Chapter 6: The Sworn Vow

Lin Yaoyao suspected Murong Tian was a real King of Hell, sent to collect the Lin family’s souls.

He never once raised his number before she made a bid. Every time she thought she had it in the bag, he would cut in and snatch it away.

She had reached her limit. There was no need to keep enduring. With her entire family on the line, Lin Yaoyao couldn’t afford to care about propriety.

“Murong Tian, are you out of your mind? Why do you keep grabbing things I’ve set my eyes on?”

The shout sent the entire venue into dead silence. The kind of silence that made your blood run cold.

Someone actually dared to curse the Ghost-Faced Yama to his face. That was practically asking to die.

All eyes turned to Lin Yaoyao. Some were sympathetic, others were mocking. It made her skin crawl.

‘What are all these weird looks about?’ she thought.

A guard beside Murong Tian came over. He was young and clean-cut, with a sincere expression. “Miss Lin, our young master invites you upstairs for a chat.”

Lin Yaoyao had no idea what game Murong Tian was playing, but at this point she didn’t care to guess. She simply followed the guard upstairs.

It was obvious Murong Tian had deliberately snatched her treasures. Did she look like she was afraid of him?

“Yaoyao, be careful! I’ll go get Father right away.”

Lin Feiyuan made sure to warn her before she left. To be fair, this third brother of hers really did care about her.

The crowd parted to let her through. Everyone was eager to see how badly Lin Yaoyao would die.

When she entered the private room, Murong Tian was sitting there calmly, sipping tea. He didn’t seem the least bit angry.

“Miss Lin, have some tea.”

Lin Yaoyao thought fast. She had just screamed at him in public. Maybe he hadn’t heard? That seemed unlikely. Or maybe the tea was poisoned, and he planned to kill her right here. She quickly waved her hand.

“I’m not thirsty.”

Murong Tian hadn’t expected this notorious Miss Lin to be so wary and sharp. She didn’t match the rumors at all.

“Miss Lin, I’ll cut to the chase. I’d like to trade the three items I won today for your Purple Jade Spirit Marrow.”

So that was his goal. It actually served Lin Yaoyao perfectly, and she agreed on the spot.

This was a good deal. With the three appraisal items, she would exceed the system quest requirements, and the entire Lin family would be safe.

“Fine. But I have one condition. You have to make the trade in front of everyone.”

“Done.”

Seeing Murong Tian agree so readily, Lin Yaoyao was secretly thrilled.

‘Little Tian, don’t blame me for scheming against you. Lives are more important than anything.’

When the crowd saw Lin Yaoyao walk out with Murong Tian, looking absolutely delighted, they were astonished.

She had publicly insulted the Ghost-Faced Yama, and she was still alive?

“Xiao Wu, are you okay?”

Her father, Lin Xuanzhong, had arrived. Lin Yaoyao grabbed his arm and cooed, “Dad, I’m perfectly fine. What could possibly happen to me?”

Lin Xuanzhong let out a breath. This wild girl had dared to curse the young master of the Murong family in public. She really had no idea how high the sky was. He needed to settle her marriage as soon as possible, before any more trouble brewed.

“Good, it’s good that you’re fine.”

He pulled Lin Yaoyao up to the stage and announced loudly, “Thank you all for coming to today’s appraisal meeting. Today is also my daughter’s engagement day, and I ask everyone to bear witness.”

Lin Yaoyao forced an awkward smile, wishing she could disappear into the floor. This old man really was impossible to predict.

“My daughter, Lin Yaoyao, is today engaged to the Bai…”

“Young Master Murong, come on up!”

Lin Yaoyao cut him off, shaking the Purple Jade Spirit Marrow in her hand and motioning for Murong Tian to come to the stage.

Murong Tian was expressionless, but he walked up under the gaze of the crowd.

Now Lin Xuanzhong was the one in a daze. Lin Yaoyao cheerfully walked over and looped her arm through Murong Tian’s, looking for all the world like a couple in love.

“Everyone, please witness as I exchange betrothal tokens with Young Master Murong Tian.”

Betrothal tokens? Murmurs ran through the crowd.

Before Murong Tian could speak, Lin Yaoyao pressed the Purple Jade Spirit Marrow into his hand and gazed at him with an expression of total devotion.

Someone in the crowd started clapping, and soon the applause spread.

With the mood set that well, Murong Tian had no way out. The Purple Jade Spirit Marrow was already in his hand, so by their agreement, he had to hand over the Nine-Colored Spirit Flower, the Ice Soul Sword, and a Divine Alchemy Manual.

When Yun Yi brought the three treasures up to Lin Yaoyao, the audience erupted into chatter.

“Who would have thought the young master Murong was so devoted, burning a fortune just to make a beauty smile!”

“No wonder Miss Lin dared to yell at him. It’s just young lovers having a squabble!”

“The Lin family is going to rise fast with the Murong family behind them.”

“What happened to the match with the Bai family? I heard Miss Lin always liked the second young master of the Bai family. When did she get involved with Young Master Murong?”

Lin Yaoyao pressed her hand to her mouth to stifle a laugh. Her goal with the gossip had been reached. She had worked in public relations in her past life, so pulling this off was nothing.

Lin Xuanzhong discreetly pointed at Murong Tian and whispered, “Xiao Wu, what is your relationship with him?”

Lin Yaoyao grinned. “Little old man, it’s exactly what you see.”

Murong Tian finally understood. This young miss, who seemed to play by no rules at all, had a scheming mind sharp enough to use even him.

A woman in green robes called out loudly, “Head of the Lin family, what is the meaning of this?”

She was Bai Ruosu, Bai Jingming’s aunt. Bai Jingming’s father was still in secluded cultivation, so she was representing the Bai family at this betrothal.

Lin Xuanzhong responded with an apologetic smile. “My daughter has a willful personality. Matters of marriage are decided by parents and matchmakers, not by a child’s whim.”

Lin Yaoyao glanced at Bai Jingming, who was standing by Bai Ruosu. His face was ashen, uglier than anything she had seen.

‘Bai Jingming, if you were a real man, you’d storm off right now.’

She was looking forward to that. Unfortunately, Bai Jingming did not leave.

“Xiao Wu, stop this. Didn’t you have your heart set on that boy from the Bai family?”

Lin Xuanzhong tugged at her. This daughter had once been ready to die for Bai Jingming. Now that she was about to get engaged, why was she pulling such a stunt?

Lin Yaoyao took a deep breath. If she didn’t drop a bombshell today, she would never get out of this marriage to the Bai family.

“Father, I was young and foolish then, and I didn’t know what I truly wanted. It wasn’t until I met Young Master Murong that I realized he is the love of my life.”

Murong Tian could not stand listening to such an absurd lie a moment longer. He had no intention of getting involved in the Lin and Bai families’ dispute.

He started to step off the stage, but Lin Yaoyao was faster. She clutched his arm tightly. The stage was set, so how could she let her leading man escape?

“Everyone, I, Lin Yaoyao, swear here today that I will marry no one but Murong Tian for the rest of my life.”

The moment the words left her mouth, the venue went wild.

Now this was a real spectacle. Someone was crying and begging to marry the Ghost-Faced Yama, and swearing to marry no one else at that!

“Xiao Wu, what nonsense are you talking about?”

This time Lin Xuanzhong was truly alarmed. He couldn’t understand his daughter’s mind at all. Was she trying to make the Bai kid jealous? No matter how playful she was, she shouldn’t treat a marriage contract as a joke.

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