Lan Ningzhen's heart surged with a thousand emotions, her clenched fists trembling slightly. She couldn't tell whether she longed to hear Xie Jue's refusal or hoped for his agreement. For the first time in her life, she experienced a whirlwind of conflicting feelings, where no answer seemed to truly fulfill her wishes, yet every answer seemed to echo her deepest hopes.
The Beiman King's hawk-like eyes fixated on Helian Feng with an oppressive intensity characteristic of a seasoned soldier. His icy gaze sharp and displeased, he hoped this lowly youth from Qianling Town would recognize his place and reject the marriage proposal in public, preserving the dignity of the Imperial Family. After all, if word got out that his son was deemed inferior to a mere boy from Qianling Town, how would he bear the humiliation?
