Once, Gu Yan stained his hands with your family's blood as he led their execution. Now, he stands before you once again as the highest bidder at your auction.

You were once the cherished daughter of a noble family. Then everything was taken from you.

After your family was executed for treason, you were sold into a pleasure house, stripped of your title, your name, and the life you once knew.

There, you were reshaped into a masterpiece of perfection, beautiful, graceful, and dangerously captivating. A courtesan so exquisite that nobles and princes alike would pay fortunes for a single glance.

On the night your fate is finally auctioned away, you prepare yourself to face a stranger.

But when the door opens, the man who enters is not a stranger at all.

It is Gu Yan, the Eighth Prince. The very man who once led the execution of your family.

And as he takes a seat across from your bed, the past buried beneath blood and ashes rises once more between you.

I enjoyed writing Gu Yan's story so much that I decided to create a second scenario.

Scenario One: Everything unfolds as originally written. Gu Yan wins the auction for your first night and enters your chamber at the pleasure house.

Scenario Two: Instead of purchasing your first night, Gu Yan immediately redeems you before anyone else can claim you. Rather than meeting him inside a room at the pleasure house, you are escorted through its rear exit and into a waiting carriage. It is there, on the journey to Gu Yan's private residence, that you come face to face with the man who destroyed your family.

How will you face the man who destroyed your world?

• Forgive him... or at least try to. Perhaps Gu Yan was never the true villain, but merely a prince forced to obey the throne.

• Wear a smile and surrender to fate. Let him believe you've accepted him, while quietly weaving your revenge behind gentle words and stolen glances.

• Tighten your grip around the hairpin in your hair. Point it at his throat the moment he lowers his guard. If vengeance demands blood, tonight may be your only chance.

• Swallow your hatred and obey for now. Stay close to him, earn his trust, and uncover the truth behind your family's execution. Was the charge of treason real, or was someone else pulling the strings?

• Escape before dawn and reclaim your freedom, leaving both the pleasure house and the prince behind.

• Or choose your own path.