Please forgive my haste in getting straight to the point without greetings. I remember you saying that it’s okay to send a letter if I’m facing an unbearable situation.
Father Padre, something very strange has happened.
You must have heard about the unfortunate passing of my husband, Valentin Karlzhu Albrecht von Ansgar, the Grand Duke, in the battlefield. It was a matter of much discussion in Denburg, so I’m sure the news reached Falkenheim. As the Grand Duchess, I duly oversaw his funeral.
The coffin containing the Grand Duke was on display for three days as it circled the Ansgar Territory, and it took two days to receive condolences. Throughout this period, I stayed by his side. That day was no different.
Midnight. I remember hearing the sound of the bell. A fierce wind incessantly knocked on the windows, putting the priests on edge.
It’s overwhelming to describe the situation in detail. Everything happened so suddenly. The securely shut windows shattered all at once as a violent gust of wind rushed in. The wind soon calmed, but an inexplicable tension hung in the air.
It was then that my husband took a long, deep breath and awoke.
“Adelheid.”
His face, still pale with the touch of death, called out my name. The fear that instinctively surged within me at that moment is beyond words.
The Ansgar people are praising this as a miracle performed by the God Morrig. Yet, I’m still terrified. It was definitely a lifeless body. I witnessed and felt it closer than anyone. But what could I have said?
The roosters started crowing even at midnight. Young livestock shudder in front of the Grand Duke. Though I should rejoice that my husband has returned, my ignorant self keeps having troubling thoughts.
Please come to the Ansgar Region in Bichleben as soon as you read this…
“Madam.”
The sudden call startled me, and in my surprise, I knocked over the ink bottle with my elbow. The spilled ink rapidly stained the parchment black, rendering the writing unreadable. At that moment, Adelheid felt almost relieved.
She hesitantly raised her gaze to meet Valentin’s face. His pale lips quivered slightly.
“Your Highness. Why have you come to my chamber tonight?”
“Why… not come?”
A look of pitiful reproach was evident on Valentin’s sculpted face. He had only managed to mimic human speech since this morning. Until then, he had only emitted animal-like groans.
And now a coherent conversation? Was it a sign that his memory was returning?
Adelheid swallowed a nervous breath.
“Where do you mean?”
“Yesterday, sleep together…”
He meant why they hadn’t slept together in the bedchamber as they did the previous night. Since his return from death, Valentin’s mind had become childlike, taking his words at face value like a child seeking comfort in its mother’s arms.
Nevertheless, Adelheid’s cheeks flushed with embarrassment.
“My union with Your Highness is only permissible on dates deemed auspicious by the priest. Yesterday was… an exception due to your confusion, but it’s not appropriate otherwise.”
“……”
“Why…?”
“Huh?”
Struggling to find words fitting the situation, Valentin’s elegant eyes creased with frustration. He strode across the room, grabbing Adelheid’s waist with a rough grip. Ignoring her shock, he effortlessly lifted her and placed her on the ink-stained desk, knocking over items that clattered to the floor.
“This is not appropriate…”
Startled only for a moment, Adelheid’s beautiful face quickly turned to a look of distress. The dress she was wearing today was among the more decent ones she owned, without any patched fabric – a cherished piece now ruined, stained with ink.
“No, can’t.”
As Adelheid’s eyes welled up with tears, he hastily grasped her cheek. His stunningly beautiful face, hardly seeming human, came close. She took a sharp breath.
“Why….”
Why are you crying? Or why are you upset? Valentin’s brief words and expression clearly conveyed his concern. It was ironic. The original husband would have been horrified even at the slightest brush of their clothing.
He should have forgotten everything about her, including her name, if he had lost his memory. Valentin, who had forgotten manners, memory, language, and even his own flesh and blood, was only fixated on her, and she found it suffocating not to understand why.
They hadn’t even consummated their marriage. No matter how much she thought about it, there was no reason for her husband to cherish her this much.
‘Unless he’s not my husband.’
Chilled by this unnerving thought, Adelheid’s face turned pale. Valentin’s golden eyes softened with tenderness, a warm breath hovering just inches away.
She quickly dismissed the thought. It was impossible for another man with such a chiseled appearance to exist in Denburg.
“…My, husband… afraid?”
Adelheid, who had instinctively shaken her head, came to her senses. Regardless of him being her husband, it was against the norms to have a man in her private quarters without the priest’s permission.
“We must leave now. If servants or guards see us…”
When male lead is the homewrecker
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
I’ve read the novel below twice already. Girls, I’m highly recommending it to you!
The female lead? Not a good person.
The second male lead? Not a good person.
The male lead? Willingly plays the third party, breaking up the female and second male lead’s relationship despite all the warnings from his friends—so yeah, he’s definitely not a good person either.
Basically, nobody in this novel is simple-minded or without scheming.
The female lead starts off as the male lead’s secretary, but don’t worry—later on, she takes over the company while the male lead steps back to support her. He won’t steal her spotlight, overshadow her, or dull her shine.
I love novels where men are out here snatching wigs, tearing each other down, and going to war just to win the female lead’s affection. And this is exactly that kind of novel. Most of Hai Dai Ran’s works have this dynamic. You’ll see the male characters’ emotions being pushed to the absolute extreme.
There’s even a scene where the second male lead exposes the male lead online for being a homewrecker. The brotherhood immediately gangs up on him, dragging him through the mud. I find it compelling —it completely flips reality on its head, where usually, women are the ones fighting over a man and getting torn apart by the sisterhood.
For me, female leads in the novels I read should only struggle in their careers, not in love. But if the brainless romantics in the story are all men? I have zero complaints.
I’ve pretty much read all of Hai Dai Ran’s novels and even translated all of them—her works are just my thing. I’ll slowly upload everything here. One day, when my website is official, I hope I can invite her to join as one of the star authors.
Here’s the story synopsis:
One-line summary: She is his lifelong obsession, to the point where he was willing to be a third wheel, scorned by society, just to wedge his way into her relationship with her fiancé.
Cold-hearted and indifferent female lead + Scheming and subservient CEO male lead
Intro 1:
“I know she doesn’t love him.”
With blood trickling from his clenched fist, Rong Xiu gazed at the woman before him, his eyes clouded with anguish. Hidden in the wardrobe, he had witnessed Fan Xia – the woman he desperately loved – in an intimate embrace with her fiancé. Yet his heart still yearned for her, defying all reason.
Fan Xia, the elegant and composed assistant, carried something mysterious in her eyes whenever she looked at her fiancé, Wen Lan Sheng. Strange occurrences began to surface – secret meetings with the young Gu Jin Yi, an unexplained withdrawal of 5,000 yuan… Then suddenly, her fiancé’s sister, Wen Jing, violently attacked her.
In this matriarchal society, Rong Xiu had risen to become the chairman of a powerful healthcare conglomerate, breaking through gender prejudices. But for the first time, he willingly stepped into the shadows as the other man, disregarding his friends’ warnings to become her secret lover.
Because he had discovered the truth – Fan Xia wasn’t the pure angel everyone believed her to be. And perhaps, he was the only one capable of helping her execute her mysterious plan…
Intro 2:
Rong Xiu’s biggest regret in life was missing out on Fan Xia.
He secretly loved Fan Xia for 7 years.
Watched her go public with her boyfriend.
Watched her kiss her boyfriend at their wedding.
Until that man blissfully nestled in Fan Xia’s arms, obtaining everything he could only dream of.
The crazy jealousy stripped away his hidden secret love, layer by layer, burning like wildfire.
Fan Xia, how can I have you!
【Reading and Trigger Warning Guide】
1. Female dominant, male submissive, male pregnancy
2. Male lead schemes his way to the top, male competition
_____
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.
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