The Offered Bride - ✿ dusk blossoms ✿

“No.”

She wanted to scrub her ears clean.

“Even if it means breaking off the engagement, I refuse. I will never do that, under any conditions.”

This was her attempt to be polite. If she really wanted to say what was on her mind, her words would have been more like this: “If you’re so eager to serve him, why don’t you suck the Governor’s d*ck yourself, you bastard?”

“B-break off the engagement?”

“If you continue to force this on me, I’ll have no choice but to take that path. I’d rather endure the shame of a broken engagement than suffer such humiliation.”

The engagement contract was already finalised. The wedding date had been set. While the ceremony had yet to take place, the laws of the land already considered her the daughter-in-law of the Jung family – and, unfortunately, the wife of this miserable excuse for a man.

Such was the law.

Once the engagement agreement was exchanged between the bride and groom’s families, the marriage was considered binding. Even if the wedding ceremony hadn’t yet taken place or the couple hadn’t shared their first night together, they were already recognized as husband and wife.

However, dissolving the engagement after the agreement was finalized wasn’t simply seen as calling off the wedding—it was regarded as a broken engagement.

And the laws of this land were utterly unjust. If a man ended an engagement, it had little impact on his life. But if a woman did, she would be branded as a woman who had been cast aside for the rest of her life.

In this society, there was no place for a woman marked by a broken engagement.

For a woman, breaking an engagement was not only an unbearable humiliation but also a lifelong stain of disgrace, impossible to erase.

“I need power to protect you!”

Jung Do-yoon’s voice rose, veins standing out on his neck and forehead.

To Yul-hye, it was nothing less than pitiful.

“Think about it! What do I have left? Do I have a respectable position or any real authority? No! All I have is a small piece of land and property left to me by my father, and a meaningless, lowly position in name only. What can I do with that? If a powerful man decides to sweep it away, even that little wealth will disappear like dust in the wind. What is the use of it? What really matters – what is essential – is power. To become high, to secure a prestigious position, to achieve success – these are the things that bring power. And only with power in my hands can I protect you. You know that more than anyone, you understand. Your parents died because they lacked……”

“Do-yoon!”

Yul-hye’s voice rang out sharply, cutting him off.

Her expression was stern, her gaze piercing as his words hit a nerve. The mention of her late parents was a boundary he should never have crossed.

It was something Do-yoon had no right to bring up. Speaking so thoughtlessly about her parents was something Yul-hye despised more than anything.

“What I’m trying to say is that a man has to be successful to protect his wife. It’s not just for me, it’s for you too. Can’t you see that?”

“I’ve already told you – I refuse. My stance is clear. I will never give in to your wishes, and if you continue to press me, I will break off the engagement. That is my final answer.”

Feeling no need to say another word, Yul-hye abruptly rose to her feet.

“Yul-hye! Yul-hye!”

As she turned to leave, Do-yoon frantically grabbed the hem of her dress. She shook off his hand with icy indifference and walked away without a moment’s hesitation.

“Yul-hye!”

His voice called out behind her, but she didn’t look back.

Once, she had pitied him. There was a time when she truly felt sorry for him. But now, even that small reserve of sympathy had completely run dry.

There wasn’t a trace of sympathy left for him—only disgust.

‘I need to leave this house.’

She had already said she wanted to break off the engagement, so there was nothing holding her back. She was confident in her ability to stand on her own two feet. Leaving this house didn’t intimidate her at all.

She had endured enough, more than her fair share. Surely, she had repaid any debt she owed to the late Jung Dae-in and his wife by now.

Back in her room, Yul-hye sank into a chair and nearly collapsed. She pressed a hand to her forehead, exhausted.

Her head throbbed with a dull, relentless ache.

“Ma’am, you don’t look well.”

Her maid said, fidgeting nervously as she hovered nearby. Even that was irritating now.

“My head hurts. Don’t bother bringing dinner tonight. Just prepare a tonic for my headache instead.”

“Yes, ma’am…”

Once the maid left, Yul-hye closed her eyes.

How had it come to this?

It was all because of Do-yoon and his insatiable greed.

He had always been like this, even as a child – consumed by envy, constantly comparing himself to others and allowing his inferiority to eat away at him. Over time, this festering insecurity had grown into an obsession with success.

Success. What did it even matter?

When they were younger, Yul-hye had even felt sorry for Do-yoon.

She had watched him come home day after day, bruised and bloodied, ignored and outcast. She had wiped the blood from his face with her sleeve so that Jung Dae-in’s wife would not notice. She had also dried his tears countless times.

Back then, Do-yoon had felt like a younger brother, someone she had to take care of. She had thought it was natural for him to act that way as a child. She had believed that with time and maturity he would grow out of those feelings of inferiority.

But that belief had betrayed her.

“I did my best. I truly did. But I can’t do it anymore. So, please… understand me.”

She knew Jung Dae-in and his wife could no longer hear her, but even so, she wanted to voice her decision, even if it was only to herself.

Yes, she had done her best. She had given everything she had to give. But now, there was nothing left.

She had tried her hardest, and that effort was the only reason she had come this far.

She had endured and endured again, but she could no longer bear it.