Lu Family Mansion, 15:20;
Rong Xinghe descended the stairs, a gentle smile curving her lips—practiced, composed, concealing the unease twisting inside her. "How was your night?" she asked, her voice light, her gaze fleeting as it skimmed over the faces of her family. She clung to the illusion of normalcy, desperate to hold onto something steady, something familiar.
Behind her, Xi Yuan followed in silence, his presence a calming force at her back—both a comfort and a torment. She could feel him, unwavering, as he always was. And it gutted her.
He was losing so much because of her—because of her wrecked body, because of the cruel reality that had stolen the future they had once envisioned together. And yet, he stayed. Without hesitation. Without question. Pretending, as if nothing had changed.
But it had. Everything had.