After the bride entered the bridal chamber, the groom still had to remain to toast the guests.
But Zheng Yanqing’s health was poor. He could only use tea instead of wine, making his rounds table by table.
Lu Zhiyao didn’t touch the food at the wedding banquet. He just unwrapped the crisp candies one by one, eating them as if they weren’t cloyingly sweet.
A child sat near him and mostly focused on eating the duck meat on his plate, occasionally glancing at him.
Lu Zhiyao was beautiful, and he seemed to be eating the candy with such relish that he completely aroused the child’s greed for the candy.
Yet the child inexplicably found him frightening for some reason and didn’t dare approach him. Seeing his closed eyes and blind appearance, the child mustered his courage and reached out to grab a piece of the crisp candy.
“Want some candy?”
Lu Zhiyao reached out and caught the child’s hand, his smile gentle.
Seeing his smile, the child relaxed and nodded. “Yes.”
Lu Zhiyao turned to face him fully. A piece of candy bulged in his left cheek, making him look utterly harmless.
“My mood is a little off today. How about this: you give me one of your fingers. If that makes me happier, I’ll give you a piece of candy. What do you say?”
He drew a gleaming dagger from his sleeve, twirling it playfully between his fingers. The light reflecting off the blade flashed in the child’s eyes.
The child stared at the small knife in his hand with terror. He became so frightened that he dropped his duck leg on the floor.
Hearing the commotion, Lu Zhiyao put the dagger away and sighed helplessly. “How dull.”
He continued eating the candies, his fingertips tapping incessantly on the table.
As if finally thinking of something, he put the remaining candies into his robe, picked up the white cane beside him, and walked out, his steps noticeably lighter.
Li Ruoshui went to lay on the couch sofa while clutching her stomach, both hungry and exhausted.
Seeing the sun outside the window had almost set, she realized she still hadn’t eaten a single thing.
Do people getting married not count as people?
Just as she was staring boredly at the window, a noisy group of people suddenly approached from outside.
She flipped over and sat up. Peering through the paper window, she saw Zheng Yanqing, followed by maids and attendants, slowly walking towards the room.
Li Ruoshui lifted her skirts and got off the daybed. Just as she sat down on the edge of the bed, the door was pushed open.
Zheng Yanqing gave her an apologetic smile and stepped forward to sit beside her.
The maids and attendants behind him carried food, dishes, and dried fruits. After setting out the food, they lined up in a row before the couple.
Li Ruoshui looked at them, momentarily unable to recall what part of the ceremony this was.
“What are they…”
Two of the maids stepped forward, each holding a plate of dried fruits—dates and peanuts.
“We wish the Young Master and Young Madam to have a son and a harmonious union for a hundred years.”
As soon as the words were spoken, she threw all the dried fruits in her hands towards them.
Looking at the two plates piled high with dried fruits, Li Ruoshui reflexively closed her eyes, finally remembering this “blessing” part of the ritual.
This wasn’t a blessing! This was clearly an act of vengeance!
The hard nuts landed on their clothes and the bed with loud thuds, the kind of sound that made you wince just hearing it.
Being hit on the body was one thing, but she was afraid of being hit in the face.
Li Ruoshui kept her eyes tightly shut the whole time, her hands clutching the edges of her skirts.
In such a situation, the worst part wasn’t being hit, but the tension of anticipating the next strike.
This wasn’t a wedding ceremony; it was torture.
Seeing that it was getting dark, the maids seemed afraid of missing the auspicious hour, but they couldn’t simply dump the plates. Instead, they quickened the pace of their blessings. This chapter was copied from g.com without permission.
“We wish the Young Master and Young Madam to have a son and a harmonious union for a hundred years.…”
The maids chanted while pelting them. Although they tried to aim carefully, it was inevitable that some would hit their faces—
Zheng Yanqing’s face, to be precise.
Zheng Yanqing was spaced out, and several red marks had already appeared on his face from being hit. Li Ruoshui, with her eyes closed, was tense herself, but not a single nut hit her face.
When the two plates of dried fruits were finally emptied, the maids breathed a sigh of relief, bowed to them, and hurriedly left the room.
Li Ruoshui opened her eyes, patted her chest in relief, and spoke as if she had survived a disaster. “Lucky my face wasn’t hit.”
When she turned to look at Zheng Yanqing, she couldn’t help but laugh. “You poor thing.”
Not only were there red marks on Zheng Yanqing’s face, but a few peanuts were also stuck in his hair, leaving him looking quite disheveled.
“I foresaw today’s situation yesterday,” Zheng Yanqing said, pointing to the food on the table. “Would you like to eat something?”
“Sure, I’m hungry anyways.”
As Li Ruoshui stood up, something poked her hand. She picked it up and couldn’t help but twitch her mouth. “Dates and peanuts are one thing, but they threw crisp candies too?”
In her hand was a small, broken piece of crisp candy, with sharp edges and a sweet fragrance.
Li Ruoshui’s demeanor and tone were so natural that Zheng Yanqing felt not only less awkward but also a strange sense of camaraderie. Almost as if they were brothers.
“I don’t think so.” He turned to look at the bed and paused for a moment. “…There are quite a lot.”
On the red bedsheets, scattered among the dates and peanuts, were many pieces of broken candy. They stood out like a bonfire in the middle of a snowfield.
“Good thing I’m fine.”
Li Ruoshui exclaimed once more, threw the candy piece back onto the bed, and sat with Zheng Yanqing at the table to have a bite to eat.
To be precise, she hadn’t eaten much since the two matchmakers visited yesterday afternoon.
“Miss Li, was marrying me your own choice?”
Ordinarily, such a question would require careful buildup, but Li Ruoshui’s words and actions made him feel strangely close, as if it was okay to say anything.
Hearing this, Li Ruoshui wasn’t surprised at all. “No.”
Zheng Yanqing visibly relaxed at her answer, his demeanor becoming much more natural. He took a letter from inside his wedding robes and placed it on the table with a hint of apology. “Miss Li, this is a contract I drafted.”
Li Ruoshui ate her food and casually picked it up to read.
It was a contract, complete with a thumbprint, agreeing to a divorce after six months.
“No,” Li Ruoshui put the paper down. “One month, at most.”
Zheng Yanqing was stunned for a moment, then nodded and smiled. After coughing a few times, he took the paper back. “It seems Miss Li came prepared.” He relaxed and picked up his chopsticks, his expression unchanged. “Don’t worry, I won’t tell anyone. In fact, it would be better if you turned this place upside down.”
Li Ruoshui nodded at him, her expression filled with meaning. “You overestimate me.”
Her sole purpose in doing all this was to romance Lu Zhiyao. As for the original plotline, she’d leave that to the male and female leads. She wouldn’t trouble herself with it.
“Cough, cough, cough!”
This was the first time Zheng Yanqing had heard such a statement. He couldn’t catch his breath for a moment and erupted into a fit of coughing.
Thinking his cough was from the cold wind blowing through the open window, Li Ruoshui got up to close it.
Lu Feiyue and Jiang Nian, who had been searching the Zheng residence high and low, happened to pass by. They had originally come to see if anything was amiss. Fortunately, they also saw her close the window and so they immediately moved closer.
The wedding banquet wasn’t over yet. Most of the maids and servants were busy in the main hall, so this area was largely unguarded.
As Lu Feiyue and Jiang Nian reached the base of the window and were peeking inside, they suddenly heard a light sound from above.
Looking up, they saw Lu Zhiyao perched on a beam under the corridor eaves, his knees drawn up. He was flipping through a few dark yellow candy wrappers in his hand. From below, they couldn’t see his expression clearly.
Lu Feiyue and Jiang Nian exchanged a glance, both puzzled.
Jiang Nian flipped up onto the beam. “What are you doing here?” he asked in a hushed tone.
Lu Zhiyao dropped the candy wrappers, that familiar smile curling his lips again. He pulled a green ceramic bottle from his robe and replied in an equally hushed voice, “Applying her medicine.” Visit novelping(.)com for the full chapter.
Jiang Nian: “…” He truly did not understand what went through this man’s brain. [1]
“We’re going to keep searching. Keep an eye out, make sure that Young Master Zheng doesn’t do anything… untowards to her.”
Lu Zhiyao’s hand, which had been toying with the medicine bottle, stilled. He tilted his head slightly. “Untoward? Would he kill Li Ruoshui?”
“Not that kind of bad.” Jiang Nian waved his hand, his lips opening and closing as he tried to phrase it delicately. “It’s… what married couples usually do.”
“Lock her up?”
“What are you talking about…” Jiang Nian took a sharp breath but kept his voice low. “Whatever it is, just pay attention. If anything seems wrong, go in and knock Zheng Yanqing out.”
“I see.” Lu Zhiyao smiled brightly and nodded.
Jiang Nian had reminded him of what he should do. He really should go in and knock him out.
After Lu Feiyue and Jiang Nian had left, he immediately flipped down from the beam, not waiting a moment longer.
Inside the room, Li Ruoshui had already finished eating and washing up. She was sitting to the side, waiting for Zheng Yanqing to draft a new contract.
But she was simply too tired and sleepy. She had stayed up all night last night, not to mention being busy all day today. She couldn’t hold on any longer and fell asleep with her head on the table.
After Zheng Yanqing finished writing the contract, he looked up and saw this scene, chuckling silently to himself.
He put the contract away and gently tapped Li Ruoshui’s arm, calling her name a few times, but received no response.
Zheng Yanqing sighed. He took a thin blanket from nearby and draped it over her, then tried to help her up from the chair.
“My apologies.”
But his constitution was weak and scholarly. Trying to lift and carry Li Ruoshui was genuinely difficult for him.
Just as he was considering whether to try carrying her on his back, a sharp pain struck the back of his neck, and he fell to the floor, unconscious.
“My apologies.”
Lu Zhiyao’s tone was gentle as he casually caught the falling Li Ruoshui.
Holding her horizontally in his arms, a gleam of light flashed in his hand—a sharp dagger. His eyes curved, and he was just preparing to strike when he heard Li Ruoshui murmur a few words in her sleep.
He twirled the dagger for several moments between his fingers before he decided to put it away. Then, holding Li Ruoshui, he stepped over Zheng Yanqing’s prone form.
The candles in the room had long been extinguished by him. Now, only the moonlight filtering through the paper window faintly illuminated the room.
Not that he needed light anyway.
Even without the cane, he could still walk, just more slowly.
Carrying Li Ruoshui to the bed, he reached out and felt the bed surface. There were no dried fruits left on the sheets that might poke their backs; they had already been cleared away.
Lu Zhiyao placed Li Ruoshui on the bed, then sat back on his heels on the footstool by the bed.
He took out the medicine bottle, took Li Ruoshui’s right hand, and genuinely seemed prepared to apply her medicine. “One last application remaining.”
His soft sigh echoed in the quiet room. Li Ruoshui, sleeping restlessly, turned over again, facing him on her side, her breathing long and even.
Lu Zhiyao felt the scars on her palm and fingers, lost in thought.
Suddenly, Li Ruoshui’s hand lifted and landed on the side of his face, gently stroking his cheek.
Having sat on the beam for so long, and never one to wear many layers, his body temperature was always low. The sudden touch of the warmth from her palm felt searing, like touching a flame.
His skin burned. His heart skipped a beat.
Her hand was restless, occasionally stroking and kneading his face. The scars on her palm rubbed against his cheek, bringing a tingling, itchy sensation—something he could somewhat understand as comfort or maybe a plea of sorts.
Lu Zhiyao remained silent for a long time, then chuckled softly. He continued chucking for a long while, the corners of his eyes crinkling with authentic emotion akin to the coming of spring.
He took Li Ruoshui’s hand down, applied the ointment for her, and let out a soft sigh.
“Even though you’re asleep you’re still so alert and mischievous.”
TLN: Hohoho, what is this? Extra chapters for christmas! Why not! Lets blow through my stockpile! Share the love! Kill with love! Enjoy~
[1] EDN: Not gonna lie, I’m with OG ML