Stars Beyond the Deep Courtyard

My family arranged a childhood betrothal for me. The groom-to-be is the second son of the Lu family, from the military compound.

I hear he’s a spoiled playboy who spends all day hanging around with the children of high-ranking officials.

I pack my bags that very night and make a run for it, but he and his men stop me at the train station.

He leans lazily against a jeep, the collar of his army coat open. “Come back with me and get married.”

After the wedding, we each do our own thing and stay out of each other’s business.

That is, until his sworn enemy shows up and points a gun at my temple.

Without hesitation, he shoots the man in the head, then holds me as his voice trembles:

“If you died, I’d spend the rest of my life a widower.”