Fan Changyu was probably the first bride in existence who still had to get up early on her wedding day to slaughter pigs and prepare braised meat dishes.

The pig offal and pig head meat left over from the previous pig she had butchered and sold had all been turned into braised dishes. Combined with the meat from today’s pig, she finally managed to fill two large basins with sliced braised meat.

The aunties who came to help all praised how fragrant it smelled.

It was nearly noon before Old Madam Zhao finally urged her back to her room to change into her wedding clothes and do her hair.

Only after asking Old Madam Zhao did Fan Changyu learn that there were two customs for taking in a live-in husband.

One involved the groom riding in a bridal sedan and being carried to the bride’s home, commonly called “carrying the groom.”

The other was much the same as a normal marriage. The groom would move into the bride’s house the day before, while the bride would depart from her maternal grandparents’ home and return to her own house in a bridal sedan with drums and music all the way, preserving the groom’s dignity.

Fan Changyu was doing neither.

First, she no longer had the money to rent a bridal sedan.

Second, the groom was already next door. Once he came downstairs, they could directly perform the ceremony. There was no need for all that fuss.

The woman blessed with marital fortune who had been invited to oversee the wedding preparations finished making the marriage bed in the bridal chamber before coming to help Fan Changyu comb her hair.

“The first comb through to the ends, the second comb until white hair meets at the brows, the third comb for a house full of children…”

Sitting before the dressing table, listening to the woman recite the traditional “Ten Combs Blessing” and hearing the bustling noise outside, Fan Changyu suddenly had the strange illusion that she was truly getting married.

Outside, the guests’ favorite topic of discussion was naturally the groom.

Unfortunately for them, Old Madam Zhao kept her mouth tightly shut. No matter how the women tried prying for information, she refused to reveal a single detail.

A group of women sat together cracking melon seeds, inevitably beginning to gossip in private.

“Tell me, the Zhao couple is hiding this groom so carefully… could it be because he’s hideously ugly?”

“I heard the groom injured his leg and can’t walk properly!”

Someone immediately gasped.

“Doesn’t that make him a cripple?”

The woman beside her jabbed her with an elbow, signaling for her to lower her voice, before whispering, “This is a live-in marriage after all. If he were a perfectly normal man, would he really marry into the wife’s family?”

Everyone sighed sympathetically.

Then someone brought up Song Yan.

“Looks like the Fan and Song families really have fallen out. Everyone in the alley came today except the Song family.”

“Hah, if you ask me, it’s better that the Song family didn’t come. Song Yan is famous throughout all the nearby villages for being handsome. If he came, wouldn’t he make the groom look utterly inferior? The Fan family would lose face!”

The crowd chattered endlessly.

When the auspicious hour arrived, everyone gathered in front of the Zhao family gate, eager to see the groom.

Ironically, when Fan Changyu emerged wearing a red bridal veil, nobody paid attention to her at all.

The weather truly refused to cooperate today.

Snow had begun falling since the afternoon. By now, a thin layer had already settled atop the courtyard walls. The ground remained merely wet because so many people had been walking across it.

The firecrackers hanging outside the Zhao family gate exploded noisily.

As the guests stretched their necks to peer inside, the moment they saw a pair of crutches extend from the doorway, they inwardly thought, Just as expected.

The live-in husband Fan Changyu recruited really was lame.

As the crutches moved forward, one foot stepped through the doorway, revealing the hem of a dark red robe.

Snowflakes drifted like catkins. The instant they landed on the fabric, they melted away, leaving only faint traces of dampness.

For some reason, the noisy crowd outside suddenly held their breath.

Then the groom’s other foot stepped through the doorway, and he finally emerged fully from the shadows within.

Snow dusted his black hair, which had been tied up with a red ribbon. Between the dark hair and red robes was a face so strikingly handsome and refined that his complexion seemed even paler than the snow itself. His casual glance toward the crowd was cold and distant.

The guests who saw his face all sucked in sharp breaths.

They had lived this long and had never once seen such a handsome young man.

Forget Song Yan—even the lead actor of the opera troupe could not compare to even a fraction of this groom’s looks.

Sword-like brows, starry eyes, a face like carved jade.

He truly looked like heaven had sculpted him personally.

After a moment of dead silence, the crowd erupted into even louder commotion than before.

“This groom is unbelievably handsome!”

“I told you! A girl as pretty as Changyu couldn’t possibly pick an ugly husband!”

“Who was it that said the groom was some ugly cripple? Is he any worse-looking than Song Yan?”

Leaning on his crutches, Xie Zheng walked expressionlessly through the noisy crowd. His brows furrowed ever so slightly, seemingly annoyed by the chattering women around him.

Once he rounded the corner and entered the Fan family courtyard, even the people sitting there chatting and cracking seeds stood up to watch the spectacle.

The loudest discussions were all praising his appearance.

Even the women helping cook in the kitchen could not resist sneaking out for a look after hearing how exceptionally handsome the groom was.

Xie Zheng suppressed the impatience in his expression as he endured the crowd’s staring all the way toward the main hall for the wedding ceremony.

Then, by chance, his gaze swept beneath the eaves ahead.

There he saw Fan Changyu wearing wedding clothes in the same color as his.

Thinking no one was paying attention, she had secretly lifted a corner of her bridal veil to peek outside from behind the crowd.

His gaze had already passed over her before suddenly returning in surprise.

He knew she was not unattractive, but this was the first time he had seen her wearing makeup.

Half-hidden beneath the red silk, her almond-shaped eyes curved with laughter as she looked his way. A faint blush dusted her cheeks. Though the rouge had clearly been applied clumsily, it could not conceal her beauty. Her lips, painted red, lacked their usual plainness, making her snow-white skin appear all the more radiant.

At a glance, she was dazzling beyond compare.

The moment their eyes met, she froze.

Then, seemingly realizing this was her own wedding ceremony, she hurriedly dropped the veil back down guiltily and stood properly again.

Clearly, she was a beauty.

Yet her actions… always felt strangely unconventional.

The irritation Xie Zheng had felt from all the noisy guests suddenly lessened ever so slightly.

Perhaps this wedding was not entirely tedious and meaningless after all.

Using his crutches, he entered the main hall.

The woman overseeing the ceremony handed one end of the red silk tied to the ceremonial flower ball to him and the other end to Fan Changyu.

The elder presiding over the wedding called out loudly, “The auspicious hour has arrived! The bride and groom shall bow!”

“First bow to Heaven and Earth—”

Unable to see beneath the veil, Fan Changyu allowed Old Madam Zhao to guide her into position before bowing together with Xie Zheng toward Heaven and Earth.

“Second bow to the parents—”

Since both she and Xie Zheng had lost their parents, ancestral tablets were placed in the hall instead. Together, they bowed toward the tablets.

“Husband and wife bow to each other—”

As Fan Changyu lowered her head for this bow, a gust of wind suddenly swept in, nearly blowing away her bridal veil.

She instinctively reached up to grab it, but a large hand moved faster than hers, pressing the veil back onto her head.

Even with her toes, she could imagine the sight had probably looked ridiculous.

Laughter already erupted among the guests.

“Look at the groom! He can’t bear to let everyone see the bride!”

The veil blocked Fan Changyu’s vision, so she could not see Xie Zheng’s expression.

But hearing the teasing herself made her feel awkward enough already. She only hoped he would not mind.

“The ceremony is complete—send them to the bridal chamber!”

Accompanied by that shout, she and Xie Zheng were finally led into the prepared bridal room while holding opposite ends of the red silk.

Calling it a bridal chamber was honestly an exaggeration.

The room was incredibly simple. Red paper cuttings of the double happiness character had merely been pasted onto the doors and windows, while the bed had been covered with festive-colored sheets and blankets.

After the woman overseeing the ceremony recited a long string of auspicious blessings, she finally had Xie Zheng lift Fan Changyu’s bridal veil.

Her vision brightened instantly, and the figures in the room became clear.

Earlier, outside, she had only secretly peeked at him through the corner of her veil before hurriedly lowering it again after being caught, so she had not seen him clearly.

Now, standing only a step away from her, dressed entirely in red, Xie Zheng once again made Fan Changyu realize how much clothing truly enhanced a person’s appearance.

If he walked through the streets dressed like this, he would probably leave countless young women completely dazed.

The woman overseeing the ceremony smiled broadly.

“Just look at them! Such a beautiful bride and groom—they truly are a match made in heaven!”

The women around them all covered their mouths and laughed.

Awkwardly, Fan Changyu forced herself to smile.

Xie Zheng’s expression remained calm and unreadable throughout, making it impossible to tell what he was thinking.

The woman overseeing the ceremony and the other women grabbed peanuts and red dates from a tray and tossed them over the couple’s heads while chanting, “May you soon bear noble children!”

Getting hit by all that actually hurt a little, so Fan Changyu spoke up at the appropriate moment.

“Thank you, Aunties, but my husband is injured. Throwing fruit for good fortune is enough for today.”

The moment she said that, someone immediately teased, “Look at Changyu protecting her husband already!”

Fan Changyu shamelessly endured the teasing.

Only after finally sending the entire roomful of women away did she ask Xie Zheng, “You weren’t hurt, were you?”

His unreadable gaze rested on her.

“No.”

Only then did Fan Changyu relax.

“I still need to go greet the guests outside. You should rest here peacefully. If you get hungry, eat some of the pastries on the table first.”

Those were words a groom ought to say to his bride.

Hearing them come from Fan Changyu instead sounded indescribably strange.

After a moment of silence, Xie Zheng nodded lightly.

After forcing himself to endure so long while carrying such severe injuries, the exhaustion in his expression was impossible to hide.

—

Fan Changyu went outside to entertain the guests.

Since there were no elders left in her family and this was a live-in marriage, almost nobody pressured her to drink.

Everyone simply ate lively and happily together before gradually departing once it grew late.

After the banquet ended, Fan Changyu was putting away the tables and benches when she discovered an embroidered box sitting atop a table near the entrance.

She asked Old Madam Zhao, who was helping clean up, “Auntie, who sent this gift?”

Old Madam Zhao looked puzzled too.

“The gift registry was completed before the feast began. I didn’t see this box earlier either. I wonder which family delivered it afterward without saying anything.”

Fan Changyu opened the box.

The instant she saw the pair of clay dolls inside, her expression turned cold.

Without hesitation, she threw the box straight into the pile of trash Old Madam Zhao had just swept together. The clay dolls shattered immediately.

Seeing her reaction and recognizing the broken male and female dolls, Old Madam Zhao’s expression instantly changed.

She spat fiercely in the direction of the Song family.

“That heartless wretch! When you were in trouble, he cut ties faster than anyone. And today, on your wedding day, he sends this disgusting thing to upset you?”

Fan Changyu said, “Don’t be angry, Auntie. Why bother getting worked up over irrelevant people?”

It was not that the clay dolls had stirred up painful memories.

She simply found them revolting.

The dolls had been a gift she made for Song Yan after his father died, back when he had been gloomy and depressed. At the time, she had only been seven or eight years old.

Over all these years, Fan Changyu believed her parents had treated Song Yan well.

Yet after her parents died, he was the one who rushed over immediately to break off the engagement.

When Fan Da and the gambling house people caused trouble for her, he was also the one who shut his doors and refused to see her.

And now, on her wedding day, he sent this pair of clay dolls.

What exactly was he trying to say?

Because of this unpleasantness, Fan Changyu remained expressionless even during the family dinner that evening.

Since Xie Zheng’s injuries made it inconvenient for him to move around, she personally brought food to his room.

“You’re injured, so I picked lighter dishes for you.”

Xie Zheng had already noticed something unusual about her expression the moment she entered, though he asked nothing.

He merely lowered his eyes slightly and thanked her calmly.

By the time everything was finally cleaned up, it was nearly the hour of Hai.

Old Madam Zhao wanted to carry the sleeping Changning next door, but Fan Changyu immediately stopped her.

“Ever since our parents passed away, Ningniang has always slept with me. Otherwise she gets nightmares at night and cries endlessly.”

Old Madam Zhao replied, “That’s fine normally, but on your wedding night, no matter what, the newlyweds should sleep in the same room. Otherwise it’s unlucky.”

After saying that, she gave Fan Changyu no chance to argue further and simply carried Changning out.

The courtyard, which had been noisy all day, now felt terribly quiet.

The festive red lanterns hanging beneath the eaves cast dim yellow halos across the endless snowy night.

Fan Changyu sat on the steps at the doorway hugging her knees, staring blankly at the heavy snow falling from the dark sky for quite a while before finally standing and heading inside.

Since the marriage was fake, there was naturally no way Fan Changyu intended to actually sleep in the same room with him.

However, all the household quilts had been stored in the bridal room.

That room had originally been hers. Later, after her parents died, Changning became too afraid to sleep alone and started sharing it with her. After it had been converted into the bridal chamber, the room next door still had not been prepared yet.

Because she had lived there for over ten years, she habitually pushed the door open without knocking.

The moment she stepped inside, she discovered Xie Zheng changing clothes.

His outer robe had already been removed. With his back facing her, his inner garment had been stripped halfway down—half hanging from his arms, the other half draped around his waist.

It was an incredibly beautiful body.

Between the wrappings of white bandages, the exposed skin glowed honey-colored beneath the wedding candles, and the shape of his muscles was strikingly defined.

At the sound of her sudden entrance, he turned his head slightly.

That jade-like face, paired with his cold expression at this moment, inexplicably carried both restraint and dangerous allure.

Fan Changyu stood there blankly staring for several breaths.

Only when he frowned in displeasure and pulled the half-removed garment back into place did he ask, “Do you need something?”

Only then did she suddenly recover her senses, realizing she looked exactly like some shameless rogue lusting after an innocent maiden’s beauty.

Her face instantly heated.

“Sorry! I wasn’t used to it yet and forgot to knock. I just came to get a quilt.”

“Take it then.”

The voice behind her was cold and clear.

Fan Changyu kept her eyes rigidly forward as she hurried to the cabinet and grabbed two quilts.

Only after clutching them tightly in her arms and fleeing the room without daring to turn her head did she finally breathe several huge sighs of relief once she rounded the corner.

How utterly humiliating!

Hopefully he would not misunderstand her again.

With Xie Zheng’s sharp hearing, he naturally heard her relieved breathing outside.

His expression did not change in the slightest.

Only after her footsteps faded into the distance did he untie the bandages and continue applying medicine to the wounds that had split open most severely.

The medicine tied to the gyrfalcon’s leg was an incredibly rare wound remedy worth a fortune.

Its effects were exceptionally potent.

The instant the medicinal powder touched his wounds, pain exploded through him so violently that every muscle in his body tensed.

Veins bulged along his arms. Fine beads of sweat appeared at his temples. He clenched his teeth so tightly that the taste of blood spread faintly through his mouth.

To avoid staining the bed with blood, he sat on a wooden stool instead.

His fists rested tightly clenched upon his knees while bloody sweat slowly rolled down his straight back.

It looked less like treating wounds and more like enduring torture.

Even while suffering such inhuman agony, he did not so much as blink when sweat dripped from his eyelashes.

The candlelight reflected within his eyes only deepened the darkness there.

The injuries covering his body and this bone-deep pain—

Sooner or later, he would repay them all in full.

Suddenly, footsteps outside returned after having left.

Xie Zheng raised his eyes toward the doorway, the violent hostility within them not yet fully concealed.