Zhao Wan Niang's brow relaxed, and she smiled.
That night, they shared a room.
For some reason, Zhao Wan Niang found this even harder to endure than being in Zhang Tu's shabby room.
Gu Lang took off his clothes and lay on the bed, watching her.
Back when she was sick, he had never minded her; they had always shared the same bed. Now that she was better, seeing him like this seemed to carry a different meaning.
Wan Niang felt so embarrassed she wished she could crawl into a hole.
"Is there something on my face?"
The girl stood alone by the lamp, her black hair soft, her eyes seeming larger because she was so thin.
Gu Lanyin lifted the blanket and asked solicitously, "Wan Niang, aren't you cold?"
"No!"
Hearing that, he teased her deliberately, "Then you must be hot. If you're hot, take off your clothes."
"I'm not hot either!"
Gu Lanyin closed his eyes and smiled, then fell back onto the bed. Under the bright lamplight, he was still the youth she remembered, but his disheveled state made him seem unfamiliar.
Zhao Wan Niang pointed at him. "Don't move!"
Gu Lanyin indeed stopped moving.
Zhao Wan Niang couldn't understand why she felt so awkward tonight. She racked her brain, thinking and thinking, and finally decided she was just too happy.
She couldn't help grinning secretly, then slowly edged closer to Gu Lanyin. She wanted to say something but was too shy.
She had longed for him day and night, and now he was right beside her.
"Gu Lang, can I touch you?"
Zhao Wan Niang poked his back. The soft inner garment wrinkled under her finger; beneath the smooth silk, his muscles were taut.
"You're a scholar. Why is your body so hard? Do you practice martial arts?" she asked curiously.
"It's a family rule. They're afraid that if a clan member encounters bandits, they won't have the strength to run away, so I learned a bit of martial arts."
Zhao Wan Niang pinched him, blushing, and asked again, "Then, Gu Lang, have you ever run into mountain bandits or river pirates?"
"I have."
"That must have been dangerous. Were you hurt?"
Calling it dangerous was ridiculous…
Gu Lanyin heard her gentle voice behind him, and his eyes dimmed slightly.
That hand, soft and boneless like a feather, made him recall some unpleasant memories.
"Wan Niang, will you despise me?"
Gu Lanyin turned his head to meet her curious gaze.
He had lived two lives; of course he could see she was curious about his body.
Zhao Wan Niang met his silent gaze, then hesitantly touched him again. Through flesh and blood, she felt the heart in his chest beating wildly.
She thought he probably wasn't as calm as he appeared, so she said with a smile, "What should I despise you for?"
He was rich, good-looking, and most important, he had found her at the clinic and brought her home.
She hugged Gu Lanyin and found his body stiff, so she straightened his clothes and tucked the blanket around him.
That night, Zhao Wan Niang slept very soundly, not waking until the sun was high.
Outside, it sounded like they were moving.
The space beside her was empty. Zhao Wan Niang got up and saw through the window a pile of trunks in the courtyard.
Bao Niang's voice was loud as she directed the servants to move things, nearly emptying the storeroom.
"What's all this?"
Bao Niang was overjoyed. "This is your dowry, miss! The young master said we're taking it all."
Though Master and Madam Zhao were extremely reluctant, what could they say in the face of their son-in-law, that great deity?
Gu Lanyin sat in their main hall, flipping through the gift list from earlier.
Master Zhao stood to one side, sniffling and pleading, "Dear son-in-law, leave us a little for our old age. We're both old, and we only have this one daughter. The road ahead is long; who knows how many times a year we'll see her."
Without looking up, Gu Lanyin smiled. "Father-in-law is still hale and hearty. If you're really reluctant to part, you could have another child. Who knows, you might even get a son."
Master Zhao's old face reddened.
He secretly studied his son-in-law, wondering if he had discovered something, but Gu Lanyin just smiled and took away all the betrothal gifts he had previously given them, like a robber.
"I'm still your father-in-law. If you take all this, what will people say…"
When pleading failed, Master Zhao tried to use his seniority, appealing to emotion and reason, hoping to sway him.
"The road is long; no one will hear. Don't worry."
Gu Lanyin closed the gift list. Outside, carriages were lined up in rows. He looked around the room, nodded in satisfaction, and as he was about to leave, he finally took pity on them, bowed with clasped hands, and said farewell.
This time, the Zhao couple cried for real. Wan Niang, moved by the scene, bowed her head and wiped tears.
In the carriage, Bao Niang comforted her. "All this is the dowry the young master originally sent—it's yours, miss. Why cry? Today we're going back to your husband's home. If you keep crying, your eyes will turn red and you won't look pretty."
Zhao Wan Niang was shocked. "Gu Lang sent the dowry already?"
Bao Niang frowned and lowered her voice. "More than that! There were tens of thousands of taels in betrothal gifts. Master and Madam accepted them all. They gave He Ping'an a few worthless things and kept the rest. This time, as you return to your husband's home, Madam only prepared some tea, polygonatum, and silk. How can that be presentable?"
Zhao Wan Niang stared at her blankly. Suddenly, she felt as if she had gone deaf.