"A natural-born idiot?"
"The City Lord's Mansion may be above the four great families of Yangzhou City, but they can't bully people like this, can they?"
The onlookers were all astonished.
"Heh, you must not be from around here, are you?"
Another bystander replied...
"You don't know the situation. This Miss Cheng Yunsu of the Cheng Family was supposedly once a full-fledged student at the Great Wu Imperial Academy."
"But over a month ago, she suffered a cultivation deviation, and her whole body was horribly burned by fire. Her Heavenly Destiny Bone shattered on the spot. Now, she's nearly blind and is considered a cripple."
"Miss Wu is her arch-nemesis, so of course she'd want to humiliate her viciously."
The informed man's words brought sudden understanding to everyone around him.
At that same moment, Lu Chao's entire body trembled violently. 'Xiao Su'er didn't suffer a cultivation deviation at all. It was because of me, Lu Chao.'
'Xiao Su'er's eyes... they're nearly blind now, too?'
Just as Lu Chao's eyes turned red, Wu Xin, still looking down on them, asked, "Elder Cheng, what is your decision?"
As her voice fell, a middle-aged man rushed out from behind Cheng Weishan and said, "Father, you can't agree to this! Yunsu absolutely cannot marry..."
Before he could finish, Cheng Weishan cut him off with a sharp rebuke, "Shut up."
The next moment, he turned to Wu Xin with a fawning smile. "Since Miss Wu has thought so highly of us, I naturally agree to this marriage. I will choose an auspicious day to have my unworthy granddaughter, Cheng Yunsu, marry into the City Lord's Mansion."
In the crowd, Lu Chao's head snapped up.
'This Cheng Weishan is Xiao Su'er's grandfather, and he's actually going to push her into a pit of fire?'
"I... will not marry!"
Suddenly, a hoarse but resolute voice came from within the Cheng Mansion.
A woman, completely bundled up in a cloak, walked out of the mansion, trembling.
Lu Chao's gaze fixed on the woman. Although only her eyes were visible, Lu Chao recognized her instantly.
'It's her... It's definitely Xiao Su'er...'
Cheng Yunsu faced Cheng Weishan's direction and stated firmly, "Grandfather, let alone the fact that Wu Xin's brother is an idiot, even if he weren't, I would never marry into the City Lord's Mansion. I won't marry anyone at all."
Staring at Cheng Yunsu, a look of utter disgust appeared in Cheng Weishan's eyes.
He then ignored her completely and turned back to Wu Xin with a sycophantic smile. "Miss Wu, the matter is settled. Please choose an auspicious date, and I will have Cheng Yunsu sent to the City Lord's Mansion."
Cheng Yunsu's voice rose as she shouted, "Grandfather, I..."
Before her voice could fade, Cheng Weishan snapped angrily, "Hold your tongue! A cripple like you has no right to object."
At the same time, Wu Xin gracefully floated down from the carriage to land in front of Cheng Yunsu. She said with a beaming smile, "Cheng Yunsu, my future sister-in-law, you will marry him whether you want to or not."
Cheng Yunsu's fiery red eyes stared at the nearby Wu Xin as she said, "Even if I die..."
Once again, she was not allowed to finish her sentence...
Suddenly, Wu Xin reached out, grabbed the cloak that was tightly wrapped around Cheng Yunsu, and viciously ripped it off.
"Ah—!"
With a cry of alarm, Cheng Yunsu was left without her cloak, revealing a fiery red dress.
But her face, her neck, her hands, and even her calves were all exposed for everyone to see.
They were covered in nauseating burns. She was completely disfigured; not a single patch of skin was unmarred.
At this moment, she looked like an Evil Ghost!
Wu Xin sneered relentlessly. "Cheng Yunsu, with the way you look—neither human nor ghost—marrying my brother is a blessing you've earned over several lifetimes. Don't be ungrateful."
Only Wu Xin's shrill voice remained, echoing in the silence. Even the members of the Cheng Family were stunned silent by Cheng Yunsu's appearance.
A miserable look filled Cheng Yunsu's eyes, but she retorted, "Wu Xin, isn't this just because I outshone you at the Imperial Academy? I'm already a cripple. Do you really need to be this petty?"
At these words, overwhelming hatred flooded Wu Xin's eyes, as if she was recalling the times she had been overshadowed by Cheng Yunsu.
But she quickly returned to her malicious sneer.
"Me? Petty? Don't you dare spout such nonsense."
"I'm only letting you be my sister-in-law because I pity you. You should be thanking me."
With that, Wu Xin turned to face the crowd again. "Fine. To prove that I am acting out of goodwill, if any man in this crowd is willing to marry you now, I will withdraw this marriage proposal."
Her gaze swept over the onlookers as she asked in a chilling voice, "Any of you willing to take Cheng Yunsu as your wife? Step forward."
Silence fell before the Cheng Mansion. One by one, people shook their heads.
True, becoming a son-in-law of the Cheng Family could bring wealth and status, but who could stand Cheng Yunsu's current appearance?
Besides, who would dare to mortally offend the City Lord's daughter?
Cheng Weishan also remained silent. In his heart, this marriage was a foregone conclusion; it could not be changed.
Everyone from the Cheng Mansion was silent.
Wu Xin sneered viciously. This was her plan all along: to humiliate Cheng Yunsu in public and make her suffer under countless gazes of revulsion.
In this deathly silent moment, a deep male voice suddenly rang out from the crowd. "I will!"