When Qiu An walked up to Guo Xue and opened his mouth to call her name, he suddenly realized—he didn’t even know what her name was. He stammered for a while, unsure of what to say, and finally could only blurt out:
“You… you’re here.”
“Pfft.”
Seeing how nervous he looked, Guo Xue couldn’t help but cover her mouth and laugh.
Although her two facial scars still twisted like hideous centipedes when she smiled, to Qiu An, she looked absolutely beautiful.
Qiu An felt that since she was smiling at him, she must not dislike him. If she didn’t dislike him, then he’d made progress in winning her over.
“Your Grace, the person has been brought. If there’s nothing else, this servant will take her leave,” said Nanny Rong, shaking her head as she saw how flustered Qiu An was.
“That’ll be all, you may leave,” Qiu An waved a hand, though his eyes remained fixed on Guo Xue.
“This servant takes her leave.”
Nanny Rong shook her head again, noticing how Qiu An couldn’t take his eyes off Guo Xue, then gave a bow and exited.
“Your Grace, this subordinate will also take his leave.”
Qiu Jian, catching the mood, quickly bowed and backed out.
“Go on, go on. Don’t get in my way,” Qiu An waved him off again.
As Qiu Jian walked past Guo Xue, he remembered the young lord’s instructions. After a brief hesitation, he respectfully bowed to Guo Xue.
“Greetings, Princess Consort.”
After that, he couldn’t wait to leave the room.
Hearing the title “Princess Consort,” Guo Xue didn’t object for some reason. Instead, she shyly lowered her head, her cheeks blushing slightly.
“Hehehe!”
Seeing that she didn’t reject the title and was even blushing, Qiu An felt there was hope and laughed out loud.
Hearing his laugh, Guo Xue looked up and glared at him.
“It’s all your fault. Who told you to talk nonsense? I haven’t even agreed to be your consort, and you’re already telling others I am.”
“I’m truly in love with you. Will you marry me and become my Princess Consort?”
Qiu An suddenly knelt on one knee and looked up at her with deep affection.
“You… What are you doing?! You’re the heir to a noble house, how can you kneel to me? Get up, quick!”
Seeing him kneel startled Guo Xue. How could he do this? He’s the heir to the Frontier Marquis, and I’m just a servant girl! She quickly stepped aside.
But no matter which direction she went, Qiu An knelt in front of her, as if silently declaring: I won’t get up unless you say yes.
“If you don’t get up, I’ll ignore you for the rest of my life!”
Left with no other choice, Guo Xue brought out her ultimate threat.
“Hehehe! Fine, I’ll get up. But I’ll take that as your promise to marry me,” Qiu An grinned smugly.
Looking at his shameless expression, Guo Xue was speechless. This man… How can the dignified heir of a noble house be such a rascal?
“Your Grace, may I ask you something?”
Guo Xue looked at him seriously.
“Of course.”
Qiu An nodded.
“Not just one question—ask ten, even a hundred if you want.”
“Your Grace, today is the first time we’ve met, and my face is disfigured. Why would you want to marry me?”
Guo Xue looked at him in confusion, then suddenly her expression turned sharp.
“Or are you just toying with me?”
“Injustice! I truly like you—there’s not a shred of falsehood!”
Qiu An panicked and shouted his innocence.
“If you’re not toying with me, then why say you like me upon our first meeting? Why propose marriage?”
“I… I…”
Qiu An was tongue-tied. At first, he simply thought she had a good figure and wasn’t interested in those other noble-born girls. Later, it became a necessity—he needed to marry her to activate the system.
“Hmph! See? You can’t even say what you like about me. You’re a liar!”
Seeing him speechless, Guo Xue felt deceived and cried out in frustration.
“No! You’re misunderstanding! I didn’t lie to you.”
“I’ll tell you—I’ll explain!”
Seeing her so upset, Qiu An had no choice but to make something up—half true, half false.
Guo Xue didn’t respond. She just stared at him, waiting to see what he’d say.
After thinking for a moment, Qiu An looked at her with deep affection and began:
“This morning, when you were arranging pastries under the osmanthus tree, the light and shadows played around you so gracefully. When you leaned forward slightly, the sunlight draped over your shoulders like golden gauze, flowing down your slender figure like silk, outlining a silhouette that made my heart flutter.”
“In that moment—I fell for you.”
He finished speaking and sneakily glanced at her waist.
Noticing his eyes on her waist, Guo Xue blushed and shouted:
“Where are you looking?! Turn around!”
“Oh!”
Qiu An turned away reluctantly.
At first, Guo Xue felt shy and didn’t overthink it. But once he turned, she pondered for a moment and then loudly said:
“No, something’s not right! You’re lying! There are tons of slender maids in the manor. Why pick me, especially when I’m disfigured?”
Qiu An cried inwardly. Damn, this girl isn’t so easy to fool.
He turned back to her and said earnestly:
“Liking someone doesn’t need a reason. Maybe if I saw you at another time, in another place, I wouldn’t have liked you. But at that moment, under the osmanthus tree—I fell for you.”
“I don’t expect you to believe me right away. But time will prove it. I’ll show you with my actions that I truly like you. That I love you.”
“Even if you agree to marry me now, we’re not getting married immediately. Let’s set a deadline—six months.”
“If after six months, you still think I’m not sincere, then I won’t force you.”
“At that time, I’ll let you go. And I’ll agree to any request you make as compensation.”
Qiu An didn’t believe he couldn’t win her over in six months. But the most important thing now was getting her to agree to the engagement—only then could he activate the system.
“And if you agree to marry me, my mother will stop arranging meetings with other women for me.”
Qiu An looked at her with pleading eyes.
Guo Xue had already started wavering. Whether his words were true or not, at least for the next six months, she could enjoy the status of being his fiancée. That would make it easier for her to get close to the Emperor and seek revenge for her parents.
So, she nodded and said:
“Alright. I accept.”
Just as Guo Xue said those words, a voice rang out in Qiu An’s mind—the one he’d been waiting for:
“Congratulations, Host, on activating the Soft Rice System.”
The voice disappeared again, leaving the system dormant.
Qiu An waited a few moments, but heard nothing more. He was a little disappointed. What’s going on? Not even a newbie gift? Is the system broken?
He wanted to ask the system, but with someone else in the room, now wasn’t the time.
So, he looked at Guo Xue and noticed the bundle in her arms.
“I’ll have a maid take you to settle in. I’ll come find you later.”
“Okay.”
Guo Xue nodded.
Qiu An shouted toward the door.
“Someone, come in!”
As soon as he spoke, a maid entered.
“Young Master, your orders?”
She bowed respectfully.
“Take the Princess Consort to the room next to mine.”
He pointed at Guo Xue.
The maid looked at Guo Xue in surprise. A servant dressed like that… is the Princess Consort? But she didn’t dare question it and bowed again.
“Yes, Young Master.”
She turned to Guo Xue.
“Princess Consort, please come with me.”
“Alright.”
Guo Xue glanced at Qiu An and followed the maid out.
Once she left, Qiu An quickly sat back down at his desk.
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