"What? Break... break off the engagement?"
"How could you treat me like this!"
His father and brother's deaths, the inexplicable mud slung at him, and now the broken engagement...
Under this barrage of blows, Xia Ziyi, who had grown up like a flower in a greenhouse, finally awoke to the truth and realized that his circumstances were no longer what they had been.
He stood frozen, too choked with sobs to speak, his expression desolate.
The people of the Lin Household paid no heed to Xia Ziyi's feelings and soon took their leave.
Second Elder Xia sent the other clan elders to see them out with due courtesy, but stayed behind himself. He sighed and said, "The situation in the city is uncertain. Brother Lin had no choice in this either. In any case, you'll have to endure a little injustice for now..."
"But rest assured, the lineage won't shortchange you. When the time is right, we'll arrange another marriage for you, with a bride every bit as good as the Lin Household's daughter."
"Your father and brother's inheritance will also be handed over to you gradually once you establish your own household."
Xia Ziyi had no heart to listen to any of this. He returned to his room in a daze and shut himself inside.
"Why did this happen?"
"Why? Why!"
Overwhelmed by anguish, he wiped away his tears in private.
Even Li Chen, whose primordial spirit resided within the ring, could barely stand to watch.
"Foolish boy, what's the point of all these whys? Your father and brother are dead. You're nothing but a discarded pawn now!"
"If your mother weren't still alive, and the lineage didn't have to preserve its dignity, do you think this would be the extent of your treatment?"
"What do you think marriage