Chapter 17

(33) Newly Married (Part 3)

"It doesn't matter where we go after leaving here." The young marquis took a step forward and stepped into the room hung with cheerful red curtains.

I looked at the young marquis's face and suddenly felt an inexplicable pressure.

If I follow the young marquis and leave like this, what will happen to my mother and father?

What should I do with Yunniang? She was in this situation because of me. Besides, she is just a weak woman, living alone in such a big mansion. How helpless must she be?

Will Wei Bo's family let my family and Yunniang go?

How should the old marquis deal with the fact that his son left without saying goodbye on his wedding night?

Will the young marquis have a career in politics in the future?

What is the fate of Baihua City?

After a wedding, I seemed to have really grown up.

I suddenly understood why my wet nurse always urged me to get married soon.

Because, she is probably tired of taking care of me day and night, right?

All she hoped for was that I could grow up healthy and well, or that I could grow up quickly and become more sensible so that she wouldn't have to suffer for me all the time.

"I used to like you very much, young marquis."

I sat in front of my dressing table, not daring to look the young marquis in the eye while I spoke.

I stared at the young marquis's feet. He was wearing a pair of black boots with gold thread embroidered with auspicious patterns of dragons and phoenixes.

"Actually, that day I was singing behind your carriage with a giant cricket I caught. I didn't just happen to run into you. I lied. I couldn't bear to leave you, so I secretly followed your carriage out of the city. Yunniang knew what I was thinking, so she sold my giant cricket to you for 100 taels and gave me to you as a gift in exchange for the giant cricket."

"Actually, when I misunderstood the old marquis, it was because I was afraid that you would be implicated that I caused such a huge disaster and harmed Yunniang."

"Actually, I really want to follow you forever...even if it's just to be your playmate and catch big crickets for you to play with."

At the end of the conversation, I finally mustered up the courage to look at the young marquis.

He lowered his head, covered his face with his right hand, and took a step back.

He was probably drunk.

"But I'm grown up now. I have to find a way to protect Yunniang and my family. If I follow you, it will not only ruin my family and Yunniang, but also your bright future."

After hearing what I said, the young marquis was silent for a while.

There was no sound in the house.

I raised my eyebrows, looking at the young marquis with some reluctance.

A few strands of his black hair hung on his shoulders, appearing a little messy, unlike his usual neatly combed hair.

From today onwards, the young marquis and I will become true strangers.

As the saying goes, "bridges are for bridges, roads are for roads", this is probably the situation for the two of us, right?

I vaguely recalled the first day I met the young marquis at Yunniang's place.

I remember that he was wearing a fine Shu brocade robe with dark white patterns embroidered on it that day.

She had a white jade belt around her waist and held an emerald green cricket cage in her hand.

He walked into Yunniang's courtyard surrounded by the crowd.

Against the backdrop of the humble people around him, the young marquis's brows were relaxed, his eyes filled with endless youthful spirit.

I squeezed together with a few young maids and lay in Yunniang's room, secretly breaking through the thin window paper to take a peek at this handsome young man who was well-known to everyone in the city.

"I'm not looking for Yunniang, I'm looking for a cricket named Four Legs." That day, the young marquis said this to Yunniang's maid while standing in Yunniang's yard.

(34) Newly Married (Part 3)

"So you mean you won't go with me?" The young marquis stood behind me, looking at me with burning eyes.

I lowered my head, not daring to look back at him.

After a moment of silence, the young marquis suddenly laughed.

But this time his smile was not as innocent as usual, but had a hint of madness in it.

"If Wei Zhen can tie you up and bring you here, I can also tie you up and take you away. After all, you, Shang Shisan, are just an ornament that will stay where you are tied to."

The young marquis laughed so hard that he was out of breath, and his tone became increasingly cold.

Just when I didn't know what to say, the window was pushed open by someone.

We both looked sideways almost at the same time and saw Wei Zhen standing outside the window with a smile on her face.

"On such a beautiful night, what evil things are the young marquis and my wife doing in our bridal chamber, with the door and windows closed?"

Wei Zhen seemed to be in a good mood. He supported his body with his hands, jumped up and sat on the windowsill.

"You guys continue to perform. I'm just a spectator. I won't get in the way."

Wei Zhen even clapped twice as he spoke.

The young marquis immediately pointed his sword at Wei Zhen, who was sitting on the balcony with a relaxed attitude.

"Why do you cause such tragic events, Wei Zhen? Your whole family bullies men and women, and what you do every day is really disgusting."

Wei Zhen paused for a moment, and he carefully looked up and down at the young marquis who looked a little embarrassed at the moment.

Then, he laughed even more happily.

"I just want to make your life more difficult, Gu Shaolian. I've helped you marry the woman you couldn't marry. Are you happy?"

When the young marquis heard this, he smiled sinisterly.

"Okay, then give Shang Shisan back to me." As he said that, he stabbed Wei Zhen with a sword.

I instinctively shrank back, but I saw that Wei Zhen was not in a hurry. He waited until the young marquis got close to him, with the sword only a few inches away from him, before he pulled out a dagger from his sleeve and blocked the young marquis's sword with the dagger.

Then Wei Zhen exerted force suddenly and pushed the young marquis away.

He jumped down from the windowsill.

Wei Zhen had probably been prepared when he arrived. After jumping off the windowsill, he picked up a long, round, cylindrical stick from the ground and said to the young marquis, "Good-for-nothing marquis, come out. Let's have a fight. I'll kill you today."

After saying this, Wei Zhen glanced at me and sneered.

"I will beat you to death in front of Shang Shisan, giving your love, which has no ending, a perfect sublimation."

In the blink of an eye, the two of them were fighting.

Although the young marquis was holding a sharp sword, Wei Zhen only had a blunt stick.

But perhaps the young marquis drank a little too much, he looked obviously struggling.

After several rounds of fighting, the young marquis was kicked to the ground by Wei Zhen.

Wei Zhen picked up the stick and was about to hit the young marquis who was obviously dizzy on the ground.

At the moment before the stick was about to fall on the young marquis, I stood in front of him.

"Wei Zhen, you killed him with this stick. You killed the young marquis, do you think you can escape easily?" I said sternly.

As he spoke, Wei Zhen's stick had already landed hard on my raised arm.

The force was so great that I was knocked to the ground.

My arm suddenly lost all feeling.

I endured the numbness and slowly turned my aching arm, shielding the young marquis behind me.

Wei Zhen's voice rang out lightly, "Of course I knew I couldn't beat that loser to death, but since you were there to block it, I didn't hold back."

"Killing the Marquis's only son is indeed a disaster, but if I killed that wild girl from Baihua City, who no one cares about, I wonder if your fragile mother would have the courage to avenge you. Or would she ask your carpenter father to make a doll of me and have them pierce it and curse me every day?"

Wei Zhen threw the round stick away and laughed wildly with arrogance.

"Gu Shaolian, you're a useless loser who only listens to your family's orders. You can't get a woman, you can't get a good name, you're not good at studying, and you're not qualified to practice martial arts. What on earth can you do? I can't stand it. You, a useless trash, are worthy of being my opponent. It's really shameful."

Wei Zhen rubbed his neck as he spoke.

As he spoke, I lifted up my sleeve and saw that my arm had begun to swell and bleed.

Wei Zhen looked up at the dark sky. It was probably cloudy tonight, and even the moon was gone.

Then he started smiling again.

"My wife, the auspicious time has arrived, let's go to the bridal chamber." Wei Zhen stood in front of me with his hands on his waist and said with a wicked smile.

The young marquis behind me began to struggle to get up again.

I called the servants over, and several male servants managed to control the young marquis.

"Thirteen, you can't follow this bastard. He is not a good person." The restrained young marquis' tone became rapid and intense.

I smiled bitterly. I knew very well that Wei Zhen was not a good person.

"You, carry the young marquis away and don't tell anyone about what happened tonight." I instructed the servants, but they looked expressionless, as if they didn't hear what I said.

I sighed and looked back at Wei Zhen.

"Sir, do you think what I said is correct?"

Wei Zhen laughed.

"Didn't you hear what Princess Pingnan said? Do you want to die?" Wei Zhen finally said.

The young marquis was already crying out in grievance, "Thirteen, I really can't do it this time. I beg you, please stop."

In the end, the young marquis was tied up and carried away by everyone.

Although his last cry was shrill and miserable.

I watched Wei Zhen's door slowly close and thought of what Yunniang had said to me: "Happiness must be earned through your own struggle. You have to fight, Thirteen!"

In the end, Yunniang gave up the fight and accepted her fate.

My life probably ends here.