“Contract? That’s nonsense. Did you watch some strange drama?”

Otherwise, this current situation made no sense at all. Being married but allowing to have someone else to love.

Suddenly, I couldn’t understand what this ridiculous talk was about.

“Are you making excuses for me because you want to have a boyfriend?”

As his thoughts went in that direction, his face turned even more fierce.

“Damn it.”

For some reason, just imagining it made his head heat up instantly.

It was just drunken nonsense, something to brush off and forget. He couldn’t stand how pathetic he felt for still being swayed by his wife’s childish proposal.

It seemed that his usually quiet and timid wife’s unexpected behavior had captured his attention, making it hard to forget.

Tae Seong Jun, having reached a conclusion, glared menacingly at the phone carelessly tossed on the table. As if it were Han Seo Yeon herself.

After a while, Seong Jun walked to the table, picked up the phone, and typed a message with an expressionless face.

[Busy. Don’t wait.]

The wife he knew would be flustered and not know what to do upon hearing he was busy with work, and would never dare to speak to him again afterward. However, contrary to Seong Jun’s expectations, a message from his wife arrived shortly after.

“Ha……”

And the moment he read the message, a hollow laugh escaped Seong Jun’s lips.

[Is that so? How busy are you? You’re not pulling an all-nighter, are you? Don’t overwork yourself. Anyway, I’ll wait for you.]

Where exactly was this supposed shy woman? The wife who only cared about others’ feelings had disappeared somewhere, and here was Seo Yeon, saying what she wanted to say as if she didn’t need to hear Seong Jun’s answer, drawing her own conclusions and ending the conversation.

[See you tonight.]

Seong Jun frowned. His wife’s sudden change in behavior, so different from before, was not only bewildering but continued to provoke him.

*

At that time.

Seo Yeon was attending a regular meeting of the Peony Society, one of the gatherings hosted by her mother-in-law.

This group, which had been consistently maintained for three years now, was a private gathering of chaebol daughters-in-law established with the purpose of appreciating art and cultivating refinement together. They met on weekday afternoons at her mother-in-law’s home to enjoy light meals and desserts while building friendships.

Her mother-in-law was Seong Jun’s stepmother, still in her early 40s.

In the early days of their marriage, her mother-in-law was quite cautious with Seo Yeon, always polite and friendly. It seemed she felt awkward, perhaps because she was not her husband’s birth mother but his stepmother.

So when she suggested that Seo Yeon attend the meetings, she carefully recommended it, adding that Seo Yeon, a promising pianist, would be a perfect fit for the Peony Society’s purpose.

Seo Yeon had gladly agreed. At that time, she was happy about the suggestion, thinking it would be an opportunity to get closer to her new family member, her mother-in-law.

“Seo Yeon, I’m sorry, but could you bring more dessert? We’ve run out.”

But now, everyone here knew that Seo Yeon was attending the meeting not as Hwa Young’s daughter-in-law, but to work as her personal secretary.

Seo Yeon, who had been sitting alone in the corner, raised her head at Hwa Young’s voice.

“Yes, of course.”

She nodded with a calm face and stood up. Satisfied with Seo Yeon’s response, Hwa Young smiled brightly as she brought her teacup to her lips and added in a light voice.

“Please bring some for our ladies as well.”

At Hwa Young’s addition, the other attendees’ faces twisted with discomfort.

They also knew that Seo Yeon’s standing had become terrible due to her elder brother’s targeted investigation of Han Kyung Group.

However, despite this, she was still the wife of Seong Jun, who was mentioned as a strong candidate for the next successor of Han Kyung Group.

Regardless of the situation, the weight of that name was hard to shake off, and they felt very uncomfortable with the current situation of looking down on Seo Yeon.

But they couldn’t dissuade Hwa Young, who was the de facto leader of the gathering, from her actions. After all, even if she was an unacknowledged daughter-in-law, Hwa Young was still a daughter-in-law of Han Kyung Group.

“Yes, I understand.”

Seo Yeon nodded obediently. The atmosphere, which had felt like walking on thin ice, eased somewhat. The middle-aged woman who had been openly showing her discomfort even sighed in relief.

Seo Yeon knew that Hwa Young’s treatment of her as a secretary or employee was a way of venting her frustrations against the haughty in-laws who consistently disrespected her.

None of the Han Kyung family members, except for Seong Jun, treated her as an adult, and especially Seo Yeon’s grandfather-in-law, the chairman of Han Kyung Group, wouldn’t even accept greetings from the couple after Seong Jun’s father decided to divorce.

In this frustrating situation, Seo Yeon, the sister of the man who had caused massive losses to Han Kyung Group and who wasn’t on good terms with Seong Jun, was an excellent target for venting.

“I’d like it if you could bring it as quickly as possible. The tea loses its flavor when it cools.”

Even though Seo Yeon had complied obediently, Hwa Young’s additional comment instantly brought down the mood of the gathering again.

Their expressions seemed to say they didn’t understand why she was bullying her so much when she herself wasn’t an acknowledged daughter-in-law.

‘Why hasn’t he replied yet?’

But at that moment, Seo Yeon was too preoccupied with analyzing Seong Jun’s behavior, who still hadn’t responded to her message, to pay attention to Hwa Young’s actions or the reactions of others.

She simply nodded with a calm face and turned around. And no one saw Seo Yeon’s pouting expression as she left the place.

*

Seo Yeon made her way to the dining room. A housekeeper wearing an apron recognized Seo Yeon and approached her.

“Young lady, do you need anything?”

Seo Yeon smiled faintly at the housekeeper and said.

“Could you prepare some more dessert for us?”

“You should have called for me for such matters.”

“It’s alright. Please prepare plenty of tea and dessert. Enough for mother and the guests to have their fill. I’ll carry it myself.”

“Oh my. Alright then.”

It was when Seo Yeon returned to her seat carrying the dessert and tea prepared by the housekeeper.

A notification for a new message appeared on the screen of the phone she had left on the table.

Seo Yeon quickly checked the sender’s name. It was her husband. Seo Yeon brightened up and checked the message.

[7 o’clock.]

However, she soon made a bewildered expression at Seong Jun’s halfhearted reply.

‘Not even “I’ll be there at 7”, just “7 o’clock”? What’s that supposed to mean? He’d send a more considerate message even to a complete stranger.’

Come to think of it, her husband had always been far from considerate and always prioritized work, but she didn’t know why it suddenly made her angry now.

After grumbling inwardly for a while, Seo Yeon checked the time.

‘It’s already 4:30.’

The meeting, which usually ended at 3, was dragging on today. From the atmosphere, it didn’t seem like it would end soon.

‘What should I do? I said I’d prepare dinner today.’

She had rushed here without finishing her preparations because of Hwa Young’s sudden call.

It was clear that Hwa Young would show her displeasure if Seo Yeon said she would leave first, but she couldn’t break her promise when she needed to ask for her husband’s cooperation. Having made up her mind, Seo Yeon stood up.

“Why are you standing up?”

Hwa Young asked Seo Yeon, who was quietly rising from her seat.

“Where are you going?”

Seo Yeon answered in a calm voice with her hands politely folded.

“Mother, I’m sorry, but I’ll have to leave early today.”

Hwa Young frowned slightly at Seo Yeon’s answer.

“Why? Do you have an appointment or something?”

She was incredibly irritated by Seo Yeon’s attitude of leaving first without being told to do so.

“Yes. I have a prior engagement today, so I need to leave now.”

Hwa Young thought Seo Yeon would cancel her statement about leaving early since she had shown her displeasure. However, far from canceling, Seo Yeon continued to insist.

“Who exactly do you have an appointment with?”

She was starting to get angry, moving beyond just feeling strange, as her daughter-in-law, who used to be good and naive, following whatever she said no matter what, kept talking back.

Perhaps because there were many eyes watching, that anger doubled. The atmosphere of the gathering instantly sank at Hwa Young’s cold voice.

As the women who came as guests exchanged glances and watched the two, Seo Yeon, looking at Hwa Young with a troubled face, honestly revealed the name of her appointment.

“…With Seong Jun.”

“…!”

When the unexpected name came out of Seo Yeon’s mouth, Hwa Young’s eyes widened immediately. She asked carefully with a visibly stiffened face.

“…Really?”

“Yes. I’m supposed to have dinner with Seong Jun today.”

Seo Yeon answered with a calm face.

“…Is that so? Then you should hurry and go. We shouldn’t keep a busy person waiting unnecessarily. Go on, hurry.”

“I’m sorry, mother.”

Hwa Young waved her hand.

“What are you sorry for? When you have a prior engagement… I should be the one apologizing for thoughtlessly keeping a busy person. Go quickly now. Thank you for your hard work today.”

Seo Yeon, who had expected to hear very unpleasant words from Hwa Young for at least a few minutes, looked at her unexpectedly as she let her go so easily, then bowed to the members of the Peony Society and Hwa Young before leaving her seat.