Chapter 34 Wedding Banquet
Holden didn't say anything.
Candy held onto his arm, "Holden, when you first said your family didn't have money, I was actually hesitant because I didn't really want to struggle for money. But now that I can marry you, I feel like it doesn't matter."
"After the wedding, we'll apply to go to the eastern battlefield. Then we can focus on making achievements in battle, and things will get better. Besides, we won't be home much anyway, so even if it's a bit tough, it won't really affect us that much, right?"
Holden turned to look at her, "Right."
"It's good that Anne left too. If a woman like that stayed by your side, who knows what she'd do to drive us apart."
For some reason, Holden suddenly felt that what Candy said wasn't right.
Anne seemed... not like what they thought. She wasn't petty, and she wasn't cruel and scheming.
She didn't even deliberately play the role of some fragile canary. She just stood there calmly the whole time, as if nothing could break her.
She was actually stronger than Holden had imagined.
Before, he had spoken about Anne that way partly because of Candy's disdain for noblewomen who only wore fancy dresses and enjoyed themselves. Holden seemed to think the same way.
His mother and younger sister at home—though he loved them, he could see their scheming and calculations. So how could Anne, raised as a noble lady just like them, be any different?
Holden had truly loved Anne once, in the past, because of her beautiful face and soft figure. Before rushing off to the battlefield, he had sworn to Anne that he would only love her forever. All of that was sincere.
It's just that he then met Candy.
Holden sighed, "I don't know, maybe she won't. After all, she did say before that she looked down on me and didn't want me. Maybe those words were all true? Dear Candy, I suddenly don't know if we were right to assume the worst about her."
"What do you mean by that?"
Candy's eyes widened, and she suddenly pushed Holden away.
Holden looked at Candy's face. She rarely dressed up deliberately, and unlike those noble girls raised at home like hothouse flowers, she bore all the marks of sun and wind. To be fair, she really wasn't as beautiful as Anne, but she had a different kind of spirited charm.
He still remembered when he first saw Candy, amazed by her decisiveness and ruthlessness when fighting other men with a machete, and shocked by her boldness in climbing into his bed. She wasn't the kind of rigid lady trapped in a corset and whalebone skirt—even her soul was full of life and energy.
That was probably why Holden fell in love with Candy.
Holden shook his head. He didn't know what he was thinking either. "I just feel like maybe we were all wrong about her."
"And you know what?" Holden suddenly remembered something. "She's learned swordsmanship and has specifically trained physically."
"Earlier, when I was angry and wanted to hit her maid, she easily stopped me."
Candy had been angry that Holden was speaking up for Anne right in front of her—wasn't that basically slapping her in the face?
But when she heard what came next, she just looked at Holden hesitantly. "Really? I find that hard to believe. I've seen her several times, and with those thin arms and wrists of hers, she could block your attack?"
Holden pressed his lips together. In fact, he had been kicked to his knees in front of his mother, but he didn't dare say that. If word got out that the Knight Commander had been easily overpowered by a woman, someone would probably jump at the chance to pull him down from his position.
In the end, Holden could only say sullenly, "You can try it yourself when you get the chance. I can't really explain it."
Seeing his expression, Candy could only smile helplessly. "Alright, I'll wait for that day. But when you say we were wrong about her, it sounds like you're blaming me for badmouthing her and affecting your marriage. Otherwise, if she were still here, you wouldn't need to earn military honors—you'd just become a duke directly."
Holden sighed, "I didn't mean that."
"I just think that since we're already divorced, we should let the past be the past. I don't want her still standing between us... You're the woman I love, and soon you'll be my only wife. We can talk about our own things instead of bringing her up over and over again."
Only then did Candy relax, tilting her head to rest on Holden's shoulder. "I'll agree to whatever you say. Since you don't want to mention her, let's just pretend she never appeared. After all, everything's been resolved. Holden, I'm so happy—we're really going to have a wedding soon."
"I'm going to wear the most beautiful dress and make vows with you in front of the priest to never part."
Holden looked at Candy's profile, his eyes softening.
The two leaned together and started discussing the wedding guest list. Without mentioning Anne, they were much more efficient. They finalized the guest list and waited for everyone to come celebrate.
However, after waiting a day, the people they'd sent out finally returned, but their expressions didn't look good.
The old lady sat in the living room. Under the bright lights, it was easy to see that her clothing was much simpler than before, and she hadn't even changed her jewelry in days.
The servant who had delivered invitations to the noble houses in the east trembled as he knelt down. "Mrs. Titan, the invitations were delivered, but..."
"All those guests said they'll send gifts on time, but they're not coming!"