“I…”
Her grandfather had a solemn look on his face. Seeing this, He Xue felt even more embarrassed, for she knew he was expecting a clear answer from her.
“Yes, Xue. See? You are old enough. We all hope you can get married and start a happy family soon.”
Second Uncle tried to persuade her with a smile.
“Xue, everyone knows you are very capable, but you can’t refuse to get married just because you are independent and competent. Our whole family is looking forward to attending your wedding.”
“Well, you will get married. Anyway, you’ve been engaged for a long time already. Sooner or later, you will have to marry. Now you’re at the right age. Just marry him.”
“That’s right. It’s great to get a husband. After getting married, you can do whatever you want. You don’t have to work so hard because you can have anything you want. What else will you have to worry about?”
“Xue, listen to your grandfather. Take advantage of your trip back and get married this time around!”
The whole family stood up one by one, all talking at once and trying to persuade her. Their malicious and begrudging intent did not go well with their elegant and luxurious appearances at all.
“Hiss…”
Their irritating words came in waves, which made her poor head spin. Feeling an intense unbearable pain, she nearly fell apart.
“Xue!”
He Xue’s grandfather, who had been staring at her, saw the agony on her face but showed no pity. Instead, his face darkened. He wanted to force her to give in.
……
“I’ve made up my mind.”
Closing her eyes, He Xue gritted her teeth and then opened her eyes as if she had figured it out. The pain on her face dissipated and was replaced by indifference.
Glancing around, He Xue’s eyes finally landed on her grandfather and she said, “I’ll break off the engagement!”
Upon hearing her announcement, all the people present fell silent.
All of them seemed to be frozen in place as they looked at He Xue with deep confusion in their eyes.
“Nonsense!”
The next moment, her Second Uncle stood up and shouted agitatedly, “Your engagement was arranged a long time ago. Do you think you can break it as you wish?”
“Xue, are you kidding? Break off the engagement? Then have you ever considered the future of the He family?”
“He Xue, you are no longer a child. I hope you realize the seriousness of your decision. I advise you to take back what you just said. We can pretend that you didn’t say anything about your marriage!”
“This is not something to joke about. How dare you bring harm to our familial interest for personal reasons?”
Almost instantly, the relatives and friends present exploded with anger and began admonishing her. They showed her no respect as if they were rebuking a child who had misbehaved.
It seemed that He Xue would be committing the ultimate sin if she called off the engagement.
“Shut up.”
He Xue suddenly thundered, “My marriage is none of your business. I’ll make my own decision!”
“Ridiculous!”
In the seat of honor, the elder whose face had turned gloomy, also gave He Xue a hearty scolding, “Do you know what the man’s family background is?”
“He is from the Green-shade Zhu family!”
“Let me tell you, the Zhu family has completely taken over the whole Green-shade Region. It is not only due to their family business and financial resources, but also because of their strength. Behind this realistic world, there is a world beyond your reach. The power in that world is the most authentic and useful. Only through your marriage with the Zhu family can our family achieve more in terms of finance and overall strength. Do you understand?”
“Grandpa.”
Hearing his speech, He Xue looked at the elder with an expressionless face and said, “I came back to celebrate your birthday. I don’t have to do this.”
“Since you’re back, you admit you are a family member. You have to think about this family!”
The old man snorted.
“I’m leaving.”
He Xue shook her head and said, “Whatever happens in the future, I will not implicate the He family nor will I insist on getting any shares of property from the family. I’m leaving without taking anything from this family, and I won’t agree to the marriage!”
“Take care.”
He Xue finished speaking.
She turned around and was about to leave.
“Humph!”
Seeing that this matter was about to end badly, her Second Uncle, who was standing at the table, snorted with dissatisfaction. He immediately took out his mobile phone and dialed a number.
When he ended the call, He Xue had arrived at the gate of the quadrangle courtyard.
“Patter, patter, patter…”
There was a sudden sound of footsteps outside the door.
She looked up.
Seven or eight burly bodyguards dressed in black suits, rushed over and blocked the door.
“Humph, do you think you can leave as you wish?”
The Second Uncle sneered and said, “Xue, you’d better get ready to get married!”
“Get out of my way.”
In front of the gate, He Xue faced the seven or eight big guys and said indifferently, “I’ve called the police!”
“Will the police come?”
Second Uncle shouted from a distance, “Do you think the police will be of any use?”
He Xue’s face darkened.
In the capital, the He family was not a big family, but it would not take much effort for them to pull off some sinister tricks.
He Xue also knew that the He family could never compare with the prestigious Zhan family and Qian family in the capital city, which were the top aristocratic families in Wulin. In addition, the He family had nothing to do with Wulin. Therefore, without hesitation, her grandfather betrayed her and arranged for her engagement with the Green-shade Zhu family in Wulin. By doing so, the He family could win the support of an aristocratic family in Wulin.
Born into such a family, He Xue had certainly heard about Wulin, but she did not know it well.
More importantly, she had always been an independent woman and absolutely loathed being controlled by others, so she had always been opposed to this marriage. However, she did not expect that even after leaving home for such a long time, her family did not give up this idea. She had set everything aside and came back. Once again, she encountered the same painful experience that had happened to her before.
As He Xue recalled her past, the rims of her eyes turned red.
She felt hurt and angry!
“Get out of my way.”
Her second uncle and the other relatives were eyeing her in disdain. He Xue went straight to the guards standing in the doorway and stated this in a calm voice.
The bodyguards remained unmoved.
“Catch her. Don’t hurt her!”
Second Uncle gave the order, smiling coldly.
With this, these guards immediately took action.
But something unexpected happened the next moment.
Pow! Bam! Wham!
There came a burst of fierce fighting sounds.
Everyone in the quadrangle courtyard was stunned.
To their great surprise, He Xue made the first move! Today she was in sportswear and flat shoes as if she had expected to deal with such a situation.
The most shocking thing was…
The seven or eight guards were no match for He Xue. In the fierce confrontation, she knocked down all of them.
When these robust men collapsed to the ground in the courtyard, all the people stared at her in wide-eyed amazement, standing in shocked silence with their mouths agape.
On the other side, after finishing off the guards, He Xue paused at the door for a second and then left without looking back.
Boom!
In the quadrangle courtyard, her grandfather slammed his hand hard on the table, making a loud bang!
…
Tears welled up in her red-rimmed eyes.
In a taxi, He Xue bit her lower lip tightly and wiped the seemingly endless tears dripping from the corners of her eyes. Her face was expressionless and her mouth compressed into a thin, hard line. She did not make a sound.
Without the slightest hesitation, she headed for the airport, bought a ticket, and flew back to Beijiang that very night.
It seemed that only in that place could she be free and feel a trace of warmth, even though that place was very empty and not as lively as the quadrangle courtyard.
…
Early the following day, she was in Beijiang, the cultivation base.
“Woo…”
Fang Qiu returned from the desert.
He had stayed in seclusion in the desert for two days for his cultivation.
“The old master was right! A serene psyche is required.”
As he returned to the base, Fang Qiu sighed with emotion.
After two days of practicing in seclusion, his strength had further improved.
With Fang Qiu’s present status, it was not difficult for him to break through to the Guru Realm, which was never an easy task for others. He could make the breakthrough at any time, but he thought it was not the best time yet. He had to, first of all, reinforce his renewed strength.
He returned to the cultivation base.
Fang Qiu happened to see He Xue coming out of her room.
“Hey, you’re back so soon?”
Seeing He Xue, Fang Qiu was surprised.
“Mm.”
He Xue nodded.
“You don’t look well. Did anything happen?”
Fang Qiu came forward and asked.
“I’m fine.”
He Xue shook her head and said, “I want to discuss with you about the dendrobe. The dendrobe in Nanjiang has been successfully cultivated. Next, you should make a prescription, right?”
“Okay.”
Fang Qiu nodded and said, “I’ll write the prescription right away.”
After that, he eyed He Xue and asked, “Are you really okay?”
“I’m fine.”
He Xue smiled gently.
For some reason, when she heard Fang Qiu’s voice filled with concern, a trace of warmth appeared in her cold, injured heart.
“It’s good that you’re fine.”
Fang Qiu nodded and said, “I’m going to write the prescription.”
He ended his speech.
As soon as he turned back to his office, he took out a piece of paper and a pen. Then immediately, he closed his eyes to search through his memory for the medicine related to the dendrobe among the lists of ancient prescriptions in his memory.
In the end, Fang Qiu wrote out three prescriptions.
He sent them to He Xue’s office next door.
“All done.”
Fang Qiu walked to her desk and handed over the prescriptions in his hand to her. He was about to explain the three prescriptions to her.
Beep! Beep! Beep!
He Xue’s cell phone suddenly rang.
“I’m sorry.”
He Xue cast an embarrassed glance at Fang Qiu, then took out her mobile phone and answered the call.
“Xue, come back quickly. You walked away yesterday, and your grandfather was so pissed off that he couldn’t get up from the bed now. He is seriously ill.”
An anxious voice came from the other end of the phone.
“What?”
He Xue panicked when she heard that.
“Anyway, come back soon. I don’t know if you can see him for the last time.”
The voice on the other end of the phone suddenly lowered, and then the call ended.
This time, He Xue was frightened.
“What’s wrong?”
Seeing that He Xue didn’t look right, Fang Qiu hurriedly asked.
“My grandfather is seriously ill. I need to ask for leave and go back to the capital.”
He Xue said anxiously.
“I’ll go with you.”
Fang Qiu spoke up, “You know I have good medical skills. Maybe I can help him.”
“I don’t know what’s going on yet.”
He Xue shook her head and said, “I have to go back first. If there’s any problem, I’ll call you. I still need you to manage the company after I leave. Let’s talk about it when I get to the capital.”
She was flustered. When she calmed down a little, she sensed something strange about this matter. Whatever would happen back home, she decided to resolve this matter once and for all.
“That’s fine.”
Fang Qiu nodded and said, “Be careful on the way. Call me immediately if you have any problems.”
