Chapter 23: Nuptial Wine

“You…”

Hua Xiangwan was somewhat confused:
“You deliberately made me leave just so you could drink this nuptial wine?”

“Only after drinking the nuptial wine is the ceremony complete.”

Hearing this, Hua Xiangwan finally realized that Xie Changji had lost his mind.

Back then, he wouldn’t have cared about such things at all; they hadn’t drunk the nuptial wine when they married. That night, he lifted her veil and stared at her blankly for a long time.

She couldn’t help but laugh:
“Looking at me for so long, do you think I’m very beautiful and like me a lot?”

He trembled as he held the bridal veil, then lowered his eyes:
“I’m sorry.”

“You say that again,” Hua Xiangwan said helplessly. “If you don’t like me, why did you marry me?”

“Since I’ve consummated our marriage,” he said with difficulty, “I have to take responsibility for you.”

It was just a casual question, but he answered so honestly. The two fell silent. After a moment, she stood up:
“Never mind, let’s drink the nuptial wine first. Only after we drink it will the ceremony be complete.”

However, as soon as she finished speaking, Kun Xuzi rushed over, saying that something had happened in the Realm of Life and Death and summoned him back.

He immediately drew his sword, leaving only the words,
“Wait for me,”

before fleeing with Kun Xuzi as if escaping. Their speed was so great that Hua Xiangwan even suspected Kun Xuzi was someone he had arranged.

She sat alone in the bridal chamber, finishing all the wedding wine. Afterward, she understood that this matter wasn’t actually important.

Now, Xie Changji’s seriousness startled her.

She couldn’t help but tentatively ask:
“Um, Xie Changji, did anything go wrong during your tribulation? Like, was your brain damaged by lightning?”

Xie Changji paused, not answering her question, releasing her healed hand, and changed the subject:
“Uncle-Master has taken Xiuwen to Mingyang Town, let’s go there first.”

…

The chapter unfolds with Hua Xiangwan’s suspicion, Xie Changji’s strange fixation, the revelation of demon spirit energy, and the sect’s bargaining over marriage alliances. The tension builds until Hua Xiangwan confronts him directly:

“Why can everyone else be chosen, but not me, Xie Changji?”