novelraw Chapter 1: Married?
Chapter 1: Married?
Lucky Cloud City.
Cloud Front Division.
In a thatched hut at the edge of the stables.
A faint, subtle fragrance mixed with a heavy odor of sweat.
This pungent smell caused Jiang Man, who was half-asleep and half-awake, to involuntarily wrinkle his nose, instinctively raising his sleeve to block it.
But the moment his sleeve approached his nose, the accumulated sour stench of several days shot straight into his brain, jolting him so hard that he trembled all over and instantly woke up.
The moment he opened his eyes, he froze.
He was standing in front of a simple wooden bed, surrounded by mottled earthen walls. A worn-out double happiness character was hanging on the wall, as if torn from somewhere and pasted on.
Apart from a wooden bed and a set of table and chairs with missing corners, the room was almost empty.
And the most eye-catching thing was that sitting by the large bed in front of him was a woman dressed in coarse linen clothing.Rough clothing appearing here wasn't particularly strange.
What was astonishing was her exquisitely beautiful face that seemed like it shouldn't belong to this mortal world, as if a masterpiece carefully carved by a master craftsman. Her almond-shaped eyes were like obsidian stones soaked in clear spring water, with a hint of shyness swirling within their gaze.
Her vermilion lips were lightly pressed together, as tender as cherry blossoms.
Such beauty should only exist in heaven; how could it be born in a thatched hut?
"Husband, aren't you going to let go yet?" she said softly, her voice as pleasant as a mountain stream's clear spring.
Hearing this, Jiang Man was stunned.
Only then did he realize what she had said.
Husband?
Me?
Immediately, he became aware that his own rough, thick hand was gripping a rusty key, while the woman's slender, delicate fingers covered the upper part of the key.
Instinctively, Jiang Man wanted to release his hand.
But suddenly, a slight stinging pain came from his mind.
Immediately after, memories flooded in like a tide...
At the beginning of the memories, he knew he had transmigrated, arriving while still in the womb.
But for some unknown reason midway, before he was even born, he suffered a tremendous impact.
At that time, he thought the other party intended to abort him, and though unwilling, he was powerless to resist.
Then he fell into unconsciousness.
Plunged into endless darkness.
When he woke up, he was here.
But he quickly understood the general situation.
The expected abortion didn't happen; he was indeed safely born.
But because he seemed mentally incomplete, he was presumably abandoned.
Finally, he went to a relatively remote village at the foot of the mountain.
He was in a town and village under the jurisdiction of one of the three major sects governed by the immortal sects.
As soon as he arrived, he began working in the fields.
At age ten, he was assigned a yellow ox.
At age sixteen, because the village had a sparse population and he was the only one of suitable age, he was sent to Lucky Cloud City to participate in cultivation selection, bringing the old yellow ox with him to join the Azure Cloud Pavilion within the Cloud Front Division.
This year at eighteen, the old yellow ox unexpectedly spoke human words.
It asked him if he wanted a wife.
Being simple-minded, he didn't care that an ox could speak human language, but simply envied others for having wives, so he finally nodded and said yes.
The old yellow ox then told him that three days later, at noon, a stream would appear behind the mountain. Following the stream upward, he would see an immortal lake, where some immortal garments would fall by the lakeside.
Whose immortal garment he took, that person would become his wife.
He believed it and did as told.
In the end, he actually brought back a woman as beautiful as a heavenly fairy.
Exactly the one before him.
They had just performed the heaven and earth marriage ceremony during the day.
Now it was night, and the other party was softly telling him that since they had performed the heaven and earth ceremony, they were husband and wife.
They must live well together from now on.
She even proactively suggested cleaning and helping with work, but the iron chains on her feet restrained her. If he could find the key to unlock them, she could truly contribute to this household and build a happy life together with him.
His foolish self couldn't withstand the temptation of her every smile and glance, so naturally he believed it again.
And at this moment, what he held in his hand was the key.
As memories returned, Jiang Man felt a bit strange inside.
A talking ox, a woman who lost her garment, a married me...
Why does this plot feel so familiar?
Immediately, Jiang Man glanced at the iron chains around her ankles.
This...
Isn't this trafficking an immortal maiden?
Would such an immortal maiden willingly stay with him just because they performed a marriage ceremony?
Jiang Man didn't believe it.
This shabby home, the hard bed boards, the dried mud stains stuck to the foot of the bed, black and filthy.
How could a home like a pigsty make her feel a sense of belonging?
Secondly, this coarse linen clothing - even he found it prickly to wear, especially the stench of sweat, which was nauseating.
How much more so for an immortal maiden accustomed to luxury, with delicate skin.
She was probably enduring hardship every moment.
Immortal maidens aren't fools.
How could she willingly help with chores? Be a dutiful wife and mother?
If he gave her this key, retaliation would arrive soon, and he probably wouldn't survive today.
Offending such a person would mean certain doom for him.
In storybooks, such tales might have happy endings, but reality isn't a storybook.
An immortal maiden from the highest heavens, even if momentarily bewitched, would absolutely never truly lower herself to a rustic country bumpkin!
Thinking this, Jiang Man abruptly clenched the key, wanting to pull it back.
However...
It didn't move at all.
His heart sank, instantly realizing something was wrong.
Could holding the key for a long time restore her magical power?
Jiang Man's whole body tensed, his thoughts racing a thousand times over.
Finally forcing himself to remain calm, he slowly spoke: "Immortal Maiden, if I say this is all a misunderstanding, would you believe me?"
The originally shy and timid immortal maiden had now replaced her expression with a cold gaze, simply staring at him like that.
Jiang Man understood - she didn't believe him at all.
"Immortal Maiden, if I let you go, can you spare me? I was young and ignorant, deceived by a villain. Only upon waking today did I realize I've committed a grave mistake." Jiang Man struggled to ask.
As he spoke, he secretly exerted force with his hand, attempting to retrieve the key.
But he saw the key seemed embedded in her hand, completely immovable.
"What is husband saying? We are husband and wife who have performed the heaven and earth ceremony. What do you mean by 'spare'?" The immortal maiden's vermilion lips parted slightly, her icy words making Jiang Man shiver despite it being August.
Before her words faded, Jiang Man suddenly felt stabbing pains throughout his body, as if countless ice needles were piercing his bones.
He even felt as if his body was about to be torn apart.
He instinctively wanted to release his hand and retreat.
But his hand holding the key seemed glued in place.
Now he could neither advance nor retreat.
So she really is an immortal maiden.
"Husband, do you know what happens when you perform the marriage ceremony with me? I've never seen anyone daring enough to perform the ceremony with me. Husband must be a peerless prodigy, right?" The immortal maiden looked at Jiang Man, a trace of barely detectable mockery in her eyes.
Jiang Man insisted firmly: "I was truly victimized by a villain."
He had just woken up - it was the old yellow ox's fault.
Moo!
Right at that moment, a ox's call came from outside the courtyard. It wasn't loud, but exceptionally clear.
At that moment, Jiang Man felt the key in his hand vibrate.
Even the strength in the hand of the person before him seemed to weaken.
Soon, the other party slightly tightened her grip on the key.
The immortal maiden's gaze shifted slightly, glancing at the house door, then when she looked back at Jiang Man, her eyes were completely indifferent: "Husband even keeps an evil god as livestock, no wonder you dared to perform the ceremony with me. You probably understand what must be endured after performing the ceremony with me."
Before her words faded, the key exploded into fragments with a boom.
Even the iron chains disappeared along with it.
Then Jiang Man felt something abnormal happening to his body, as if something had drilled into his mind.
But before he could pay attention, the figure of the person before him gradually faded away.
The other party's whisper sounded again: "One day as husband and wife brings a hundred days of grace. Husband must work hard; the price of performing the ceremony isn't easy to bear. Additionally, your livestock has offended me, and my punishment will arrive soon.
We will meet again anytime, but I wonder when we meet next, whether husband will be alive as he is now or long since turned to withered bones in the earth."
After that, the other party completely vanished.
Immediately following, with a loud boom.
The dilapidated wooden door collapsed with the sound.
My door, Jiang Man instinctively felt heartache.
At this moment, looking through the doorway, he saw an old yellow ox, its eyes filled with disdain.
Jiang Man's heart tightened, remembering what the immortal maiden had said.
This is an evil god.
The ox he depended on for survival was actually an evil god that everyone wanted to hunt down and kill.
I'd better keep pretending to be foolish, Jiang Man thought to himself.
But suddenly, he felt stinging pain again in his mind.
A golden unidentified object was suspended in his consciousness.
His thoughts stirred slightly, wanting to figure out what it was.
Then the golden unidentified object seemed to be interpreted, appearing as text.
[Peerless Prodigy Fate]
[As a peerless prodigy, you should certainly be able to draw Qi into your body within three days.]
[If Qi drawing fails, fate backlash occurs.]
[May die suddenly at any time.]
Jiang Man was stunned: "..."
Is this the price she mentioned for performing the ceremony?