“Xu Mingyuan, today I, Wang Ling, will free Sister Yingyue from your marriage contract!”
I open my eyes on my eleventh reincarnation to those words. A hateful man stands in front of me, the most disgusting creature in this world, Protagonist Wang Ling. He is of average height, with a sharp brow and deep eyes. His hair flows freely down to his waist, from years away in secluded cultivation. His cocky smile hides the cruelty in his eyes.
“Wang Ling, you’ve gone too far!” At my side was my red faced attendant, Yi Zhi. He’s a slightly overweight man with basic features. He has a habit of speaking out to “save face” as they like to say in these types of novels. I also hate this man.
“Ha! A dog who only knows how to bark!” Wang Ling spews more arrogant words, glaring down at my face from above like a tyrant. His arrogance has always been his strongest attribute, powering almost every conflict in the original plot. “Xu Mingyuan, do you only know how to hide behind your attendants? Let you and I settle this with a duel!”
From behind Wang Ling, I see Liu Yingyue, the woman at the center of this farce. She takes a cautious step out from his shadow with a malicious sneer on her face, sending a glance my way to gauge my reaction. This woman is my second most hated enemy, next to Wang Ling.
“Why you…! Guards! Grab this-”
“That’s enough.” I raise my hand to silence the idiot Yi Zhi, who was about to escalate the situation into something uncontrollable. I glance around the hall. It’s a grand hall, holding hundreds of people, all of them members of the upper caste, which is only natural considering the statuses of the hosts. The second son of the Xu media conglomerate, and the Liu city lord’s daughter, two people who stood as high as the heavens!
In front of me, laid lightly upon the table, is the marriage contract in question. Liu Yingyue’s name already sat signed on the paper, no doubt coerced or forced from her by her parents. The space for my signature remains blank, as a way to allow the plot to conveniently wrap up after I am beaten black and blue by Wang Ling. Grim emotions flow through me at the thought of the torture I’ve been put through up to this point.
Wang Ling continues to glare at me, eyes filled with derision. “Dog Xu Mingyuan, have you finally decided to fight? This daddy will go easy on you so you can still walk in the future, even if it’ll be with your head bowed hahaha!” His snide laughter rang through the now silent hall.
“...Haaa.” I release a long sigh, filled with my pent up emotions from decades of humiliation. I could feel something inside me trembling, like my caged up resentment and frustration were about to break free and run loose. “Wang Ling, did you know? For a long time I’ve waited for this day.”
You could be reading stolen content. Head to Royal Road for the genuine story.
Wang Ling’s eyes filled with a sense of cruel amusement, clearly believing he knew where this was going. Liu Yingyue continued to look at me with eyes of disgust, clearly unhappy with the thought of marrying me.
I continued on, the trembling growing to a rumble. “Now that this day has finally come, and I see you, Wang Ling, and your awful face standing in front of me, I feel so many things. Anger, hate, resentment…” The rumble inside me grew feverishly all of a sudden, becoming a roar. “Despair, disgust, and shame. But most of all, Wang Ling, if I said I had to feel a certain way after seeing you here, on this wonderful day, it would be…” The roar shook me to the center of my being. Something was about to snap.
“...Free!”
The cage around my heart breaks.
I tear up the marriage contract in front of me as I suddenly stand up. A dazzling smile breaks out on my face. I can not contain my feeling of liberation. For the first time in eleven reincarnations, I am no longer shackled to the world’s will!
“Yo… Young master, what are you doing?!” Yi Zhi is the first to recover from my declaration, hurriedly rushing to grab me and stop me from walking out. “This marriage is important for your family! Your father will be very upset with us both if you walk out now!” His face grew even redder than when he dealt with Wang Ling, practically begging me to stay and resolve the issue through other means. It’s no surprise given my father’s attitude that Yi Zhi would be terrified for his life.
“Yi Zhi, do you not understand the situation? Neither I nor Miss Liu have any desire for this ceremony, even going so far as to lead to violence in the hall. At this point, what’s the point in forcing the issue?” I frown at the idiot Yi Zhi. If I feared my father’s beating I would never survive the years of Wang Ling’s terror! “I will talk to my father for you when we get back, you have nothing to fear.” I smile coldly in my heart, a murderous intent rising, ‘Of course I’ll talk to my father for you, idiot Yi Zhi!’
I walk away from my seat, taking some distance from Wang Ling and Liu Yingyue, who both continue to stare at me with dumbfounded gazes, like a pair of deer in the headlights. “Miss Yingyue, I’m sorry that these circumstances made you feel so pressed as to hire a country bumpkin as your bodyguard. It seems you and I have similar thoughts on this matter, and things should’ve never escalated to where they are now in the first place. It is my fault for not trying to communicate my feelings to you earlier.”
I continue to walk around the massive banquet table as I slowly approach the exit. At the end of the table, closest to the door, I stop and grab a glass of wine. I give a short look at each person seated at the table before opening my mouth to speak. “I am sorry that today’s conclusion was likely not what everyone was expecting. I hope that everyone present can give me and Miss Liu some face and enjoy the feast we have prepared for the occasion.” A calm smile lingers on my face as I down my glass, not bothering to taste it. After another glance at the table, I turn and walk out the door.