Chapter 1
The Bond
Guan Inn
Yue Ping
stood in front of a painting of her father , Guan Xian Long. Her father looked
so young and handsome , as the father kept in her memories. She lost her father
when she was merely seven ,due to sickness. Since then , the Guan inn was
handled by her mother and her brother. ”Father...”,Yue slowly muttered,”Is this
the gift you prepared for me? Two years before you left us ,you saved a
minister...I never thought that’d lead to this”. She sighed and stared out of
the window. The moon looked so big and grand ,surrounded by darkness. It was a
calming sign,yet Yue couldn’t stomach the thought that this may be the last
month she gets to see the moon alone. Starting from next month,she’d have to
spend nights with a man she barely knew.
”Yuan Xie
Feng... ”,Yue tried muttering again and again the name of the man who would be
her husband soon. Footstep sounds
approached , Yue turned around and saw her brother walking towards her. His gentle eyes never changed , that was the
reason a lot of girls fancied her brother ,Guan Hui Zhong. Hui Zhong may be a commoner but he dressed up so tidily and
his hair always tied in a neat bun. If anything , he looked like a son of
someone with high social status. He flapped his white fan open and smiled.
”What are
you thinking about,sister?”
”The Yuan
son,obviously”
”Why are
you so reluctant,Yue? This is truly a one-in-a-million grace from The Gods. We
are just simple inn owners and now you are entering a family of nobles. Father
has truly left you an important gift , a bright future”
”I know, I
know but I’m only fifteen and I have never even met the guy.For all we know,he
could be an ugly liquor addict or a gamble freak or a spoiled brat. And anyway
,I have never even been close to a man...”
Hui Zhong
chuckled,”Such raw emotions and innocence will obviously make a man fall for
you. Don’t worry , a lot of townspeople have seen him and they say he is a fine
man. A minister will not let an only son be a gambler or any street junk as he
is the heir,no?”
”Will he
love me?”
”Will you
love him?”
”...”
”It is too
soon to be worrying about what lies ahead. Focus on enjoying the rest of your
maidenhood”, with that he chuckled and left.
Yuan
Residence
”A Zhong
,pour me more liquor”,Xie Feng sighed. The quiet pavilion had always been one
peaceful place he escaped to whenever in need of some relaxation. ”Y-young
master...You have drunk too much...”,a boy timidly muttered. ”It is fine ,I am
a man. Pour more!”. As a servant ,the boy had no choice but to obey his young
master who was obviously distressed.
”A Zhong,
you used to live near Guan Inn right before coming here?”
”Y-yes,Young
master. When I was younger”
”Have you
ever seen the daughter?”
”I think I
have, once or twice but I don’t know her personally. All townspeople know her ,
she is very friendly”
”That lady
will be my wife soon”
”R-really?
Congratulations, sir!”
”Congratulations
,congratulations...What is that head of yours even thinking about ,
congratulating me? I barely know the...*hic* girl”
A Zhong
noticed that his Young master had clearly lost his head to the alcohol ,he
capped the liquor jar and slowly put it aside,”No more,Young master.I don’t
want madam to kill me”. Xie Feng chuckled , his face reddened,”Mom is one
scary lady... *hic* I hope that Guan girl is not as dominating as
her...Ahahahaha. Is sheee prettyyyyyy?”
”Yes ,she
is a fair and charming lady.Now let’s go back to your room”
”Aaaahh
Zhhhooonggghhh ,whyy are you acting so mature all of sudden? I am still so
*hic* young... I have never even been on hunting more than twice and now I’m
getting marrieddd?”
”Young
master, you are the oldest son and you are in that age already... You should
rest up ,we have plans tomorrow”
”Ohh
yeahh,buying valuables to be sent to Guan family as the marriage gifts....*hic*
Boooorinnggg. Let Xiao Kai do the joooobbbbbb”
A Zhong
sighed and called the guards to help him drag the young master to his room as
his physique was too tiny and slender to carry a grown man. He shook his head
and chuckled a bit as he imagined his free-spirited master restricted by
marriage soon. Will it be good or bad? Who knows. All he knew was years ago ,
vases in Guan Inn broke because the daughter got furious.
The next
morning...
”....Urgh...My
head hurts...”,Xie Feng slowly opened his eyes while groaning in pain. The
sunlight shone right through the window and dazzled his vision ,making it even
worse for him . He didn’t really remember things that happened last night but he
did blurry remember being dragged by the guards. The man slowly sat ,still
trying to deal with his massive headache. His thoughts once again raced to the
marriage. Everyone knew Xie Feng was a womanizer ,he flirted a lot but in
actuality never once had he been in a serious relationship and this sudden
marriage plan scared the hell out of him. How does it feel anyway ,to lose your
freedom and be bound to ”obligations” as a husband?
”FENG
ER”,Feng’s mother ”gracefully” barged into his room ,clearly not amused.
”M-mother...I am sorry, I woke up late. I shall take a bath now and afterwards
we will go and buy those things...”. Madam Yuan clicked her tongue and flapped
her fan around, ”Such lack of discipline and responsibility! You are the heir
,act like one! A Zhong , A Qiao ,prepare his clothes! Xiao Mi ,Yan Yan,prepare
the bath!”. Servants ran around ,commencing their respective duties. She walked
out , leaving Xie Feng still half-awake and shaking his head. ”Mother...”,he
grumbled.
Xie Feng
,to avoid further rage from his mother,rushed to the bathroom and prepared
himself.
Long Ji
Street Market
Yue Ping
loitered around ,holding roasted yam for her afternoon snack. Originally ,she
was planning to buy some candies and head home but somehow she ended up
wandering. She coudln’t count how many people had congratulated her that day
for her upcoming marriage to a noble. She knew they meant well , she knew .But
somehow , it left a bland taste on her mouth upon continuously expressing
gratitude.
Her
thoughts had been lost somewhere until she bumped onto a man. ”Ouch!”,Yue was
startled. ”I-I am sorry...”,she timidly looked up and met the gaze of a pair of
silver eyes . Yue felt as if she saw little moons and somehow those
eyes...trapped her. She couldn’t avert her gaze . Beautiful as the sigh ahead
her was, the tall figure was a man. He was so tall her face bumped to below of
his chest when they bumped. Those golden long hair was beautiful ,and his skin
tone was fair and glowing. That was the first time Yue had seen such a
beautiful man in her life .
”....Are
you alright, lady?”,the man asked with a smile. His voice was soft ,with a hint
of mystery in it somehow. ”I...I....I am fine!”,Yue reflexively exclaimed. He
chuckled, ”Why is such a fine young lady walking around alone? It is not safe”.
”....just shopping”,Yue timidly answered and somehow that made the man laugh.
”Some people just never change...”,he muttered. Yue was intrigued by his
unclear statement ,but before she could ask anything... The man suddenly
grinned while looking at the street,”He is here. This is where it will all
start ,once again”. ”Wait...What do you mean? You’re not making any se—”
”Make
way!”,strong voices interrupted. A group
of guards marched forward , surrounding two
figures that clearly were nobles based on their appearance and demeanor.
A woman and a younger man , walking gracefully . She could see that the guards were
carrying chests of things ,whatever they were –they looked heavy. Naturally ,
Yue and the silver-eyed man moved to the side of the road but as she was slowly
retreating ,a guard rudely shoved her aside and the impact made her fall.
”Kyah!”. The man with ebony eyes and
hair turned his eyes to the sound’s direction and his gaze met hers. ”Halt”,he
calmly ordered and walked to her. He crouched and offered his hand,”I am sorry
for our guard’s rude behavior .Are you alright ,lady?”.
”I....I am
fine”,Yue was sure that day was her unlucky day, First she bumped a foreign man
and now she had to fall and be the center of attention. The young man helped
her up , then glared at the guard,” We paid you to guard ,not to harm
civilians”. The guard immediately bowed and begged mercy while the noble woman
just nodded while flapping her fan. ”...It
starts".-Having said that ,the foreign man left .Yue scratched the back of
her head ,What a strange man,she
thought to herself. Then again ,today had been a very strange day and she
couldn’t make heads or tails of the events. ”Thank you”,she talked while slowly
retreating backwards .That was when she felt it, sharp pain on her
ankle.”Ouch!”,she fell back to her sitting position.
Damn ,what are the odds?! Bad things keep happening
today! Curse it ,this must be bad omen,Yue mentally
cussed at her bad day. The man in front of her slowly lifted her skirt a bit to
see her ankles and touched it.”....This is a sprain”,he analyzed calmly. ”Is
there any resting place near here? We should get A Zhong to treat her sprain at
the very least”. The woman chuckled,”You’re trying to escape shopping ,right?
Do not fool me .A Zhong and that stupid guard who shoved a lady ,you both stay
behind and treat the lady .Afterwards,escort her home! Feng...” ”Fine ,fine!
Goodbye ,lady.”. With the man half-dragged , they both left .
A friendly
slender boy smiled,”Can you stand? I’m A Zhong...”.The guard behind him
sighed,”I am sorry,kay? You are so short. I didn’t see you”. First , I bumped onto a foreigner ,next
shoved by a rude guard and became center of attention ,now I fell again because
of a stupid strain and these two are left here... I’m so embarrassed I could
die...Urghh.With his help,she slowly stood up,”Thank you. Can you please
escort me to Guan Inn? I have medical kits there so I will be fine. My name is
Guan Yue Ping”.
...
...
All of
sudden ,the two humans in front of her stopped moving. They froze there ,
literally. Eyes widened with shock , jaw gaping. ”Ummm...What is wrong...with
you two?”
DAMN,WHAT A STRANGE DAY! I should have stayed home!!
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