That night.
Moonlight flowed like water, spilling across the courtyard.
Chen Xuan was still reading in the pavilion. Qian Renxue stood beside him, grinding ink.
She had lost focus several times that day, splattering ink across the rice paper.
"When your mind is unsettled, even the ink runs wild."
Chen Xuan's voice suddenly rang out.
Qian Renxue's body jerked, and the inkstick nearly slipped from her hand.
"Student... I was wrong."
She spoke softly.
Chen Xuan put down his book and looked up at her.
In the moonlight, her face seemed especially pale. Her gaze darted away, and she looked burdened with worries.
"I..."
She had just begun to speak when Chen Xuan suddenly reached out, wrapped an arm around her waist, and pulled her into his embrace.
"Mm!"
Caught off guard, Qian Renxue fell onto his lap.
She could clearly feel his sturdy chest and the steady, powerful beat of his heart.
A faint, woody fragrance lingered on him, brushing her nose and making her head spin.
"You... let go of me!"
She struggled, only to find her body had gone limp, without a shred of strength.
"Tell me, what do you want?"
Chen Xuan's voice sounded by her ear, carrying a spellbinding magic.
"Do you want to keep being the crown prince and seize Heaven Dou's throne?"
"Or..."
His hand gently caressed her cheek.
"Do you want to be my woman?"
Qian Renxue's breath stopped completely.
Her mind roared.
Be his... woman?
The thought was like a stone thrown into a lake, stirring up towering waves.
She gazed at his face, so close to hers. His deep eyes seemed to hold an endless pull, as though they would draw her very soul inside.
She struggled. She hesitated.
The mission of Spirit Hall, her grandfather's expectations, the Angel God's