Easy for you to say... and for the record, the fmc did try communicating with him plenty of times to be given cold shoulders (being ignored, being thought to spout useless things) most of the time. By who you asked? His supposed husband who loves her... Whenever she asks he accompany her to a ball, he refuses and in the end never did only until recently. Like what kind of husband is that? In noble societies, appearances is important. Showing up alone without a partner (husband in this case) is a weakness to be abused. It doesn’t helped that they’ve been married for a long time and never together.
Winter literally that she only wanted his company she never said she was being abused. As a man who lost billions of dollars and married a Princess who he thought was use to the best of the best he thought he had to work extra hard to pay for the life of luxury she was use to. He thought she was forced into the marriage which she was. There was a series of mistakes and if they talked from the beginning instead of making assumptions we wouldn’t have gotten to this point. He’s always be a cash cow for his family that’s how he thinks he should provide for everyone in his life and he sees how she’s being treated and he stepped up to stop it. But when the money you’re working for to give to your wife is being given to a alcoholic (because everyone is stealing from her without her knowledge) and she ends up “pregnant” when you know for a fact you can’t have kids his reaction is completely understandable and justifiable. If they don’t start communicating it’s just going to get worse
I understand both to blame but even if she doesn’t say anything how can he not allow a single moment to respond to her wishes? And how can they get to a deep conversation/confessing their thoughts or real feelings when the environment isn’t at the least good? You know who made that bad environment? The supposed husband who seemed to actually liked her from the start. He shut her down in every instances either for talks during dinner or invitation to a ball, and even siding with the parents (giving them favor/power over the wife). Did the husband ever tried to understand her during the past few years they were married? No. He immediately left his wife alone during their wedding day, while crushing a wine glass as if enraged (I mean who wouldn’t?). But it seemed that he just rushed to make a plans for business so he can afford the luxury he wanted for his wife (which she never asked to begin with). Being busy is not an excuse for neglect and ignorance. He’s the one that allowed the mistakes that led to their current situation.
And my point since the beginning is that it’s difficult to say everything (especially the abuse), it takes time. Why do you think victims of bullying doesn’t say anything? They are scared. They are scared of not being trusted (with the husband always on the parents’ side), they are scared that the bully will get away with it and the bullying will worsen, and much more. They have been improving as we see the wife finally saying that she was indeed locked up in a cabinet.
And I’m not even talking about the recent chapters. Of course, he will misunderstand since they don’t talk much and doesn’t know each other at all because of the husband’s shutting the wife’s approach. He even allowed this misunderstanding for not telling her they can’t possibly have a child of their own because of his origins. And adding to that, deciding adoption on his own without thinking about his wife.
They’re both dumb af and putting all the blame on winter is just dumb. They lack communication and they’re both a product of abuse and abandonment. If they had a stronger bond and talked more then nobody would be able to manipulate their relationship.