While Gu Lingzhi was in danger, the person that caused this, the Third Prince was in the midst of a Royal Banquet.

Rong Yuan leaned lazily on his chair as he looked at the elegantly-dressed girls parade before him, thinking only of Gu Lingzhi and her funny mask.

I wonder what she’s doing now? Would she be happy that I’m not there to annoy her, or would she be secretly missing me? 

“Rong Yuan, why do you look so unhappy? Did someone make you angry?” Hearing this familiar voice made Rong Yuan frown. There were only two people in the entire Xia Kingdom that could call him by his name.

“What are you doing here?” Rong Yuan’s eyes filled with revulsion as he saw Tianfeng Wei lean over.

Previously, he had thought that although Tianfeng Wei was not likeable, she was at least aware of her boundaries. He could also use her to prevent other girls from getting too close. If not for him getting to know Gu Lingzhi, he might even heed his mother’s wishes and marry her in a few years.

However, when he found out the unscrupulous deeds that she had done behind his back targeting Gu Lingzhi, he could not help but feel disgusted by her.

This engagement should not have been arranged in the first place and it was time for him to end it. To begin with, it was an engagement which did not even exist.

“Tianfeng Wei.” Making up his mind, Rong Yuan called out to Tianfeng Wei, causing her to look at him gleefully. His elegantly lips spewed out the cruel words, “Stay away from me from now on.”

“Rong Yuan… what did you say?” Tianfeng Wei’s expression immediately changed as her voice trembled. She refused to believe what she heard.

“Are you very busy? It’s okay, I will find you when you’re not so busy. I…”

“Tianfeng Wei,” Rong Yuan interrupted, “Both you and I know the truth about our engagement. From tomorrow onwards, I no longer want to hear rumours about you being my fiancée.”

“Why?” Tianfeng Wei bit down on her lip as she fought hard to hold back her tears.

“Did I do something wrong? Haven’t you always acknowledged our relationship? Why are you saying this now?”

“I think you are remembering things wrongly.” Rong Yuan was not at all moved by her tears.

“I said from the beginning that I would not marry you but you made use of my mother’s adoration for you and started spreading the rumor that we were engaged. I admit that I made use of you so that other girls would not pester me, so I let the rumours continue. If it wasn’t for the fact that you… maybe in a few years I would’ve married you when I needed an heir. But now… I don’t want people to misunderstand anymore, it isn’t good for the both of us.”

Rong Yuan’s words hammered down on Tianfeng Wei’s heart, causing her to hold onto the chair beside her for support. “So…it has been my wishful thinking all along?” If she knew that this would be the result of her trying to start a conversation with Rong Yuan, she would not even have stepped within three metres of Rong Yuan.

“You don’t have to play the victim here,” Rong Yuan decided to expose her heartlessly, seeing how more attention had been garnered on Tianfeng Wei, “Haven’t you always stayed with me just because of my social status?”

While he needed someone to help him shield off the girls who pestered him, she wanted the splendour and glamour that came with being associated with him.

Ever since Rong Yuan turned twenty, he had always been rumoured to be the person that was most likely to ascend to a True God. With a royal background and unrivalled talent, he was the idol of many. When Rong Yuan’s mother hinted that she wanted Tianfeng Wei to be her daughter-in-law, they had only met a few times in passing. How could they have feelings towards each other? Ultimately, it was all for convenience.

“But I… really like you,” Tianfeng Wei’s voice trembled.

Although she had initially tangled herself with Rong Yuan for the prestige, in the past few years she had started to develop feelings for him.

How could she simply let go just because he asked her to?

“Is it because of the Black Thorn? That slut does not even dare to show her face!” Recalling the rumours that she heard recently, Tianfeng Wei’s faced turned sinister. “I knew it…”

“Shut up!” Rong Yuan scolded, not wanting to hear her insult Gu Lingzhi. He shot a cold gaze at her.

“Whoever she is, you have no right to talk about her. I don’t want to hear you insult her ever again.”

His lashing out shocked her as her mouth open and closed, not daring to say anything mean. However, the indignance and hatred in her eyes could not be suppressed.

“I will not call off our engagement! Consort Rong will never allow you to be with someone with an unknown background!”

After throwing these words down in desperation, Tianfeng Wei straightened her back. She glanced at the onlookers with a cold look and left with a haughty expression.

Wasn’t the Black Thorn just a mysterious girl from an unknown background?

No matter what the Black Thorn’s real identity was, since she hid her face, she was definitely not from a prestigious family. How hard could it be to make someone as unimportant as her disappear without a trace using the influence from the Tianfeng Clan?

When she is gone, she will then see if Rong Yuan still cared about her.

With these thoughts, the sadness in her eyes disappeared, replaced with a stubborn glow.

Rong Yuan started to feel a headache as he looked at Tianfeng Wei leave. He knew that she would not give up so easily. From what she had done to the woman around Rong Yuan in the past, Gu Lingzhi would not have easy days ahead of her.

However, since he dared to call of his engagement with Tianfeng Wei, he was confident in protecting Gu Lingzhi. What worried him was Gu Lingzhi’s reaction.

To begin with, she was already slightly fearful of hanging out with him. If she knew that he was the reason for Tianfeng Wei’s hatred towards her, to the point that it might endanger her life, would she avoid him even more?

“Rong’er, come here. I have something to say to you,” A melodic voice sounded out, offering no room for rejection.

Rong Yuan’s heart skipped a bit as he turned to look at his mother, only to see her turn to leave as soon as she said this. His head started to throb even more.

Although Consort Rong looked petite and demure, she had a very strong personality and was once a renowned name on the Golden List when she was in the Royal School. It was how the current King had become attracted to her.

With her efforts to preserve her youth, she looked like a beautiful lady in her mid-twenties. She was standing in the corner of the hall and looking at the hustle and bustle of the people outside under the moonlight. Sensing Rong Yuan’s presence, her almond shaped eyes curved into a smile as she assessed him.

“What did Tianfeng Wei do wrong that made you say those nasty words to her?”

Rong Yuan internally sighed as he marvelled at how fast Tianfeng Wei acted. In such a short time, she had already complained to his mother.

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