ucr reading southeast asian stories

Falling for his warm touch despite his usual coldness, she loved him only to be disappointed and betrayed in the end. When love turns to darkness, it festers to be poisonous and consumes the soul. The naive Arabella evolved. *** “Thank you for becoming my wife,” was her cold husband’s last words before he died, coupled with a smile that had never before graced his lips. Not on their wedding day. And not even at the birth of their only child. Emperor Ferdinand, someone Arabella loved so much, killed their son. She became a villainess and vowed revenge for her beloved child. For a decade, she used everything she could to make Ferdinand pay. Until finally… he fell to ruin. With her revenge complete, Arabella's life soon ended with her dead husband in her arms. But fate wasn’t done playing with her. All of a sudden, she was back two decades ago, right after their wedding. Was it a curse or a blessing? It didn’t matter. Because there was only one thing she needed to do. “I will ruin you in this lifetime, too.” This was her hateful promise to herself upon realizing she was reborn. But in her second life, Arabella was unexpectedly bestowed a gift to uncover the truth. Who was wrong and who was right? Only time will tell.