Luo He lost consciousness from the sheer impact of the strike. In the final moments before darkness swallowed him, his fading vision caught a powerful image the woman charging fearlessly at the bear, her lance gleaming as it pierced through the air.
He could hear the beast's enraged roar and the sharp clash of metal against hide as she fought desperately to save his life. Then, everything went black.
When Luo He awoke, he found himself lying on a bed inside a vast, unfamiliar room. The ceiling stretched high above him, decorated with faint carvings he couldn't fully make out through his blurred vision. A dull ache throbbed through his body as he slowly sat up. Instinctively, he checked for his belongings but they were gone.
A flicker of panic rose in his chest. He quickly ran his hands over his body his armour was still there reassuring him he's not robbed. Letting out a quiet breath, he reached up and touched his face.
Thick bandages covered parts of it, slightly damp and carrying a faint medicinal scent. Confused but alert, Luo He carefully stood up. His legs felt weak, but he steadied himself and began walking, searching for someone anyone who could explain where he was.
As he stepped into a corridor, he spotted a young woman ahead. Relief flashed across his face. "Wait!" he called out.
But the moment she saw him, her eyes widened in shock. Without a word, she turned and ran.
Luo He frowned, his confusion deepening. "Hey! Wait!" he called again, quickening his pace. His footsteps echoed against the stone floor as he followed her, his movements growing faster despite the lingering pain in his body.
The chase led him into a grand hall.
The moment he entered, the atmosphere shifted.
At the far end, seated above all others, were two figures radiating authority the lord and the lady of the count. Their presence commanded silence. Luo He slowed down, suddenly aware of the many eyes now fixed on him. The girl he had been chasing had disappeared somewhere into the crowd.
He quietly moved to the side, listening.
The court session was in progress, and the topic was a grave concern for the elder daughter of the lord. The crownd prince of the Yue Kingdom had sent a letter requesting her to become his concubine.
A heavy tension filled the hall. The ministers and attendants were clearly against the proposal their expressions tight with worry and dissatisfaction. Yet no one dared to openly reject it. After all it was a request from the crowned prince refusing him directly could bring severe consequences.
Jin Mulan hated the Crown Prince's obsession with her so deeply that in a moment of utter desperation she finally broke. In front of everyone she silently drew a dagger from her sleeve. The cold steel trembled faintly in her hand as she raised it toward her own face.
If beauty was the reason for her suffering then she would destroy it herself. Her breathing grew uneven. Yet her eyes carried terrifying resolve. She was truly prepared to carve her own face apart if it meant escaping the Crown Prince's gaze.
But just as the blade touched her skin
A hand seized her wrist. Her father had appeared beside her without a sound.
"Enough!" he shouted. The dagger stopped barely an inch from her cheek.
For a moment neither moved. Jin Mulan struggled weakly her emotions finally collapsing after being suppressed for so long. "Let me go!" she cried her voice trembling for the first time in years. "If he no longer wants me everything will end!"
But her father's grip only tightened.
His expression was grim yet beneath it lay something deeper helplessness.
A helplessness shared by everyone in the Jin family. After a long silence he finally spoke in a low bitter voice.
"You still do not understand men like the Crown Prince." Jin Mulan froze. He slowly lowered the dagger from her hand before continuing. "For women such as you beauty is not limited to the face alone.
As long as you still possess your figure, your grace and your presence scars will change very little." Those words struck harder than any blade. Jin Mulan's body stiffened completely. The final hope she had clung to shattered instantly.
Even disfiguring herself would not free her. The room fell deathly silent. The father and daughter stood there trapped in the same despair. What could the Jin family do? Refuse the Crown Prince?
That would bring destruction upon their entire clan. Comply? Then Jin Mulan's future would be buried inside the palace like countless other women before her.
Fight back? Against the imperial family itself? Even thinking such thoughts was dangerous.
For the first time in her life Jin Mulan truly understood what it meant to be powerless. Not because she lacked intelligence. Not because she lacked courage. But because some enemies stood so high above others that resistance itself became meaningless.
And the cruelest part was that everyone knew it. Her father and mother knew it. The ministers, the guards and the servants knew it as well. Even Jin Mulan herself knew it. That was why the atmosphere in the room felt so suffocating. Because there was no solution at all.
Out of nowhere Luo He stepped forward. His sudden movement drew startled glances. "There is still one way," he said. His voice calm but firm, cutting through the murmurs.
The entire hall fell silent. "What if she is already married?" he continued. "Then the proposal can be refused."
At once, the room erupted into quiet disbelief. Many looked at him as if he were a fool, stating something painfully obvious.
But Luo He did not stop. "Yes, she may not be married yet," he said his gaze steady, "but if the process is accelerated she could be married by tomorrow. Then, we can claim the letter arrived too late."
Murmurs spread again but this time, there was hesitation mixed with thought.
"Even if the crown prince understands what truly happened," Luo He added, "he would not be able to openly oppose us without defying the emperor's authority. It would place him in a difficult position."
The hall grew quieter. The count and his daughter both stared at Luo He with strange expressions, as if wondering where such a man had come from.
Luo He stepped forward and bowed deeply. "My name is He," he introduced himself. "My father is a common soldier and I do not remember my mother's face."
His voice was steady, but there was a faint, almost imperceptible weight behind his words. "The greatest problem now," he continued, "is finding a suitable husband and the wealth required for a wedding within a single day." He lowered his head again.
"So, what does my lord have in mind?"
Then after a brief pause he spoke once more. "If there are no objections I am willing to become the husband of your daughter."
A wave of shock swept through the hall.
The lord's expression hardened instantly. "Impossible," he refused firmly, his voice carrying authority. But before anyone else could speak his daughter stepped forward.
The soft sound of her footsteps echoed in the silent hall. She approached Luo He slowly, her gaze sharp and measuring. She looked him up and down, taking in his bandaged face, his worn yet strange armour covering everything except his head and his unwavering posture. For a brief moment, the entire hall held its breath.
Then "I... choose him," she said. Her voice was calm, but decisive. That very evening, Luo He was placed among five last-minute candidates. The adopted son of the lord Jin Sang. The elder son of the army's general Shin Ju.
And others of notable background and strength. The air grew tense once more this was no longer just a desperate solution. It had become a competition.