Bai Zhao turned and walked a few steps to the doorway of the main hall. He raised a hand and gave the wooden door a gentle push, making it creak open.
Walking into the room, the entire interior furnishings could be taken in at a glance. Since it was an auspicious day, red candles were scattered across the furniture. The candles were few in number, but they cast a faint glow. Sitting by the bed was a figure wearing a grey linen robe, with only the red bridal veil on their head hinting at the auspicious occasion.
It seemed the original body had spent all his money on himself, completely neglecting what his wife was wearing.
“Hey, you look quite a bit more handsome all dressed up.” Standing beside the bed was an old woman doing up her hair. Bending over, the old woman walked up to Bai Zhao and used both hands to straighten his collar. “Now that you are married, you cannot go on living your life in a daze like before.”
The old woman before him was Aunt Yang, the older sister of the original body’s mother. Ever since the original body’s parents passed away, Aunt Yang had been supporting him.
“In a few days, go find some work to do. When your parents see you starting a family and establishing your career from the netherworld, they will surely be happy,” Aunt Yang advised earnestly.
Aunt Yang had the original body’s best interests at heart, and she was also the one who found the channel to buy the protagonist Shou.
Therefore, Aunt Yang and the original body were two of a kind. To the original body, she was a good person, but to the protagonist Shou, she was an absolute villain.
“Aunt Yang, didn’t you say the auspicious hour is almost here?” Bai Zhao didn’t want to keep listening to Aunt Yang’s nagging, so he changed the subject.
“Yes, yes, we must not miss the auspicious hour.” Aunt Yang smacked her forehead and pulled Bai Zhao toward the wedding bed.
The person on the bed was extremely quiet, with both hands resting on their knees, not making a sound, just like a doll.
Since there was no silver in the household to hire a wedding master of ceremonies, Aunt Yang had to officiate the ritual herself.
Aunt Yang had never learned a proper ceremony, so she could only officiate based on how her own wedding had been conducted.
Omitting the preliminary auspicious blessings, Aunt Yang grabbed a handful of peanuts and scattered them over the bride, then picked up a wooden steelyard from the table and placed it in Bai Zhao’s hands.
“After I go outside, use this pole to lift the bride’s veil, and then share a cup of bridal wine to complete the ceremony.” Aunt Yang then lowered her voice and said, “This child is quite pretty, so you must work hard and give Auntie a baby to play with!”
Hearing Aunt Yang’s words, the person sitting on the bed quietly clenched the hands resting on their knees into fists, but relaxed them again almost instantly.
Bai Zhao, on the other hand, grew a bit curious. The person on the bed was very pretty. Just how pretty could they be?
Aunt Yang said a few more words related to marital matters before stepping out of the room, leaving space and time for the newlyweds.
Bai Zhao weighed the wooden steelyard in his hand. The material of this pole was simple indeed; the wood was only about a finger wide and would snap with a slight bend. Having spent a millennium in the immortal realm leading a solitary and pristine existence, he had not expected that less than an hour after descending to the mortal realm, he would already have a wife.
Whatever. This person was not married through the proper three letters and six etiquettes or a formal matchmaker; this red string could not even cross the threshold of Old Man Yue Lao’s palace. It was just a playful, makeshift wedding. Anyway, he was only here to complete a mission, follow the script, and steer the erroneous plot back on track.
The candle flames flickered slowly, perhaps to set the mood, as there were only a few red candles placed near the bed.
Holding the steelyard between two fingers, Bai Zhao walked up to the person by the bed.
The steelyard caught the edge of the red veil, and Bai Zhao slowly lifted it. The first thing to come into view was fair skin, and as his gaze moved upward, he saw a pair of slightly pursed red lips resembling tempting cherries. Continuing up, there was a straight, petite nose, and then, as the veil rose past the eyes, a pair of round eyes quietly stared up at him. Those pupils were like gemstones, reflecting the flickering candlelight as if stars were hidden within his eyes, so breathtakingly beautiful that it was impossible to look away.
Bai Zhao’s hand holding the steelyard paused for a moment before he completely lifted the red veil.
Chu Xingxi had been styled with a woman’s hair ornament by Aunt Yang, and his expression held a hint of fear, making him look truly like a young bride.
Chu Xingxi’s beauty was not overwhelming; rather, it was the kind of beauty that made people feel extremely comfortable to look at. At a single glance, Bai Zhao took a liking to him. It was the kind of appreciation one has for beautiful things.
However, pretty as he was, he was a bit too thin. The hands exposed outside were as slender as bamboo poles, and his small face was similarly gaunt, clearly indicating long-term malnutrition.
Bai Zhao looked him up and down, and Chu Xingxi said weakly, “Aren’t we going to drink the bridal wine?”
“We are.” Bai Zhao withdrew his gaze, picked up two cups of cheap wine from the table, and they drank with their arms linked.
Bai Zhao didn’t finish his wine; it tasted rather strange, likely because it was far too cheap.
“Thus, you are now my wife,” Bai Zhao said, following the mindset of a scumbag.
“Then will you be gentle and good to me?” Chu Xingxi clutched his hemline, appearing terribly nervous.
“Naturally,” Bai Zhao replied.
On the wedding night, the consummation was naturally expected. After placing the two cups back on the table, Bai Zhao returned to the bedside and leaned over Chu Xingxi.
Chu Xingxi raised his hands against his chest, and Bai Zhao, mimicking the behavior of a profligate scoundrel, stroked his wrist and pulled open the collar of his linen tunic.
Then, a flash of blue light appeared in Bai Zhao’s eyes, and Chu Xingxi closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.
Hearing that all movement inside the room had ceased, Yuebao and Feinu grew intensely curious. The pair sneaked over to poke a hole in the paper window, planning to peek inside and look at their Immortal Lord’s wife.
“What are you two doing in here?” Bai Zhao’s immortal aura had a very wide coverage area; any animal moving within a ten-mile radius was crystal clear to him.
“We just wanted to take a look at the Immortal Lord’s wife!” Caught in the act, Yuebao and Feinu could only brace themselves and shuffle over to Bai Zhao to explain.
“If you want to look, you should just walk in openly instead of acting like a pair of petty thieves and making a laughingstock of yourselves.” Bai Zhao picked them up one by one and set them on the bed. His illusion spell caused people to sleep very deeply, so there was no need to worry about Chu Xingxi suddenly waking up.
Yuebao and Feinu hopped over to the edge of the pillow in a few bounds to closely observe Chu Xingxi’s appearance.
Chu Xingxi had wonderful skin; even at such a close distance, not a single pore was visible. His relaxed, closed eyes featured long and delicate eyelashes, prompting Yuebao to impulsively reach out and touch them. Feeling a slight prickly sensation, he quickly pulled his paw back and offered congratulations: “Immortal Lord, now you have a pretty wife!”
“Indeed, I didn’t expect Chu Xingxi to be this good-looking.” Feinu’s attention was also drawn in. As Bai Zhao’s immortal attendants, they had naturally read the original script and knew that Chu Xingxi was the protagonist within it.
“You two really know how to flatter,” Bai Zhao remarked.
“We aren’t flattering you!” Yuebao’s tone was extremely firm. “The Immortal Lord’s wife is simply gorgeous, right?”
“Right! Only someone like this is worthy of our Immortal Lord!” Feinu quickly chimed in to support Yuebao’s words.
“You two are really something.” Bai Zhao was so amused by the mischievous pair that even his speech carried a smile.
When Chu Xingxi woke up, the bedside had already lost its warmth, showing that the person beside him had been gone for quite a while. He lifted the blanket; his clothes were neatly dressed, and his body lacked the pain of his past life, feeling instead as comfortable as if he had just soaked in a warm bath.
He remembered his wedding night in his past life vividly. The blood flowing from his body had stained the bedsheets crimson. Reborn into this lifetime, he had actually managed to sleep so comfortably in this scumbag’s home.
Yet, that scoundrel’s actions earlier did not seem fake.
Chu Xingxi found it strange. Could he have fallen under an illusion? But that scoundrel was merely an ordinary mortal; how could he know any illusion arts?
Suddenly, he recalled the cup of wine Bai Zhao had drunk. Could that gambler have been reborn as well? Otherwise, why had his carefully concocted sleeping potion had zero effect? Could it be that even after living a second life, he was destined to follow in the footsteps of his previous existence?
Chu Xingxi struck the bedboard, causing it to crack. Splintered pieces of wood pierced into his palm, and fresh blood slowly oozed out, yet he felt no pain.
No matter what, in this lifetime he would definitely make those who hurt him pay the price. Chief among them was this gambler husband. He had miscalculated this time, but in this life, he would not let him die quite so easily.
“Immortal Lord, why are you gathering so much firewood?” Yuebao bounced along beside Bai Zhao. Wherever Bai Zhao passed, the surrounding dead branches would automatically bundle themselves together and float weightlessly behind him.
Following an ordinary person with a long trail of lumber behind them looked bizarre no matter how one looked at it.
“Winter is coming soon. How are we going to make it through without gathering more firewood?” Bai Zhao said.
The only route connecting this village to the outside world was a small mountain trail. Once winter arrived and the snow fell, the road would be blocked. The plot event where he would be bitten to death by a demon was scheduled for early next spring, so he naturally needed to prepare some winter provisions to survive the season smoothly.
“Immortal Lord, being this flamboyant, aren’t you afraid the villagers will see you and catch you as a demon?” Feinu flew near Bai Zhao’s ear and whispered.
“Even if they see me, they should mistake me for an immortal. Why would they think I’m a demon?” Bai Zhao was puzzled.
“Immortal Lord, you should go look at what you look like right now.” Feinu did not want to crush his Immortal Lord’s confidence, but reality had to be faced, so he offered a tactful hint.
As luck would have it, a small stream was close by. Bai Zhao took a few steps forward, and the stream water reflected his current appearance.
Beneath a pair of thick, long eyebrows were tiny eyes, a moderately straight bridge of nose, chapped lips, and dark, weathered skin from wind and sun. Altogether, it was the appearance of an ordinary mortal.
Bai Zhao’s brows knitted tightly together.
Compared to his original appearance, this face was like heaven and earth.
Right now, he just wanted to leave this body immediately. Staying in it for even a second made his entire body itch with discomfort.
“You two, if I commit suicide right now, will I transfer into another body?” Bai Zhao looked at his reflection in the water, his tone lingering.
“Calm down, Immortal Lord!” Yuebao bit onto Bai Zhao’s pant leg while Feinu caught the collar of his garment. “If this body dies, the plot will change!”
That was true.
Bai Zhao suppressed his impulsive thoughts. Completing the mission and returning to the immortal realm was far more important.
Fortunately, this body did not have long to live anyway. After the Spring Festival next year, he would die in a demon’s jaws. Roughly counting, there were only a little over ninety days left, so he could just grit his teeth and endure.
After gathering a sufficient amount of firewood, Bai Zhao casually found a long, slender leaf to tie it all together, and as he exited the forest, he hoisted the timber onto his shoulder and carried it back home.
After all, since he was currently an ordinary person devoid of immortal energy, he could not blatantly use immortal arts to transport the wood back.
When he arrived home, Chu Xingxi was standing idly in the courtyard, staring blankly at the withered trees outside. Hearing the commotion, he turned around and caught sight of the timber resting on Bai Zhao’s shoulder, causing his pupils to contract slightly.
Seeing the person standing rigidly in the yard like a block of wood, Bai Zhao called out directly, “What are you standing around for? Come help me.”
Chu Xingxi snapped out of his trance and walked over to Bai Zhao.
Knowing that Chu Xingxi was male, Bai Zhao naturally lacked any tender, protective feelings. He dropped the wood on the ground and pointed toward the kitchen on the left, saying, “Just put that wood over there. There are a few more bundles in the forest; I’ll go back and carry those too.”
Chu Xingxi did not speak. He merely clutched his hemline and nodded.
The gesture made Bai Zhao feel like a big bad wolf, while Chu Xingxi was a completely defenseless little white rabbit.
After putting away the ten bundles of wood, Bai Zhao returned to the forest and hauled the remaining ten bundles back as well.
The sun climbed higher, and wisp-like kitchen smoke began rising from the surrounding houses. It was time for lunch.
Relying on the original body’s memories, Bai Zhao knew there was still some white rice and cured meat left in the kitchen, but those ingredients would only last a few more meals.
Pulling up his pant legs, Bai Zhao squatted down in front of the kitchen stove and began making a fire.
An immortal’s body did not need to eat, but an ordinary mortal body could not go hungry for even a single meal.
Looking at the wood before him that showed no signs of catching fire, Bai Zhao unconsciously let out a sigh. As he spun the wooden drill, he thought to himself that he truly must be undergoing trials in the mortal realm if even cooking a meal required starting from making a campfire.