"Young Miss?"

"Yes?" Mei Hui answers, turning toward the servant bowing at the doorway and looking away from the scripture she was reading.

"The Master requests your presence." The servant states keeping her head lowered to the floor.

Mei Hui sighs, putting down her scripture as she get up, ready to see her father.

***

"You called for me father?" Mei Hui asks as she bows her head in front of her father as he sits in his desk. His stalwart face that rarely shows a smile continuing to look down as he conducts business, servants bustling around the room moving papers.

Hearing her speak, he stays silent, continuing his work while she keeps her head down, waiting for acknowledgment keeping her straight face. After awhile he finishes up, dismissing the servants, clearing up the room.

"Your getting married." Are the first words he speaks causing her eyes that are hidden by her still bowing head to widen in surprise, the first expression she's shown since finding out her father wanted to see her.

Mei Hui looks up, meeting her fathers eyes, showing nothing as he examines her.

It has been a long time since he saw his daughter, being mediocre and blending in with his other 14 children. He remembers her mother being one of his several concubines sent in from a lower class family. The mother wasn't that memorable and died after giving birth, the child then forgotten with all his other unproductive children after her innate talent test she was shown to be mediocre, not expected to improve and to be at the level of a normal person. Even her looks are average, only her eyes being her saving grace. Looking like night sky, shimmering and sucking people in.

Unfortunately she rarely shows any expression in front of other people especially her father, dulling them significantly, making them less notable.

He finishes his examination, looking back at the papers in his hand as he finishes talking, "You will be married to Young Master Chang as his Consort, the wedding date has already been foretold, you will marry in 3 months."

Stating rather than asking, Mei Hui keeps a straight face as she bows her head in confirmation as he dismisses her.

Mei Hui walks away, still processing the information as she travels to her courtyard. Entering her courtyard she lays down on the day bed.

It's no use denying the wedding, I'm not useful to him other than building connections through marriage.

Mei Hui thinks, staring into nothingness as she thinks about the man she's about to marry.

Young Master Chang is the second legitimate child of the Chang family, a middle rank nobility family owning lots of shops being more wealthy then other nobles. Young Master Chang, or also called Chang Zheng, is known for being a dandy sleeping with countless women and already having concubines well into the double digits. But still doesn't have a main wife.

While Mei Hui's family –the Chu family- is a family that produces general's as well as significant cultivators, the Patriarch being in the middle of Core Formation, which is considerably influential to normal people.

Mei Hui knows she wouldn't be able to avoid marrying him, and that her life would be less than desirable with him.

So will lay down andmarry him? No, she won't.