Xiao Zhi made her way down the long corridor toward the grand hall with unsure steps. Kabil had insisted that, to show goodwill, she must tell the Khan herself that she was willing to go through with the Bride Parade. Seeing how terrified and helpless Kabil was in front of his brother, it made sense to her. So she gathered her courage and went.
Xiao Zhi slowed as she reached the outer doors of the grand hall.
The Dowager's calm voice echoed from inside the hall.
"...The Khan's marriage will be addressed after Prince Kabil's wedding. The details will be announced in due time."
Xiao Zhi stopped.
So he would marry after all.
She stood there for a moment, a quiet thought crossing her mind.
I wonder who the unlucky noble lady will be.
She felt lucky it was Kabil whom she had to marry, the kind and gentle prince. She couldn't imagine what it would be like to marry the Khan instead. She shivered at the idea.
With a slow breath, Xiao Zhi straightened her back and stepped forward.
She stated her purpose to the guards standing before the tall doors. After a brief pause, her arrival was announced.
When she entered the hall, all eyes turned toward her.
"I…" Her throat tightened, but she steadied herself. "I am here to inform you that I am willing to go through the Bride Parade."
The words left her mouth, and the hall seemed to grow quieter.
"Willing?" the Khan repeated. "Why?"
The question struck her like a blade. For a moment, doubt crept in. Was this a mistake? But retreat was no longer an option.
"If it will ease tensions and bring peace," she said, doing her best to keep her voice calm, "then I will do it."
Silence followed.
The Dowager's gaze slid toward the ministers, and Xiao Zhi caught the faintest movement of her hand. Around the hall, expressions softened into satisfaction, as if this outcome had already been expected.
Her eyes lifted to the Khan.
She expected approval. Satisfaction. This had been his idea, after all.
But instead, she saw something else.
For a brief moment, his gaze lingered on her, sharp and unreadable, as though her answer had not pleased him at all. If anything, there was something close to disbelief, almost anger, flashing beneath the mask.
Her breath caught.
Then hesitation followed. Subtle, fleeting, but unmistakable.
Before she could understand what it meant, the Dowager spoke.
"You are very brave, Princess Lian Zhi," she said smoothly, her voice warm with false admiration. "Such willingness for the sake of peace is rare. Hua has raised a wise and selfless daughter. Tughril will remember this goodwill."
The ministers murmured their approval at once.
Xiao Zhi felt it then, the pressure closing in. The Dowager's praise was not meant for her. It was a net to trap the decision in place, so it could no longer be moved or questioned.
She looked back at the Khan.
Whatever he might have intended to say never came.
"Very well," he said, at last. "The parade will commence at dawn."
***
At dawn the next day, the streets had overflowed with people.
Xiao Zhi stared at the servant's clothes that they handed her. "These… are really for me?"
Kabil nodded quickly. "It's only symbolic. Tradition. It won't be as bad as it sounds. I'll be beside you the whole time."
She didn't know why, but his reassurance only made her more nervous.
She approached the carriage prepared for her and stopped.
It wasn't a carriage. Wooden bars. Padlocked. No curtains. No seat. It was a cage on wheels.
"This... this can't be right," Xiao Zhi whispered.
"It's traditional," Kabil insisted. "Just climb in. I promise, you'll be fine."
Xiao Zhi looked back toward the palace, her eyes searching for someone. But he was not there. Instead, the Khan stood tall and unmovable.
The Khan's masked gaze fixed on her. For a fleeting moment, she thought she saw something tighten in his posture, but it vanished just as quickly.
The attendant raised his voice as she was locked inside the cage.
"People of Tughril! The Hua bride presents herself! From today forward, she serves the empire! She is no longer a princess. She is our servant!"
Xiao Zhi's breath caught. She didn't expect the words to be that harsh. To be that degrading. But she told herself it was symbolic, just as Kabil said.
The first few steps were fine, people just stared at her. Some whispered with disdain, but Xiao Zhi had expected this. She was the "enemy" after all. And this parade was meant to show her subjection.
Then those whispers became louder and more hurtful. But they were just words, Xiao Zhi convinced herself. They couldn't hurt her.
Until something struck her head.
A rotten cabbage.
It hurt.
Before she blinked, another hit her shoulder. Then another. And soon rotten vegetables were raining on her from all sides. Mixed with them, small stones. A few sharp enough to cut her skin.
The crowd jeered.
"Filthy Hua girl!"
"Servant princess!"
"Show your submission!"
More vegetables flew. Rotten ones. Wet ones. More small, but sharp stones.
What the hell? Is this how it's supposed to be?
This wasn't what she had agreed to. This wasn't symbolic.
Xiao Zhi could only wince, lifting her arms to protect her head. The torment seemed to stretch on forever.
By the end of the parade, Xiao Zhi's entire body was smeared with rot. Scratches from stones stung across her skin. She was shaking. Crying.
Kabil was nowhere to be seen.
"Prince Kabil?" she tried to call, but he was gone. Vanished.
"Where... where did he—?"
"Prince Kabil was summoned by the Khan," the nearest guard answered coldly.
"Of course," she whispered bitterly. The Khan couldn't spare her any emotional support.
Rotten leaves slid down her shoulders. Stones bruised her arms. Someone even threw mud at her face. Tears blurred her vision.
"So this… is the parade," she whispered. "This is what it means."
Xiao Zhi regretted ever agreeing to this. Was this her fate? To be tortured and humiliated in this world? Just like in the novel. And unexpectedly, not by Prince Kabil, but by the Khan.
Was the Khan the real villain of this story? If so… she needed to be far more careful of him.
By the time the parade ended, Xiao Zhi could barely stand.
Bruised, smeared with filth, shivering from exhaustion, she stumbled through the palace.
No guards helped her. No maids approached her. People stepped aside as if she were a disease.
She walked weakly back to her chambers. The pain from the stones grew sharper with each step, and her body felt weaker and weaker.
Her knees gave out.
But before she hit the ground, strong arms caught her.
"Princess? Are you okay?"
She recognized the voice. Warm, desperate, familiar.
Ruhan.
She tried to speak, but darkness swallowed her.
***
When Xiao Zhi woke, she was in her bed. She was clean, dressed in fresh clothes, her head and arm wrapped in bandages.
Ruhan sat beside her, relief softening his eyes.
"You're awake," he whispered. "How are you feeling?"
Seeing him there broke her. Without thinking, she pushed herself up, threw her arms around him, and sobbed.
"Princess…" His hands hovered, trembling, then held her gently.
"Ruhan… I'm so glad you're here."
"Princess…" His voice cracked. "I'm sorry. I'm sorry I couldn't stop them."
"How could you stop it?" she said through tears. "You're just a servant. I never expected you to save me."
But I wished you were there beside me.
He swallowed hard, pain flickering in his eyes.
Ruhan gently propped her up and offered a bowl of warm porridge. The taste was familiar, comforting, like home.
"You made this?"
"Yes," he admitted. "I couldn't find anyone in the kitchen, so I made it myself. I… don't really know how to cook, so simple porridge is all I could manage."
Xiao Zhi smiled weakly. Right now, even simple porridge felt like a warm hug.
"It's delicious."
Ruhan stayed as she ate. Then he continued tending her wounds.
"Does it hurt?" he asked softly.
"Of course. But… my heart hurts more."
Those words made Ruhan's chest tighten painfully.
"The vegetables were rotten… and the things they said… they cut me." Xiao Zhi didn't know why she felt so hurt. She wasn't the real Princess Lian Zhi after all, but the insults still pierced her.
"It's over now," Ruhan said gently.
"I know."
But inside, she wondered, was it truly over? Or was this only the beginning?
Ruhan remained with her until night fell. Before leaving, he reminded her gently, "Tomorrow is a big day… It is your wedding."
He turned to go, but Xiao Zhi reached out and tugged his hand.
"Can you stay… until I fall asleep?"
Her teary eyes melted his heart. He couldn't say no.
He smiled softly. "Of course."
He stayed by her side until her eyelids closed, unaware that the worst part of the wedding had not yet begun.