Marriage

"Little brother, are you outside? Come help me put in a hairpin."

Just then, Wu Yu's voice came from inside the house.

"Coming."

Wu Ming stretched his limbs and walked into the house.

Inside, Wu Yu wore a red wedding dress and sat before a basin of water, using her reflection in it to arrange her hair into a bun. But the image reflected in the water was ultimately too blurry.

Today was the day Wu Yu was to be married off.

Among common folk, marriages were often arranged and carried out swiftly. From betrothal to wedding, every effort was made to save time. More than half a month had passed in Wu Yu's case, which was already considered rather long. After all, Demons ran rampant in this world, dangers lurked everywhere, and the longer the night, the more dreams it brought.

Wu Ming came up behind Wu Yu and, working with her, inserted a polished, gleaming bronze hairpin into her hair.

"Beautiful."

Wu Ming circled Wu Yu, looked her over, and praised her with a smile.

Born into a common household and chronically undernourished, Wu Yu's complexion was much like that of women from ordinary poor families—not particularly fair. Still, her features were well-shaped and her natural looks were good. After carefully washing and dressing herself, she could be called quite lovely.

After learning the details of Wu Yu's marriage arrangement, Wu Ming had not tried to stop it. His family was honest and decent, and they had not yet been driven into a corner. Wu Qi and Liu Shi naturally would not casually sell off their daughter. Moreover, the other family truly was a good one. It was said that they had been close to Wu Ming's grandfather's generation.

Furthermore,

the eldest son of that family was four years older than Wu Ming and was a martial artist who had condensed Qi and Blood. It was said he might even advance further. Matchmakers had long worn down their doorstep, yet he was proud and lofty, looking down on every single one.

Wu Yu naturally was not among them. The one she was marrying was that family's second son, two years older than Wu Ming. He had no talent for martial arts and had not become a martial artist, but he was honest and steady by nature. Coupled with his family's good circumstances, he was still an excellent choice.

Wu Yu's marriage had been successfully arranged partly due to the friendship between their grandfathers' generation, and partly because Wu Qi's family was likewise honest and decent. In addition, Wu Yu had a few measures of beauty. Only then had the matter finally been settled.

After awakening the Mystery of the Womb, Wu Ming had lived two lives, but he still valued the bonds of family deeply. Naturally, he hoped his older sister Wu Yu would find a good home. Marrying an honest and dependable man was not necessarily a bad thing. In any case, he would support her in the future. No matter what, she would live a good life.

"Smooth talker."

Hearing Wu Ming's praise, Wu Yu smiled with pursed lips. Looking at her reflection in the water, she felt both uneasy and expectant.

After a while, she turned to Wu Ming and said softly, "Little brother, after I leave, Father and Mother will depend on you to look after them. Mother's legs aren't good, so make sure she walks less..."

"And Father... don't let him work himself too hard either. When spring comes next year, we'll have to pay taxes again..."

Wu Yu went on and on with her instructions, her tone growing somewhat low. Women in this world rarely returned to their natal homes after marrying out. Even during festivals and holidays, they generally did not come back. The roads were simply too unsafe for women. In the future, she would have few chances to speak with her family.

As Wu Yu spoke, she hesitated, as if she wanted to say something but stopped herself. She knew that after Wu Ming's health had recovered somewhat, he had started practicing martial arts again. She also knew that this younger brother had ambitions beyond ordinary people. But the family was not well-off. As clan head Wu Qu had said, if it was nearly impossible for him to master martial arts, then refusing to give up would only mean suffering more.

Yet as she looked at Wu Ming, she ultimately could not bring herself to say words that would urge him to quit.

There were only six months left anyway. She knew Wu Ming's temperament; he would not act recklessly. If it truly did not work out after half a year, he should settle down and consider the family livelihood. This time, her marriage brought quite a bit of betrothal money. The family could at least hold on for another six months.

As Wu Yu chatted on with Wu Ming, a burst of noise suddenly rose outside.

"They're here, they're here! Where's my red veil?"

Hearing the commotion outside, Wu Yu knew the wedding party had arrived and hurriedly stopped talking.

Wu Ming casually picked up the red veil from the table and handed it to Wu Yu. Then he went outside into the courtyard. At once, he saw a great crowd surging toward them from the far end of the yard, carrying a festive air with them.

Most of them were there to watch the excitement. Some excited children ran back and forth, waiting to receive copper coins. There were also many relatives of Wu Qi's family who had come along.

At the head of the group was a man dressed in groom's attire. He was Wu Yu's fiancé, Xu Tong.

"You must be little brother Wu Ming. I'm Xu Tong. Please look after me in the future."

Xu Tong did not look especially sturdy, but neither was he thin. He had an honest, simple appearance. The moment he reached the courtyard and saw Wu Ming, he immediately stepped forward with a smile and took the initiative to greet him.

Wu Ming had heard quite a bit about Xu Tong. Now that he saw the man himself, he examined him carefully. Seeing that he was indeed honest and dependable, Wu Ming stepped aside to make way and nodded in greeting.

Everyone entered the courtyard one after another, exchanging cheerful greetings.

Quite a few relatives had come from the Xu Family, though Xu Tong's elder brother Xu Hao, the martial artist, did not appear.

While everyone exchanged greetings, the Xu Family relatives also looked over Wu Ming's family and Wu Yu, whose head was covered by a red veil as Xu Tong carried her out of the house on his back.

"I remember the Old Wu family produced a martial artist, didn't they? And now they've declined like this."

"Yes. Old Uncle Wu passed away too early. Back then, he spent so much raising Wu Qi to practice martial arts that he never managed to save much of a family foundation. Now there's almost nothing left. What a pity."

Some of the people from the Xu Family stood in small groups in the corners, discussing in low voices. Looking at Wu Ming's family's few old, low houses, they brought up past events and sighed with regret.

In the villages and hamlets within ten miles outside the city, there was often an enormous difference between a family that had produced a martial artist and one that had not. Even if a family that had produced one later declined, its foundation was usually far more substantial. After all, a martial artist's status was entirely different.

The Xu Family had also heard that Wu Yu's family had once produced a martial artist, someone from her grandfather's generation.

Who would have thought,

that upon this visit, they would find Wu Yu's household no different from any ordinary family?

"Martial arts are simply too difficult. If you succeed, you soar into the sky in one leap, but if you fail, the price you pay is far too great. If Brother Wu Qi hadn't practiced martial arts back then, his family foundation would probably be much more substantial now."

Someone shook his head as he spoke.

For a poor family, one person practicing martial arts meant the entire family went hungry. And it was often impossible to know the outcome in a short time, so the cost was always immense. Though martial arts were the only hope for poor people to turn their lives around, many families did not even have the qualifications to try.

"It seems Brother Wu Qi has always had his child practicing martial arts, hasn't he? I wonder whether there have been any results."

"Shh, don't go ask. I heard that not long ago, his child encountered an evil spirit. His life was saved, but his body's Qi and Blood were depleted. I'm afraid he won't be able to practice martial arts anymore."

"That happened?"

The Xu Family's second uncle was immediately startled. Then he shook his head and sighed. "What a pity. I heard Brother Wu Qi had been supporting his child's martial arts training for more than a year already. This time, it's all gone down the drain."

"Enough of that. In my opinion, surviving an encounter with an evil spirit is already a blessing from the ancestors. As long as the person is alive, his body can gradually recover. Even if he can't practice martial arts, he can still learn carpentry from Old Wu and earn himself a living."

A person beside them coughed.

"That's true."

The Xu Family's second uncle nodded, still somewhat regretful.

Elsewhere.

Xu Tong carried Wu Yu on his back while someone from the Xu Family took out a small string of coins, roughly a hundred copper coins, and flung them high into the air. The village children who had followed along from beginning to end immediately cheered and leaped forward like sparrows to snatch them up.

Some older people with haggard, impoverished appearances also threw themselves to the ground to grab the copper coins.

"Go on, go on."

"From now on, you'll have peaceful days."

Liu Shi and Wu Qi stood at the back, watching the Xu Family gradually depart. Liu Shi murmured a few words, wiped away the tears at the corners of her eyes, while Wu Qi beside her remained silent, his expression solemn. After a while, he said, "The Xu Family has ability. Xu Tong's elder brother, that Xu Hao, is a young talent of their village. In the future, he'll most likely become Xu Village's new clan head. With such in-laws, when we're gone, Ming'er will have some measure of protection."

As Wu Qi and Liu Shi watched the Xu Family leave, Wu Ming followed several distant relatives from Wu Village to see the bride off. Xu Village was not far from Wu Village, only a dozen or so li away. Before long, the procession arrived at Xu Village in grand array.