I tucked the purple jade away, my heart pounding like a war drum. Since the dramatic plot was coming no matter what, I might as well charge straight into the wall and open with a big move.

  Sure enough, when I pushed open the door to the private room, everyone was already back.

  Lian stood beneath the lamplight, hands clasped behind his back. His expression was cool and distant, his gaze lowered slightly, as though lost in thought. I shut my eyes, steeled my nerves, rushed forward, held the jade high, and shouted:

  “Lian! Will you marry me?! That way this purple jade belongs to both of us—no need to argue about whether to return it or not! What’s yours is mine, what’s mine is yours, and I’ll just hold onto the jade for now!”

  The air froze solid.

  Lian jerked his head up. His lips twitched, his expression wavering somewhere between murderous intent and sheer mortification. The corners of his eyes flushed red as he snapped coldly, “…Nonsense!”

  Yet his hand hung stiff in midair—neither reaching to snatch the jade, nor drawing a blade.

  The Deputy Envoy, who had been sipping tea, nearly choked himself to death. He turned to stone on the spot, stammering at me for a good long while.

  “Y-you… you dare propose to the Sect Leader?!”

  Shangguan Fengliu, on the other hand, looked delighted. His eyes gleamed with unrestrained amusement.

  “Heh… interesting. Truly interesting.”

  Hua, never one to miss a chance to fan the flames, laughed so hard he nearly doubled over.

  “Oh my, Gong’s proposing already? Then where’s the betrothal gift? When’s the wedding date? And hey—are we still going to the Northern Ridge to gather herbs? You’ll need to stay alive first if you want to handle life’s big milestones!”

  Cold sweat dripped down my forehead. I was guilty all the way to my toes, yet I still forced a grin.

  “Haha… I was just saying it offhand, you know… haha…”

  And of course—of course—the system chose this exact moment to pop up a frigid line of text:

  【Ding—Side quest triggered: “Forced Marriage (Suspected)”】

  【Party internal relationship trajectory: Chaos +30】

  I nearly bit my tongue clean off.

  “Forced?! That wording’s way off, isn’t it?! As if I could force-marry the Blood Lotus Sect Leader?!”

  Worse still, everyone present clearly heard what I blurted out.

  Lian’s expression grew colder by the second. His fingers clenched until they turned white, yet beneath the chill in his eyes flickered a barely suppressed panic. He stared at me, seeming torn between denying it outright and drawing his sword on the spot. For a moment, he stood rigid, his breathing uneven.

  The Deputy Envoy dropped to his knees with a thud.

  “S-Sect Leader! Please calm yourself! Th-this must be a misunderstanding!”

  “A misunderstanding?” Shangguan Fengliu shook his head and snorted. “Doesn’t look like one to me.”

  Hua was already laughing so hard he was pounding the table.

  “Oh ho! Dear Gong, you’ve got guts, I’ll give you that! Forcing a marriage on the Sect Leader—tsk! Better make that betrothal gift generous!”

  I was panicking internally and started furiously tapping at the system interface.

  “Stop, stop, stop! What kind of trashy melodrama is this? Take it back—now!”

  System: 【Rollback function has been discontinued.】

  Me: “……”

  What nearly killed me on the spot was Lian’s gaze.

  Cold enough to freeze a man solid—yet mixed with a trace of fluster and shame so faint it was almost imperceptible, as though even he didn’t understand why his heart was pounding out of rhythm.

  The tale has been taken without authorization; if you see it on Amazon, report the incident.

  The Deputy Envoy let out a drunken hiccup and quietly shrank toward the corner, eyes darting anywhere but in my direction. Hua was practically bouncing with excitement and tried to toss out another crude joke, only to be silenced when Shangguan Fengliu lazily flicked his fan at him.

  From beginning to end, Lian never once looked at me again. He rose with a sharp flick of his sleeve, his back stiff as though wrapped in winter wind.

  Prefect Li did not reappear that night; we later learned from a servant that he had already returned to his office. With everyone harboring their own thoughts, no one was inclined to speak further, and we soon dispersed.

  That night, I tossed and turned, my thoughts a tangled mess. Words once spoken couldn’t be taken back—and now that they’d fallen on so many ears, no explanation would ever wash them clean. By the time I drifted off and woke again, daylight was already streaming into the room.

  “Knock, knock, knock!”

  The sudden knocking startled me awake.

  “Young Master Nangong, please accept the invitation.”

  Half-asleep, I opened the door to see a waiter from the Yuelai Inn grinning like a chrysanthemum in full bloom, stuffing a large red invitation stamped with gold characters into my hands.

  “Tonight at the Hour of Shen, the engagement banquet will be held in the flower hall. Lord Li has already given the orders—guests from across the city will come to offer their congratulations—”

  My fingers trembled. I nearly dropped the invitation.

  “W-what engagement?!”

  The waiter looked utterly baffled by my reaction.

  “Didn’t you propose in public yesterday? Prefect Li personally arranged it—to congratulate the Sect Leader on this joyous occasion!”

  “……”

  I banged my forehead straight into the doorframe. Stars exploded before my eyes. Regret twisted my guts green.

  Inside the room, the Deputy Envoy was already clutching the table, shaking. His voice came out hoarse.

  “It’s over… this time the authorities all know…”

  Hua, meanwhile, grabbed a wine jug outright, grinning like it was New Year’s.

  “It’s done, it’s done! Gong’s about to become the Blood Lotus Sect’s new son-in-law!”

  Shangguan Fengliu lounged against the back of a chair, his expression unreadable—amused, perhaps, or perhaps deep in thought.

  As for Lian…

  He sat on the edge of the bed, posture immaculate, staring coldly at the tea cup in his hands as if none of this concerned him. Yet I clearly saw his fingers whitening around the cup, the tea trembling and spilling a few drops. That look in his eyes—if there hadn’t been others present, he probably would have torn me apart with his bare hands.

  I no longer had the mental energy to decipher his thoughts. My head throbbed relentlessly.

  Just days ago, Prefect Li had been grinding his teeth, ready to bring the Blood Lotus Sect to heel. And now he was hosting an engagement banquet? That face-changing speed put flipping pages to shame.

  Nine times out of ten, this was under the Eighth Prince’s instructions—using Prefect Li as a mouthpiece to publicly lock my relationship with the Blood Lotus Sect in place.

  By evening, the Yuelai Inn’s flower hall was ablaze with lantern light. Red silk hung high, drums and gongs thundered. Prefect Li was dressed in festive colors, personally overseeing everything, smiling at everyone he met.

  “The Sect Leader and Young Master Nangong are a match made in heaven!”

  Officials and nobles from all over the city filled the hall. Cups clinked, laughter roared, the scene as lively as a genuine wedding feast. But I knew better—this wasn’t congratulations at all. It was the Eighth Prince, working from the shadows, forcing the Blood Lotus Sect and me into a single, unbreakable knot.

  I sat at the seat of honor, my back stiff, my smile more painful than crying. Out of the corner of my eye, I glanced at Lian. He still wore his poke face, yet the corners of his eyes were tinged red, as if he’d been holding himself back to the very limit.

  The hall blazed with red candles, the noise deafening, the spectacle convincing enough to fool anyone. And yet beneath the revelry, everyone’s thoughts churned.

  The greatest surprise of all was the arrival of Shangguan Fengliu’s wife.

  The last time the two of them had appeared together, they’d had a public dispute right in front of Prefect Li—so tense I still remembered it vividly. Something about their exchange had felt strange, though I’d never been able to put my finger on why. After that, they’d never shown up together again.

  Now, suddenly seated at the same table, the atmosphere was naturally awkward.

  She wore plain robes today, her brows sharp and cold. Seated amid a hall drenched in red silk, she looked all the more distant and aloof. From beginning to end, she didn’t spare Shangguan Fengliu so much as a sideways glance, as though he didn’t exist at all.

  She lifted her cup, took a light sip, and smiled faintly.

  “This celebration is quite lively. Shangguan Fengliu, I should congratulate your Sect Leader.”

  Her tone was casual, but each word seemed barbed with hidden mockery. To outsiders it sounded like idle banter; to me, it felt like a blade wrapped in velvet.

  Shangguan Fengliu remained his usual charming self, laughing loudly and nodding along as he downed a full cup of wine.

  “My lady speaks truly—truly…”

  Yet he gripped the cup so tightly his knuckles turned white. I was sitting close enough to see it clearly.

  On the surface, he was all easy smiles and clever banter, sparring verbally with the guests. But anyone with eyes could tell—his wife was ice-cold, and he could only smile and drink in response.

  I couldn’t help muttering to myself:

  These two… are they really on such bad terms?