Chapter 3

Chapter 3

For a long time, Second Young Master Cui did everything right.

He never made me wait.

If he said he would do something, he did it. If he was not sure he could, he made no careless promises.

As our affection deepened, our families began discussing marriage. The wedding was set for the ninth month, during the Mid-Autumn holiday, when the court would be in recess and guests could attend the feast more easily.

Then he rescued a young woman.

She had lost her memory and knew neither her name nor where she lived. Like a fledgling bird, she clung to Cui Zhaoyu and depended on him for everything.

He named her Zhenzhen and rented a small courtyard for her.

After she nearly burned down the kitchen trying to cook, he hired a cook and a maid to look after her as well.

By then, I already had the uneasy feeling that my marriage to Cui Zhaoyu was doomed.

Everything that followed confirmed it, step by step.

Because of her, he made me wait again and again.

The last time came when Zhenzhen learned that our wedding was only six months away. In a burst of determination, she left a letter and set off for Jiangnan.

“My fortune is meager, and my bond with you too shallow.”

“You must prepare for your marriage now, so you will have no time to help me search for my family. If you devote yourself to helping me, it will only displease others.”

“Someone has already told me that I should not be so close to you, nor cling to a man who has a betrothed.”

“You are the only person I know, but fragments of memory have returned to me. I think my home may be in Jiangnan.”

“I will go south and search slowly.”

“I was deeply blessed to be rescued by you.”

“It grieves me that our bond is too shallow for me to remain by your side.”

“Please dress warmly and eat well. The mountains are high and the roads long; this is our final parting. My heart cannot bear it, and I will pray for you every day.”

The letter was written in graceful small script on paper perfumed with orchids.

Cui Zhaoyu did not come to see me himself. He had already gone after her. Instead, he sent a servant to deliver her letter.

The servant hesitated, shifting his gaze and refusing to meet mine.

I folded the letter. “If you have something to say, say it.”

He lowered his head. Then, as if forcing himself to be brave, he spoke.

“My young master says there is nothing improper between him and Miss Zhenzhen.”

“He says that you, on the other hand, joined others in maligning Miss Zhenzhen behind her back, conduct unworthy of a gentleman.”

“He also says the wedding will be postponed for now and discussed again when he returns.”

I gave a cold snort and let Zhenzhen’s letter fall at the servant’s feet.

“There is nothing left to discuss. The engagement is over.”

“Whether I marry, and whom I marry, is no longer any concern of Young Master Cui’s.”