CH 1

Wielding Her Own Death as a Threat

On a bed ever so soft, Hua Manman was sound asleep.

Suddenly she was awakened by a series of sounds by the system.

[The system has released an important plot-related task!]

[The host is asked to please immediately go to the garden and commit suicide by jumping into the lake, in front of Prince Zhao and the people around him, to express the host’s unwillingness to marry into his courtyard.]

[The task has a time limit of one hour. If the host fails to complete this task within the time limit, then the task will be deemed unsuccessful.]

[Successfully completing the task will reward the host with a lucky bag]

[Failing the mission will result in heart pains]

[Good luck, host!]

Hua Manman immediately opened her eyes and stood up with a whoosh.

Before her mind was even fully awake, her hands and feet instinctively escaped the quilts and got down from her bed.

Upon hearing the sounds, the servant girl guarding the entrance immediately knocked on the door to her room.

“Second Miss, have you awoken?”

The servant girls only dared to open the door after they heard the Second Miss give an affirmative answer.

As Shiyun waited on Second Miss while she washed, Shiyun asked.

“It’s still early, wouldn’t you like to sleep a bit more?”

On normal days, the Second Miss has the habit of taking a lunch break, and usually sleeps for half an hour, but today she woke up right after she had fallen asleep.

Hua Manman was crying on the inside.

She also doesn’t want to wake up right now, isn’t this all because of that system task?

Previously, because she was unable to complete a task, she was punished by the system and hurt so badly that it felt like she trekked through hell and back.

From then on, no matter what, she couldn’t afford to fail these tasks anymore.

She doesn’t want to experience that kind of heart-stabbing pain ever again.

Hua Manman didn’t allow her servant girls to draw her makeup this time. As soon as she was dressed and groomed, she hurried over towards the garden.

The gardens in the Zhongan Mansion are built beautifully.

The pavilions, towers, and landscape of rocky mountains and flowing water were laid out asymmetrically.

But Hua Manman is not in the mood to admire the scenery.

Right now, she can only hear the sounds of the system counting down.

That cold, mechanical voice was like a terrible reminder of her potentially miserable outcome.

She ignored the yells of the servant girls behind her and rushed the entire way, clutching her skirt in her hands, running faster and faster.

When she made it to the side of the lake, she immediately saw a crowd of people on the other side that was indeed led by the Prince Zhao, Li Ji.1

Li Ji was wearing a crimson brocade robe with wide sleeves, and possessed narrow eyebrows. His hair was tied up behind his head without much care, and held by a black hairband.

With legs and feet that were inconvenient to walk with, he could only stay wheelchair-bound,

The top half of his body slightly leaned towards the side, and a stray strand of hair brushed his face every now and then, giving off a lazy impression at first glance.

Zhong Anbo’s Hua Dingzong was currently leaning down, and engaging him in polite conversation.

The crowd of people following them all had their heads bowed and eyes lowered, dutifully setting the stage in the background.

At this time, the system’s countdown timer only had three minutes remaining.

She couldn’t delay any longer.

Hua Manman took a deep breath, and mustering up all her force, she shouted to the person on the opposite side of the lake.

“Father, I don’t want to get married to Prince Zhao! If you keep forcing me, then you can all bear witness to my death!”

The girl’s voice was clear and sweet, reaching the ears of everyone on the other side of the lake.

The crowd was in an uproar.

Hua Dingzong turned pale with fear.

He subconsciously glanced at Prince Zhao, who was by his side, and found that while there was not much change in Prince Zhao’s expression, but the light in his eyes was colder and deeper than before.

Hua Dingzong’s heart skipped a beat, it’s all over!

Although Prince Zhao has been transferred back to the capital and has suffered injuries to both of his legs, to the point that it is unknown if he will ever be able to stand up again in the future, but all of his magnificent military accomplishments still grant him a favorable reputation in the army.

Almost every general in the entire Zhou empire follows his lead, he is a powerful figure that they cannot afford to offend.

Hua Dingzong was fuming with rage, and was just about to order someone to capture his daughter and lock her up. Before his words could leave his lips, he saw the figure of his second daughter jumping, and saw her jump straight into the freezing cold and deep lake!

With a SPLOOSH, the lake water splashed high.

Upon seeing this, the flower-like faces of the servant girls who had followed along all turned pale with fright, and they shouted in shock.

“It’s not good! Second Miss jumped into the lake! Someone, come quick!”