Chapter 420 - 419: Coercion
Huang Yanrou walked into the main hall. Gazing at Li Yunchun and Bai Haichen, her eyes were as cold as frost as she stated flatly, "I will not marry."
Li Yunchun rose to his feet and gave Huang Yanrou a faint smile. "Miss Yanrou, you’ve arrived. I’ve already prepared the betrothal gifts. How could you refuse to marry me?"
How could she refuse?
The subtext of his words was clear: she had to marry him, willing or not. There was no room for discussion. It was blatant coercion.
"Young Master Li, if my daughter does not wish to marry, then my hands are tied. I’m sure that with your qualifications, you can find someone far better."
At this, Bai Haichen stood up, a smirk playing on his lips. "Mr. Huang, you should think this over carefully. You’d be hard-pressed to find a son-in-law as outstanding as Brother Li. To be blunt, this is a stroke of incredible fortune for the Huang Family."
"The Huang Family is not worthy of such a great fortune."
"You... Don’t be ungrateful."
Bai Haichen’s voice grew grim, a hint of a threat now lacing his words.
"Mr. Huang, you’d best think this over. You should know that if Miss Yanrou marries me, Heifeng City will be yours to command."
"Brother Li, this..."
Bai Haichen’s expression changed, and his heart sank. He was about to say something, but Li Yunchun cut him off with a wave of his hand. He had no choice but to fall silent, his face grim.
"Hmph. I would never stoop to selling my daughter for glory."
Huang Chuan snorted, his words filled with resolve. ’I know this might bring disaster upon the family, but Yanrou is the daughter I watched grow up. How could I possibly push her into an abyss of eternal damnation!’
"It seems I’ll have to use force, then."
Li Yunchun spoke with an icy indifference. He always got what he wanted, and he had never failed. ’For the daughter of a minor Noble Family to actually dare refuse me... To me, that is absolutely unforgivable.’
"Use force? The Huang Family is not some pushover you can bully as you please."
As his words fell, Huang Chuan stepped forward, and the aura of a Celestial Human at the Perfection stage erupted from him. His imposing figure stood like an insurmountable mountain, stunning Bai Haichen. Li Yunchun, however, merely sneered, showing no fear at all.
"Making an enemy of me? You’re courting death."
He snorted, his True Essence erupting as he suddenly lunged, clawing at Huang Chuan.
"We’ll see who’s courting death!"
Huang Chuan snorted. He channeled his majestic Celestial Human Power, and in the next instant, Li Yunchun—a mere Sky-Controlling Martial Artist—was sent flying out of the hall.
Just then, an aura far more powerful than Huang Chuan’s swept across more than half of the Huang Family estate. A figure then crashed into the courtyard like a meteorite!
Billowing clouds of dust rolled out in waves. When they settled, a spirited, gray-robed old man appeared before them.
"Insolent Huang Family! How dare you harm a True Disciple of my Flying Snow Sect!"
As his voice rang out, an even more immense aura swept through the area.
Huang Chuan’s expression grew grave. ’This aura... a Half-Step King!’
’I can’t believe Li Yunchun brought a Half-Step King with him to Heifeng City. Then again, it makes sense. As a True Disciple of the Flying Snow Sect, it’s only normal for him to have a protector. But now... the Huang Family is in serious trouble!’
BOOM! At that moment, from another part of the Huang Family estate, another immense aura shot into the sky. An old man wreathed in fierce flames appeared. He looked at the gray-robed elder and said, "I am Huang Ye. What business brings you to the Huang Family?"
"Lin Bei of the Flying Snow Sect!"
Huang Ye’s eyes flashed with solemnity as he looked at Lin Bei. ’We are both Half-Step Kings, but I can sense that his power is a cut above mine. And on top of that, he’s from the Flying Snow Sect!’
"Brother Lin, has the Huang Family done something to offend you?"
Lin Bei glanced at Li Yunchun, who was standing nearby, and said coldly, "It was a blessing for your family that our Sect Leader’s True Disciple came to propose marriage. Forgetting the fact that you refused, you actually dared to injure him. Do you think the Flying Snow Sect can be so easily slighted?!"
"A marriage proposal? A True Disciple of the Flying Snow Sect?" Huang Ye was confused. He turned to Huang Chuan and asked, "Huang Chuan, what is all this about? Explain yourself. Quickly."
"Ancestor, this is what happened..."
After learning what had transpired, Huang Ye’s face darkened, his expression shifting several times. ’This Li Yunchun is clearly trying to force a marriage. If we refuse, a great disaster will befall the Huang Family today. We might even be erased from Heifeng City entirely!’
But if he agreed, forget Huang Yanrou’s feelings—the Huang Family’s honor would be utterly destroyed. For a moment, Huang Ye was caught in a dilemma. He sighed internally. ’If we had the power of the Flying Snow Sect, we wouldn’t have to worry about any of this. We could just refuse. Alas, when it comes down to it, the Huang Family is just too weak.’
After a moment of deliberation, he turned to Lin Bei with a smile. "Brother Lin, this is just a trivial matter. Since Young Master Li has taken a liking to our Yanrou, it is her good fortune. A marriage alliance between our families is a wonderful thing! I... agree."
At these words, Huang Chuan and Huang Yanrou both froze as if struck by lightning, their bodies trembling. Their eyes filled with disbelief before they both sighed. ’To preserve the family, this is likely the only choice.’ In fact, this was a chance for the Huang Family to ally themselves with a powerful backer like the Flying Snow Sect and increase their own strength.
But even with this understanding, their faces were etched with misery.
This was especially true for Huang Yanrou. Her lovely face was ashen, her delicate frame trembled, and her eyes were filled with despair. She had long anticipated this outcome, but hearing her own ancestor announce it still plunged her heart into sorrow.
Just then, the situation took another unexpected turn.
Li Yunchun wiped a trickle of blood from the corner of his mouth and said with cold indifference, "A marriage alliance? I did have that in mind. But now, I’ve changed my mind."
At his words, a glimmer of hope appeared in Huang Yanrou’s eyes.
She hoped Li Yunchun really had changed his mind. That way, she wouldn’t have to marry him. She wouldn’t be stripped of her right to pursue her own happiness, traded away like a bargaining chip.
"Then what do you mean, Young Master Li?" Huang Ye asked.
"I want her as my handmaiden!"
Li Yunchun pointed at Huang Yanrou, his tone dripping with condescension.
Hearing this, the expressions of everyone in the Huang Family turned utterly grim.
The daughter of the Patriarch of Heifeng City’s foremost Martial Arts Family, forced to be someone’s handmaiden? If word of this got out, the Huang Family’s reputation would be utterly destroyed!
"Li Yunchun, don’t you go too far!"
Huang Chuan roared, his Celestial Human Perfection aura exploding forth. His eyes turned crimson, like a tiger protecting its cub, and a savage energy erupted from his entire being.
But in that instant, a far more powerful aura descended. A blast of Palm Qi materialized out of thin air and sent him flying. The one who had attacked was none other than Lin Bei.
"A mere Celestial Human dares to act so insolently in my presence."
The Huang family ancestor’s expression was equally thunderous. He never expected Li Yunchun to make such an outrageous demand. For a moment, he didn’t know what to do. In the end, he could only look toward Huang Yanrou, leaving the choice to her.