At the center of the engagement stage sat an antique-style bronze marriage certificate chest. On either side stood celadon folding screens adorned with dew-kissed crimson-gold peonies. Behind them rose an enormous double-happiness carved screen, handcrafted and finished with intricate gold-painted vine patterns, with the gilded words “The Union of the Zhou and Shen Families” engraved at its center.
The most eye-catching feature, however, was the engagement display stand.
The bride-to-be had the classic oval face of a traditional beauty. Her brows resembled distant mountains brushed with ink, and her eyes were as soft as mist drifting over the rivers of Jiangnan. A bright red Suzhou-embroidered qipao hugged her graceful figure, her slender waist so delicate it seemed a gust of wind could snap it. She looked like a timeless beauty stepping straight out of an ancient painting.
Everyone who passed the display couldn’t help but steal another glance.
The bride herself now stood beneath the lights, her eyes lowered. The gentle expression she always wore had disappeared, leaving her face unreadable.
A man in a tailored suit stood before her, guilt written all over his face.
“Hehe… I’m sorry. I can’t get engaged to you anymore. She’s back. She needs me more. Without me, she’ll die. She needs me too much. I don’t want to hurt two people at the same time.”
Shen Shuhe’s eyelashes trembled slightly as she looked up.
“Who is she? What’s her name?”
A trace of coldness flashed through Zhou Jiayan’s eyes.
“What are you planning to do? She’s innocent. This is between the two of us. Don’t drag her into it. As for today’s losses suffered by your family, the Zhou family will cover everything.”
Shen Shuhe stared at the man before her, feeling as though she had never truly known him.
Just yesterday, this was the fiancé who had planned their future with her, the man who swore he would love her for a lifetime.
Today, he was hurting her without hesitation while doing everything he could to protect another woman.
The icy look in Shen Shuhe’s eyes made Zhou Jiayan uncomfortable.
In his memory, Shen Shuhe had always been like an exquisite porcelain beauty bathed in warm light—gentle, considerate, and endlessly understanding. Even when she got angry, it was merely a fleeting pout.
Surely… even now, despite her pain, she would soon understand him.
“So you’re saying the Zhou family will compensate my family for every loss today, correct? Your parents agree as well?”
“Yes.”
Zhou Jiayan believed his family was being more than generous.
“Give me the bill. The Zhou family will pay for everything. Hehe, I suppose we simply weren’t meant to be. I hope we can still be friends in the future.”
Shen Shuhe curved her lips into a smile.
“Alright.”
Her easy acceptance caught Zhou Jiayan off guard.
Before he could react, she had already walked past him.
Her graceful figure crossed the lounge.
She walked slowly, every step in her high heels steady and resolute, as though she were saying goodbye to the past.
Only when she reached the lounge doors did she stop.
She straightened her back. The blank expression disappeared, replaced once again by her usual gentle elegance—though a hint of ruthless determination now flickered in her beautiful eyes.
She pushed the doors open.
Outside, the master of ceremonies was already speaking onstage.
“Welcome, everyone, to the engagement ceremony celebrating the union of the Zhou and Shen fami—”
Before he could finish, a slender ivory-white hand took the microphone from him.
A voice as gentle as flowing spring water rang throughout the hall.
“I’m very sorry to inform everyone that the Shen family is unilaterally canceling our engagement with the Zhou family.”
The audience erupted into an uproar.
Mr. and Mrs. Shen shot to their feet in shock.
Mr. and Mrs. Zhou, however, remained seated without the slightest surprise, as though they had expected this outcome all along.
A cold laugh echoed in Shen Shuhe’s heart.
So they really had known from the beginning.
This very morning they had still been holding her hands, pretending to look forward to welcoming her into the Zhou family as their beloved daughter-in-law.
The last trace of softness in her heart vanished completely.
Her eyes reddened as tears streamed down her cheeks.
“It’s all the Shen family’s fault. It’s my responsibility. I’m the only child of the Shen family—the only heir we have. As the saying goes, ‘Of all acts of unfilial conduct, leaving no descendants is the greatest.’ I cannot allow my family’s bloodline to end with me. For the sake of my parents… for the sake of the Shen family having future generations… I can only painfully end this engagement with the Zhou family.”
The hall exploded into another wave of shocked whispers.
“So… Zhou Jiayan is impotent?”
“You really can’t tell.”
“Does he have… that kind of problem?”
“The Shen family has a huge business, but they don’t have a son. Even though this marriage would have been a powerful alliance, if Zhou Jiayan can’t have children, then the Shen family really would have no heir.”
“Exactly. The Zhou family still has three sons.”
Countless burning gazes landed on Mr. and Mrs. Zhou.
The whispers and pointing fingers forced them to leap to their feet.
Shen Shuhe had always been so obedient and virtuous that even they briefly wondered whether their son really did have… problems.
Meanwhile, Shen Shuhe continued tearfully,
“Jiayan-ge and I grew up together as childhood sweethearts. He never wanted this to happen either. I only ask everyone to spare him your gossip and allow him to keep the last bit of his dignity.”
Only then did Mr. and Mrs. Zhou realize what she had done.
Mrs. Zhou pointed at Shen Shuhe furiously.
“Who are you calling impotent? My son was the one who dumped you! Don’t you dare slander him!”
“Shen Shuhe! How can someone who claims to be refined and well-mannered say something so disgraceful?”
Mrs. Shen finally understood what was happening.
She had always treasured her daughter above all else.
Now that someone was pointing a finger at her precious child, she immediately stepped forward.
“The Shen family would never accept a son-in-law who can’t produce children. And certainly not in-laws who insult my daughter. This engagement can be canceled for all I care. My daughter, Shuhe, is praised wherever she goes. Men who can’t father children are as rare as ugly toads—but men with two legs are everywhere.”
Shen Shuhe had always known her mother was formidable.
She simply hadn’t expected her to be such a master at insulting people.
Mrs. Zhou’s face turned pale with anger, left completely speechless.
“You… you… you…”
After stammering for several seconds, she slammed the table.
“What makes your Shen family so special? Do you really think our Zhou family can’t do without your daughter? Your family’s on the verge of bankruptcy! What gives you the right to be picky? My son agreeing to marry your daughter was a blessing your family earned over ten lifetimes!”
Her crimson-painted fingernail pointed accusingly at Shen Shuhe.
“You raised quite the daughter. She pretends to be gentle and virtuous, yet she couldn’t even keep a man. This engagement banquet is off!”
Shen Shuhe suddenly wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes.
A gentle smile—no different from the one she always wore—curved across her lips.
“Who said the engagement banquet is canceled?”
Her soft voice instantly silenced the entire hall.
“Mrs. Zhou, today you and your son humiliated my family…”
She slowly descended the stage, her crimson qipao flowing like liquid fire beneath the lights.
“Even if Zhou Jiayan were the most fertile man in the world, I still wouldn’t consider marrying him.”
She turned to face the assembled guests, her expression still as graceful and gentle as ever.
“But…”
Her red lips parted.
“The engagement banquet will go on. Everything proceeds as planned.”
The entire venue exploded into chaos.
Shen Shuhe’s gaze swept across the crowd before stopping on a shadow outside the open banquet doors.
A man was passing by.
The corridor beyond the hall was dimly lit, and his tall, lean figure blended almost completely into the darkness.
The simple black T-shirt outlined his broad shoulders and narrow waist with sharp precision.
A black baseball cap was pulled low over his face, while the edge of his mask revealed the elegant bridge of his nose.
Without warning, Shen Shuhe found herself staring into a pair of deep, pitch-black eyes.
Those eyes were too calm—
like the final silence before a bullet was chambered,
or the heavy clouds gathering before a thunderstorm.
Something stirred within her.
She strode through the banquet hall and, in full view of everyone present, grabbed the man’s wrist.
Leaning closer, she lowered her voice.
“Come with me. I need you to help me with something.”
The man looked at her with amused interest.
Tilting her head up to meet his gaze, she asked,
“Name your price. Will you do it?”