Chapter 25: Wedding Night

January 14th, 2023

Fang Li had only thought that the atmosphere tonight was excellent and threw out a little bluster in passing. He hadn’t held any hope that Xie Huai would pay attention to him, but who would’ve thought that not only had Xie Huai responded, he’d even asked such a fatal question.

To the point that for a second, Fang Li was at a loss.

But thinking about it again, there was actually no need for him to panic. He was a tyrannical demon lord, alright? And he was engaging in the act of seizing by force. No matter how you looked at it, he was holding the character setting of a scum man…… If it were a real lover, he would naturally need one hundred percent of his wits to face this type of fatal question in fear that he might answer incorrectly somewhere.

But he had absolutely no worries of the sort. He was only afraid of answering correctly…… Heh, it still stood to be seen just whose life was at stake with this fatal question.

I guarantee that you’ll be so mad, you’ll never want to ask another question again.

Thinking up to here, Fang Li decided to take his scum man character setting to the end.

He approached Xie Huai slightly and looked at him suggestively, his tone frivolous. “Yuyi-jun is the most beautiful person in the world. Who wouldn’t like that? This lord is naturally no exception.”

Look, look, I’m just in love with your face, that’s all! I just am this shallow and shameless.

When he was done speaking, Fang Li looked at Xie Huai with a hundred percent confidence.

He had no fear that he wouldn’t get angry.

Xie Huai looked deeply into Fang Li’s eyes.

Actually, before this, he had indeed considered this possibility. The people of the world were superficial, and more than a few were in love with his looks. It was a peculiarity that he’d long gotten used to. That this devil would get wicked ideas after seeing his face would be completely within reason, to the point that it was very in line with the demonic path’s usual doings…… But he still thought that Fang Li wasn’t like that, so he’d asked the question.

But he hadn’t imagined that Fang Li would actually admit it outright.

The man looked at him recklessly and frivolously, a crafty, pleased look hidden in the depths of his eyes, and he even spoke with a hint of a provocation…… Xie Huai was completely familiar with it. Every time this person wanted to hide his true motives, attempting to use lies to disguise himself, he would always have this expression……

He was tricking him again.

So, it wasn’t because of his looks that he liked him.

What a liar.

Xie Huai suppressed the corners of his lips.

After thick-skinned and shamelessly making his scum man proclamation, Fang Li waited for Xie Huai to leave with a fling of his sleeves, or give him a cold look, but who would’ve thought that Xie Huai would instead smile? Although it was gone in a flicker, and he quickly resumed his impassive appearance, that split second’s countenance made the entire rest of Glimmer Lake lose its color. For a moment, Fang Li was dazed……

Wait a second, why did Xie Huai smile?

This wasn’t the so-called “angered to the point of laughter,” was it?

Fang Li felt a bit bewildered and unsettled.

Xie Huai looked at Fang Li and said blandly, “You’ve already seen the Flower Queen. When does Your Excellency plan on leaving?”

Fang Li glanced at Xie Huai warily and saw that his expression was calm and without a single ripple…… He thought, as expected, Xie Huai’s shrewdness goes deep. Even after suffering this kind of disgrace, he’s able to tolerate it without any expression.

Although it was a little regretful that he couldn’t see Xie Huai’s infuriated appearance, when he thought about how he’d successfully pulled a round of aggro, Fang Li was in good spirits.

Wu Yimei stood silently in the distance, his eyes lowered as the hands at his sides clenched tight.

He saw Fang Li and Xie Huai together, like a beautiful scene in a painting. They really did look like a pair of celestial lovers, but in the end, everything was fake. If His Excellency continued to lose himself, how would he be able to break free……

Wu Yimei’s anxiety had no end.

The pleasure boat left Glimmer Lake, and Fang Li stepped onto solid ground.

By this time, it was already late at night, but Baihua province was still brightly lit, people moving in swarms, bustling and clamorous like a city that never slept.

Fang Li carelessly followed the stream of people forward, not knowing where he was going. The throng of people was endless, and when he raised his head to look ahead, he saw that the queue of people was at least several hundred meters long. Just what kind of headliner attraction was this?

Just as Fang Li was puzzling over it, someone immediately came to explain.

A clerk in a loose-fitting blue shirt with a bamboo basket scurried boisterously before Fang Li. His gaze swept past him and Xie Huai, and he immediately sighed with admiration, saying, “Young master, you and your Dao companion really are a stunning pair. Have you come to our Lover’s Pass to seek fortune in your marriage? The fortune you can get at our Lover’s Pass is really quite effective. There hasn’t been a pair of lovers yet who has come and been left unsatisfied. You’ve really come to the right place!”

Lover’s Pass?

Fang Li contemplated for a moment, then remembered that there really was such a place.

Not only was it one of Baihua province’s most famous tourist spots, it was also a well-established holy ground for lovers throughout the world. Every year, couples came here in never-ending droves.

Fang Li’s gaze swept around, and he found that the people lined up in front really were in pairs—men and women, men and men, and women and women were all present. Because of this, he and Xie Huai didn’t actually stand out too much.

But he and Xie Huai weren’t real lovers……

Fang Li suddenly felt the urge to leave.

The clerk took out a sign from his bamboo basket and stuffed it into Fang Li’s hand, his tone vigorous as he smiled, “This lover’s talisman is only three spirit stones, but it can grant you a lovely dream of spending a lifetime together until you’re old and gray. If you don’t buy it, you’ll be missing out! Just think of it as acquiring a good omen for your future. It’s well worth it~!”

Heh, those are just the words of a salesman.

Are three spirit stones not still money?

Fang Li sure didn’t have any interest in jumping on this bandwagon. He turned his head, and discovered that Xie Huai’s lips were tightly pursed, and his face was ice-cold and stiff.

Fang Li’s expression couldn’t help but waver.

Just now, he’d only focused on listening to the clerk talk, and he hadn’t even noticed Xie Huai’s displeasure. Now that he thought about it, being mistaken for the devil’s Dao companion and even being told to pray for a lovely dream of spending a life together into old age, what kind of good omen could that be? That was simply a nightmare!

For Fang Li, listening to the clerk’s words was nothing, but for Xie Huai, every sentence was basically stabbing him in the heart!

Although Fang Li himself didn’t want to go seek some sort of marriage fortune or lovely dream…… If for just a mere three spirit stones, he could fill up Xie Huai’s aggro meter, that would truly be worth it.

The clerk was still advertising. “Our marriage fortune really is quite effective. There’s nobody it won’t work for. Young master, will you really not think about it a little?”

The corner of Fang Li’s lips suddenly hooked up, and he drew out three spirit stones from his robes, laughing softly. “Alright.”

The clerk was delighted. He explained the lover’s talisman and the way to enter the dream one by one, then giddily went to advertise to some other pair of lovers. Looking at that basket full to the brim of lover’s talismans, though the price of each was low, the profits would be high, and they would be able to make quite a bit over the night.

Fang Li rubbed the lover’s talisman in his hand. The white stone talisman felt ice-cold to the touch, and the craftsmanship was a little crude. At a glance, you could tell it had been mass produced……

He turned his head and inched close to Xie Huai’s ear, teasing with a soft laugh, “Seeing as you’ve become this lord’s, and you won’t be able to leave this lord life after life, this lord thinks wouldn’t be too bad to pray for a union fated across lifetimes with Yuyi-jun……”

He’d just said that he only liked Xie Huai’s face, and now he was shamelessly praying for a union fated across lifetimes, wanting him to be unable to leave him life after life…… It was really too scummy, so scummy that even the gods would be enraged. He wasn’t afraid Xie Huai wouldn’t get angry.

As for a lovely dream between lovers…… To those with feelings for each other, it would naturally be something to be enraptured by, but for enemies, it was another matter entirely.

Fang Li suddenly reached his hand out past the side of Xie Huai’s ear and plucked off a strand of hair, then plucked off a strand of his own hair and entwined them together on the lover’s talisman.

After completing these, Fang Li laughed coolly. “This lord wants to see today if this Lover’s Pass really lives up to its name. If they can’t satisfy this lord, this lord will burn this place to the ground so that they can never do business again.”

Xie Huai pursed his lips as he looked at Fang Li.

He’d heard of this Lover’s Pass place a long time ago. It was no more than a place that peddled a lovely dream; it couldn’t really grant anything like a union fated across lifetimes, but some lovers still liked to come here. In the end, it was just that lovers in their honeymoon phase wanted to look for a place to visit.

Xie Huai’s entire heart was focused on cultivation. He never put his attention on these meaningless matters.

Let alone come here with a devil like this.

But when Fang Li had reached out his hand and brushed past his ear, then had lowered his head and looked down, his gaunt fingertips pinching their strands of hair, carefully and earnestly winding them around the lover’s talisman…… that posture sincere and gentle……

He suddenly had no way to refuse.

The great and mighty demon lord, holding himself above the whole world.

Yet only when it came to the word “love,” so humble that he became pitiable. No matter how fiercely he spoke, his every move and action couldn’t fool anyone……

In the end, I have no way to return your feelings.

But if what you seek is no more than a beautiful dream……

Xie Huai’s expression became heavy.

Fang Li bound their lover’s talisman according to the clerk’s instructions. After he was done saying those shameless words, he raised his head and saw Xie Huai’s tense lower jaw. He was actually revealing a faint trace of nervousness.

Huh? Xie Huai never let anything show on his face, always expressionless. This was his first time seeing Xie Huai act nervous!

It looked like he’d guessed correctly.

The corners of Fang Li’s lips lifted in delight, and he flicked his sleeves, saying, “Let’s go.”

……………………………

There sure were a ton of people here!

Fang Li’s expression was stupefied as he stood there. They had stood in line for almost two shichen already, so how come there were still so many people in front of them?!

He was the great and mighty demon lord, yet he still had to wait in line here.

Fang Li had the urge to give up more than once, but every time he turned to look at Xie Huai, he thought again that he could still hold on a little longer. Seeing as he was making Xie Huai despise him, he had to have at least this little bit of patience, right?

He’d already altered quite a bit of the script before this, so he could only make it up in these kinds of places.

Increasing their mutual enmity a little.

After about another shichen, it was finally their turn.

Fang Li stood at the entrance of Lover’s Pass. It was said that if one entered holding the lover’s talisman, one could enter a dream with their lover and spend a lifetime together. He paused, then suddenly grasped Xie Huai’s hand, the corner of his lips hooking up in an expression of deep affection. “Is Yuyi-jun prepared?”

Having said that, he didn’t wait for Xie Huai’s response and took a step straight forward, and the two of them stepped into white mist together.

It was impossible to see anything in the white mist, and it felt light beneath his feet, as if he were drifting far above the clouds. After another period of time, Fang Li’s senses gradually returned. He blinked and discovered that he was in an unfamiliar building.

And Xie Huai was already nowhere to be seen.

Fang Li wanted to get up and investigate his surroundings, but he found that he couldn’t control his body. After pondering for a moment, he understood what was going on with this lovely dream.

This was probably a type of illusion, and the characters and script inside had already been predetermined. He was only possessing one of the characters, like watching an immersive virtual reality film in the first person.

He didn’t even have to make an effort himself, how fantastic.

Fang Li immediately stopped wasting energy and decided to contentedly watch the show.

Probably because the main characters had arrived and the story had started, the man sitting on the bed stood up. He was fully attired in thick, heavy, bright red wedding garments, and he pushed open the door and walked out.

The servant outside immediately bowed and greeted him, saying, “Grand Duke, the guests have all arrived.”

Fang Li nodded, and he heard himself say, “Good, this lord1 will be going.”

So it turned out his identity was even a grand duke.

He arrived at the great banquet hall in front, which was adorned lavishly with red and gold. The inside was seated full with guests, and when they saw him, the guests smiled one after another and greeted him. “My lord, you’re here.”

He arrived at the seat in the very center and sat down, raising a wine cup and waving it around in salute. “Today is a day of great happiness for this lord. Don’t go home until you’re drunk, everyone.”

Everyone offered their congratulations one by one.

Fang Li watched himself drink cup after cup, thinking, this grand duke’s alcohol tolerance isn’t bad. Then, he watched himself exchange greetings with the crowd.

Perhaps it was because everyone was a bit drunk.

A youth dressed in luxurious brocade robes scooted over and sighed, “Lord Uncle, actually, even if you really do like him, it’s enough to accept him into your household as a lover. What need is there to marry him as your official wife? When Imperial Brother heard about it, he was extremely unhappy.

“A man with unclear origins as the great Grand Duke of Li’s official wife. Even if word got out, no one would dare believe it!” The youth thought it was extremely absurd. He normally didn’t dare speak on it too much, but right now, borrowing courage from the alcohol, he spat it all out.

Fang Li heard his own voice shift and say in a frigid voice, “Cease your nonsense. In the future, he’ll be your elder. Show this lord some respect. If you let me hear you speak like this again, you’ll be thrown into the barracks to see how you like it.”

Hearing that, the youth shivered and was immediately scared sober. He knew he’d misspoken, and he apologized profusely.

Fang Li pondered in his mind. There had been no small amount of information in that conversation. It looked like this bride that he was marrying was not only a man, but a rather unpopular one……

Because of the interruption, he was no longer in the mood to drink. Thinking about how his bride was still waiting for him, he left the place straight away.

Fang Li sensed the urgency in his heart and felt even more intrigued. It wasn’t too strange to think of it as an immersive VR movie, but the most peculiar part was that he could actually experience the character’s state of mind and feel his emotions. It really was like living out a life in a dream.

This Lover’s Pass really did have a thing or two……

No wonder it was so famous, and its stream of visitors never-ending.

He ignored the clamor and bustle of the outside world and left behind the room full of guests, just to see more quickly the wife that he thought about day and night and hadn’t even hesitated to defy the emperor to marry.

The outside of the wedding chamber was hung with big, red lanterns, and the surroundings were peaceful, the servants in the courtyard having long retired.

He stepped forward in great strides and pushed open the door.

Red silk was draped all around the room, the festive colors everywhere. A man sat upright on the bed, and the flames atop the red candles flickered and swayed, casting a mesmerizing glow upon the room’s interior.

The wedding night.

Perhaps it was because his beloved was before him, but even though he was a grand duke who could slaughter without hesitation, right now, he was gentle, careful, and earnest. He walked slowly until he stood before the man and softly called, “Wife.”

Then, he used the wedding pole to lift the other’s veil.2

A face as clear and tranquil as a celestial’s appeared before his eyes.

Fang Li immediately laughed.

Sure enough, it was Xie Huai.

Forget the fact that the great and mighty Yuyi-jun had been married to a devil like him in a dream, he was even docilely wearing a veil and acting like a bride…… Who knew what he was thinking right now? He probably wanted to kill him right this second, didn’t he?

How fantastic, how marvelous.

This trip really hadn’t been a waste.

Fang Li even wanted to tip that clerk a few more spirit stones.

…………………………………………

The Author Has Something To Say:

Fang Li: Today, I’m still a successful scum man ✓

Xie Huai: He just loves me more than he can say.

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1 This is a slightly different “this lord” (本王) from Fang Li’s usual (本尊).

2 It’s not just a random pole