"Creak... creak..."
The sound of swaying wooden boards was like a call from a dream, slowly rousing the sleeping man.
A little sand and dirt trickled down like a murmuring stream, pattering against his wan face.
Rocking and swaying, left and right, at a steady rhythm. If not for the thing spread across his chest, giving off the same aura as the Ghost Heart, he would never have awakened. He would only have sunk deeper into sleep.
When Ji Li opened his eyes, he saw a dim expanse of sky pressing down before him, almost crushing him into the dust. Yet the world was swaying, and his vision rocked.
That was not the sky, nor was this the world. It was merely a coffin being jostled without pause.
What was the weather like tonight? What scenery lay outside?
Presumably, the moon was bright, the breeze gentle, and the scenery still. After all, this was the night of January 15, the Ghost Bride's wedding night.
Thanks to the Time Ghost's arrangements over the previous nights, Ji Li already knew the entire wedding procedure. He simply had to reverse its order.
"Dig up the grave and carry the coffin—parade through the white misfortune flowers—bring the coffin into the Li residence—red and white collision—nail the coffin shut and borrow a wish—leave the coffin and enter the bridal sedan—enter the hall and bow three times—remove makeup and change clothes—thank the guests with gifts."
They were probably on the first step, "dig up the grave and carry the coffin," as the swaying coffin and loose dirt made clear.
The pallbearers made no sound, their footsteps barely audible.
Ji Li did not know where the "grave" was, but he was certain this marriage was between a living person and a ghost. He was the living person.