OL CH55

Although the two of them had previously agreed this was merely a fake marriage, when it came to actual preparations, they each poured more heart into it than the other.

After all, both these individuals in love were genuinely sincere and naturally wished for the wedding to be flawless.

No sooner had Bai Su left the bookstore with all his deposited silver to begin purchases, than Chen Tian immediately sought out the old manager. He instructed the manager to mobilize the personnel stationed in Anping Town to help prepare for the wedding.

The old manager had just heard from Bai Su about the upcoming wedding. After offering his congratulations, he had planned to send his subordinates over with a gift on the day. He never expected that shortly afterward, his master would come in person to discuss the matter. It seemed he would have to attend personally and prepare an exceptionally generous gift.

“Young Master Bai is truly fortunate to be held in such high regard by you, Master,” the old manager sighed with emotion.

Chen Tian’s lips curved upwards. “Naturally. After all, Suzhi is my future husband.”

After saying this, seeing the old manager’s shocked expression, Chen Tian explained the entire sequence of events. He didn’t even hide the fact that this was supposedly a fake marriage.

Upon hearing the whole story, the old manager’s face twisted with conflict.

“Master, although Young Master Bai is your savior and you wish to help shield him from worldly troubles, there’s no need to go this far… If there is no suitable woman, this old servant could find someone else to play the part. How can we let the Master suffer such an indignity!”

“Nonsense. Since Suzhi is my person, how could I allow him to marry anyone else?”

Saying this, Chen Tian shot the old manager a cold glance and lowered his voice, “Manager Wang, you should understand my meaning.”

A chilling light flashed in the man’s eyes, making the old manager feel as though he had walked through a harsh winter; his entire body trembled with cold. He immediately realized he had spoken out of turn.

The words of dissuasion he was about to voice were instantly swallowed back down. If his master hadn’t offered his true heart, how could he possibly go to such lengths?

The old manager knew the Second Prince was warning him. While this confidence showed trust, it also served as a clear warning. He knew he absolutely must not overstep; doing so would be a betrayal.

Even though his master always treated them with courtesy, a prince who commanded military power and was known as the God of War of Dongye could not possibly lack cunning or ruthless methods. This was the master’s private affair; his only job was to obey orders.

It was just that… a man with a man… If those with ulterior motives found out, they would surely make a huge issue out of it.

Young Master Bai possessed both talent and virtue. Whether being favored by the master was a blessing or a curse remained to be seen.

Regardless of what those around them thought, the wedding day drew closer day by day.

Truth be told, the wedding was arranged somewhat hastily, mostly because Mother Bai was concerned about Chen Tian’s reputation. Naturally, since Chen Tian had “restored” his female identity, the name “Zichen” could no longer be used.

On the surface, Chen Tian maintained he had lost his memory, so Mother Bai followed Bai Su’s lead and called him “Chenchen.”

Of course, Chen Tian felt a slight toothache every time he heard it, but upon seeing the teasing light in Bai Su’s eyes, he felt a faint trace of undeniable sweetness.

Li Family Village was ultimately just a temporary stop. After the provincial exams, Bai Su would leave and settle elsewhere. Therefore, they didn’t buy much furniture. For the marital bedroom, however, Bai Su specifically hired a carpenter to build a brand-new, very spacious bed, and commissioned a skilled family in the village to make a bright red brocade quilt.

The two sets of wedding garments they were going to wear, however, were prepared by Chen Tian. The day before the wedding, they were personally delivered by the old manager of the bookstore.

Looking at the exquisitely crafted, clearly expensive wedding garments, and noting the undeniable respect in the old manager’s eyes when he looked at Chen Tian, Bai Su said nothing. Once the old manager left, he quietly looked at his sweetheart.

Being stared at by Bai Su, Chen Tian felt slightly guilty. He hadn’t planned on hiding everything completely anyway; this could be considered a deliberate reveal.

“Has Zichen regained his memories?” Bai Su asked with a smile.

Chen Tian let out two awkward laughs, nodded at Bai Su, and explained, “Not completely, just bits and pieces. That bookstore manager is actually a servant of my family, so I thought I’d ask him to help out.”

Hearing this, Bai Su realized his previous assumptions had been somewhat off. He used to think Chen Tian belonged to some prominent martial arts family, but now it seemed his background might not be related to the martial world at all.

That old manager had vast connections. Even the county magistrate was exceptionally enthusiastic when he saw him. It was highly possible Zichen came from a powerful aristocratic family. No wonder the last time he went to the bookstore, the old manager had offered to increase his profit share; Zichen must have put in a good word.

Bai Su didn’t ask any further questions, which made Chen Tian breathe a sigh of relief.

What Chen Tian didn’t know was that Bai Su refrained from asking details for two reasons: first, he wanted to wait for Chen Tian to tell him voluntarily; second, knowing too much right now might actually be detrimental to their relationship.

The gap in their status was likely massive, a realization that made Bai Su’s heart heavy. Yet, even though this person had regained his memories, he still hadn’t left. He chose to stay, willing to go through with the wedding, even disguising himself as a woman to marry him. Even if it was fake, this gave Bai Su a considerable amount of confidence.

On the day of the wedding, a hundred tables were set for the banquet, and everyone in Li Family Village was invited, making it an incredibly lively affair.

Chen Tian obviously couldn’t conjure up a maiden family out of thin air, but this matter was handled by the old manager. The cover story was that Chen Tian was an orphaned girl from a wealthy family outside of Anping Town whose parents had passed away. They borrowed the estate of the wealthiest family currently in the village, Li Xiaochan’s family, so Chen Tian could depart for the wedding from there.

One had to admit, the female lead indeed had some capabilities. Currently, Li Xiaochan’s family was the only one in the village that had built a house with blue bricks and tiles.

Traditionally, a bride would be accompanied by female relatives before the wedding, chatting and adding to her dowry in her room. But how could Chen Tian possibly be willing to stay alone in a room full of women, inviting unnecessary awkwardness? Moreover, he was still a man. Even though his face didn’t look out of place in women’s clothing, his build still made it somewhat awkward.

The old manager deployed plenty of personnel outside the room to prevent the villagers from coming in to spectate.

Li Xiaochan, being in her own home, managed to catch a glimpse of Chen Tian. In the past, she had only thought this person was strikingly handsome; she never expected his female attire to be utterly flawless as well.

She had previously thought that if this person was a man, she might still have a chance with Scholar Bai. Now that she knew this person was a woman and that the two shared deep feelings, Li Xiaochan finally let go of her thoughts entirely.

Li Family Village was small, so it didn’t take Bai Su long to ride the tall steed and escort the bridal sedan chair back to his residence.

However, even though this was a village wedding, it was a dignified Second Prince “marrying out.” Even if no one knew Chen Tian’s true identity, the old manager dared not slack off.

Behind the sedan chair followed a long train of dowry chests that filled the entire courtyard, making many villagers green with envy. It effectively shut the mouths of those who had previously complained about the bride being too tall. So what if she was a bit tall? With such looks and such a family background, she was marrying down! Being able to produce such a massive dowry proved this girl was absolutely a young lady from a wealthy family. They could only curse their luck that she wasn’t marrying into their own homes.

Li Zixiu, in particular, was so jealous his eyes turned red. He had originally thought that by marrying Li Xiaochan, he could live the life of a rich man in the future. He never expected Bai Su to be so lucky, marrying a wife who practically oozed wealth at first glance.

Why had he never heard that Bai Su had such a wealthy fiancée before? Then again, he hadn’t paid attention to these things in his past life. Moreover, Bai Su marrying this early seemed directly related to the recent incident with Li Cuiliu.

Did that mean his own meddling had actually pushed things along, allowing Bai Su to secure such a good marriage this early? At this thought, Li Zixiu went mad with rage, almost vomiting blood.

The rest of the ceremony—bowing to heaven and earth, and being sent into the bridal chamber—proceeded smoothly.

Chen Tian had no parents present, so the only elder sitting in the seat of honor was Mother Bai.

After returning to the bridal chamber, Chen Tian remained there while Bai Su went to the front courtyard to entertain the guests.

Bai Su was visibly in excellent spirits today. Whenever the villagers urged him to drink, he accepted with a beaming smile. However, he had prepared sobering medicine beforehand; if he truly got dead drunk, it would ruin the mood. After all, on this wedding night, he had absolutely no intention of doing nothing.

Waiting in the room, Chen Tian felt a bit bored. After a while, some food and wine were placed on the table. The servant stationed there told him that Bai Su had ordered it prepared earlier, worried he might go hungry.

Feeling a warmth in his heart, Chen Tian didn’t stand on ceremony. After filling his stomach, he properly draped the red veil back over his head and sat on the bed.

He was genuinely waiting obediently for his sweetheart to return, feeling a rare wave of nervousness.

Later that night, after finally managing to deal with all the guests, Bai Su left the remaining matters to the old manager and headed to the room.

Their bridal chamber was the same room they had been living in. Standing at the door, Bai Su looked at the humble entrance and felt he was wronging his sweetheart. But what he could offer right now was limited. Besides, he could always compensate him in the future when he had everything. But if he hesitated now and missed this opportunity, he would regret it forever.

He knew deep down that the man didn’t lack wealth or material goods; what he desired most was Chen Tian’s true heart.

With this thought, Bai Su closed his eyes and took a deep breath. When he opened them again, all clarity was gone, replaced mostly by a drunken haze.

Hearing the sound of the door opening, Chen Tian clenched his fists, knowing Bai Su had arrived.

The other’s footsteps were a bit unsteady, making it seem like he had truly drunk quite a lot. He seemed to stand at the door for a moment to gather his bearings before swaying towards him, finally plunking down right next to him.

The newly bought bed was very spacious, and the embroidery on the bright red quilt was beautiful.

Bai Su stroked the soft fabric. With his eyes slightly watery and gleaming from the alcohol, he stared intently at the person in front of him, an inexplicable sense of immense satisfaction rising in his chest.

Regardless of whether it was true or false, he had really married this beauty!

“Wifey, I’m here!” Bai Su smiled. His words were a bit slurred, but still discernible.

Hearing this, Chen Tian’s heart skipped a beat, thinking Bai Su was truly drunk; otherwise, why would he call him ‘Wifey’? Then, he felt his veil being lifted. The person opposite him looked over and instantly froze.

The young man, who had merely been pretending to be drunk, was suddenly confronted with such breathtaking beauty that he was at a loss for a moment.

The man across from him was dressed entirely in women’s clothing, yet because of his devastatingly beautiful face, it didn’t look jarring in the slightest. His ink-black hair cascaded down to his waist. Since he wasn’t actually a woman, his hair was simply gathered with an exquisite hairpin instead of being weighed down by complicated, dazzling ornaments, making him look even more effortlessly elegant.

His face bore no makeup, yet he looked more stunningly radiant in that red attire than ever before.

His soul was instantly captivated. Once he snapped out of it, Bai Su hurriedly lowered his head. Feigning absolute drunkenness once more, he even let his body sway slightly.

A bit anxious, Chen Tian supported Bai Su, missing the quiet smirk that hooked the corners of his sweetheart’s lips.

Drunks couldn’t be reasoned with. He could only let Bai Su stumble over to the table on his own. Picking up the wine flagon, Bai Su poured two cups with some effort, then turned around, smiled at him, and said, “Wifey, it’s time to drink the nuptial wine!”

Though Bai Su appeared deeply intoxicated, almost as if he couldn’t recognize anyone, only he himself knew how tightly his fingers were gripping the cups.

He was testing. Testing to see if this person would go along with it, testing to see exactly how much affection this person held for him.

Chen Tian had no idea what Bai Su was thinking. He only found it rather novel to see his lover acting like such a drunkard. Watching him holding the two cups of wine and looking at him so pitifully, Chen Tian felt a surge of tenderness and affection. Naturally, he wouldn’t refuse.

Although their true identities hadn’t been fully disclosed yet, every single wedding with his lover was deeply important to him.

Thus, Chen Tian smiled, accepted the wine cup, and linked arms with Bai Su. They drank the nuptial wine in a lingering, intimate embrace.

The rich aroma of the wine filled his mouth. It seemed to have been spiked with something meant to heighten the mood, instantly making Chen Tian’s body feel a bit warm, and his gaze towards Bai Su deepened.

Already somewhat dazzled by his beauty, being stared at like this made Bai Su instantly stiffen.

However, in Chen Tian’s eyes, Bai Su’s stiffness was just a delayed reaction from having drunk too much.

Such a cute lover made his heart turn to mush. He asked softly, “Suzhi, did you really drink too much?”

“Hm?”

The other’s words snapped Bai Su back to attention. He didn’t answer yes or no, but merely blinked in confusion, waiting to see what Chen Tian would say next.

Seeing his sweetheart’s expression, Chen Tian chuckled low and murmured, “Heh, you really are drunk.”

Then, he stopped holding back. Leaning in directly, he planted a kiss on Bai Su’s cheek, and murmured softly, seductively, “Suzhi, baby, call me ‘Husband’ and let me hear it!”