t want a divorce, go cook!”
Pei Yuanshao’s face was dark and gloomy: “You!”
The second time, after the crisis in Jinling City was resolved, the new emperor sent someone to pick him up. He turned around, stammering: “I… I have to go. If you keep me…”
That person lay on the kang bed, her back to him, as if she had long anticipated this day, crisp and clear: “Goodbye!”
Pei Yuanshao was so angry his fingers trembled: “You… you!”
The mission of family and country made him restrain himself, averting his eyes and turning to leave this broken household.
Two years later, they met again. Seeing her ethereal face, his body shook like a sieve.
“She was originally a ‘she’!”
At the Qionglin Banquet, the top scholar of the imperial examination, a talented person with exceptional speech and conduct, all the unmarried young gentlemen from aristocratic families looked at her with shy and timid eyes.
The peerless imperial official Pei Yuanshao felt the anger in his heart erupt. He pointed at the woman surrounded by the crowd at the Qionglin Banquet, his thin lips slightly curled: “Little sister, I wants that person to be the wife-master of my Mingde Prince Manor.”
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