Facing each other
As Yuanli emerged from her mother's house, she heard a clamor of discussion outside the courtyard. The noise stopped abruptly the moment her father opened the gate. Almost everyone in the village was waiting outside, some with small seeding baskets dangling from their waists, looking like they'd just arrived mid-work.
"What are you all doing here?"
Elder Chi Xi said, "I heard from the people who were following us today that the Young Master brought the Young Master back. Let's go and see if it's true."
"Chi Li, come here and thank everyone who cares about you. Let them see you so they can feel at ease."
Yuanli walked out from behind her father and watched everyone weep with joy over her resurrection. The love between her family and her people reached its peak, filling her heart with warmth. She began to understand the feelings in the hearts and eyes of those people who looked at her in her dreams, and she also began to understand why Liwan cared so much about her people.
Fighting back tears, she pretended to be carefree and happy, spinning around in front of everyone to show how fine she was. "Look, not a single hair is missing. Don't worry, I'm fine. Axun brought me back unharmed."
When everyone saw that she was really fine, they cried even harder and expressed their gratitude that she was fine.
This scene completely made Yuanli unable to hold back.
Elder Chi Xi wiped a few tears, slammed his crutch to the ground, and coughed a few times. "It's all right! Isn't the young master back safe and sound? He's not really dead like those bastards down the mountain said. It's unlucky to cry at a funeral!"
"The elder is right, he is right. Don't cry. It's a great day. Happy! Very happy!" said Aunt Chi Hua.
"Yes, yes, we are happy, very happy. We are glad to see that you are okay. Okay, let's go back. The work in the fields is not finished yet. Go back and do your work. Don't disturb the old valley master's family reunion."
Everyone echoed: "Yes, yes, Grandma Cui is right, let's go home, let's go, and disperse."
After seeing everyone off, Chi Li stood at the gate of the courtyard for a long time. For the first time in all her years, she truly felt that in addition to A-Cha, the only person she had, she also had a group of people who cared about her.
Unfortunately, her remaining days were numbered, and the ties that held her grew heavier. She truly wished she could forget everything about the heavens and the tribulations she had endured, and just be Chi Li. How wonderful it would be.
The thought came to Yuanli's mind, and she was stunned. This idea might really be possible. Yuanli was overjoyed and immediately returned to Cha Suxun's room to sit and wait. After waiting for a long time, when Yuanli was about to doze off due to boredom, Cha Suxun finally pushed the door open and walked in.
"What did my mother say to you?"
"Nothing, just worried about you, so I asked a few more questions."
Yuanli asked suspiciously, "Is that all?" Seeing him nod and smile in response, Yuanli still didn't believe it: "I don't believe it. Then what did you say to my mother?"
"I told my mother to let us get married."
"Did my mother agree?"
Cha Suxun asked in return, "Do you hope that A Niang will agree or not?"
"I won't tell you the truth either. Ah Cha, Ah Cha, you are so powerful that you can cast spells even though you are trapped in this mortal body. Can you erase some of my memories and only keep the memories with Chi Xun and the people in the village?"
Faced with her sudden request, Cha Suxun was a little confused, "Why?"
"I want to be truly human for once, to be human without distractions. I want to know what that feels like."
"No regrets?"
Yuanli made a swearing gesture and said seriously, "I definitely don't regret it! No matter what I did as the mortal Chi Li, I don't regret it. You should treat me as the mortal Chi Xun."
Although Cha Suxun didn't know why she did this, he still fulfilled her wish according to her idea. Even though casting the spell might cause him to suffer severe punishment, the excitement and nervous anticipation on her face with her eyes closed particularly touched her heart.
The barrier was set up, the light in the room became dim, and countless silver spirit butterflies flew out of thin air from the ground. A-Cha took a few steps forward and hugged her, chanting a mantra. The spirit butterflies merged into her body, and she slowly hugged him back.
Until the last Psylocke disappeared, the dim room gradually brightened and returned to daytime.
Cha Suxun called out softly and tenderly, "A-Li."
Chi Li was feeling the warmth all over her body, and she was inexplicably overjoyed. She looked up and met Chi Xun's eyes, and then she realized that she was hugging him happily. Maybe she had been hugging him for a long time before Chi Li reminded him, and she clenched her toes awkwardly.
"Axun...I'm not..."
Just as he was about to let go and retreat, Cha Suxun hugged him back tightly: "Nothing?"
"Axun, men and women should not touch each other." Yuanli avoided her gaze.
"Do you and I also have to keep away from each other? When you forcibly took off my clothes and wiped the wine to cool it down for me, you never said that men and women should keep away from each other. A'li, you have to be responsible for me. It's not easy for someone to take a man who has his clothes stripped off." Cha Suxun frowned aggrievedly.
Just as Chi Li was about to retort, the image of white flowers suddenly appeared in her mind. "I..."
"Ali, there's no need to explain. It was Ali who didn't want me in the first place. Everyone in Jiwang Valley and the nearby villages knows this. If Ali still doesn't want me this time, I'll accept it. After all, you and I are the only ones who knew about that night, so it doesn't matter."
Chi Li looked at him, looking aggrieved but pretending to be indifferent, and felt really bad. Her father had taught her to be brave and responsible for her actions since she was a child, but she had put it off for so long and couldn't even remember what she had been busy with these days.
She patted Chi Xun's shoulder solemnly and said righteously, "Father said, be brave and responsible for your actions! We are already engaged. If it gets out, others will just think that we are in love and it won't damage your reputation." She took his hand, interlocking their fingers and holding it tightly, "Come with me, I will take you to ask Father and Mother for an early marriage."
After taking just two steps, Chi Li suddenly stopped again and asked seriously, "Axun, do you like me? Like my father likes my mother."
"I like you, I really like you. From the first moment I saw you, I've liked you so much. The sun and the moon can testify to this, the heaven and earth can bear witness to this, I dare not have any second thoughts."
"Okay. I don't know exactly what my feelings are for you, and I feel like I've forgotten a lot of things recently, but since I'm married to you, from now on, I will never have any second thoughts and will be your wife. But you have to listen to me."
"Okay, I'll do as you say."
"Okay, let's go see Dad and Mom. No matter what I say, you can only agree with me. You can't deny my words in front of Dad and Mom!"
"I'll do as you say."
As soon as she walked out of the room, she saw her father and mother sitting in front of the stone table in the yard. They were holding hands and both sighing.
"What's that you're singing about?"
"My daughter asks my father and mother to discuss my marriage with Axun in advance so that we can get married as soon as possible."
Hearing this, A'niang, who had always been the matchmaker between them, slammed the table in an uncharacteristically violent rage, shouting, "Chi Li! You've forgotten what A'niang just said! How dare you repeatedly insult the love people place on you? Kneel down! Husband! I'll punish you with family discipline!"
As Chi Li knelt down in confusion, Chi Xun quickly knelt down to protect her behind him, saying, "Mother, please don't do that! If you're angry, hit me, not A-li. A-li hasn't humiliated me three or two times. It's all my fault."
"Chi Xun! Get out of the way! If I don't kill this evil creature today, I'll be letting down our ancestors!"
Although she didn't know why her mother was so angry, she was afraid that the marriage would be difficult to complete. She blurted out anxiously: "My child is wrong, mother, beat me to death!"
"Alright! You dare to admit it? Then tell your ancestors what you did wrong! It won't be wrong for your mother to beat you!"
"I was wrong. I shouldn't have married Ah Xun. In a moment of confusion, I was obsessed with Chi Xun's appearance and forced myself to have physical contact with the unconscious Chi Xun."
Chi Li's voice was not loud, but it was like a sudden thunder that frightened the old couple so much that they couldn't recover.
"Chili, you! Xun'er, tell me, is what she said... true?"
Chi Li gave him a look that told him to shut up, and then immediately interrupted, "Mother, there's no need to interrogate Chi Xun. I have my own way to prove it to you."
"Chi Li! You're getting more and more opinionated. Mother can't control you anymore. To force me to agree, you're willing to say anything. Okay, prove it to me. As long as you can prove to me that you and Chi Xun are pregnant... then I'll set a date for the wedding right away!"
"Okay." As soon as she finished speaking, Yuanli knelt up, put her arms around his neck and kissed him. Her movements were so fast that the three people present were a little unable to react. They could only watch her kiss him seriously.
After releasing Chi Xun, Chi Li trembled and pretended to be calm, saying, "Mother, now you believe that Chi Xun and I had physical intimacy, right? Let's set a date."
Ah Niang was so angry that she was stunned. She looked around, looking for anything to hit her with. "Chi Li! If I can't kill you, I will pretend that you, my rebellious son, never existed!"
"Mother, don't!"
"Hehe, don't!"
Adi and Chi Xun were truly afraid of someone dying, so they both tried to stop Aniang. But the fearless Chi Li's next words were like another thunderbolt that struck the three of them.
"Mother! Beat us both to death!"
Hearing this, Ah Niang froze in mid-air, and said in a daze, "What did you say? You two?"
"Well, I've been pregnant with Axun's child for more than a month. If you don't believe me, you can take my pulse yourself to confirm it." As she said that, Yuanli lifted her sleeves, exposing her arms and stretched them out to her mother, looking very real.
A'niang tried hard to calm herself down and took her pulse. When she felt the faint traces of pregnancy, A'niang felt it over and over again several times before she was willing to accept the truth.
"Chi Li, you've been running down the mountain so long that I almost don't recognize you anymore." A Niang said dejectedly, "The ninth day of next month is an auspicious day. Before we get married, you must stay home and don't go out! Seal your mouth, and only the four of us can know about this! Do you understand?"
"I understand. Thank you, Dad and Mom, for your help."
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