Lately, there were many suitors coming to the manor. Hu Bai was age fourteen, and she was about to graduate this spring. Many nobles did not want to miss the chance to ask for the beautiful, elegant, and intelligent young lady’s hand in marriage. But before they could even meet her, the general and his wife would send them back, carefully telling them that they were waiting for someone else for their precious daughter.

Those who got turned down were high ranking nobles. Even the Left Prime Minister Qing's people came with a proposal, but Qing Bo himself forcefully dragged them back to the house.

Finally, the Second Prince came. At that time, it was in the middle of spring, Hu Bai was fifteen, and she had already graduated from school.

Inside the three sisters’ courtyard, Hu Bai sat on a stone bench. She was surrounded by her siblings who looked at her with worry.

“Eldest Sister…” Hu Zi called.

“...” Hu Bai looked rather calm, but her face was pale, and she closed her eyes to focus on thinking about something. What should she do? What should she do? Hu Bai told her parents that she already had someone in her heart and would like to wait until he came.

Though she knew that that person never thought of her as a woman, she still wanted to wait, even if it took him years to finally realize her feelings. But there was no way to reject the Second Prince’s proposal. She would end up being tied to him if things went on like this.

Prang!

All of a sudden, the sound of something being thrown and smashed to the ground could be heard in the entire manor.

When Hu Zi heard the crashing sound, she became alarmed. The Second Prince was very handsome and smart; however, he had a terrible temper and was not an easy person to deal with.

Hu Zi saw her sister's slightly furrowed eyebrows, and she decided on something. "Second Sister, Fourth Brother, take care of Eldest Sister for me!" Hu Zi immediately left the room and, borrowing the wind’s power, she drifted herself to a place behind the practice hall.

-----

Behind the practice hall before the Second Prince came...

“Come on, Falcon. Don’t be so depressed. You knew that this day would come sooner or later.” Falcon stood facing the building near the four lined up trees, his head leaning on the wall while looking down. Fa Sui stood behind him, patting his wide back. “Cheer up, man… There are countless other beautiful women out there. I am sure you will find someone else.”

“But, but... Sui, you like her too, don’t you? Don’t you also feel this pain that I feel?”

“Sigh…” Fa Sui didn’t know what to say. Just a week ago, he came back from medical school, which was located on the other side of the continent, and found out that Hu Bai was on the verge of being married off. “Just accept it already!”

“I won’t accept it! I don’t want to accept it. She is everyone’s sweetheart, ah! Even though there is no way she will be mine, I don’t want her to belong to anybody else either!”

“Damn, don’t be such a baby, Falcon!” The corner of Fa Sui’s mouth twitched as he suddenly became irritated. “You are seventeen, man up! Moreover, you should not be the most depressed one here.”

Fa Sui glanced to the side where the four lined-up trees stood.

Fifteen years ago, Zhi Yu planted the largest tree to celebrate Hu Bai’s birth. Afterward, he began to plant a new tree every time one of the Hu siblings were born. Because the Hu siblings were born during different seasons, the trees would each take turns to bloom. Hu Cheng Se’s tree’s leaves would turn yellow-orange in summer, Hu Zi’s plum tree would blossom in winter, and Hu Ye’s tree would bear fruit in autumn.

“Chief?” Fa Sui called in a small voice. “What are thinking about?”

Zhi Yu was gazing at the tallest tree with deep eyes and a solemn expression. “The tree... It is already in the middle of spring but it hasn’t grown any flowers.” He closed his eyes and took something out of his sleeve. A pure white peony flower. “Even the peonies on my courtyard have bloomed. I wonder why this tree hasn’t... Was it the fertilizer?” Fa Sui felt the sadness behind Zhi Yu’s calm tone. “I hope they bloom in soon so that the Eldest Young Miss can see it this year.”

“Chief Zhi Yu...” Fa Sui knew that Zhi Yu was the one who treasured Hu Bai the most. He must be feeling sad about Hu Bai leaving. “Ah!” Fa Sui’s eyes widened, a brilliant idea suddenly coming to him. “That’s it!”

“Huh?” Falcon finally raised his head when he heard Fa Sui shout. “What is it, Sui?”

“Chief!” With a huge smile and gleaming eyes, Fa Sui ran up to Zhi Yu. He gripped both of Zhi Yu’s shoulders and made him face his way. Fa Sui’s body was a lot smaller than Zhi Yu’s but he managed to have a firm grip on him. “Chief, why don’t you give it a try?”

Fa Sui’s words caught Zhi Yu off guard. He got cold sweats on his forehead when he saw the stars inside Fa Sui’s eyes. He had a bad feeling about this. “A try on what?”

“Try to propose to the Eldest Young Miss!” Fa Sui said eagerly.

“...” In an instant, Zhi Yu’s mind went blank. “What?”

“What?!” Falcon suddenly interrupted them by shouting. Fa Sui knew what would happen next, so he let go of Zhi Yu and covered his ears. “Sui, did you just suggest to the Chief to propose to the Eldest Young Miss? Did I hear that wrong? What are you thinking? Are you out of your m—”

Falcon gasped. “Wait… no, you are right! The Chief and Eldest Young Mistress together means my two favorite people being together! Sui, you are a genius! I love you!” Falcon said as he suddenly grabbed Fa Sui in a tight embrace. Falcon was strong, and Fa Sui felt like he was being squeezed to death.

“Ugh… Falcon, Falcon I… I can’t breath…”

“Oops…” Falson let go of Fa Sui, who became limp right after. “Sorry… But Sui, your body is so small and fragile. You should exercise more.” Falcon reprimanded.

Zhi Yu felt like the falling leaves stopped moving when Fa Sui told him his idea, his body freezing on the spot. The barrier he had built around his heart finally cracked.

“Ugh… cough, cough, anyway, cough, Chief?” Fa Sui said, trying to regain his breath.

“...” Zhi Yu frowned. In a calm but chilling voice, he slowly replied. “I… I am the Eldest Young Miss’s caretaker. That is why I could never think of her as anything but my Eldest Young Miss! Don’t ever suggest such a brazen idea ever again!”

“But, Chief!” Fa Sui and Falcon protested simultaneously.

“Silence!” Zhi Yu said with a commanding voice.

His voice made the two boys shiver. Their faces were dark, and cold sweat was visible on their foreheads. Fa Sui and Falcon could not help but shut their mouth because Zhi Yu’s voice could make people heed him even if they don’t want to. People like the emperor Jin Ning and Geat General Hu Quan Li also had a voice like this. A voice filled with power and authority, yet an irresistible charm.

When he saw their terrified expressions, Zhi Yu’s eyes widened in surprise of what he did in the spur of the moment. Zhi Yu did not mean to be harsh on the two young boys. He sighed as he turned around and moved. “Let’s go back to the practice hall. We have a lot of things to catch up on.”

Just then, one of the house guards came running in their direction. “Chief Zhi Yu, Doctor Fa, Captain Falcon, the Second Prince is here.”

Zhi Yu halted in his steps.

Fa Sui, as one of the two responsible for welcoming guests, said, “One of the imperial family members is here? I did not hear anyone talking about his arrival. Did he give us an early notice?”

“No, I don’t think the Second Prince gave us a notice about his coming.” Falcon’s had a rare serious tone of voice. He had a bad feeling about this. “What business does the Second Prince have that made him come here so suddenly?”

The guard gulped because he knew how dire it was for the Hu family. “He... he said he wants to propose to the Eldest Young Miss.”

Zhi Yu frowned and turned his head. “What did you say?”