"Brother Xiaoyuan, aren’t you usually up by this time? Are you home?"
A clear female voice came from outside the door, as she kept knocking, trying to make herself heard inside.
"...Who’s outside," Su Zhiruan muttered sleepily. She covered her head and asked in a groggy, muffled voice, not yet fully awake. She pulled the blanket over her head, irritably exclaiming, "So noisy."
At this point, Ji Xiaoyuan had also woken up. He listened to the noise outside and frowned, "I’ll go and check."
With that, he got up, put on his shoes, and quickly walked out.
The shouting outside continued.
"Brother Xiaoyuan, are you home?"
When Ji Xiaoyuan stepped outside, he had already guessed who it was.
Ever since he came to this village, the widows and young maids always tried to curry favor, no matter the occasion. He was neither a greenhorn nor a young lad anymore, and he had no time to entertain these advances.
But even though he had refused firmly countless times, they still approached him with small talk.
Ji Xiaoyuan stood at the door, squinting his eyes as he looked at the light pink immortal dress hanging on the clothesline and had an idea.
To cut off their hopes, he would let them see the dress. Surely, they would stop bothering him soon.
The person knocking at the door was Cuihua.
She took a deep breath, her arms carrying a basket that contained a few bones.
She had secretly taken them from home, and the thought of seeing the man of her dreams, Brother Xiaoyuan, in just a moment made it impossible for her to hide her girlish feelings. Her cheeks flushed with a rosy hue.
Although Ji Xiaoyuan was cold and distant, rejecting someone from miles away, she still believed she was the prettiest girl in the village. And no man could resist a beautiful woman who was also virtuous and managed a household well. As long as she showed her virtuous nature, it wouldn’t be long before even Ji Xiaoyuan fell for her. New ɴᴏᴠᴇʟ ᴄhapters are published on n̷o̷v̷e̷l̷f̷i̷r̷e̷.net
Her mother had said that a man always needed a woman by his side, and even if there wasn’t one currently, he definitely thought about women in his heart.
"Creak—," the door opened from the inside.
With flushed cheeks and lowered eyes, Cuihua first offered the basket, "Xia... Brother Xiaoyuan, this is from my mom. You can make some soup or something."
Seeing her expression, Ji Xiaoyuan took a step back and said, "Come in."
Cuihua looked up incredulously, her eyes sparkling and her voice faltering, "Really? Are you really letting me in?"
This was unprecedented! After all, how could the past Ji Xiaoyuan ever allow women to enter his home!
Cuihua suddenly felt like her spring was about to arrive.
She walked in shyly, taking small, timid steps.
Just as she was about to speak, she suddenly saw Ji Xiaoyuan turn and walk towards the clothesline. To her shock, there was an immortal dress hanging there!
In an instant, disbelief widened Cuihua’s eyes, "Xi, Brother Xiaoyuan, is this..."
Ji Xiaoyuan intentionally let her see to dash her hopes, giving a slight smile as he took down the light pink immortal dress, "It belongs to my wife. Now that it’s dry, it’s just the right time to take it in."
"The wife?!" Cuihua raised her voice, "Brother Xiaoyuan, when did you get married?! How come I didn’t know."
A girl’s dreams shattered in an instant, and she couldn’t believe it was true.
Everyone thought Ji Xiaoyuan was a bachelor, but famously desirable, tall and strong, industrious, handsome, and undeniably charming.
Since his arrival in this village, every woman had stealthily watched him, fantasizing about becoming his wife and living a sweet life together.
The men might have been jealous, but all they could do was keep their wives in check to prevent them from being completely enchanted by Ji Xiaoyuan. Against a robust man who could lift a tiger with one hand, they could only nod submissively.
It was a kind of charm.
"Keep your voice down," Ji Xiaoyuan thought he might as well play the part fully, so he glanced at her sideways with a mild smile, "Your sister-in-law... has not woken up yet."
Cuihua was breathless, unable to accept it.
She couldn’t believe that her long-held dream was now shattered.
But quickly following, jealousy set in.
"Brother Xiaoyuan, you got married and didn’t tell us? I haven’t even seen what your wife looks like," said Cuihua, tensing up a bit and sounding somewhat sour and sharp with jealousy.
She was universally acknowledged as the prettiest girl in the village. Ji Xiaoyuan suddenly saying he was married without his wife ever appearing...
Cuihua believed that, in terms of beauty, she could outmatch that woman.