The message was delivered at noon, during a high-profile charity gala attended by all four families.
Leo and Luna arrived together, a picture of united strength. He wore black, she wore the same burgundy, the jade hairpin gleaming in her dark hair.
They moved through the crowd, accepting congratulations on their marriage with cool smiles. Luna spotted her mother across the room, talking to Kane Yèshòu. Lihua's eyes met hers, then flicked away.
Then Leo guided her to the center of the room and raised his glass. The crowd quieted.
"Thank you for your warm wishes," he said, his voice carrying. "As many of you know, Luna and I recently married, uniting our families. Some seem to have… misunderstood what that means."
He nodded to Sylas, who stood by a large display screen.
The screen lit up, not with wedding photos, but with financial graphs.
"This," Leo said, "is the transfer of fifteen percent of Wǎngshā Holdings' shares to Luna Xiānyǔ Wǎngshā. Effective immediately. She now has voting rights, board access, and full partnership in all family enterprises."
A murmur rippled through the crowd. Luna herself stared at him, stunned. He hadn't told her.
"Furthermore," Leo continued, "any attempt to undermine our union will now be treated as a direct attack on Wǎngshā financial interests. And will be met with… disproportionate response."
He looked directly at Seraphine Montegreco, who stood pale-faced near the champagne fountain. Then at Rook Yèshòu, whose expression was carved from stone.
The message was clear: Touch her, and you touch the money. And we will burn your house down.
After the announcement, Luna found herself cornered by her mother.
"Fifteen percent," Lihua hissed. "You didn't tell me."
"I didn't know."
"You must leverage this. Get us a seat on their board. Access to their digital archives—"
"No, Mother."
Lihua blinked. "What?"
"I'm not your spy anymore." Luna's voice was quiet but firm. "I'm a Wǎngshā. And my first loyalty is to my husband."
She walked away, leaving her mother speechless.
Later, on the balcony, Leo found her. "That was… impressive," he said.
"You gave me power I didn't ask for."
"I gave you armor," he corrected. "Now they have to attack the fortress, not just the princess."
She turned to him. "Was any of it real? The shares? Or was it just part of the message?"
He stepped closer. "The shares are real. The partnership is real." He touched the jade hairpin in her hair. "This is real. The crane is real." His hand dropped to his side. "The rest… we build. If you want to."
She looked out at the city, glittering like a bed of nails. "I want to."
He nodded. "Then we build."
Inside, the party continued, a glittering lie. But on the balcony, for the first time, something true began.
It wasn't love. Not yet.
It was a choice. A decision to stand together in the web they'd been caught in.
And maybe, just maybe, start weaving their own patterns.