Eyes dark as the cat’s eye in the night, filled with jealousy, sorrow, and anger.

In a moment of agitation, the cocktail glass held between those slender fingers tipped over, spilling onto the garden below.

——

The grand and opulent banquet hall.

As the nineteenth generation’s old king of S Country, Ya Qianhuai, made his appearance, he quickly captured the gaze of everyone present.

Even in contemporary S Country society, where the Royal Family had fallen into decline and saw its power being peeled away by the government and the Prime Minister day by day, the innate dignity and demeanor of royalty could not be obscured.

Ya Qianhuai was already sixty years old, with hair graying, but he still emanated an air of elegance and distinction.

Seeing that only two daughters of the Chu Family had come, Ya Qianhuai already knew that Chu Yanhan and his wife intended to marry their third daughter into the Ya Family.

This was not what Ya Qianhuai had anticipated, and his expression faltered slightly.

No matter how much poise Xuan Yu imbued in the girl in front of him, she had a fatal flaw—everyone knew that she was the illegitimate daughter Chu Yanhan had fathered outside and had only been brought back to the Chu Family a few years ago.

Wasn’t this just the Chu Family casually offering a daughter to the Ya Family?

"Yanhan, if you’re unwilling to have a marital alliance with the Ya Family, you can just say so," Ya Qianhuai spoke with clear displeasure when the two families were alone on the terrace. 𝚏𝐫𝚎𝗲𝕨𝐞𝐛𝕟𝚘𝐯𝚎𝗹.𝕔𝐨𝗺

Chu Yanhan said, "How could that be? The Chu Family has close ties with the Ya Family, how could I be unwilling to form a marriage alliance with the Ya Family?"

Ya Qianhuai snorted lightly and glanced at Jiayi.

Fearing that she wouldn’t be able to successfully promote Jiayi, Xuan Yu hurriedly said, "In fact, even the Crown Prince is quite satisfied with Jiayi. The other night, he had Butler Pei specially deliver a gown for the banquet to our Chu Family."

Ya Qianhuai looked suspiciously at Butler Pei.

Butler Pei nodded in confirmation.

Ya Qianhuai’s expression tightened slightly, but he still spoke with a tone of discontent, "The third young miss is not born of Madam Chu, and does not quite qualify as a proper Miss of the Chu Family."

Jiayi let out a sigh of relief; that was good. She had already expected that the Ya Family would not accept her. As long as the Ya Family disagreed, the Chu Family would have nothing to say, and the matter would be concluded.

Just then, a voice drifted up to the terrace where the two rows of people were talking, "Father."

All eyes turned.

A servant pushed a silver-white wheelchair up to the terrace, on which a handsome yet frail figure sat.

Chu Yanhan and Xuan Yu hastily greeted with courtesy, "Crown Prince."

Ya Chen raised his hand, signaling the servant to stop, and took a deep breath, "Father, I am willing to marry Miss Chu the third. I don’t care about her status. Besides, her status is not low; she is indeed the legitimate third young miss of the Chu Family."

Jiayi’s heart skipped a beat.

She had thought that Ya Chen’s attitude toward her was merely one of gratitude, and she never imagined that he would take the initiative to request marriage.

Xuan Yu was overjoyed and turned towards Ya Qianhuai, "It appears the Crown Prince also has a favorable impression of our third young miss. What era are we in now? This isn’t like the aristocratic marriages of five hundred years ago. Nowadays, it’s all about freedom and equality. Wasn’t Princess Kelly whom the Prince of the United Kingdom married last year of common birth? And a few years back, the Princess of Norway was also the daughter of an ordinary family. As long as there’s true love, what’s not possible?"

Jiayi looked at Ya Chen and subconsciously wanted to speak, but her hand was surreptitiously grasped, and when she looked up, Xuan Yu’s fierce eyes were on her.

Having heard what his only son said, Ya Qianhuai’s expression softened a little.

With Ya Chen’s body in such condition, finding a wife he truly wished to marry mattered the most in his life.

Besides, although Miss Chu the third was an illegitimate daughter, she bore the family name and was recognized by the Chu Family.

Considering this, Ya Qianhuai reluctantly made up his mind, his gaze resting on Jiayi.

Ya Qianhuai’s gaze sent a shiver down Jiayi’s spine, and she heard Ya Qianhuai give the butler instructions:

"Notify the guests that the banquet has started and I have an important announcement to make. Also, bring out the Pigeon Blood Crown."

Ya Chen glanced at Jiayi and then was ushered out by a throng of servants.

"Yes," the butler responded respectfully and, with a wave of his hand, led several servants away.

Jiayi’s mood inexplicably plummeted as the situation unfolded like a tidal wave, surging toward an unpredictable direction.

As much as she wanted to pull it back, she was powerless to do so.

Inside the banquet hall,

the atmosphere quieted down.

Ya Qianhuai addressed a group of ameinfluential guests from S Country, "Tonight, you are invited to a family banquet for two purposes: to gather socially and to announce the engagement of the crown prince. Ya Chen is twenty-one this year, and it is time for him to marry. For generations, the Ya Family has been connected to the Chu Family through marriage, and this generation will be no exception. The crown prince’s future wife, in our view, is the third young lady of the Chu Family—"

At that point, Ya Qianhuai’s gaze landed on a young girl in the crowd, "Chu Jiayi. We hope that she can become the crown prince’s wife, bear children for the Ya Family, and become a part of our family."

There was a slight stir among the crowd, and their eyes focused on the young girl beside Chu Yanhan.

There were expressions of surprise, envy, jealousy, curiosity, and intrigue.

Everyone knew the background of this third young lady of the Chu Family: she was not Mrs. Chu’s biological daughter but allegedly the daughter of a mistress Chu Yanhan had many years ago.

Thanks to Mrs. Chu’s virtue and generosity, she had taken this daughter into her home and raised her to this day.

Taking a few steps forward, Chu Yanhan nodded slightly, in accordance with the customs of S Country, "Our Chu Family is very honored to accept the Ya Family’s marriage proposal and is willing to have our daughter accompany the crown prince, stand by him for life, and bear his children."

The butler lifted the red cloth on the tray he was holding, instantly drawing a series of subdued gasps.

On the tray was a delicate and exquisite crown, sparkling brightly with colored diamonds, and at its center, a Pigeon’s Blood Ruby the size of a child’s fist.

This was the Pigeon Blood Crown worn by the bride-to-be at royal engagement ceremonies in S Country.

"The Pigeon Blood Crown..."

"My God, I see it—the one in the middle is a Pigeon’s Blood Ruby. I heard it came from Myanmar, once worn by Princess Mathilde, Napoleon’s niece, in France, then it came into the possession of the A Country Royal Family and was gifted to our nation many years ago."

"This gem looks to be at least 30 grams; its market price must be over 18 million US dollars."

Any woman would be moved at the sight of such precious jewelry.

A group of socialites couldn’t help but start whispering among themselves.

Eighteen million US dollars...

Jiayi was slightly shocked; how much was that in RMB again?

By the current exchange rate, that would be at least 112 million RMB.

She had not expected the Ya Family to make such a grand gesture just for an engagement.

Even a camel, thin as it may be, is still larger than a horse.

The Royal Family is indeed the Royal Family; even in modern society, where their glory may have dimmed, the wealth they could casually display was enough to choke a crowd.

Meanwhile,

Ya Chen, guarded by several men in tuxedos, was pushed out in a wheelchair, emerging slowly.

The young man in the wheelchair had a high, straight nose and perfectly curved lips, a handsome and elegant demeanor. Though he had not stood up, one could tell he was well over one meter eighty-five; with long, slender limbs, his figure was enchanting.