9 – Saving the Village Demon
Qin Yue was naturally beautiful, but with this adornment she became even more stunning. Among the villagers dressed in tattered clothes, her bright red wedding dress stood out conspicuously, like a phoenix soaring out of a flock of pheasants.
The aunts and elder women were both envious and gloating—envious that Qin Yue was marrying into Sangyu Village to enjoy a life of comfort, and gloating that she was marrying a fool.
Thinking this way, they felt much better in their hearts, completely forgetting that Qin Yue was marrying to save the lives of everyone in the village.
The most pleased was Qin Xing, who squeezed through the crowd and looked sideways at Qin Yue, thinking that this jinx was finally marrying a fool. She was so excited she felt like setting off several strings of firecrackers to celebrate.
The wedding procession arrived quickly, but the groom was absent, which the villagers had expected. After all, he was a fool who surely couldn’t be presented in public.
Amid the crowd’s chatter and her parents’ sighs, Qin Yue mounted the large white horse and was taken away by the wedding procession.
There was no wedding ceremony, no complicated rituals. Qin Yue was directly delivered to the bridal chamber.
The new home consisted of three rooms in a separate courtyard. The yard wasn’t large but was neatly maintained, planted with various flowers and plants. Compared to the lifeless Fusu Village, this place appeared vibrant and full of life.
She expected to see a drooling fool as soon as she entered, but there was none. Apart from two maidservants, the courtyard was empty of anyone else.
With no man around, Qin Yue felt quite at ease. The two maidservants were Sang Mohan’s cousins, one named Qingqing and the other Cuicui. Sang Mohan was the name of her foolish husband.
The girls had come to the Sang family because their own families were poor and had been assigned to work in Sang Mohan’s courtyard.
In this world where others struggled to even have enough to eat, the Sang family could actually afford to keep maidservants—truly rolling in wealth.
The two maidservants addressed Qin Yue as “Madam.” Qin Yue smiled and said, “There’s no one else here, you can just call me by my name—Qin Yue or Xiao Yue are both fine.”
Seeing her approachable nature, the two girls grew bolder. Qingqing said with a laugh, “Since you’re Brother Mo Han’s wife, why don’t we just call you sister-in-law?”
Qin Yue’s face warmed. The address “sister-in-law” was something she couldn’t immediately accept, especially since she was still an untouched maiden.
But then she reconsidered—since she had married Sang Mohan, she would eventually become his person, and the title “sister-in-law” would have to be used sooner or later. Thinking this, she gave a slight nod.
Nothing happened throughout the afternoon, and no one visited. Apart from the large red satin quilt on the bed indicating recent nuptials, the place was eerily quiet, making her feel like a forgotten bride.
Since she had nothing else to do, Qingqing brought Qin Yue some pine nuts and other nuts, all foraged from the mountains. Qin Yue spent the afternoon eating pine nuts with tea, feeling utterly content.
She thought the foolish man would come for the wedding night and had even prepared countermeasures, but she waited until midnight with no sign of him. Eventually, she grew too tired to stay awake and lay down to sleep.
Just as she drifted off, she seemed to hear a man chuckling softly by her bedside. When she opened her eyes, there was nothing there. Thinking it was a dream, she turned over and went back to sleep.
The Sang family’s bed was layered with thick cotton quilts, very soft and much more comfortable than the hard kang in her own home.
She woke to find the sun already high in the sky, its light streaming through the window onto the bright red quilt, warm and fragrant.Qingqing and Cuicui were whispering outside when they heard movement inside. They brought in several snow-white steamed buns, a bowl of porridge, and a small appetizer dish.