"Three days had passed since the grand wedding that painted the city in gold and envy, but also ended in chaos due to Madam He's collapse.
The He family resort carried the faint smell of lilies and champagne, but the applause had long since passed. What remained were polite silences, unspoken vows, and the heavy air of arrangement.
Yun Li sat by the balcony of their honeymoon suite, a cup of untouched tea cooling beside her. The ocean stretched endlessly before her eyes, glittering under the afternoon sun. It was beautiful. Yes, but indifferent.
Everything felt staged — the marble floors, the soft curtains, the breakfast spread she hadn't asked for.
Behind her, He Yuchen adjusted the cuffs of his shirt, his movements precise and mechanical. "You didn't sleep much," he observed quietly, not turning toward her.
"I'm fine," she replied, her tone calm. It was a sentence she had used far too often these past three days.
