Chapter 656, An unforeseen event in the Luo residence
By the time Luo Yi stepped out of Light City, the last ray of sunset had gradually dimmed.
Walking alone on the street back home, the cool evening breeze blew against his face and his head was gradually cleared.
What he had seen today was simply like a dream, unbelievable to anyone.
Luo Yi thought so in his heart.
He looked down at the wrist guard, gently stroking it and feeling the material. It was only then that he was convinced that it was not a dream. There really was such good fortune falling onto him.
Luo Yi felt as if his head was beginning to spin again. He shook his head and drew a deep breath. Suddenly, he was eager to rush home to share the good news with his family.
On the cool windy night, as he was walking briskly, his figure gradually disappeared into the night.
……
The bright moon was hanging in the night sky, surrounded by a few sparsely scattered stars.
The clear and bright moonlight was like a gauze, shrouding the entire Snow capital.
On a street in the West of the city.
Under the hazy moonlight, the ground was sparkling with a faint blue and gold luster.
That mysterious blue and gold luster came from the slate surface of the ground. The slate material was some very precious fire stone. In other places this kind of fire stone could only be afforded by the wealthy families, while in the Snow capital, it was unexpectedly used as stone pavements. To think Snow capital had flourished to such a state!
There was yuan qi secretly flowing inside of the fire stone slates, adding a hint of mystery to the location.
Luo Yi's figure sped from the eastern part of the street from where the fire stones were paved to a mansion at the end.
At the gate of the mansion hung two palace lanterns, and the hazy lights lit up a sign behind, which was written with two powerful words: ‘Luo residence’.
“Almost home, hehe, in a moment, father and mother will be very happy to hear the news.”
Luo Yi saw the two lanterns hanging at the gate, feeling more excited. The lantern that felt dim to him seemed to be a lot brighter today.
He trotted towards his house.
From a distance, he suddenly saw an old figure anxiously pacing back and forth outside the entrance, glancing around from time to time, as though he was waiting for someone.
The person, who stood against the light, was a little crooked and was dressed in a coarse grey robe. His grey hair reflected silvery white under the lantern, and his face in the shadow looked somewhat old. Deep wrinkles ran over his forehead like waves, and his eyes were sunken. His turbid eyes were flickering with impatience and worry.
Luo Yi recognized the figure at a glance. He was the old housekeeper of their family——
Elder Fu.
“Huh? It's Elder Fu? Why is he waiting at the door, did something happen in the house?” When Luo Yi saw this scene, his chest tightened.
He quickened his pace and shouted over to Elder Fu, “Elder Fu!”
When Elder Fu heard his voice, his eyes darted over to Luo Yi. His face lit up and he scurried over to Luo Yi, pulling Luo Yi by the arm into the house without any explanation.
His aged face was contorted with worry, and as he was hurrying in he explained, “Young master, you've come back, something big has happened at home, follow me quickly.”
Confused, Luo Yi hurriedly asked, “Elder Fu, what's going on? What happened at home?”
Elder Fu sighed, “Well, an hour ago, Lord Gu came with Madam Gu and Miss Gu to our mansion to break off the marriage engagement! It's almost been an hour, Madam and Master are anxiously waiting for you, young master!”
Luo Yi beautiful's eyebrows were slightly knitted together in puzzlement.
Break off the engagement?
Why did they want to break off the engagement?
What was the Gu family doing?
For a moment, the scene half a month ago surfaced in his mind.
At that time, Luo Yi had just been promoted to captain of the seventh division of the [Blazing Flame Battalion], and had not formally taken on the job yet.
In the eyes of the officials and wealthy families of the capital, the imperial army captain seemed to have little authority, but he was directly under the Crown Prince and the [Blazing Flame Battalion] was known as the direct force of the Crown Prince Her Highness. Everyone knew that the Snow Emperor had neglected government affairs for many years and would soon abdicate. Once the Crown Prince ascends to the throne, the status of this [Blazing Flame Battalion] would not be so simple. Luo Yi was looked highly upon by the Crown Prince at such a young age, and was incredibly gifted. In the future, he was sure to have boundless prospects.
Therefore, the single Luo Yi, who had a bright future lying ahead of him, had become a popular person in the eyes of the influential and wealthy families of the Snow capital. There was an endless stream of people coming to the Luo residence to propose marriage, and even the doorstep of the Luo residence was almost trampled.
Luo Yi's father Luo Zheng was both worried and happy at the countless marriage proposals. The happy matter was that his son was promoted and they were truly happy for his son from the bottom of their heart. But what made him worry was that suddenly there were so many marriage candidates for them to choose from. Marriage was, after all, an important event of Luo Yi's life, so he needed to have his agreement.
At the beginning, Father Luo sent many people away with the reason that Luo Yi had just been promoted and was very busy, and he planned to discuss about marriage with him later.
What he did not expect was that, the Deputy Minister of the Imperial Security Department Gu Yangdao——the immediate superior of Luo Yi's father would personally bring his daughter to propose marriage. Moreover, he brought a number of valuable gifts, and his attitude was also very earnest and polite. The fact that he was Luo Tiezheng’s immediate superior, put him in a difficult position, and finally he passed the decision for Luo Yi to decide.
At that time, Luo Yi had also heard about Miss Gu from his colleague of the [Blazing Flame Battalion].
Miss Gu was rumoured to be very outstanding, and was known for her talent and looks in the Snow capital. There were countless young talents and wealthy young masters who liked her. Not only that, her martial arts were also very impressive, possessing the cultivation base of 20 Spirit springs, which was around the same level as Luo Yi.
At their first meeting, the appearance of Miss Gu did impress Luo Yi, but he did not as a result fall in love with Miss Gu at first sight, though he did not hate her. There was a hint of affection.
He thought over the fact that his family had only come to the Snow capital for less than a year, and that he had yet been able to establish himself. The Gu family had a certain status in the Snow capital. If they were to marry, their family would stand more firmly in the Snow capital. And if he made the the Deputy Minister of the Imperial Security Department lose face, then it would be detrimental to his father and to his family.
After a deep thought, Luo Yi agreed to the marriage.
The two were later officially engaged, and news spread.
Who knew that in less than half a month since the engagement the Gu family was going to break off the engagement?
Luo Yi was full of questions in his mind.
As he pondered, Elder Fu had already dragged Luo Yi through the courtyard, the reception pavilion, and the winding long hallway, nearing the outside of the hall.
Standing at the door of the hall, before Luo Yi and Elder Fu had entered the door, they heard the sharp voice of a woman coming from the hall————
“No, we must break off the engagement! Luo Tiezheng, there is no use whatever you say. Our Zhenzhen really cannot marry Luo Yi. We originally thought that since he was selected into the [Blazing Flame Battalion] and had became a captain, then he will have some accomplishments in the future so we betrothed our daughter to your son. Now he has been removed from the Crown Prince's [Blazing Flame Battalion]. There is no hope for him. Your Luo family should not daydream anymore. Let's just forget about the marriage, do not ruin our Zhenzhen's life. Today, us personally coming to withdraw from the marriage is already giving enough face to your Luo family. It's best for our families to part without hard feelings.”
The voice was shrill and ear-piercing, full of fierceness and contempt.
Luo Yi slowed down his footsteps.
Removed from the [Blazing Flame Battalion]?
When did I get removed from the [Blazing Flame Battalion]?
Could it be...
Luo Yi suddenly understood something.
When he went to report to Light City, there were some people who only saw him leaving the [Blazing Flame Battalion], so they must have thought that he had been struck off? And then news of this reached the ears of the Gu family?
That was very fast.
Luo Yi understood.
It turns out that this marriage withdrawal was really laughable.
His brows were scrunched up and he grunted coldly.
The woman's voice was sharp and unkind, her tone was aggressive, and she unexpectedly called father by his name and used that manner to speak to him?
Luo Yi clenched his teeth and lightly walked into the hall.
At this time, the atmosphere in the hall was still, the few people inside, whether sitting or standing, were silent, and for a moment no one noticed Luo Yi coming in.
On the main seat, a burly middle-aged man was dressed in the official purple robe of ministers, looked about forty years old, and sat there with an expressionless face.
This person had wide brows, his eyes were flickering with disdain and icy-coldness, and he seemed unconcerned about everything around him. His line of sight was fixed on a string of sandalwood beads in his hand. The beads the size of big dragon eye fruits were smooth and round, exuding a calm and distant fragrance.
Luo Yi recognized the middle-aged man. He was the deputy minister of the Imperial Security Department, Gu Yangdao.
In the seat next to Gu Yangdao, there sat a noblewoman wearing a silk dress embroidered with this year's most popular cloud pattern in the Snow capital. Her skin was fair and smooth, and her facial features were beautiful. Her willow leaf-like brows were high and curved, her pair of red phoenix eyes were showing discontent, and her thin dark red lips was slightly pursed up.
He also recognized this lady, the wife of Gu Yangdao. That day, when the marriage was decided, she was amiable-looking, had an extremely kind appearance, and was incessantly praising Luo Yi.
In addition, a young sixteen-year-old girl was quietly standing next to Madam Gu with her head hanging down.
The young girl, who was dressed in a yellow palace dress, was slim, and her skin was snow-white. Her pitch-black hair was rolled up into a cloud bun and a delicate sapphire blue jade hairpin inserted through the bun, with a strand of loose hair hanging around her ear. Her eyebrows were black like the distant mountains, and her eyes were sparkling like autumn water, gazing around charmingly. She had vermillion lips, pearly white teeth, and an aura like an orchid of an empty valley.
She stood with a graceful demeanour, composed and dignified, but her complexion was bland, as if the people and things around her had nothing to do with her.
This young girl was Gu Zhenzhen who was engaged to Luo Yi half a month ago.
Luo Yi's father, Luo Tiezheng, was standing next to Gu Yangdao with his arm hanging at his side.
Luo Tiezheng was from a military background, and although he was already forty years old, he was still burly and tall. As a result of enduring sandstorms on the border, his face was beginning to age, wrinkles ran across his forehead and his sword-like brows were slightly scrunched up.
At this moment, Father Luo's eyes contained an imperceptible inward anger, which he greatly suppressed. Bowing slightly, he stood next to Gu Yangdao and was forcing an apologetic smile onto his face.
Luo Yi's mother sat alone on a chair at the side of the hall.
She wore a dark blue embroidered dress and a white jade hairpin. Her figure was thin, and her face kind, without a hint of cosmetic, showing her natural features. She exuded a dignified and elegant aura. Her eyebrows and forehead showed her beauty when she was young. Her drooping eyes contained a thick worried look and a slight helplessness. Her eyes were somewhat red and clouded.
The sharp and unkind words of Madam Gu sounded again, “Madam Luo, we understand that you dearly love Luo Yi, we also love our precious daughter. We originally expected Luo Yi to achieve great success in his career in the future so he could take good care of Zhenzhen. But he was struck off after being promoted to imperial army captain in just a few days. How could our Zhenzhen live a happy life with him?”
As Madam Gu said these words, she narrowed her eyes at Luo Yi's mother. Every word that spewed out from her thin bright-red lips was like a blade piercing straight into the heart of Madam Luo——