Chapter 23 Can’t Drink (2 in 1)

That unbearable dragon in the painting made Yu Xiao feel disgusted for the second time by how repulsive a man could be. The last time he felt like this was because of Li Yanhe.

Fortunately, this thing was only seen by him. If Ah Xu saw it, wouldn’t it dirty Ah Xu’s eyes?

Yu Xiao raised his hand to tear the painting to shreds, but just as he was about to act, he suddenly remembered something.

Father Chu once mentioned that Ah Xu had a portrait of his beloved hidden away. Could it be…

No, that’s impossible. Ah Xu wouldn’t have such poor taste.

Even if he did want to cherish a portrait of his beloved, that person would certainly be like bright moonlight and a gentle breeze, a model of a true gentleman. How could it be a half-naked crazy dragon?

In Yu Xiao’s mind, a figure clad in snowy robes and holding a sword suddenly appeared.

After a moment of silence, Yu Xiao decisively tore the painting in his hand to pieces.

Obviously, if Ah Xu were to truly like someone, there would be no one else besides that person.

Last time, when Ah Xu personally drove Ji Lianzhou away, Ji Lianzhou looked lost and devastated as if something unimaginable had shocked him. He probably thought that Ah Xu would never treat him like that.

Yu Xiao handed the letter to Ji Lianzhou, but he didn’t see its contents. He didn’t even know when Ah Xu had written it or what was written inside that could make Ji Lianzhou instantly compromise and leave.

A friendship of over a decade was something others could never reach.

Yu Xiao tightly clenched the fragments in his hand and threw them out the window along with the bamboo tube. He spoke softly towards the main hall, “Liyao, go back and tell your master that if he dares to think of Ah Xu again, next time it won’t just be dragon tendons, but both your heads.”

The little mouse under the soft couch trembled in fear, almost collapsing to the ground with weak legs, then swiftly turned into a mosquito and fled from the window.

Yu Xiao glanced at Chu Xuyun’s familiar and sleeping profile. Only at times like this did he feel that Ah Xu wasn’t the usual distant, cold, and proud person; he even felt a hint of softness and cuteness, as if they were just an ordinary couple.

Being an ordinary couple was also quite good. His wish was to grow old with Ah Xu, to share a coffin and lie together, but if that couldn’t be, he hoped that Ah Xu would smile a little more every day.

He smiles so charmingly as if there are stars in his eyes.

Yu Xiao sighed and carefully tucked Chu Xuyun’s blanket, then got up and left, reinforcing the formation once again.

Tonight, he had many things to do. It was essential to ensure that tomorrow’s wedding proceeded smoothly. He was determined to marry the person he had tanukiked since he was thirteen.

*

Dragon Palace of the Demon Clan.

Yin Xuzhao looked at the grey-faced Tanuki Demon and tanukistened to the message brought back by Yu Xiao. His heart burned with anger.

Yu Xiao, this scoundrel, dared to tear his portrait to shreds. It had taken him great determination to convince the artist to paint it.

Chu Xuyun hadn’t even seen it. Could he really watch Yu Xiao marry Chu Xuyun?

After being stripped of dragon tendons, Yin Xuzhao had been recuperating in the Spirit Spring. Although he could barely get up, nothing could stop him from seeing Chu Xuyun.

Slowly ctanukimbing out of the Spirit Spring, Yin Xuzhao suppressed the pain and gritted his teeth. “Tanuki Demon, disguise me as a demon cultivator. I want to personally see Chu Xuyun.”

Tanuki Demon was moved by his determination. “Lord Demon, your injuries will worsen this way!”

Impatiently, Yin Xuzhao said, “I am well aware.”

After a pause, his eyes reddened stanukightly. He struggled to stand and whispered, “Apart from me, Chu Xuyun must not marry anyone else.”

Especially that detestable Yu Xiao. Even if he had to die, Yin Xuzhao didn’t want to see Chu Xuyun with Yu Xiao.

Touched, Tanuki Demon said, “Lord Demon, you are truly devoted. The Immortal would surely be moved by you.”

“Of course,” Yin Xuzhao said without hesitation, “Hurry, show me the way.”

Tanuki Demon quickly led Yin Xuzhao towards the direction of the Demon Domain. By the time the two demons reached the Demon Palace, it was late at night.

Yin Xuzhao didn’t know if Yu Xiao would be by Chu Xuyun’s side, but this was his only chance. The thought of Yu Xiao peacefully sleeping beside Chu Xuyun, marrying him tomorrow, filled Yin Xuzhao with hatred.

Why? Yu Xiao wasn’t as good-looking as him, wasn’t as detanukicate, and couldn’t even bear children. What did Chu Xuyun see in Yu Xiao?

He had to interfere.

As Yin Xuzhao sneaked into the Demon Palace, he saw lanterns everywhere. Lanterns of various colors adorned almost every corner, unlike the Demon Domain; it resembled the mortal world.

Yin Xuzhao snorted coldly. Despite the disguise, the nauseating demonic aura couldn’t be concealed.

Tanuki Demon pointed out the sleeping chamber where Chu Xuyun was. Lowering his voice, he said, “Lord Demon, the spell is…”

Yin Xuzhao waved his hand. “No need. This trivial formation can’t harm me. Wait outside and don’t ruin my plans.”

The spell was too simple to be a good formation; not even half as good as the ancient formations in his Dragon Palace.

Confidently, Yin Xuzhao stepped into the Demon Palace. Soon, he noticed something amiss—a strong blaze of demonic fire ignited under his feet.

His heart skipped a beat. He hastily recited the spell Tanuki Demon had taught him, but instead of diminishing, the fire blazed even fiercer.

What was going on? Was the spell fake?

But Tanuki Demon wouldn’t deceive him.

Refusing to believe it, Yin Xuzhao took another step. Instantly, he turned into a burning ball of fire. “…”

Damn, Yu Xiao!

Yin Xuzhao hurriedly extinguished the flames with water, but each step he took reignited the fire. He could only repeatedly put out the fire, struggling to crawl toward Chu Xuyun’s soft couch.

Just… just to reach that place…

Chu Xuyun was awakened by the commotion. Rubbing his eyes, he suddenly felt the sleeping chamber was hot as if it was on fire.

So hot. Must be because he forgot to drink water at night.

He stood up, still groggy, put on his outer garment and shoes, walked to the table, and suddenly felt his feet up, nearly flanking. Chu Xuyun scratched his head as if he had stepped on something. He looked down and saw a dark, indistinct mass on the ground.

Strange.

Chu Xuyun took a few tentative steps, pondered for a moment, and decided it must be the clothes discarded when he double-cultivated with Yu Xiao. So he ignored the things on the ground and drank some water before crawling back into bed to sleep.

Yin Xuzhao, who had just regained consciousness from fainting:…

Who!

Who the hell is it!

It’s Yu Xiao, right?

Damn, Yu Xiao actually dared to step on his head. In the future, he would definitely cut off Yu Xiao’s feet to avenge today’s human!

But fortunately, Yu Xiao shouldn’t have discovered him. Otherwise, he would probably be dead by now.

Yin Xuzhao sweated profusely from his ordeal and continued to crawl towards Chu Xuyun’s soft couch. The demonic fire on his body ignited once again.

Chu Xuyun was awakened by thirst again.

Yin Xuzhao had just extinguished the demonic fire on his body, looked up, and saw a boot squarely planted on his burnt face.

When will this end?

Before losing consciousness again, Yin Xuzhao vowed to capture Yu Xiao in the future and cut off his feet first.

When he came to his senses, Yin Xuzhao had crawled to the edge of the soft couch. The demonic fire on his body had finally stopped burning. He breathed a sigh of relief and tentatively reached out towards the soft couch. However, a hand suddenly gripped his wrist.

Confused, Chu Xuyun looked at the charred coal in front of him.

Who are you…?

Yin Xuzhao forced a smile, revealing his white teeth. “It’s me, Yin Xuzhao.”

Chu Xuyun fell silent instantly and immediately released Yin Xuzhao’s hand.

With hope in his eyes, Yin Xuzhao whispered, “Chu Xuyun, I know you don’t want to marry Yu Xiao. I’m here specifically to rescue you. You don’t have to marry me; just come with me.”

Chu Xuyun shook his head and wrapped his outer garment tighter.

“Why?” Yin Xuzhao’s face stiffened. “Do you really want to marry him? What’s so good about him?”

Chu Xuyun didn’t know how to answer him, but he truly loved Yu Xiao and wanted to marry him.

The sleeping chamber fell silent for a long time. Yin Xuzhao shakily got up from the ground and, in a low voice, said, “Chu Xuyun, do you have a heart?”

Upon hearing this, Chu Xuyun lifted his eyes to look at him.

“After all these years of acquaintance, even if you truly have no feelings for me, can’t you say a single word to me, even if it’s a refusal?”

Chu Xuyun remained silent, lowering his eyelashes. He couldn’t speak, but he believed his rejection had been clear enough.

Yin Xuzhao gave a bitter smile, stepping back half a pace. “How can you be so aloof and indifferent, so devoid of human feelings? Your heart seems to be made of iron. In your eyes, everyone is as insignificant as ants. Chu Xuyun, I truly hate you.”

Chu Xuyun was starting to get angry.

His heart was made of flesh, and he had never viewed others as ants.

This was slander.

Just as he was about to clarify, Yu Xiao arrived at the hall entrance in time.

“The purgatory magic array didn’t burn you to death. You’re truly lucky.” Yu Xiao approached, holding a long knife firmly. He had heard every word they had said earlier.

To dare speak such words to Ah Xu in his domain, the red lanterns outside the hall were barely red enough, almost stained with dragon’s blood.

He was about to strike when Yin Xuzhao immediately pulled out a dragon soul gem from his bosom and threw it on the ground. Instantly, a dense cold fog filled the entire sleeping hall, making it difficult to keep one’s eyes open.

By the time Yu Xiao pursued, the fog had dissipated, and Yin Xuzhao had vanished without a trace.

Even the last life-saving treasure was used, and no matter how hard he pursued it, he couldn’t catch up.

Yu Xiao sneered coldly, sheathing his sword and turning to look at Chu Xuyun.

Chu Xuyun looked serious, his brows furrowed tightly.

Could it be that he was still thinking about the nonsense Yin Xuzhao had said earlier?

Yu Xiao hesitated for a moment, carefully choosing his words. He spoke gently, “Immortal Lord, don’t mind his nonsense. In fact, I most admire Immortal Lord’s aloof and indifferent demeanor. Whenever I see Immortal Lord, I feel reassured. Moreover… Immortal Lord is exceptionally intelligent and has countless virtues. I often feel that you are capable of anything.”

He wasn’t very good at comforting people.

Chu Xuyun wasn’t comforted by him either.

There wasn’t really anything wrong to begin with. He was just a little angry that Yin Xuzhao had said his heart was made of iron and had slandered him as treating others like ants.

But…

Yu Xiao said he most admired his aloof and indifferent demeanor, and he even thought he was exceptionally intelligent and capable of anything.

But he wasn’t like that.

The real him wasn’t like that.

Could it be that Yu Xiao had always liked the version of him that existed in his imagination?

Chu Xuyun stared blankly at Yu Xiao, suddenly feeling at a loss, unsure of what he should do.

“Go to sleep soon, Immortal Lord. You have to get up early tomorrow for the wedding.” Yu Xiao’s gentle voice echoed in his ears, and Chu Xuyun trembled suddenly.

A terrifying thought flashed through his mind.

What if Yu Xiao found out after the wedding that he wasn’t the person he imagined? Would he stop liking him?

Yu Xiao didn’t notice his unease and assumed he was still affected by Yin Xuzhao’s provocation. He gently embraced Chu Xuyun, soothing him, “Go to sleep. I’m not going anywhere. I’ll stay here with you.”

Chu Xuyun was seriously thinking about it, but Yu Xiao’s hand lightly patted his back.

He couldn’t hold on anymore. He was too tired. Yu Xiao’s gentle pats made him feel so comfortable that he could barely keep his eyes open. He would think about it tomorrow.

The next day.

Two demon cultivators knelt respectfully on the ground, presenting the wedding attire in their palms to Chu Xuyun with great deference, not daring to lift their heads. “Please, Immortal Lord, change into your attire.”

Chu Xuyun looked at the wedding attire, his mind in turmoil. The events of last night were still vivid, like a dream.

Yu Xiao didn’t like the real him. He had to clarify this; otherwise, Yu Xiao would surely be angry, thinking he had deliberately hidden it.

“Please, Immortal Lord, change into your attire.” The demon cultivators repeated in unison, “The Lord has been waiting in the wedding hall for a long time. Please change into your attire and proceed to the wedding hall.”

Yu Xiao had no parents, and no one had ever taught him how to get married. He could only rely on the demon cultivators under him to gather information and speculate on what a real wedding would be like. Therefore, many steps were very different from mortal weddings.

Chu Xuyun didn’t want to wear that wedding attire, but he couldn’t bear to break Yu Xiao’s heart at this moment.

They had been looking forward to this day for a long time.

Chu Xuyun pursed his lips and finally put on the wedding attire.

Perhaps he could tell Yu Xiao after the wedding that Yu Xiao might like the real him?

Although Chu Xuyun didn’t know if Yu Xiao could accept it, he could only take one step at a time now.

Following the demon cultivators to the wedding hall, Chu Xuyun saw Yu Xiao, the most dazzling and handsome among the crowd.

After putting on the wedding attire, it seemed that all the demonic aura on him had disappeared. Yu Xiao was just an ordinary mortal about to get married, his eyes full of anticipation as he looked at his future wife.

Seeing him like this made Chu Xuyun feel even more uneasy.

“Immortal Lord, neither Ji Lianzhou nor Li Yanhe came to drink the wedding wine. It’s a pity.” Yu Xiao smiled and chatted with Chu Xuyun, saying it was a pity, but the smile at the corners of his mouth couldn’t hide his true feelings.

Chu Xuyun absentmindedly nodded.

He knew Ji Lianzhou and Yanhe wouldn’t come. He had personally asked them to leave.

Yu Xiao keenly sensed his bad mood and whispered softly, “Didn’t sleep well last night?”

He was probably woken up late last night by that animal. He should have killed Yin Xuzhao with a knife yesterday.

Chu Xuyun shook his head. He wanted to speak, but Yu Xiao suddenly grabbed his hand and led him to the center of the wedding hall, smiling lightly. “Immortal Lord, you must stay awake. Today’s wedding will continue until evening.”

He had prepared many things and referred to many rituals of mortal weddings. He wanted to try every one of them with Chu Xuyun.

Hearing his words, Chu Xuyun found it even harder to speak. He naturally understood how much effort Yu Xiao had put into this wedding. Almost no one had slept soundly overnight, and everything was done personally.

Come to think of it, who else would endure his unreasonable demands for a wedding three days later?

Just as Yu Xiao was about to step over the brazier, Chu Xuyun couldn’t hold back any longer and spoke softly, “Yu Xiao.”

Yu Xiao paused slightly in his movement, looking flustered. He quickly responded, “What is it?”

“I…” Chu Xuyun looked into those worried eyes. All his words seemed stuck deep in his throat, unable to come out.

After a while, he gathered his courage and said, “I’m really tired and want to rest.”

Yu Xiao hesitated for a moment, then didn’t reply.

Chu Xuyun didn’t dare to look at him again.

“Well, Immortal, rest for a while, and after you’re rested…” Yu Xiao took a deep breath and continued, “After you’ve rested, we can proceed with our marriage.”

Chu Xuyun breathed a sigh of relief, tightly pursed his lips, turned, and left.

He needed to figure out a solution quickly. He had to tell Yu Xiao that he was a fool, not clever at all, and not omnipotent as Yu Xiao imagined.

Chu Xuyun hurried back to his dormitory, fetched pen and paper, and earnestly wrote a letter.

If he couldn’t say it out loud, he would write it down.

\[Yu Xiao, I can’t marry you right now. If, after you come to understand me, you still like me, I promise to marry you again.\]

After finishing the letter, Chu Xuyun neatly placed it in the most conspicuous place on the table and pretended to sleep under the covers, waiting for Yu Xiao to come and find it himself.

However, it wasn’t until dusk that two uneasy demon cultivators arrived at Chu Xuyun’s dormitory door.

“Immortal, the Lord sent us to ask if you’ve rested well?”

Chu Xuyun startled, looked at the two demon cultivators at the door, glanced around, and finally looked at the window he hadn’t managed to climb out of before.

After a while, Chu Xuyun jumped out of the window, sweating slightly on his forehead. He didn’t dare to stop and hurried until he reached a small riverbank.

He breathed a sigh of relief and relaxed his tense spirit a bit. He raised his head but suddenly froze in place.

Chu Xuyun stared blankly at the lotus lanterns that looked like scattered stars in the sky, slowly reaching out as if to touch them but quietly curled his fingers back.

There were no stars in the Demon Domain; these were stars that Yu Xiao had specially arranged for him.

They were beautiful.

Yu Xiao was really good. Though he appeared cold, he was warm-hearted. When he saw a stray cat on the road, he would listen to him and save the cat.

He was smart and capable. After becoming a Demon Lord, he managed all the demon cultivators in the Demon Palace who harbored ill intentions.

Yu Xiao cooked delicious food. He actually knew every morning why his side was empty, because Yu Xiao personally cooked for him. He saw the scars on Yu Xiao’s fingers from cutting with a kitchen knife.

Although he was a demon cultivator, Yu Xiao had never done anything harmful or provoked public anger. On the contrary, he had killed many demon cultivators and brought unprecedented peace to the world.

Sometimes, Yu Xiao was also a coward, always afraid that he would leave, so he would overthink and even hurt himself for him.

Chu Xuyun thought Yu Xiao understood him in the same way.

But what if Yu Xiao didn’t really know what he was like?

He wasn’t that smart, very foolish, couldn’t do many things well, had studied for many years without passing even the preliminary exams, and the portraits he painted were crawling with bugs. He couldn’t cook and couldn’t do everything in his power to prevent demon cultivators from doing bad things.

Everyone called him Immortal, but he hadn’t done anything well. He couldn’t save many people from the hands of demon cultivators.

He wasn’t aloof and indifferent, but after practicing the Silent Dao for too long without communication with people, he gradually forgot how to be a normal person.

Chu Xuyun lowered his eyelashes and looked at the gently flowing water by the riverbank, a beautiful lantern descended from the sky swaying in the water, with a bright red character “Double Happiness” pasted on it.

He bent down, reached out, and gently touched the lantern.

The lantern trembled slightly, as if avoiding his fingers as if despising him, and floated away.

Chu Xuyun frowned slightly, subconsciously stepped on the riverbank to reach for the lantern. He scooped up the lantern into his palm, froze his body suddenly, lowered his head—his shoes and wedding dress had already been soaked through.

A faint smile appeared on Chu Xuyun’s face, then stood up and hurried back to the dormitory of the Demon Palace.

His clothes were wet, so he couldn’t get married today. This wedding dress was the only one he and Yu Xiao had chosen together, so he couldn’t change it.

He had to tell Yu Xiao quickly that he couldn’t get married today, postpone it for a few days, or months… years were fine too.

When Chu Xuyun ran back to the front of the dormitory door, Yu Xiao was already standing in the center of the dormitory. He just saw Yu Xiao’s back from a distance, but didn’t notice the demonic aura overflowing from Yu Xiao under the moonlight.

“Yu Xiao.”

Chu Xuyun called him, “I want to tell you something.”

Yu Xiao turned his head, his eyes fell on him, and his voice was very faint, “Didn’t the Immortal not speak because of the Silent Dao?”

Chu Xuyun lifted the hem of his wedding dress, whispered, “Today I can say, there’s something very important I need to tell you. My clothes…”

Before he finished speaking, Yu Xiao suddenly laughed, “Today you can say that you’ve never been able to speak to me before?”

Chu Xuyun’s throat tightened for a moment. He finally realized that Yu Xiao was a bit off. He moved his lips, unsure if he should say more.

Seeing Chu Xuyun silent, Yu Xiao started to urge, “You go ahead and speak, I’m listening.”

Hesitating for a moment, Chu Xuyun cautiously lifted the hem of his clothes, pointed to the soaked fabric, and whispered, “The wedding dress is wet. Can we postpone the wedding to another day?”

Yu Xiao silently stared at him, and after a while, suddenly unfastened his belt, casually dropped his coat to the ground, and stepped toward Chu Xuyun.

Chu Xuyun instinctively stepped back half a step but was caught horizontally around his waist.

“Then don’t wear it.”

Yu Xiao pushed Chu Xuyun into the depths of the soft couch, freed up one hand, and lit the red candle on the table, seemingly remembering something, and muttered to himself, “Right, we need to drink the wedding wine first.”

He securely tied Chu Xuyun’s hands with a belt, binding them to the bedpost. Then, he leisurely uncorked the wine jug on the table, saying, “Actually, I don’t like drinking, but I’ll make an exception today to celebrate.”

Chu Xuyun stared at him in a daze, feeling her heart race suddenly.

Even though she had a feeling that things were about to go downhill.

Yet, why did Yu Xiao look so good at this moment, with the candlelight casting a beautiful glow on his face, just as she had imagined before?

She didn’t like drinking, nor did she like people who didn’t like drinking, but Yu Xiao’s pouring of the wine was quite charming, and suddenly, she really wanted to taste it.

No, wait, she couldn’t drink today; she wasn’t married yet.

“Xianjun, open your mouth.”

The wine glass was brought to her lips, and Yu Xiao’s eyes darkened as he stared at Chu Xuyun’s tightly pressed lips.

Chu Xuyun wanted to struggle a bit, but the next moment, Yu Xiao pinched her chin and kissed her.

“Do you want me to feed you myself?”

His breath sprayed on her neck, her heart beating as if it was about to burst from her chest. Chu Xuyun blushed intensely, taking a small sip of the wine.

Oops, why did she actually drink it?

Yu Xiao smiled lightly, gently wiping the remnants of wine from Chu Xuyun’s lips, whispering, “Don’t rush, we have to drink the ‘exchange cup’ together.”

He handed the cup into Chu Xuyun’s hand, their arms intertwined like intertwined branches.

Chu Xuyun felt she really couldn’t drink anymore, at least she had to say something first, “Yu Xiao, I can’t drink.”

Yu Xiao lightly smiled, “Why can’t you? You promised to marry me. Now that you’re backtracking, do you really care about me?”

Chu Xuyun pursed her lips, before she could think of an answer, the wine glass was at her lips again. She closed her eyes, gritted her teeth, and drank all the wine in the glass.

Seeing her drink, Yu Xiao’s eyes still locked onto Chu Xuyun’s face, “No, Xianjun, you’re wrong. The ‘exchange cup’ is meant to be drunk together.”

Chu Xuyun: …

Angered, Yu Xiao must be doing this on purpose.

“Yu Xiao, I can’t drink anymore. You need to listen to me first …”

The wine glass was at her lips again, and Chu Xuyun swallowed her remaining words. After a while, she took a deep breath, and obediently drank the ‘exchange cup’ with Yu Xiao.

Yu Xiao took the wine glass back from her palm, his expression finally easing a little. He whispered softly, “Good, now Xianjun can bond with me. After this Taoist marriage bond, if you want to run away with anyone else, it’s impossible. You’ll be struck by the Heavenly Dao Thunder Punishment, understand?”

Chu Xuyun naturally understood, but hearing Yu Xiao say this, her head began to ache.

“I wrote the marriage contract the other day. Xianjun just needs to read it aloud.” Yu Xiao took out the contract from his bosom, spreading it out in front of Chu Xuyun, “I’ll read it first.”

He didn’t give Chu Xuyun a chance to speak at all.

Chu Xuyun hesitated, wanting to speak, then stopped. After a long while, she held her tongue.

“Yu Xiao is willing to be with Chu Xuyun for the rest of his life, to grow old together, to become Daoist companions, to live and die together, to share honor and disgrace. If there is betrayal, the Heavenly Dao will punish them all.”

Yu Xiao slowly read through each line above until the last word ended. He whispered softly, “It’s your turn, Xianjun.”

Across from him, Yu Xiao hadn’t replied for a long time, his eyebrows wrinkling together. “You have to read it.”

As soon as he finished speaking, he lifted his head and caught sight of Chu Xuyun’s red face, listening to slow, rhythmic breathing.

Yu Xiao: ?

“Ah Xu, wake up.” He reached out and pushed Chu Xuyun, Chu Xuyun’s response was nothing, peaceful, and even kicked Yu Xiao with his foot.

Yu Xiao suddenly fell silent and took a deep breath.

–It turned out that he couldn’t drink, he really couldn’t drink.