A cold, wet hand touched my cheek and then moved from my ear to my lips.
Why is Gongya touching me like this?
No, wasn’t she using both hands to help me put on makeup?
I suddenly opened my eyes and saw the tall young man named Zanba standing behind me. He was holding a deep red ceremonial robe in his hand. When he looked at my bare chest, his expression was a little awkward.
Just now, was it him? No way, right… was it my hallucination?
I frowned, watching him put the gorgeous clothes on me, and didn’t ask.
When I looked at the gorgeous clothes in the mirror closely, I was secretly surprised.
This goddess consort’s dress is identical to the robe Tunshe Nalin once lent me. It’s a traditional long garment featuring a cross collar and a right-side hem, along with narrow sleeves—typical of southern Jiangsu style. The robe is richly adorned with intricate gold-inlaid embroidery, depicting birds, beasts, the sun, and the moon.
Before I could fully admire the priceless robe, a heavy crown was placed on my head. With a soft rustle, a row of silver tassels adorned with red agate beads fell over my eyes. I lifted them to take a closer look. Unlike the phoenix crowns worn by women of the Central Plains, this one had a crescent-shaped top and tassels hanging from both sides—distinct and unusual in its design.
“This is our ‘Feitian costume’. Only the goddess consort is qualified to wear it.” Gongya patted my hands and motioned me to put down the tassels.
Only those who become the Goddess Consort are qualified to wear this—am I supposed to feel honored? If not for Tunshe Nalin… I rubbed my neck, which was starting to ache, and felt a chill on my legs. Lowering my head to look, I finally noticed that while the upper part of the Feitian robe was solemn and dignified, the lower skirt was divided into several panels, with gaps in between that faintly revealed my bare, pale legs.
Why… isn’t there any pants worn underneath this?
I was just about to ask when my gaze froze, and a chill shot up from the soles of my feet straight to my head.
In the mirror, between the gaps of the skirt, a ghastly pale hand was gripping my ankle.
“Ah!” I screamed, jumping up and frantically shaking my skirt. But—where was the hand gripping my ankle?
Thinking I might have been seeing things, I lifted my head again—only for my scalp to go numb in an instant.
Gongya, who had been standing beside me, was nowhere to be seen anymore. Even the reflection in the mirror no longer showed the same room I was in—the surroundings had become dim and eerie, with two white curtains drifting ghostlike on either side behind me. And right behind me, the wooden bath barrel that had once been surrounded by candles… had transformed into an entirely white coffin, adorned with golden carvings resembling Buddhist motifs.
The coffin was covered with white roses, and at the center of the roses stood a black-and-white memorial portrait.
The candle flames flickered unsteadily, casting light and shadow over the black-and-white portrait—but the face on it was completely blurred.
The world inside the mirror was a mourning hall.
I was so terrified I couldn’t breathe, and my body seemed to be bound by some invisible force, unable to move. I couldn’t even call out, let alone blink. I could only stare, frozen, into the mirror.
Is this a dream?
I must have—must have been having another nightmare. In dreams, faces are always blurry, and my body never listens to me… I must have fallen asleep and been haunted by a nightmare…
Qin Ran, wake up, wake up!
A sudden “creak” shattered the deathly silence.
It sounded like a heavy wooden object being lifted.
I stared at the coffin in the mirror, watching as the black-and-white portrait tilted… a small crack in the coffin lid had opened.
“Glug, glug…”
Accompanied by the sound of liquid surging, large amounts of water began to seep out from the crack, slowly spreading toward me. A white shadow emerged on the water’s surface, resembling a drowned corpse, inching closer and closer to my feet, then slipping beneath my skirt.
…A damp, cold, soft object pressed against one side of my heel, slowly creeping up my calf inch by inch. The sensation felt like…
“You actually want to marry that evil god? I won’t allow it… you belong to me…”
The voice—why did it sound so familiar…? Shivering, I lowered my gaze to look.
Through the slit of the skirt, an eye with its eyeball rolled up was revealed, staring straight at me.
A low buzzing filled my head, and darkness swallowed my vision. I felt myself plummet, as though I’d been suddenly dropped into deep water. It was like seawater surged into my mouth and nose, burning and bitter, while the suffocating pressure of drowning crushed my chest. A slick, slippery sensation crept up from my calves, spreading over me like a living tide—
“Xiao Ah Lang! Xiao Ah Lang!”
With a sharp “slap,” my cheek felt like it had been struck, the sting searing through me. Trembling all over, I opened my eyes. Through the swaying, flickering tassels, I saw Gongya and Zanba with horrified expressions on their faces. I was lying on the ground, and above me, the house was decorated with wind chimes and colorful lights.
“Why did you suddenly faint? Are you hungry?”
The feeling of being soaked by the seawater lingered, and I curled up in a ball out of cold. Thinking of the eye under the hem of my skirt, I kicked and thrashed in fear again: “Ghost… there was a ghost just now…”
My body was pulled up and embraced in the woman’s soft arms: “Zanba, go ask the tribe leader to get the deer blood wine!”
“This, the ceremony hasn’t even started yet, it’s against the rules to drink first…”
“Bring it here! How can we send him off in this state?”
“Oh! I, I’ll hurry up!”
I was distracted and held Gongya tightly, fearing that if I let go, I would fall into the horrible dream again. It was not until I vaguely heard chaotic footsteps approaching, someone pinched my chin, and poured a bowl of spicy wine down my stomach that I came to my senses from the burning feeling all over my body, but in an instant I felt blood rushing to my head and became dizzy.
“What happened to him?”
When I was dragged up, I realized that the tribe leader, Sangbuluo, and several elders of the village had all come and were staring at me with worried faces.
The alcohol gradually took effect, I felt dizzy and sweaty, and my courage grew. I waved my hands and said, “It’s, it’s fine. I just had a nightmare.”
But was it really a nightmare? Why did I have such a horrible and weird dream? Was it because of that corpse god?
“Xiao Ah Lang is drunk. Help him to the statue to bind the marriage contract.”
Several hands helped me up and led me out of the room, bringing me before the terrifying statue of the Corpse God. I saw that the statue had been draped in a red wedding robe, matching the one I was wearing, making it look even more eerie. I didn’t dare to look directly at it, so I lowered my head instead. They forced me to kneel, and after I bowed to the statue, my hands were gripped and lifted to my head.
I heard a “dingling” sound, and when I lifted my gaze, I saw Sangbuluo wrapping a red string with a bell tied to it around my finger. The other end of the string was tied to the finger of the Corpse God statue.
“Yin and Yang unite, the bond is binding here. The marriage contract is made, never to be severed…” He murmured, winding the red string around my finger again and again. Meanwhile, another person shook the bell and walked around me, humming some sort of chant as he swayed his head.
Although I knew this was just part of the ritual, I still felt a chill deep within me. I couldn’t tell if it was just my imagination, but in that moment, when everything felt so eerie, the red symbols on the Corpse God statue seemed to grow even more vivid, as if they might bleed.
Out of the corner of my eye, I saw blood-red symbols beginning to appear on my wrist. I was so terrified that my whole body shook, but when I blinked, my wrist was completely clean, with nothing there at all.
“It’s done. Zanba, carry him to the sedan chair.”
“I-I can do it myself.” I murmured, swaying unsteadily. But before I could even try to stand, my body was lifted, and I was carried out. Outside the clan leader’s residence, a sedan chair with a unique design was waiting in the front yard. It was different from the ones in the Central Plains; the top had a parasol shape, with tassels made of colorful ropes and red coral hanging down to obscure the inside. The base of the sedan chair was shaped like flower petals, exquisitely beautiful.
Two pairs of young men and women stood on either side, dressed in bright, cross-collar short tunics. I recognized Masuo among them and called out to her.
The little girl lifted her head, and for some reason, when our eyes met, her eyes instantly filled with tears. She seemed afraid to look at me, quickly lowering her head.
I couldn’t help but feel amused. Was this little girl reluctant to part with me? It’s not like I was actually going to marry the Corpse God and never come back…
“Pray to the Goddess Consort—”
As I was carried to the sedan chair, I didn’t know who called out, but suddenly a loud clamor of cymbals, gongs, and drums erupted. I looked around and saw a group of people kneeling around me, striking gongs and drums, while the others bowed down in worship. I couldn’t help but recall a certain nightmare from not long ago.
The image of those blood-red eyes still lingered in my mind. A shiver ran through me, and in my dizzy state, an intense feeling of foreboding rose within me, even stronger than my desire to see Tunshe Nalin. I wanted to back out, to call it off. Grabbing the arm of the young man who was holding me, I looked at the tribe leader. “Wait, Tribe Leader, this… this Goddess Consort role… can I not play it? I don’t want to anymore…”
My voice was drowned out by the loud clamor, and it seemed no one heard me. Just then, I felt a tightness around my ankles. Looking down, I saw a pair of young men and women beside me, grinning as they tied my feet together with red string. The knot was adorned with a pair of bells, making it seem as though they had wrapped me up like some kind of gift.
“Hey, I said, I don’t want to play this role anymore… Tribe Leader!”
The effects of the alcohol hit me hard, and my words came out soft and sluggish. Masuo, however, seemed to have heard me. She lifted her head, staring at me with wide eyes, and murmured, “Brother Ran…”
“Masuo!” I reached out, but I was already shoved into the sedan chair. The colorful tassels of the curtain and the head drape fell in layers, sealing me off from the outside world. I collapsed onto the soft cushions inside the sedan, feeling utterly drained of strength, though a wave of heat and restlessness began to rise within me.
“Lift the sedan, send off the Goddess Consort—”
Was it because of that bowl of deer blood wine?
I tugged at the collar of my clothes and undid a button, feeling the sedan slowly lift and begin to move. A wave of unease spread through me.
But it was too late to regret now. I silently tried to comfort myself—
It was just their village’s annual festival, just playing the role of the Goddess Consort, with so many people sending me off. There was nothing to be afraid of. The original person playing the role was Saibang, so they wouldn’t let a child take such a risk, right? The tribe leader seemed kind and benevolent, and he didn’t appear to have any ill intentions toward me. Besides, Tunshe Nalin was their shaman, and the forest was his territory. He still needed me to complete the painting, so he would never let anything happen to me.
Thinking this way, I gradually relaxed. The sedan swayed back and forth, and the effects of the alcohol grew stronger. I became drowsy, yet the heat within me only intensified.
It felt so uncomfortable…
This sensation… why did it feel like… I shifted uncomfortably, pressing my legs together, trying to ease the discomfort.
The author has something to say:
The little fox can’t escape, he was forced into a marriage and tricked into getting into the bridal sedan🌚I’m so bad!
