5 a.m.
The flight from Los Angeles, USA, landed at Incheon Airport. Unlike the other passengers, weary from the long flight, Sung-hyuk emerged from the arrivals hall with a refreshed look. Stopping in his tracks, he took a deep breath of the cool dawn air, feeling it fill his lungs.
Was it his imagination, or did the air in Korea feel different from that in the USA? Despite not considering himself patriotic, stepping on Korean soil after three years stirred something in his heart. This return was enough to evoke a sense of nostalgia for his homeland.
However, this tender sentiment was short-lived. The face of a woman he had tried hard to forget now dominated his thoughts, causing his brow to furrow as he swallowed the rising curse words.
The object of his curses was not the woman, but himself – lamenting over a woman he couldn’t forget.
“What a fool,” he muttered, barely able to keep the curse inside, when a calm voice greeted him.
“Welcome back, Mr. Cha Sung-hyuk, Head of the Division.”
Turning, he saw a middle-aged man in a black suit approaching him – one of Cha Hyun-woong, Chairman of SL Group’s secretaries.
“Director Nam.”
Sung-hyuk had learned that he was to take over the position of Head of Strategic Planning, a role currently held by his brother. Chairman Cha Hyun-woong was not one to ask for opinions. He simply announced decisions, and even his sons were not exceptions.
“The Chairman asked me to escort you home.”
“I could have gone alone. You didn’t have to bother, Director Nam.”
Director Nam, carrying a cart, changed the subject.
“The Chairman and Madam left yesterday afternoon for the Boao Forum.”
“I’m aware.”
The Boao Forum was an annual economic conference held in China. Sung-hyuk knew that his father’s direct participation this year was not a good sign for his brother, who had attended the forum in the past two years.
Imagining his brother fretting over the possible loss of his successor position, Sung-hyuk followed Director Nam, who led the way, pushing the cart.
The car that left Incheon Airport sped through the empty roads to a luxury villa complex in Cheongdam-dong. The building, reminiscent of a temple, lay submerged in the dawn twilight.
As Sung-hyuk rolled down the window to enjoy the breeze brushing his face, the car arrived at the underground parking lot.
“Thank you for your efforts.”
Sung-hyuk dismissed Director Nam, who offered to carry his luggage up, and took the elevator alone.
He reached the 3rd-floor penthouse. As soon as he opened the front door, a chill ran through him. The white marble walls and floors seemed unusually cold today.
Leaving his luggage in the hallway, he walked through to the living room, which felt empty and abandoned, as if time had stood still here.
Stopping in the middle of the living room, Sung-hyuk looked out through the large window. The sky was starting to redden with the approaching sunrise.
Suddenly, the image of a woman standing on the balcony to watch the sunrise, rubbing her sleepy eyes, overlapped in his mind. He vividly remembered covering her fragile body with a blanket and embracing her from behind.
Despite only dating for about half a year, why were there so many traces of her left?
“I need to look for a new place.”
Was the weight of pointless regrets making him more tired than the thirteen hours in the sky? Leaning back on the sofa, he closed his eyes, his face showing sudden fatigue.
The next evening.
Sung-hyuk sat down at the dining table with a can of beer he took from the fridge. He then called the real estate agent he had worked with when purchasing the villa.
“It’s Cha Sung-hyuk.”
Interrupting the real estate agent who was rambling on, he went straight to the point.
“I’m thinking of selling this place and moving somewhere new. As soon as possible.”
Knowing Sung-hyuk to be a big spender who wasn’t fussy, the agent repeatedly assured him there would be no problems.
Some found him picky, others didn’t. The reason was simple: he showed the utmost indifference to things he didn’t care about. To him, a house was just such an area of disinterest.
He rarely took an interest in anything, but when he did, he was all in.
“I’ll wait for your call.”
After the brief call, Sung-hyuk finished his beer.
Just as he swallowed the last of it, his phone on the table vibrated with an incoming call. It was his friend Beom-jun.
Seeing ‘Chae Beom-jun’ on the display, Sung-hyuk’s expression soured. The face of the woman he had barely managed to shake off, or rather, was desperately trying to forget, became even clearer in his mind.
Debating whether to answer or not, he reluctantly pressed the call button.
“Hey, man! You’re back in Korea! When did you get here?”
As a loud exclamation burst through, Sung-hyuk set the phone back on the table. The voice was so loud he didn’t need to use the speakerphone feature.
“Yesterday.”
“Why didn’t you tell me! You should have said something if you were coming!”
“I didn’t need to. You found out anyway.”
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.
[Touch the gear icon in the bottom right corner of the screen to move to the next chapter if you want.]
