Shi Wuduan greeted guests on Gu Huaiyang’s behalf, exchanged pleasantries with them, listed down the gifts they brought, and assigned seats to them. He made sure things went exactly to plan; he socialized with all the comers and goers, his every word and action flawlessly polite. The event actually seemed rather respectable.
The security guards, wedding officiant, brideprice, and marriage contract had all been arranged. Not one was missing; everything was in order.
In the year and a half since Gu Huaiyang and his Redscarf Army had taken over Haining, a new cabal of interest groups had begun to form — the local tea traders, the landlords, the Merchant’s Association, the military governor and his subordinate officials, and even the guests from Huyang, were all tangled in a complicated web of relationships. It was like a massive net — a net woven by none other than Shi Wuduan.
He’d exhausted every last bit of his cunning in order to build that network. Damage to any single part of it would impact the whole, thus Haining Commandery became held together sturdily as an iron bucket and opaque to outsiders as muddy water. Despite having to tear down the eastern wall to patch the western wall for some time already, he’d managed to mend every last seam to perfection.
Others might not have been aware, but Gu Huaiyang certainly was. So, wearing red wedding robes, Gu Huaiyang sincerely toasted him three cups of wine. He couldn’t speak openly of his merits for there were too many onlookers, so he simply patted him on the shoulder, a multitude of emotions welling up in his heart.
He’d conveyed thousands of words in his silence.
When the bride entered the bridal chamber, the groom was out drinking. It was late enough that most of the guests had left already, and all the people who’d been politely restrained started to revert back to their true selves. They got together and started horsing around outside the bridal chamber.
First, it was Lu Yunzhou standing guard outside the bridal chambers, arms crossed, and with a row of wine jars at his feet. He had a rare smile on his face as he said, “If you want to pass through, you’ve got to finish all this wine!”
They made Gu Huaiyang down so much alcohol he could hardly stand. In desperation, he utterly gracelessly crawled through the window. Upon entering, he saw Li Si-niang standing inside. She smirked wickedly and told him that she’d hidden red dates, dragon eye fruits, peanuts, and lotus seeds in the bride’s wedding robes and that he had to find them all before he could enter the bridal chamber.
Meng Zhongyong, in the spirit of the festivities, climbed onto the roof with Xia Duanfang’s three little disciples, peeled some tiles off the roof, then laid by the hole as they looked in. He even started banging on a bowl as he raucously sang ‘Eighteen Touches.’ The song was simple and melodious, the lyrics bawdy and amusing. The three half-grown kids were at that age where had a muddled understanding of adulthood, so they started singing along as well. Xia Duanfang, already drunk, was so infuriated he took off his shoe and hurled it at them, determined to knock them off the roof.
Shi Wuduan silently tugged Bai Li and Lu Lu, a small awl in his hand. He efficiently bored a hole in the window, then, with a straight face, said to the tiny child, “Sixth uncle’s going to show you a magic trick, how’s that?”
Lu Lu looked at him innocently and nodded.
Shi Wuduan pulled a fake mouse out of his sleeve, recited an incantation, then pointed at the mouse. It instantly burst into flames like a living firework and then slipped through the hole in the window. Shi Wuduan casually lifted Lu Lu up and watched in amusement as the fiery rat scurried about the bridal chamber.
The bride, as a ‘commandery princess,’ had been sheltered and pampered her whole life; she’d never seen this type of degenerate behavior before. She sat on the bridal bed, confused and uncertain, clenching her robes in her soft, delicate hands. Gu Huaiyang was rather embarrassed by the tomfoolery. Just as he was hesitating as to whether he should do anything while ‘Eighteen Touches’ was still being sung, he heard a whooshing sound behind him. The firey rat that Shi Wuduan had let in leaped at him as he looked back.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Gu Huaiyang was nearly scared sober. Thanks to his cumbersome wedding robes, he tripped left and right as he tried to dodge the rat. He roared, “Little Monkey, you stinking devil!”
Snfgsbcf yegra lcab pffglcu ijeutafg. Oe Oe yilcxfv ja Vtl Qevejc jcv rjlv meafis, “Vlzat ecmif, ylu ecmif rmbivfv sbe.”
Aera atfc, atf olfgs gja revvfcis rqila lcab atgff. Ktfs rmeaaifv jybea lc jii vlgfmalbcr. Ol Vl-cljcu tjv jigfjvs frmjqfv ogbw atf gbbw. Pc nlfk bo fnfgsbcf, Xe Lejlsjcu, ktb tjv cbktfgf ab gec, aglqqfv jcv ofii ragjluta bc atf yglvf, rmjglcu j rtjgq rmgfjw bea bo tfg. Ktf nfli kjr xcbmxfv jkjs ys atf lwqjma, gfnfjilcu j qjif, sfa mtjgwlcu jcv yfjealoei ojmf.
The three fiery rats exploded at Gu Huaiyang’s feet filling the room with smoke, making things even livelier. They crackled and popped, but somehow, they were made in such a way that they only scorched the groom but not the bride, and only burned clothes but not people. Gu Huaiyang’s pants were nearly charred off. When the smoke and dust settled, he was lying on top of the bride, half his leg exposed.
The onlookers whooped and cheered. Shi Wuduan had very calmly counted down the time and covered Lu Lu’s eyes at just the right moment. He drawled, “No he didn’t. He means the opposite of his words. What he actually said was ‘thank you Shi Wuduan.’”
Gu Huaiyang, angered and embarrassed, yanked down the bed curtains, blocking everyone’s view. They heard an angered shout, “All of you, scram!”
A moment later, he added, “Little Monkey, I’d better not see your face tomorrow, or I’ll beat you into a pancake!”
Lu Lu, whose eyes were covered, quietly said, “Sixth uncle, big uncle said he’s going to beat you into a pancake.”
Shi Wuduan said, “No biggie, I can run.”
Lu Yunzhou walked over, nodded coolly at Bai Li, then slapped Shi Wuduan upside the head and took Lu Lu from him. Shi Wuduan rubbed his head, looked at Bai Li, and secretly made a face, revealing a small dimple. He said obnoxiously, “Eldest brother a minute is worth a thousand gold on the wedding night. That little candle just now was a small gift from me, you’re welcome.”
He left, dragging Bai Li with him, as Gu Huaiyang cussed him out.
His hands were warmer than usual, perhaps because he’d had too much to drink. Bai Li felt like his warmth was seeping into him. He saw him smile and tightened his grasp on his hand. Shi Wuduan said, “Come on, I’ll show you something.”
There was no curfew in Guji City that night, so it was rather bustling. Bai Li was pulled all the way to the main street before his alarms blared up and he tugged him to a stop. He did not want to be brought to another brothel. He asked, “Where are we going?”
Seeing his expression, Shi Wuduan knew his thoughts had gone off the track. He asked suggestively, “Hm? Do you mean you have an ‘even better’ suggestion… ah!”
Bai Li pinched him on the waist, “What nonsense are you going on about?! Try me again, I dare you!”
Shi Wuduan valiantly struggled away, rubbed his mouth, and said with a grimace, “Pinching people as soon as you’re unhappy, how many years has it been already? You still haven’t grown out of it?”
That seemingly careless remark instantly made Bai Li’s heart soften. He couldn’t help but laugh. He softly said, “If only you stopped provoking me, I’d love to be nice to you; how could I bear to pinch you?”
A gust of cold air blew by. Shi Wuduan shivered violently. He looked in terror at Bai Li like a puffed-up cat whose tail had been stepped on. He thought, this new problem of his is really disturbing; it’s way too disgustingly mushy.
Bai Li chuckled, then asked, “What did you want to show me?”
“Uh…. uh, aiya, stop tugging and getting handsy in public, let go of me first,” Shi Wuduan said as he led the way and tried to free his hand, but Bai Li had a death grip on him. Shi Wuduan pulled until he thought he’d almost lose a layer of skin, but Bai Li’s grasp didn’t slacken in the slightest.
They noisily made their way to an out-of-the-way little store. Shi Wuduan knocked on the door and a small child came out to greet them. Upon seeing that it was Shi Wuduan, they asked, “Are you here to pick it up?”
Shi Wuduan nodded and the child replied, “Please wait a moment, I’ll get it from shifu.”
A while later, the child came back with a large cloth bundle. Shi Wuduan received it and paid the money. Then, with the bundle in his arms, they merrily chatted and bantered as Shi Wuduan led them all the way up Luofeng Mountain, which sat right at the outskirts of Guji City. When they reached the top, Shi Wuduan shoved the bundle into Bai Li’s arms and leaped up onto the branch of an old tree. He beamed, “Open it and take a look, it’s for you.”
Bai Li opened it and paused in surprise. It was a bow, fairly hefty, just the right length for him to use. The silver threads, which on closer look seemed like starsilk from Shi Wuduan’s astrolabe, that were inlaid into its surface glimmered gently in the night, beautifully highlighting the bow’s engravings. Next to it were three arrows.
Shi Wuduan suddenly said, “Catch!”
He threw three small, glittering balls high into the air from his sleeve. Bai Li drew the bow, and without needing to aim, shot three arrows out, each accurately hitting its mark. At impact, the balls burst from within, putting on a magnificent display of fireworks.
The fireworks seemed to light up Bai Li’s smile, he looked up and asked excitedly, “It’s for me?”
Shi Wuduan said, “A while ago, I sent some people out to search for an ancient artifact. They came back with this. Legend has it that this is the divine bow ‘Suiyu.’ I don’t know if that’s true or not, but since it’s high-quality, I got someone to fix it up a bit.”
Bai Li gently caressed the bow’s etchings and silver inlays, asking, “Did you make these?”
Bai Li startled.
Shi Wuduan leaned against his hands, swinging his feet, “Didn’t you swipe a ‘waist belt’ from me when I wasn’t looking?”
Bai Li realized that he was talking about that old, worn-out hairband, so he slung the bow on his back and went over to sit by Shi Wuduan, replying “That was mine in the first place.”
Shi Wuduan broke into laughter, “How shameless are you? What’s a grown man like you carrying around a little girl’s accessory for? Just throw it away, I’ll give you something more impressive this time.”
Bai Li only chuckled as he rubbed his fingers against the bow.
The two sat shoulder to shoulder. Down below, Guji City was lit as bright as day by thousands of lanterns. A gust of wind carrying the scent of fresh snow blew past. A while later, Shi Wuduan’s smile suddenly dimmed. He said, “Little Li-zi, could you stay here and not leave?”
Bai Li turned to look at him, so Shi Wuduan continued, “Just look at how great this place is, there’s lush mountains and clear waters just outside the city. And in the city, it’s lively and prospering. Just stay here, alright?”
Touched, Bai Li reached out and placed his hand over Shi Wuduan’s, asking, “Together with you?”
Shi Wuduan jolted, understanding what he really meant. Except, after a while, he laughed bitterly, “Little Li-zi, the word ‘wife’ is based on the word ‘woman.’ You were at a wedding banquet just now, have you ever seen a man marry another man? It’s not natural.”
Bai Li frowned, “What does ‘natural’ mean, and why should it apply to me? Who would dare to rule over me? At any rate, I won’t marry, and neither will you.”
Shi Wuduan shook his head and moved his hand away. He said, somewhat helplessly, “How could you say that? You tell me then, how a man and a man can be together?”
The moment those words left his mouth, Bai Li’s arm shot out and wrapped around his waist. His other arm was pressed against the tree trunk, trapping Shi Wuduan within his arms. His nearly perfect face was very close to Shi Wuduan’s. His eyes were lit up like stars, but in those depths, there was only one person.
Bai Li’s forehead was nearly touching his. That moment, when Shi Wuduan met his eyes, he suddenly fell into a daze. He didn’t know what he was thinking, or maybe he wasn’t thinking at all. He was bewildered as if he’d been taken hold of by an enchantment. A vague, mysterious warmth grew in his chest, burning so hot his heart began to race.
“A man and a man….” Bai Li’s words were soft as a sigh and then disappeared between their lips.
… can indeed be together.
They kissed! But I’m still worried, I think happy days won’t last (ó﹏ò｡)
They kissed 😘☺️
💞👨❤️👨❤️🔥
So happyyy they kissed but something is telling me something bad is reaching😭
💙💙💙
AHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH
Perfect, love the lines: “what does natural mean?…”