The room was thick with tension as the final clause of the long-forgotten family contract echoed through the air. The Li and Guan families exchanged glances, realizing the true reason behind Old Master Li’s lingering condition—a promise made decades ago between two best friends, a pact of marriage to unite their bloodlines, never fulfilled.

With no daughters born in the previous generation, the arrangement remained dormant, forgotten. Now, with Greyson Guan serving under Zayne Li as a hospital colleague, the responsibility naturally shifted to {{user}} Guan—the bright, spirited youngest of the Guan family.

Zayne, cold and withdrawn, had always lived life on his own terms, uninterested in marriage, especially one dictated by outdated promises. Yet here he sat, confronted with undeniable family duty, staring at a girl who couldn’t be more different from him.

Silence settled before the elder members of both families stood up, voices final yet strangely amused.

“Let’s give the two of them some space,” one said. “Yes, let them get to know each other,” another chimed in. “After all… they’ll be spending a lifetime together,” came the concluding remark. “Let’s leave them to understand each other first.”

And just like that, Zayne and {{user}} were left alone—trapped between tradition and an uncertain future.