“I often sit here and drink tea because the view is nice.”
“Yes.”
Do Ha sat in the chair and looked at the landscape outside. Sitting in the beautiful garden made him feel good.
It had been a tough day, but he felt warmed by the comfort he found in So Myung’s presence. As he momentarily admired the scenery, So Myung brought over some hot tea.
“It’s rooibos. It’s caffeinefree, so it should be better.”
“Ah, thank you.”
The two sat side by side, sipping their tea while gazing at the scenery. Unconsciously, Do Ha spoke to her.
“I’ve been there too.”
“Pardon?”
“I’ve also watched the woman I love with another man. So… I understand your feelings better than anyone else.”
“……”
Upon hearing that he had experienced the same thing and understood her feelings, emotions she had been holding back surged up from deep within her. Unconsciously, she let out a sigh, and then began to sob uncontrollably.
“Sob, sob, sob.”
Tears flowed ceaselessly from her eyes.
“You can cry out loud. It’s natural to hurt when you’re wounded. There’s no need to hold it in.”
So Myung began to sob as if spewing out the anger and pain that had been accumulating within her, while Do Ha watched her with sad eyes.
“And you need to be strong. The only one who can protect you is yourself. Don’t crumble.”
“Th… Thank you.”
With her face soaked in tears, So Myung spoke to him. Do Ha quickly went into the living room, took out a tissue, and handed it to her.
After a while of sobbing, So Myung finally calmed down. Do Ha looked at her and spoke.
“I may not be of much help, but if there’s anything you need, let me know.”
“Yes.”
“Do you want to be friends, So Myung?”
“Friends?”
“Yes.”
“Let’s be friends.”
“Then, can you give me your phone number, So Myung?”
She entered her number into the phone he handed her and gave it back to him. He dialed his number and said,
“Save my number.”
“Yes.”
Do Ha looked at So Myung and spoke.
“It’s important to keep your wits about you especially during times like these.”
“Thank you.”
So Myung could only say thank you, but Do Ha’s words were a great comfort to her.
After having tea, Do Ha left, and So Myung was left alone in this big house again.
But she felt a little different than the day before. She kept recalling what Do Ha had said earlier. She repeated his words to herself.
“I have to be strong. The only person who can protect me is me. Yes. I have to be strong.”
In the pitchblack night, So Myung lay alone on the bed, repeating these words over and over. Before she knew it, her eyes began to close, and soon So Myung fell asleep.
On the other hand, the atmosphere was unusual when the two of them returned to Ra Hee’s studio apartment. As soon as she arrived, Ra Hee went into the room and slammed the door shut.
Ji Sung tried to follow her in, turning the door handle, but the door wouldn’t open. With a flustered expression, Ji Sung knocked on the door and spoke.
“Ra Hee, can you open the door? Are you mad?”
“Oppa, you call that an apology?”
“I’m sorry. Did it hurt a lot?”
“Oppa, you should have helped me when I was cornered. Why? Did you understand because your wife said so? I endured being labeled as a mistress for the sake of your love. Do you like seeing me in this state?”
“Ra Hee. Do you know how I’m feeling right now? I’m so angry, I could go mad.”
“What are you going to do now? I’m too upset to let it go like this.”
“I’ll prepare the documents tomorrow and get the stamp.”
“Really?”
“Yes. So open this door.”
“……”
“Ra Hee, quickly.”
As Ji Sung pleaded earnestly, Ra Hee reluctantly opened the door.
Seeing Ra Hee’s disheveled hair, Ji Sung gently stroked her face.
And he whispered to her sweetly and tenderly.
“I won’t let you go through this again. I love you.”
“Oppa, I want to be your woman alone.”
“Yes. It’s only you. No one else.”
At Ji Sung’s words, Ra Hee abruptly hugged him. The two held each other tightly for a long time.
“But the CEO wouldn’t be messing with us, would he?”
Ra Hee suddenly seemed to remember something, and looked up at Ji Sung with anxious eyes, asking,
“It’s natural for a divorcing couple to fight. If they try to stop me from working at the company because we’re divorced, I won’t just stand by!”
Ji Sung said this to reassure the anxious Ra Hee, but he himself felt uneasy.
The image of an enraged Do Ha kept flashing before his eyes.
On the other hand, the question of why he had stepped up for So Myung wouldn’t leave his mind.
CEO Cha Do Ha was famous for his coldness, never showing a smile to any employee, and never intervening in other people’s affairs. Why him?
He tried hard to think that he had taken So Myung’s side because it seemed as if he, Ra Hee, and So Myung had had a street fight to the others, but the constant nuances of the CEO helping So Myung complicated his feelings.
He hated to have her, and he hated to give her away. He even wished that she would live her life missing him, even if they were divorced.
Ji Sung’s mind became complex with the constant thoughts of So Myung.
Ra Hee, oblivious to all of this, looked at him with a pleading expression for endless love. Ji Sung looked at Ra Hee’s face and gently kissed her forehead.
The next morning, So Myung woke up alone in bed. Just yesterday, she had hated waking up, wanting only to escape the start of the day, but today was different.
Perhaps she had gotten some good sleep for the first time in a while; her body seemed a little better. As soon as she got up, she took a shower, fixed her hair, put on her favorite dress, and began to apply makeup.
Looking in the mirror, So Myung vocalized encouragement to herself.
“I have to love myself. I need to take care of myself. I can do it. Hong So Myung. Let’s be strong.”
After finishing her makeup, So Myung left the house. She opened the window as she drove. The cool breeze tickled her face pleasantly.
She pressed the accelerator and increased her speed. After a while, she arrived at a large mansion.
As she got out of the car, she took a deep breath and pressed the doorbell.
“Who is it?”
“Mother, it’s me, So Myung.”
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
