Chapter 97 Celebration
Half a month has passed in the blink of an eye.
For the past two weeks, Long Buxi has been using the excuse of letting her recuperate to keep her in the stilted house and get plenty of rest.
Cheng Ying spent her days eating and drinking in the stilted house, teasing A Lan. Not long after eating, she would become drowsy, and half a month passed in this daze.
On this day, the rain that had been falling for half a month finally stopped. Although there was no sun in the sky and it was a cloudy day, the fact that it wasn't raining made people feel relaxed.
Cheng Ying woke up with a start, sat on the bed, and looked at the misty scenery of the Miao village seen through the opposite window. She belatedly realized that she had been staying in Pucang Village for half a month, eating and sleeping all day, which was very abnormal.
She wanted to go downstairs to find Long Buxi and ask him what was going on. The tightly closed door was pushed open, and Long Buxi came in carrying a set of Miao clothing.
Today he was wearing a dark blue Miao costume, black trousers and shoes, a black Miao hat with a bun on his head, a string of silver ornaments hanging on his chest, and silver ornaments on his hands and feet. He looked particularly handsome and dressed very solemnly.
He walked in, saw she was awake, and asked with a smile, "Awake? Did you sleep well last night?"
“It’s fine.” Cheng Ying threw off the covers, got out of bed, and stood in front of him. “I’ve noticed that I’ve been feeling drowsy ever since I returned to Pucang Village, even though I’m perfectly healthy. This is really not normal. I can’t stay in the village any longer. I still have a job. If I stay any longer, my job as a postman will be ruined.”
“No rush. I’ve been having Gasu deliver your mail. Your branch manager has agreed. Once you’ve recovered, you can go back to delivering mail whenever you want.” Long Buxi placed a set of Miao clothing on the bed next to her. “Now, you need to change into this Miao clothing and come with me to Lizhai. Today is my succession ceremony and also our wedding day.”
Cheng Ying was stunned. "Succession ceremony? Didn't you say you didn't want to be the clan leader? And what do you mean by our wedding date? Didn't I say we'd get married after the New Year?"
"The old clan chief is dead, and none of the clan members are as skilled in Gu magic as I am. The old clan chiefs in the village all agree that I should become the clan chief, and I cannot refuse their kind offer."
“Cheng Ying, you’ve already lied to me once. You said you would never have anything to do with your ex, but you still left with him.”
"Even though you were kidnapped by him, I will no longer believe your words. Today is a good day, let's get married today."
As Long Buxi spoke, he reached out to unbutton Cheng Ying's clothes, wanting to help her put on Miao clothing.
Cheng Ying knew that his thought process was a bit abnormal. She wanted to explain the situation between her and Wei Muchen, but she couldn't. She could only weakly hold his hand and say, "Isn't it too hasty for us to get married? You haven't told my parents yet, we haven't had a wedding banquet, and we haven't even registered our marriage. It's not good for us to get married like this."
"I will make it up to you for all the things you mentioned in a while. Today is my succession ceremony, and I hope you can cooperate with me and not make me angry." Long Buxi pulled her hand back, her face icy cold.
Cheng Ying was startled. She looked up and saw his cold eyes and a small centipede scar on his handsome right cheek near his ear, which made his usually aloof and handsome face look somewhat ferocious.
Looking at his gaze, which held an ambiguous coldness, she knew that Long Buxi was driven mad with jealousy.
She found it somewhat amusing, yet also helpless. She couldn't refuse Long Buxi right now and anger him, so she reluctantly agreed, "Fine, whatever you say. Could you please leave? I'll change my clothes myself."
Long Buxi didn't force her and readily went out to wait for her outside.
Cheng Ying picked up the Miao costume from the bed and noticed that the top was a blue top with pink fabric and frog buttons, while the pants were red. There was also a pair of brand-new red embroidered cloth shoes, which were exactly her size. She didn't know if this was the standard Miao wedding attire, blue on top and red on the bottom, or if Long Buxi had just prepared it for her. She also didn't know how long Long Buxi had spent preparing those perfectly sized embroidered shoes.
Cheng Ying took off her outer clothes and put on Miao clothing. There was no mirror in the room, so she couldn't see her own appearance. She could only call Long Buxi in.
Long Buxi walked in and saw Cheng Ying standing by the bed, wearing the gorgeous Miao wedding dress he had given her, embroidered with butterflies and flowers. He was momentarily mesmerized by her beauty.
When Cheng Ying put on that Miao costume, her features were exquisite, her skin was fair and radiant. Although her long hair was a little messy, it only made her look more charming and beautiful. Her figure was slender and delicate, like a red spider lily blooming in the mountains, she was incredibly beautiful.
Long Buxi walked up to her and sincerely praised her, "You look great in this outfit."
Cheng Ying forced a smile. "Whose clothes and shoes are these? They fit me perfectly."
Long Buxi reached out and took her hand. "The clothes and pants were made by my mother. When my brother and I were born, she prepared several sets of wedding clothes for us brothers to wear when we got married. The set you are wearing is one of the ones my mother made. The other clothes are not the right size. The shoes are made for you by Aunt Meishu. Do you like them?"
Cheng Ying exclaimed in surprise, "Your mother made these clothes? She's so skillful!"
The patterns on the Miao clothing are all so lifelike, as if they were living things covering the clothes. It must have taken a lot of effort and time to embroider such patterns.
It seems that when Long Buxi's mother is not having an attack, she treats her son very well.
What surprised Cheng Ying even more was that Mei Shu actually made shoes for Long Buxi.
Mei Shu disliked and feared Long Bu Xi, so why did she agree to make shoes for him this time?
Long Buxi looked puzzled. "She was indeed skillful. She could not only embroider and make clothes and shoes, but also weave many beautiful and interesting straw animals such as butterflies, grasshoppers, and rabbits to amuse children. Unfortunately, she was mostly going crazy and forcing me to refine Gu, so my memory of her is really bad."
Cheng Ying comforted him, "Don't dwell on the past. The fact that your mother made such beautiful Miao clothes for you proves that she always loved you, even though she acted a bit strangely. She's already dead, so don't keep holding onto the past. You have to look to the future, learn to forget the bad things, and live the life you want."
Long Buxi was somewhat moved. She walked to the large wardrobe against the wall of the room, opened the wardrobe, opened the wooden box containing many silver ornaments, took out a set of silver headdresses with tassels on the outside and many silver ornaments with butterflies, phoenixes and auspicious clouds in the middle, put it on Cheng Ying's head, and led her out. "It's getting late, we have to go to Lizhai."
Cheng Ying struggled silently for a moment, but he held her hand tightly and pulled her outside. She had no choice but to follow him outside.
They walked along the gravel road, crossed the suspension bridge, and passed through the misty Zuowu Forest, finally arriving at Lizhai.
When they arrived, on the large square altar outside the village, in the center of the altar, there were three freshly slaughtered and bled sheep in a cauldron. Underneath the cauldron, there was a large fire burning with piles of wood, which was blazing fiercely.
All the Miao people in Pucang Village were dressed in their finest attire and stood below the altar.
Upon seeing the two of them, six men dressed in black Miao clothing and hats, carrying the Lusheng, a traditional Miao musical instrument, immediately came out and stood beside the fire, beginning to play.
The lusheng (a traditional reed pipe instrument) was played with a mournful, plaintive sound, devoid of any festive sentiment.
Cheng Ying couldn't understand Miao language. She saw that Long Buxi looked solemn and led her through the crowd toward the altar.
She hesitated for a moment, but did not struggle, and followed him up to the altar.
Many tables and chairs were set up on the altar. Several elders sat on chairs on both sides of the altar. When they saw Long Buxi come up, the elders stood up, walked to Long Buxi, placed their right hands diagonally on their left shoulders, and bowed to him and Cheng Ying. Then, the oldest elder, who was about seventy years old, said something to Long Buxi.
Long Buxi replied to him twice, then pulled Cheng Ying to sit on the long bench directly above the altar and spoke a few words in Miao language to those below.
The Miao people under the altar responded with a single sentence, then held hands, gathered around the fire, and began to sing and dance.
Soon, Miao people brought up long wooden trays, carrying dishes of delicious food and wine for everyone to eat and drink.
Long Buxi picked up a small wine jar, poured two bowls of wine into a small brown bowl, handed one to Cheng Ying, and gestured for her to drink while crossing her wrist with his.
The dancers below the stage all stopped and turned their gazes toward Cheng Ying with a scrutinizing and curious air.
Cheng Ying felt uncomfortable being stared at, but thought that this was just a toast, and there was nothing wrong with drinking it. She stood up, picked up the wine, crossed her wrists with Long Buxi, and drank the wine in the bowl.
After drinking the liquor, it had a slightly spicy taste in the throat, followed by a sweet aftertaste, and didn't have the burning sensation she had imagined from Miao ethnic liquor.
The moment she finished drinking and put down her bowl, Long Buxi slammed it to the ground. As the bowl shattered, he sharply looked at all the Miao people below the altar and uttered a single word in the Miao language: "Bai!"
All the Miao people, facing Cheng Ying, regardless of their own willingness, prostrated themselves on the ground and kowtowed to her in a grand gesture of respect.
Cheng Ying was startled and looked at Long Buxi with unease, whispering beside him, "What's going on?"
Long Buxi reached out and gently took her hand, whispering, "Today is my succession ceremony. I am the clan leader, and they should obey and kneel before me. You are my wife and the clan leader's wife, so they should kneel before you as well."
Cheng Ying suddenly realized something and felt a little strange. She wanted to say something, but Long Buxi used the Miao language to get the Miao people up and continue eating and drinking. Only then did they continue singing and dancing.
They danced for a long time, dancing around the bonfire, and the lusheng (a traditional reed pipe instrument) changed from a mournful sound to a cheerful and upbeat one.
As the songs played, people danced, sometimes slowly and stiffly, sometimes joyfully and freely, each with a solemn expression, as if they didn't want to participate in such a celebration at all.
In this eerie atmosphere, the sheep slaughtered at the central altar were carried to the fire, skinned and cleaned, their limbs supported by a wooden frame, and roasted on the embers. One sheep was placed on the table in front of Long Buxi, while the other two were given to the villagers to eat.
Long Buxi held a small, curved Miao knife and kept cutting roasted mutton for Cheng Ying to eat, occasionally pouring her a bowl of fruit wine that wasn't too spicy.
While watching the people below the stage dance, Cheng Ying ate barbecue and drank wine. By the time the celebration ended, she was already drunk without realizing it.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
