By the time the Chen family showed up, pretty much everyone in Mingzu City knew why. News travels like wildfire when it involves someone's downfall, especially when that someone used to be so idolized it was almost worship.
Bia Yuzhen stood under the shaded corridor of the front hall, watching servants scurry in and out with their heads down. No one needed to say anything; the tension in the estate was thick enough to feel in the wood beams, the stone path, the rustle of sleeves. The Chen family was here in person. Not for a friendly visit, not to check on his health, and definitely not to keep the engagement that both families had treated like destiny for years.
A servant stopped a few steps away and bowed. "Young Master, the Family Head wants you in the main hall."
Yuzhen nodded once. "I heard."
The servant hesitated, as if wanting to offer some comfort, then thought better of it and stepped back. Comfort, Yuzhen mused, was usually sought only when things had already gone south. Straightening his sleeves, he headed towards the hall.
He'd pictured this moment before, more than once if he was being honest. After his foundation was shattered, while doctors spoke in hushed tones and elders tried to hide their pity, he'd known what was coming. The Chen family had raised Chen Xianyi too carefully, too ambitiously, to let him be tied to someone whose future had imploded overnight. It wasn't a shock, but knowing it didn't make it any easier.
The main hall doors were open, the air carrying a faint scent of sandalwood and cold tea. The elders of the Bia family sat in their places, their expressions unreadable. At the head sat Bia Zhenyuan, solid as a mountain, one hand resting on his chair. Beside him, Lin Suyue was a picture of calm elegance, her composure almost unsettling.
Across from them sat the Chen family. Chen Rulong himself had come. That, at least, was a sign of respect, or perhaps a desire to make the insult look good. Chen Xianyi stood a step behind him. Yuzhen's gaze flickered over him for just a moment. He'd loved him once, or thought he had. At fifteen, it had been easy to confuse habit with certainty. Their names had been linked since childhood, their engagement celebrated and envied. The young master of the Bia Family and the young master of the Chen Family – a perfect match, everyone had said. Now, Chen Xianyi wouldn't meet his eyes. That, more than anything, almost made Yuzhen want to laugh.
He entered calmly and bowed first to his grandparents. "Grandfather. Grandmother." Only then did he incline his head towards the Chen family. "Family Head Chen. Young Master Chen." His voice was steady, betraying none of the sleepless night he'd had.
Chen Rulong studied him with a look that was too complex for guilt and too shallow for regret. "Yuzhen," he said, hiding any awkwardness well. "You seem well."
"I am alive," Yuzhen replied.
A brief silence followed. One of the Bia elders clinked his cup down a little too hard. Chen Xianyi's shoulders tensed almost imperceptibly. Bia Zhenyuan didn't look at his grandson, but Yuzhen felt the old man's attention like a steadying hand on his back.
Chen Rulong exhaled. "Since everyone is here, I won't waste words." *How kind of him*, Yuzhen thought, folding his hands behind his back and waiting.
"The engagement between the Chen and Bia Families was made years ago, when both children were young. At the time, it was a union both households welcomed," Chen Rulong's voice was smooth, practiced, the kind used by those who preferred to cut with polished blades. "But cultivation is the root of a cultivator's future. What has happened to Yuzhen is… regrettable."
*Regrettable*. Such a clean word for utter ruin.
"No physician in Mingzu City has found a way to restore a broken foundation," Chen Rulong continued. "Even outside the city, such cases are nearly hopeless. My Chen Family has discussed this matter carefully. For Xianyi's sake, and for the family's future, this engagement can no longer continue."
A breath passed in silence. Then, one of the Bia elders let out a sharp, humorless laugh. "For Xianyi's sake? Family Head Chen, you should at least have the decency to say you came because my Bia Family's young master is no longer useful to you."
Chen Rulong's expression turned cold. "Elder Bia, there is no need for ugly words."
"Then don't bring ugly intentions into my family's hall."
Chen Xianyi looked as if he wanted to speak, but Yuzhen was no longer watching him. His gaze had drifted to the grain of the floorboards illuminated by the winter light. He knew that pattern. He'd knelt there as a child reciting rules, fidgeting. He'd stood there at ten, receiving praise as a "rare seedling." He'd stood there again at thirteen when the engagement gifts were formally recorded, with servants smiling and everyone talking about his bright future. The same place. The same hall. How quickly the meaning of a room could change.
"Yuzhen," Lin Suyue said softly. He looked up. Her eyes were clear and steady, not pitying, never pitying. That helped.
Chen Rulong reached into his sleeve and produced a red document case. The color was jarring. "The original marriage agreement is here," he said. "The gifts exchanged can be returned according to proper custom. My Chen Family does not wish to damage the friendship between our houses."
Bia Zhenyuan smiled then. It wasn't a pleasant expression. "Friendship?" he repeated. His voice wasn't loud, but the room seemed to shrink around it. "You bring a cancellation letter to my door before my grandson's wounds are even cold, and you speak to me of friendship?"
Chen Rulong's jaw tightened. "Family Head Bia, sentiment cannot alter reality."
"No," Zhenyuan said. "But it does reveal character."
Chen Xianyi finally raised his head, his face pale. "Uncle Bia, I—"
"You don't need to explain," Yuzhen cut in. Every eye in the hall snapped to him. He hadn't intended to speak so soon, but now that the words were out, he didn't regret them. Chen Xianyi stared at him, a mix of discomfort, shame, and something weaker that might once have been tenderness. Too late. All of it too late.
Yuzhen stepped forward, just enough to make his voice carry without straining. "If the Chen Family has come to end the engagement, then let it end." He looked directly at Chen Rulong, then at Chen Xianyi. "There's no need to pretend it's for my sake. We all know why you're here."
The hall fell utterly silent. He could feel the eyes on his face, waiting for him to crack, to plead, to be humiliated. He offered them none of it. "The engagement was made between two families," he said. "If one side no longer wants it, keeping the paper changes nothing. Return what needs returning. Burn what needs burning. From today onward, let there be no misunderstanding."
Chen Xianyi's lips parted. "Yuzhen—"
But Yuzhen was done with him. Bia Zhenyuan looked at his grandson for a long moment, a fierce, approving glint beneath his stern expression. "Good," he said. One word, heavy as stone. He turned back to the Chen family. "My grandson has spoken. The engagement is over." His gaze hardened. "But hear me clearly, Chen Rulong. My Bia Family is not so diminished that it needs your courtesy. Take your document. Take your son. As for friendship—save that word for people who still believe you know its meaning."
No one from the Chen family answered immediately. Lin Suyue finally broke the silence, lifting her teacup with a graceful finality. "Escort the guests out."
*Guests*. Not allies, not future in-laws. Guests. Servants moved at once. Chen Rulong rose, his face a mask of control. Chen Xianyi followed a beat later. For the first time since Yuzhen entered, their eyes met properly. There were things in that look that might have mattered once. Now, it only made Yuzhen feel tired. He turned away before the other boy could speak.
Outside, the winter wind rustled through the courtyard, carrying the dry scent of leaves and distant dust. Somewhere beyond the estate walls, Mingzu City was already turning this scene into gossip. Let them. Behind him, he heard Bia Zhenyuan's voice, calm and cold and utterly on his side. No one in Mingzu City would dare say the Bia Family had bowed its head today. Even so, when Yuzhen lowered his eyes, the hand hidden in his sleeve was clenched so tightly his nails had dug into his palm.