Lady of Fortune, Jiao Niang

Ye Jiao finally moved her gaze away from the big rooster. And through the red veil, she looked at the man next to her.

He was at least a head taller than Ye Jiao. Because the veil turned everything into a bright red color, Ye Jiao couldn’t see how he looked.

Ye Jiao subconsciously tightened her grip into a fist as she felt that the man’s hand was a bit too cold.

Qi Yun felt the woman’s subtle movements, and his eyes darkened.

Because he was born with ailments, he has always been in poor health since he was young. Though they expend a lot of effort to raise him well, he has always been sick and now was used to drinking medicine as if he was drinking water.

The doctor said that he would not live past twenty, but because he persists stubbornly, now he is twenty-four.

It was just a few days ago that an ordinary wind and cold almost took his life. Even if he got better afterward, Qi Yun himself knew that his body would not last long.

His mother, Liu-shi, knew this too, so she found him a bride for Chongxi. 

Qi Yun initially disagreed. He knew that whoever marries him would only waste her time. But contrary to his expectation, Liu-shi was extremely efficient. She met Ye Ersao, who was eager to sell her sister-in-law. In the blink of an eye, the marriage was settled. 

On the day of the wedding, with difficulty, Qi Yun struggled to support his sick body. He watched from a distance as a woman clad in a wedding dress was actually being paired with a chicken!

Qi Yun felt that the Ye Family’s wife mistreated her by letting her marry him. If she really were asked to pay her respects with a rooster, probably, there would be no one who would not look down upon her the moment he dies.

However, Qi Yun only kept these thoughts in his heart. And as cold and heartless as it is, he said, “Hold the red silk and kneel down.”

Ye Jiao felt the person loosen his hand, and instead, he put the red silk back into her hand.

The motion of him leading Ye Jiao to kneel down was very gentle, which made Ye Jiao’s affection for him increase, especially after she had been dragged around for a while.

She grasped the red silk tightly, looked at Qi Yun, and knelt down after him.

Worship heaven

Worship the elders

Ye Jiao turned her face slightly as she followed Qi Yun’s movements, albeit a little shakily.

Ye Jiao finally had the chance to take a glimpse of Qi Yun’s face now that they were facing each other.

The red veil made it impossible for Ye Jiao to see his face clearly, but she thought he looked very good, just considering the shape of his eyebrows.

Even better than the scholar that the little fox likes most.

While worshiping each other, Qi Yun heard the first words the woman said to him.

“You look so beautiful.”

Qi Yun was slightly taken aback by this soft and gentle sound.

Before he could bask in her graceful voice, a sudden bout of coldness engulfed his body as beads of cold sweat appeared on his forehead.

It seems that his death is fast approaching. Just coming here and worshipping with Ye Jiao took a toll on his body and left him exhausted. Even mere kneeling and standing were no longer a simple task with his current condition.

Even though this is the case, Qi Yun didn’t let anyone help him. He will only get married once in his entire life. This is his moment. He doesn’t want people to see him as a joke.

Ye Jiao just accompanied him—kneeling on her knees side by side with Qi Yun—her back was straight and motionless.

She had just been a human. And in that short period of time, she was pushed into the sedan chair when she didn’t even know what marriage was. 

She mimicked Qi Yun’s movements all throughout the ceremony. Now that Qi Yun didn’t move, she also dared not move even an inch.

For a while, a trace of awkwardness permeates the entire room.

An old lady hurried forward as she noticed this. She reached out to Ye Jiao to support her, and with a smile, she said, “The bride is stunned with joy, but it’s time to get up.”

Ye Jiao blinked and looked at Qi Yun after she stood up. Realizing that he seemed to be trembling, she simply stretched out her hand and directly grabbed Qi Yun.

The man’s fingertips were still cold. Ye Jiao intertwined their hands tightly and walked two steps forward to support Qi Yun, just as how the man supported her just now.

Soon after, among all the people who came to watch, a person reacted and moved to aid Qi Yun. Amidst this, Liu-shi noticed that there was something wrong with Qi Yun’s complexion. Losing her composure, she didn’t care anymore about good luck or bad luck as she immediately shouted, “The doctor! Let the doctor come here!”

Despite feeling the haze as beads of cold sweat increased on his forehead, Qi Yun stubbornly turned his gaze towards the woman’s hand that was linked with his.

It is warm and soft, like a fine brocade.

He didn’t know if it was only an illusion, but he felt that when Ye Jiao grabbed his hand, the coldness on his body seemed to disperse gradually. Before Ye Jiao could spare a glance at Qi Yun, someone instructed her: “Enter the bridal chamber.” A short moment later, few women surrounded her and took her to another room. This marks the end of the lively Chongxi wedding.

After they sat her up by the bed, the women left, and the room became empty, leaving only Ye Jiao alone.

It was loud and lively outside. She could hear the noise, the firecrackers, and the fireworks. People can see that the Qi family made sure that the wedding was grand enough.

Soon, the silence gradually filled the room.

Ye Jiao sat by the bed for a while. Seeing that no one was paying attention to her, she simply reached out and pulled the veil off.

There were so many people just now and it made Ye Jiao’s nerves taut. She was afraid that the people would find out that she was not the original Ye Jiao, which was why her every action was laced with extreme cautiousness. Now that there was no one around, Ye Jiao could finally stop pretending.

The little ginseng spirit stood up. Throwing the red veil aside, she wandered twice–back and forth–around the room until the cakes on the table attracted her eyes.

The tossing just now has exhausted Ye Jiao’s strength, and she also felt the first urgent desire after being a human…

She was hungry.

When Qi Yun pushed the door open, he saw Ye Jiao holding a cake and stuffing it into her mouth.

Qi Yun was taken aback for a moment, and then he closed the door with the back of his hand—blocking everyone’s sight—then silently looked at his… lady.

He still remembered that Ye Jiao just said he was good-looking, but now as Qi Yun looked at Ye Jiao, he wanted to say this sentence back to her.

She is very beautiful. No one could criticize her looks nor her figure. Especially her eyes that are moist and shiny, which makes people unable to look away.

Qi Yun didn’t mind that Ye Jiao took off her own veil.

Even as Ye Jiao’s cheeks were bulging as she was eating, Qi Yun didn’t say much.

He even poured a cup of tea and handed it to Ye Jiao, “Eat slowly, don’t choke.”

It was only when Qi Yun said that, Ye Jiao seemed to notice that someone came in. She raised her head to look at Qi Yun, but she did not take the teacup. She drank the tea while Qi Yun was still holding the cup.

Qi Yun was slightly surprised, but he compromised when he saw that Ye Jiao was a little busy with both of her hands.

Then a bit of distress crossed his eyes.

She is a very cute girl, and marrying him, who is half dead, was really a waste of her time.

Although the doctor said that it was just a false alarm and that he was fine, Qi Yun knew that soon, the day would come that he would fall down, but unlike today, he would never get up again.

Qi Yun couldn’t stand for a long time. As he felt a slight fatigue, he sat at the table opposite Ye Jiao and waited patiently for Ye Jiao to swallow the snack in her mouth. Then he whispered softly, “Getting married to me; it will hurt you.” 

At this time, Qi Yun was pondering—if Ye Jiao said she didn’t like the marriage, then he would break up with her immediately.

In fact, a thin divorce paper was hidden in his arms. He initially had prepared it beforehand.

Although it may not be good to be a divorced woman, still, it is better than living like a widow at the beginning of the marriage and then really becoming a widow.

But Ye Jiao didn’t complain to him. Instead, she smiled and said to Qi Yun, “Thank you just now.” If she didn’t have that cup of tea, she would probably choke to death.

‘This stuff is really delicious, but it was a bit dry.’

Qi Yun thought she was thanking him for taking the rooster away and coming to the hall in person, “There was no need to thank me, that was originally my job.”

Ye Jiao blinked her eyes suddenly.

‘No wonder everyone likes to get married. After getting married, someone will give you water to drink and feed you, it is great.’

At this moment, Ye Jiao could see Qi Yun’s real expression as the veil covering her was long taken off.

This person’s facial features are pretty, but his face is a bit different.

His complexion was ashen, his eyes were a little dark, and his lips had an unhealthy pale color. If someone suddenly saw him at night, he might stop a child from crying1.

As soon as Qi Yun felt that Ye Jiao was looking at him, his expression stiffened for a moment. The little bit of softness on his face quickly disappeared and was replaced by the coldness he used to disguise himself.

Yes, he looks like this, who would want to get close to him?

He was a dying person, and it would be good if he didn’t drag others down. What kind of joy did he expect?

It would be better to give the divorce paper to her earlier, and it would even be considered a good deed.

But before Qi Yun could open his mouth to say something, he heard Ye Jiao’s voice, “Are you going to eat?” As she said this, she pushed the dessert plate in front of him.

Qi Yun was unable to react for a while. He stared at Ye Jiao for a moment, then shook his head, “I’m not hungry. You can eat it.”

Ye Jiao waited for these words. She smiled, picked up the snack, and put it in her mouth. Her cheeks were bulged up again.

Qi Yun inexplicably thought, ‘She was a little cute and pitiful.’

After pouring Ye Jiao another cup of tea, Qi Yun couldn’t help but ask, “Did you not have enough food when you were in your maiden family?”

 Ye Jiao thought for a while. She tried to recall the original Ye Jiao’s memory, and then shook her head with a grumbling voice, “I used to have enough food, but later I didn’t have enough.” Before Ye Dalang left, Ye Jiao still had eaten her fill, but after Ye Dalang left, because Ye Ersao didn’t like her, she didn’t have enough food. Besides, the family situation gradually got worse as time passed by. They had nothing except sweet potatoes and gruel. Her brother and sister-in-law were still full, but she rarely gets full.

Ye Jiao smiled and said, “Having some food is good.”

After all, she was a ginseng spirit in her previous life. She was buried under the ground. To call it beautifully, she was cultivating to absorb the spiritual energy of the heavens and earth. But, to put it bluntly, it was to eat soil… 

The little ginseng spirit can’t help but mumble, “It’s good now, I don’t need to eat soil anymore.”

Qi Yun’s eyes widened in surprise, causing his usual feeble heart to jump a few more times.

Had she eaten soil before?

If he really gave her the divorce paper, would she still survive when she returned to her maiden family?

Qi Yun felt that the thin piece of paper in his arms seemed extremely important.

—

Footnotes

Because he is as pale as a ghost, so he would look scary at night.