On this day of great joy, the bristling bride finally met the groom she was to marry.
No personally lifting the veil, no ceremonial wine, no wedding night—none of what she had previously imagined happened. Now the groom who wasn’t wearing wedding attire stood before her, his pupils having turned red.
—Could he have gotten pink eye?
Xin Mei looked at her own hands, then at him, considering whether to directly go up and beat him into a human pancake, or magnanimously give him a chance to explain, demonstrating her virtuous demeanor.
Before she could decide, the groom spoke first: “Let Si Lan go. I’m here now. If you have something to say, you can say it to me.”
She shoved Si Lan away with one push, suddenly feeling that the current situation could be seen in many popular plays.
The next moment, Lu Qianqiao would probably put on a twisted expression that kept people at a distance, using cold thin lips to spit out evil and harsh words like “I never liked you” or “Everything was your own wishful thinking.” Then after she angrily ran away in tears, the seemingly heartless but actually deeply affectionate male lead would slowly spit out a mouthful of blood, weakly lean against Si Lan or some other support, and slowly collapse. Against a background of apricot blossoms falling to the ground, expressing the bone-deep entanglement of “I love you but I won’t let you know”…
She was so disgusted by her own imagination that she stepped back three paces and shouted: “Lu Qianqiao, you’ve got it backwards—you’re the one who owes me an explanation! Don’t give me the nauseating kind!”
He was indeed very accommodating and nodded: “The transformation tribulation has begun. I don’t know if I can survive it.”
Was he afraid that if he died, she would become a little widow less than a month after marrying over? Xin Mei crossed her arms and began imagining again—after he collapsed, spitting blood while saying tremblingly: [Si Lan… don’t let her know the truth… this isn’t pink eye, I just don’t want her to become a widow later…]
She got goosebumps all over and roared: “Change the reason!”
“The marriage was arranged by my mother,” Lu Qianqiao was calm from beginning to end. “She was the person sitting in the carriage that day. Even among the War Ghost clan, she’s a lady of very noble status. For such a small matter, Emperor Rongzheng was very happy to give her face and agree. If I can’t survive the transformation tribulation, you won’t live either. You must be buried alive with me, so I won’t be too lonely after death.”
She was finally shocked: “Buried alive? I… I never heard about this…”
He smiled slightly, his expression gloomy: “Xin Mei, if you insist on marrying me, then marry over and accompany me in death.”
He extended his hand: “Come, tonight we can have our wedding night.”
She quickly retreated three more steps, hiding behind a tree with only her head peeking out, looking him up and down with suspicion: “Really… really?”
Lu Qianqiao stared at her steadily: “Whether I marry you or not doesn’t really matter, but now you’ve become a chess piece my mother uses to coerce me, and also my burden. I originally wanted to quietly avoid this, but you came here with great fanfare…”
She was angered by the understated tone in his words: “I don’t want to hear this! Lu Qianqiao, do you dare say what you really think?! Don’t you want to marry me? Don’t you like me?”
How bold and sharp her questions were—even Si Lan was shocked. Even among female demons, he had never seen one so fierce and thick-skinned.
Lu Qianqiao didn’t avoid her gaze. After a while, he slowly said: “I don’t dislike you.”
“Then why did you flee the wedding?”
“…I also don’t like you enough to want to marry you regardless of everything.”
She fell silent.
Lu Qianqiao turned around and said quietly: “Xin Mei, do you really want to marry me that much? Then follow me. While I can still move, let’s be a real married couple for a few days.”
After a very long time, so long that Si Lan thought she would never speak again, Xin Mei suddenly said something.
“Lu Qianqiao,” she asked, “do you remember I asked you to make a General figurine as my birthday gift? Have you finished it?”
He frowned slightly, thought for a moment, then suddenly realized: “I forgot.”
“…Well then, since you’ve said it to this extent… staying here would only humiliate myself further. I’ll leave right now—”
She stepped out from behind the tree and suddenly laughed: “—did you think I would say that and then obediently leave?”
Lu Qianqiao looked at her upturned face in amazement. From beginning to end she had stood so straight, straight to the point of pride, as if nothing could break her down. Her eyes were startlingly bright, containing what seemed to be something called fury.
“You coward!”
She moved fast as a ghost, instantly pouncing in front of him. The next moment her fist smashed into his face, and he couldn’t defend himself at all, falling backward. Suddenly something heavy landed on him—she had mounted him, grabbing his collar and shaking violently while roaring: “You think I’m that easy to fool?! I’ve seen this routine in plays countless times! Do you dare say again that you don’t like me?! Do you dare?!”
Watching a living Cavalry General about to be shaken apart by her, Si Lan was frantic with anxiety. He wanted to protect his master but couldn’t intervene—the furious Xin Mei’s strength was too astonishing; ten of him wouldn’t be her match.
“First you toyed with my feelings, then you toyed with my dignity! Now you actually plan to toy with my body?!” She grabbed him and beat him thoroughly. “You think I don’t dare? Even if you die tomorrow, today you must have a wedding night with me first! Come on! Come on!”
She grabbed his thin, soft robe and with a “rip” tore a long gash. His somewhat pale but solid chest was thus forcibly exposed to the wind.
Si Lan was so anxious he was about to faint. The General’s chastity! His precious chastity was about to be ruined by this demon star?! Just as he was about to rush forward regardless of everything to stop this, noisy footsteps came from outside the apricot grove. Those wedding officials seemed to have found their way here, following the sounds while calling loudly: “Miss! General? We heard voices—are you here?”
Xin Mei roared: “Get lost! We’re having our wedding night!”
Everything around instantly went quiet.
“Sor… sorry ahhhhh…”
Everyone fled in tears. A fierce life really needed no reason—even wedding nights could happen in forests. What couldn’t they be fierce about?
She gripped Lu Qianqiao’s tattered collar, considering how to properly have a wedding night, when unexpectedly he suddenly gently grasped her wrist.
He lay on his back on the ground, black hair spread everywhere, the left corner of his lips bloodied and broken from her beating, a thin line of blood flowing down. Yet he seemed to feel no pain, only quietly watching her and saying softly: “Xin Mei, stop making trouble.”
Another punch, this time hitting his right face, seeming to break a tooth. He frowned, spitting out a mouthful of bloody foam containing half a broken tooth.
“Do you know how happy my father was? Now you tell me to go back? Why didn’t you say so before?! Who told you to make figurines for me?! Who told you to care about me?! Who’s the one really making trouble?!”
“…You want to marry me that much?” Lu Qianqiao asked quietly.
The fist stopped again. Xin Mei stared at him steadily, unable to say anything.
He slowly closed his eyes, touched her head, his voice low and gentle: “Sorry for shattering your dreams of being a new bride.”
Once-in-a-lifetime wearing wedding dress, once-in-a-lifetime nervous shyness under the veil, sitting in the bridal sedan speculating about his feelings—at that time her mind was full of thoughts about him. It turned out, she really did want to marry him that much.
“Yes!” Her voice was intense and loud. “I just want to marry you that much! So what?!”
Lu Qianqiao kept his eyes tightly shut, his lashes trembling violently. He felt alternating cold and heat behind his back, his wrists beginning to shake slightly—uncontrollably, irrepressibly.
“What transformation, what burial sacrifice—I don’t care about any of that! Using such reasons to send me away, you’re too naive!” She cupped his face with both hands and shook hard. “Open your eyes! I won’t let you escape!”
He opened his eyes tremblingly, meeting her sun-bright eyes. No self-pitying sorrow, no affected modesty—Xin Mei never needed those so-called virtuous feminine qualities as decoration. She only said what she wanted to say, did what she wanted to do, liked… whoever she wanted to like.
“I…” His throat choked up; he couldn’t say anything.
She exhaled and released her hands: “Then let’s continue our wedding night.”
“You… you’ve had enough!” Si Lan could bear it no longer, his face flushed red as he shouted. “Look carefully! What kind of place is this? I’m still here! What wedding night?!”
Xin Mei looked at him in surprise: “You’re still here?”
“You…” He trembled all over pointing at her, stars dancing before his eyes.
Suddenly an old bull’s lowing came from overhead. All three looked up to see a shabby ox cart slowly flying down from the clouds, with a small black dot circling rapidly around it, making particularly harsh cawing sounds. After circling once outside the apricot grove, seeming to notice them, it immediately flew straight in—it was the little crow.
“General! Little Crow has awakened. About what you asked…”
The long-absent Lord Meishan nimbly jumped down from the ox cart, his face full of urgency. When he saw the scene in the grove, he froze completely.
This, this… Little Mei was sitting on, sitting on the General, wasn’t she? What she was wearing… wedding dress? Rags? Torn skirt? What was going on? Looking at the General again—lying on his back, one hand supporting her back, the other relaxedly spread out, clothes in complete disarray, exposing a large area of naked chest… The two people, one blushing, one with tears…
Lord Meishan staggered backward with a pale face: “You… you… what are you doing?!”
“Having our wedding night.” Si Lan, who had been treated as background color all along, finally found a chance to speak. “Immortal Meishan, how coincidental of you to come at this time. Do you have something important?”
“Wed… wedding night…” These two words struck like lightning, making Lord Meishan stagger several more steps.
He had only been busy with Little Crow’s injuries for over a month—how had these two gotten married already? And… and consummated?! General, didn’t you move too fast?
“…If you have something to say, say it.” Lu Qianqiao frowned.
He was impatient! Giving him looks, telling him to finish talking quickly and get lost, not to disturb their wedding night!
Tears immediately flowed down Lord Meishan’s face as he choked out: “About the transformation tribulation of mixed-blood war ghosts… it’s not that no one can survive… Little Crow only found this much, then… then was injured by the General’s clansmen…”
Lu Qianqiao pondered for a moment but didn’t show wild joy as expected, only nodding: “Thank you. Si Lan, give him the ingredients for ceremonial divine wine as payment.”
Si Lan took out a thin booklet from his chest and handed it over: “Immortal Meishan, thank you.”
Lord Meishan took the booklet in a daze, somehow not even interested in flipping through it. He stared straight at Xin Mei, silently weeping, murmuring: “Little Mei… you… you just married him like this?”
She agreed particularly quickly: “Yes. Lord Meishan, you should go back first. When we have time later, we’ll visit you.”
No, no, just you coming alone would be enough!
“…Let’s go.” Lu Qianqiao’s face reddened slightly. “Xin Mei… you… you get up first.”
She still looked angry: “Hmph! Not having our wedding night anymore?”
He raised his hand and gently patted her forehead: “Alright, get up.”
Lord Meishan watched blankly as the three disappeared into the depths of the apricot grove. A cold wind blew past, rolling up thousands of snow-white petals. Ghost fires danced in the grove with wailing sounds all around…
Had he come here today specifically to humiliate himself?
He really wanted to cry.