#Regency period #Historical romance #Aristocratic lady #Family bankruptcy #Intellectual heroine #Contract marriage #Counterattack #Strategy #Female awakening #Save the family #Strong alliance
1823, Regency England. With her family on the verge of bankruptcy and distant relatives eyeing her, eighteen-year-old Colleen Collins must risk marriage from six suitors with different identities within twelve months in exchange for the survival of her family.
Rich businessman, hero, heir... There are secrets and calculations behind every choice. And the most mysterious "broken man", Baron Hadrian Osborne, seems to hold the key to breaking the situation. A honey mystery and a "White Rose Contract" signed in the basement made Colleen and Osborne form a life-and-death alliance.
However, Colleen was never a caged bird waiting to be rescued. In the midst of an existential crisis, she held an abacus and a map in hand and embarked on a real road to breaking through: navigating the male business world to find glimmers of light for women who were equally powerless.
From the game of survival with marriage as a bargaining chip, to the quiet struggle to fight for dignity for oneself and others. Colleen will use her wisdom to prove that women are by no means commodities to be sold, but chess players who can discern the truth, control risks, and carve out a way out of thorns.
This countdown that begins with survival will eventually lead her to a journey that goes beyond the engagement and is defined by herself.
