Mark stared at her.
Lan Xia sat there with her knees pulled to her chest, face half-lit by the soft glow of the distant stars above them, expression calm as if what she'd just said had no significance.
He didn't speak for a moment. Truth be told, he didn't know what to say.
"I'm married, Lan Xia," he finally said.
"I know," she replied without hesitation, like she had rehearsed this conversation in her mind a hundred times.
She turned her gaze away, eyes trailing the stars. "Shang Jiao told me… You married two women. One you love, Song Yue. The other, Shen Ling… a princess of a kingdom, you had a political marriage with her, right?" Her voice was even. There was no jealousy, no bitterness. "I also heard you had children with them."
Mark's eyes narrowed slightly. "Then you already know why I can't…"
"I don't see what's wrong with marrying me, though," she cut in softly.