Laura Pendleton remembered how she had managed to return home on the first snowy day. The image of Mr. Dalton, whom she had met in front of the umbrella shop, stood vividly in her mind. She couldn’t recall the details of their conversation, but she remembered him pressing an umbrella into her hand. However, everything after collapsing into his arms was a dark blank.
The accounts of those around her filled in the rest. Mr. Dalton had wrapped her in his jacket and rushed her to a hotel room, they said. He stayed by her side until dawn, then left with only a mention of returning to Whitefield.
He had saved her. He had brought her, sick and vulnerable, safely back to her nest. Without him, she might have collapsed on the street, facing some terrible fate.
What if he, too, is suffering from a fever like I was…
Laura felt as if darkness was closing in before her eyes. She had been so gravely ill, she thought she might die. The idea that he might be enduring the same pain gripped her heart with guilt and worry, her hands trembling with anxiety.
Miss Hyde, returning with a glass of water, was startled by Laura’s pale complexion. She took the letter from Laura’s hand and made her lie back on the bed. Laura lay down, her heart heavy with unease.
Miss Hyde began reading the remaining letters aloud, but Laura heard none of it. Her mind was entirely consumed with worry for Mr. Dalton.
After finishing the last letter, Miss Hyde neatly arranged them and placed them in the letterbox at the bottom of the bedside table.
“They’re all good people,” she said. “Society is full of snobs, but Miss Pendleton, you’re surrounded by kind and loyal souls. That’s probably because you’re such a person yourself.”
Laura gave a shadowed smile.
“I’m not sure what kind of person I am, but it’s true that I’m surrounded by good people. One of them is you, Miss Hyde.”
Miss Hyde laughed lightly. She touched Laura’s forehead and tucked the blanket around her.
“Your complexion is getting worse somehow.”
“Maybe I got too excited about Christmas.”
“You’re like a child, Miss Pendleton.”
Their eyes met, and they smiled.
Outside, white snow continued to fall heavily. Together, they watched the Christmas landscape gradually darken through the window.
“Miss Pendleton,” Miss Hyde said.
Laura, lying in bed and imagining Mr. Dalton sick under a sky heavy with dusty clouds, her vision blurred with tears, turned to look at Miss Hyde.
“Today, Miss Lotis is out to have tea with the president of Delson Publishing. They’re the most likely publisher to contract her next book.”
“I know that publisher,” Laura said. “No book lover could be unaware of them.”
“Yes. It seems they’ve offered a substantial advance to secure Miss Lotis. They’ve even promised to assign their most experienced editor to her, written into the contract. Unless something unexpected happens, Miss Lotis will sign the deal today and return.”
This was news to Laura. For a moment, it was startling enough to push thoughts of Mr. Dalton from her mind.
“That’s wonderful! Though, I feel a bit sorry for parting ways with her previous publisher. They covered the cost of this lovely suite and provided you, Miss Hyde.”
Miss Hyde shook her head.
“It’s only natural for a promotional tour. Besides, that publisher went from a struggling three-person operation to a major firm with a five-story office in central London, all thanks to Miss Lotis. Compared to the profits they’ve reaped, a suite and a novice typist are trivial. If they’d printed her books properly without errors in the first place, Miss Lotis wouldn’t have needed to look for a new publisher.”
Understanding Miss Lotis’s perspective, Laura nodded.
Miss Hyde suddenly let out a deep sigh, and Laura grew puzzled.
“What’s wrong, Miss Hyde? Miss Lotis is about to sign a splendid contract, yet you seem upset.”
“Once the contract is signed, we’ll leave immediately. By early March at the latest. Miss Lotis is itching to travel again. She’s grown weary of England.”
“Don’t you want to leave England, Miss Hyde?”
“Of course not. I’m tired of England too.”
“Then that’s perfect. You’re heading straight to Japan, right?”
“Probably. We’ll pass through a few countries, but they’re just stepping stones from one port to another. Japan is the goal. Though Miss Lotis seems more intrigued by the country next to it, near the Qing Empire. According to missionary writings, there’s a people there who eat enormous amounts of rice, wear white clothing, and don splendid hats. I’m curious to hear what they think of the West. They probably see us as thieves, given what we’ve done.”
Miss Hyde’s voice lacked energy. Laura found it strange. Miss Hyde had always longed to see the wide world, yet now, with the opportunity near, she showed no joy.
When Laura asked again for the reason, Miss Hyde gave a wistful smile.
“Because I have to part with you, Miss Pendleton.”
“Oh… now that you mention it, you’re right.”
A sense of loneliness crept over Laura. Miss Hyde looked down at her with affectionate eyes.
“We had such fun in Bath, didn’t we?”
Laura nodded.
“Memories I’ll never forget.”
Miss Hyde crossed her arms, thought for a moment, then spoke as if resolved.
“Miss Pendleton, why don’t you come with us?”
“What?”
“Don’t you want to see the world? New faces, new cultures, new landscapes? If you come with us, you can experience it all.”
“But what would I do there?”
Miss Hyde began to persuade her earnestly.
“Translation work isn’t tied to a place. Imagine it: the three of us sitting around a big, round desk, working together. Miss Lotis and I writing, and you, Miss Pendleton, translating.”
“…”
“When we find a place we love, we can settle there. Marseille, Milan, Osaka—anywhere. No one will point fingers at you there. You’ll simply be known as a beautiful young lady from England.”
Laura gave a bitter smile.
Miss Hyde knew all too well how Laura had been treated in society. Her proposal to leave England together carried a deep affection, a desire to free her friend from a stifling, cruel world.
Laura was grateful for Miss Hyde’s heart. A loyal and kind friend. Miss Hyde often expressed gratitude for Laura’s kindness, but the help Laura had received from her was no less significant.
And so, it pained Laura all the more to speak the truth she could not avoid.
“Miss Hyde, I don’t much like throwing myself into new worlds.”
“…”
Laura sat up in bed.
“Miss Lotis is a flame. You are a bird. Together, you’ve become a phoenix. A phoenix creates miracles and becomes myth in any civilization. You two are destined to make history. But I’m a spring. I flow quietly in a corner of the forest. I need ground to flow upon. I don’t want to leave this country.”
“But this country has been harsh to you, Miss Pendleton. Haven’t its unfair traditions hurt you?”
“Not everything is painful. My mother is English. My father’s grave is here. My grandmother Abigail is buried in England, and all my friends live here. Nothing is as precious to me as the people I love.”
Miss Hyde opened her mouth to persuade further but then gave a self-deprecating chuckle.
“I must really care for you, Miss Pendleton, to feel so reluctant to part. Honestly, I’ve sometimes wished I’d been born your daughter instead of Mrs. Hyde of London. You might not welcome a daughter like me, though.”
“Why wouldn’t I? You’re a talented, graceful albatross.”
Miss Hyde’s shoulders slumped.
“I don’t want to part with you like this. The day we meet again feels so far off. Miss Lotis is a wanderer, and I’ll never leave her side. I don’t want her to experience the pain of losing a partner again. We’ll be together until we go to our graves.”
Laura felt the pride she often experienced when seeing a friend marry a good match.
But Miss Hyde was on the verge of tears. Though usually intellectual and composed, before Miss Pendleton, she became a soft, vulnerable child.
“That means you won’t come to England often. And then, with you, Miss Pendleton… I have no attachment to England, but you…”
“Miss Hyde, you mustn’t fear farewells. That’s what it takes to become a true adult.”
Laura reached out and took Miss Hyde’s hand.
“I lost my father as a child, and recently, my grandmother passed away. I pray for them and try to overcome my grief. You have the strength to overcome sorrow too.”
Laura looked into Miss Hyde’s eyes.
“A certain gentleman once told me that when he felt the sorrow of parting, he painted. He expressed his grief through something productive to find relief. When you’re sad, Miss Hyde, write. Pour your emotions out. It will ease your pain and nourish beautiful art.”
Tears rolled down Miss Hyde’s cheeks. She seemed to understand but couldn’t fully accept it in her heart.
Laura gently stroked Miss Hyde’s earlobe.
“I’m sad to part with you too. We’ve known each other since childhood and grown together, helping each other through life’s crises. We can never forget each other. And as long as we don’t forget, Miss Hyde, we’re together. You’ll write about me, and I’ll pray for you. When we remember each other, it’s as if we’re together.”
“You’ll pray for me?”
Laura nodded.
Ex-husband Wants Reconciliation
One-line summary: Chasing the wife to the crematorium (making an effort to attract someone who has become indifferent), the female lead doesn’t look back, the second male lead takes the position.
Intro:
To repay the kindness of the older generation, Su Mu crossed into a female-dominated world and became a live-in daughter-in-law of the Yan family, single-handedly saving the Yan family from fire and water.
But her husband, Yan Jiyue, the eldest son of the Yan family, treated her with sarcasm and never showed her a good face.
It wasn’t until after Su Mu’s death that this pampered and arrogant young master shed a few fake tears and pretended to want to die for love.
This life’s kindness was enough. If there was a next life, she would definitely kick Yan Jiyue away.
Who knew that the heavens would be so kind as to allow her to be reborn, returning to the time when she had just married into the Yan family.
Su Mu glanced at the Yan eldest son, who still spoke coldly to her, and threw a divorce letter in front of him.
“Let’s divorce!”
***
Yan Jiyue never imagined that he would be reborn. He happily went to find Su Mu, wanting to make up for the mistakes he had made in his ignorant youth.
Wasn’t the reason the heavens allowed him to be reborn to let him reconcile with Su Mu?
But when he pushed open the door to Su Mu’s room, the person lying on the bed was another man.
Su Mu’s personal attendant, Xie Yi.
Yan Jiyue hated him so much that his teeth itched. In front of Su Mu, Xie Yi was a gentle and considerate whisperer of sweet nothings, but in reality, he was vicious-hearted and deliberately sabotaged their husband and wife relationship.
In the previous life, it was he who secretly hid in Su Mu’s coffin and committed suicide, stealing a step ahead of him to be buried with Su Mu.
Yan Jiyue’s eyes were filled with hatred as he cursed, “What kind of thing are you? Your background is lowly, what right do you have to occupy Su Mu?”
Xie Yi looked at the sleeping Su Mu and no longer pretended to be a whisperer of sweet nothings.
He proudly stuck out his belly, “I have the right because my belly is capable of giving the Wife-master a daughter.”
***
Yan Jiyue was consumed with jealousy. He spread rumors that Xie Yi had once been branded with the mark of a “harlot” on his chest.
But on the night Xie Yi cut off the flesh bearing that mark, Su Mu suddenly realized something was amiss.
“How did you know the exact moment I was poisoned? And why did you show up a month early?”
Xie Yi remained silent, blood from his wound soaking through his robes. His sapphire eyes brimmed with anguish – or was it just a flawless act?
Between a once-arrogant husband now seeking redemption, and a gentle soul willing to die for her – who truly held the darkest secrets? And could it be that Su Mu and Yan Jiyue weren’t the only ones given a second chance at life…?
[Reading Guide]
1. True divorce, chasing the wife to the crematorium, the female lead doesn’t look back, the male lead is Xie Yi.
2. The ex-husband did not cheat, he just realized too late and didn’t realize that he liked the female lead.
_____
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.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
