One Pet Gets Married

Chapter 1

Winter's snow flurried down, trees bare and grass withered, casting a bleak pall over the land.

Tang You'an, born with mystical powers, now found herself branded a witch by the imperial court and rival sects, driven to the brink for refusing to serve a cruel and violent emperor.

Gripping her sword, blood staining her face, Tang You'an's usually gentle eyes flashed with rare sharpness. But outnumbered, a blade pierced her chest and she plummeted from the cliff...

When she next awoke, Tang You'an found herself lying on a smooth, jade-like floor, her hair damp and body covered only by a white cloth.

After regaining her senses, she began warily surveying her surroundings.

Her mind still felt foggy, but she clearly remembered dying. Yet here she was, alive and uninjured. How could this be?

Shaking out the white cloth, Tang You'an clutched it to her front with one hand while rubbing the back of her head with the other. She wrapped it around herself and walked out the door.

How strange - why was she unclothed? And this place was so peculiar. Could it be... she really had died, and this was King Yama's palace?

Cautiously exploring, Tang You'an noticed a small bottle on the bedside table. She picked it up and shook it, hearing liquid slosh inside, then set it back down.

Next, she opened a wardrobe, discovering many bizarre outfits inside. She paused, bewildered. Were these foreign clothes?

Regardless, getting dressed was the priority. With no other choice, she donned a white robe from the wardrobe. After tying the sash, Tang You'an approached the door warily. Managing to open it, she stepped out to find an enormous space beyond, with a massive crystal chandelier hanging from the ceiling, bathing the entire room in brilliant light and opulence.

Everything here seemed otherworldly. Perhaps this truly was King Yama's palace? It must be, to differ so greatly from the mortal realm.

After surveying the room, Tang You'an placed a hand on the railing, her gaze fixed on the crystal chandelier above as she descended the stairs, intending to examine this legendary place more closely.

Meanwhile, on the set of "Merfolk of the Azure Sea"...

Song Xici sat in a chair, wearing a mermaid tail and bundled up in a thick military green coat, hat, scarf, and mask as she waited to film her scene.

Even fully bundled up, the cold wind still found ways to seep in on this late December night, especially with snow falling.

Yet despite being wrapped head to toe with only her eyes visible, Song Xici's unique allure remained undeniable. Everyone said she had electrifying cat eyes - few could meet her gaze for long without blushing.

But even a beauty like her was only human. The thought of soon having to film in a frigid pool, portraying the male lead's first encounter with the mermaid heroine at sea in this weather, made Song Xici feel like she might die.

She hoped the shoot would go smoothly without too many retakes.

"Xiao He, get another heat pack," Song Xici said to her assistant after sniffling, turning her head.

"Oh! Right away!" Xiao He quickly retrieved a heat pack, opened it, and handed it over.

"It's not for me. I meant for you to use one too. It's freezing - don't catch a cold," Song Xici said with a smile.

"Oh, I see. Thank you, Sister Xi!" Xiao He's eyes crinkled with joy. People said difficult celebrities were a dime a dozen, but it seemed working for Song Xici was a blessing from a past life.

"By the way, Xici, that wife of yours is really something else," said Chen Shihan, Song Xici's manager, as she walked up beside her, watching the crew move props in the distance.

"What trouble has she stirred up now?" Song Xici turned to Chen Shihan. "Did she kill someone? Start a fire? Assault an officer? Or was she caught being a diva again?"

"You're not far off," Chen Shihan shook her head. "This afternoon she demanded to skip the line at a Chinese restaurant. When they refused, she asked if they knew who she was. They said no, so she cursed out their ancestors back to their urns. The whole thing was recorded and posted on Weibo. She's trending number one again."

"That good-for-nothing..." Song Xici felt a headache coming on.

She wanted to put Tang You'an on a leash and gag her to stop her from constantly embarrassing herself in public.

"Seriously, what do you see in her? You were at the peak of your popularity when you married her. She's barely acted, isn't famous, but throws tantrums like a superstar. It keeps affecting us too. You know what people are saying? That you're a good person with terrible taste. You need to do something about her," Chen Shihan frowned deeply.

Truthfully, Song Xici's marriage at the height of her career had severely damaged her popularity. And with Tang You'an's recent antics...

Song Xici closed her eyes repeatedly, restraining herself from lashing out. She took out her phone, logged into Weibo, and searched for "Tang You'an".

As soon as she typed the name, a flood of scandals populated the search suggestions:

- Tang You'an cuts in line, curses

- Tang You'an throws coffee at assistant

- Tang You'an photoshop fail

- Tang You'an rages at fans

- Tang You'an lip syncing

- Tang You'an illiterate

...

Clicking on today's viral video, she saw the comments section had become an ocean of insults.

Some wished for her swift death, others for her to die childless.

Song Xici slapped her phone onto her leg, then handed it to Xiao He, furrowing her brow as she gazed at the set.

Why had she married Tang You'an? Certainly not for love. She hadn't told anyone, but their marriage was purely a business arrangement ordered by their families.

As for why Song Xici had agreed to marry Tang You'an?

Firstly, Song Xici hadn't known Tang You'an personally and hadn't imagined she could really be as despicable as the rumors claimed. After all, everyone in their circles knew many scandals were baseless - not necessarily true.

Secondly, they were both straight women who had agreed not to interfere in each other's lives after marriage. They would keep up appearances, sign a contract, and go their separate ways when the time came, without much trouble for either party.

It wasn't until after marrying Tang You'an that Song Xici discovered just how many issues she truly had.

Perhaps because Tang You'an's mother had miscarried once before having her, her parents spoiled her excessively, turning her into a problem child. Accustomed to pampering since childhood, she would throw tantrums regardless of time or place, completely lawless.

Moreover, though they rarely stayed at home together, whenever they did, Tang You'an never helped with housework.

It was bad enough that she'd lie on the sofa eating crackers while Song Xici mopped, but she'd also sprinkle crumbs everywhere right after Song Xici finished cleaning, like some fairy scattering flowers - or rather, a helpless infant.

Song Xici had tried not cleaning as well, to see who would break first, but after just two days the house looked like a pigsty.

Such a person was exhausting to deal with, even in a fake marriage. In fact, they couldn't coexist peacefully even as friends. It reminded Song Xici of a particularly awful college roommate.

"Xici," Chen Shihan glanced around before sitting next to Song Xici and lowering her voice, "She's really out of control. There are too many scandals. Your relationship isn't helping your career at all - if anything, you're losing fans because of it. You need to think about what to do."

Song Xici frowned slightly at her words.

Heaven knows how badly she wanted a divorce.

However, their contract still had six months before expiring. She just had to wait a little longer. After these six months, if she didn't kick Tang You'an to the curb, she wouldn't be Song Xici.

After finishing the late-night shoot, it was suddenly past 2 AM. Song Xici sneezed twice, forcefully.

Sitting in her car, Song Xici looked utterly exhausted, her eyelids heavy. The thought of facing that idiot at home made her scalp tighten and ache.

She couldn't take it anymore. She had to demand a divorce now.

Upon reaching home, Song Xici ran a hand through her hair and inserted the key into the lock. "Tang You'an, get out here! We need to talk about div-"

However, as Song Xici pushed open the door, she froze in shock.

Author's note: I've rewritten this, as I still wanted to explore this concept. Regular updates will resume from today.

I apologize, but I'll need everyone to start reading from the beginning again (∩_∩)

The society in this story is somewhat fictional, so please don't scrutinize the details too closely.

2018.11.20