Chapter One: Wedding Night

"Alright, it's getting late. Hurry up and go to sleep." The man's deep husky voice pulled Hua Tang back from her thoughts. 

Subconsciously, her entire body trembled. 

She looked up, eyes meeting another pair colored as deep as ink. Those orbs held emotions that she did not know or understand.

Hua Tang rubbed her fingers nervously. She didn't know where to look, and her heart could not help but beat faster. Ever since she entered this room, she had been sitting on the edge of the bed. In fact, half of her butt was hanging in the air. She had sustained this position for a long time, to the point that her back was stiff. She still hadn't changed out of her wedding dress and was a little tired. 

It wasn't until that man walked out of the doorless bathroom, shower completed, that she realized she was going to spend her wedding night with this man she had only just met—realized that this absurdity would be her lot in life. However, she did not know how to get along with a newlywed husband, let alone a man like him. 

Moreover, she was a substitute. As the illegitimate daughter of the wealthy Hua family, she married this penniless hooligan before her on behalf of her half-sister, thereby completing the marriage agreement set by the previous generation of the two families. Doing so, she could get a considerable dowry. 

Although that money was insignificant to the Hua family, it was life-saving to her. With this money, her mother's illness could be treated, her brother could continue to go to school, and their family could live a good life.

Hua Tang took a deep breath and dragged the wedding dress to the bathroom with trepidation. "That... I... I'll go wash up."

When the man heard this, his eyes darkened.

Hua Tang quickly sneaked into the bathroom. However, she then realized that not only was there no door to the bathroom, but it was also a mess. The windows were leaking air, and there was no water heater… 

She was really stunned. Although her days in the past weren't good, she had never been in such poor conditions.

Her eyes reddened slightly. She hesitated in the bathroom and made no move to take off her dress for a long time, not knowing what to do.

The man outside the door seemed to have noticed her predicament and suddenly said in a deep voice, "I'm going outside to smoke a cigarette. Take your time."

Hua Tang's heart tightened as she listened to his footsteps gradually fade into the distance. The door that was swaying in the wind and rain creaked; that person had left.

The big red character, which signified "happily married," hanging on the mottled wall looked slightly pale. 

The day before her wedding, a typhoon hit the area. Broken advertisement boards and uprooted trees could be seen everywhere on the road. And she got married in this carnage.

There were no happy family members to send her off, nor was there a beautiful wedding car or groom to pick her up. She walked a long way, alone in her ill-fitting wedding dress, before getting into the dusty van. 

As they drove, Hua Tang felt that the vehicle was going to fall apart at any moment, creaking non-stop. With such fears, she entered a poor village. The muddy path dirtied her shoes and wedding dress.

The elderly had stated that marriage in such weather would not lead to happiness. However, Hua Tang had written off her so-called happiness long ago. 

She grudgingly took a shower and walked out of the bathroom while drying her hair. Her husband wasn't back yet; he was taking a long time smoking.

She looked carefully at the two mud-tiled houses. 

Due to the typhoon and heavy rain these two days, some parts of the house were still leaking. From time to time, they could even see pill-bugs. Those who didn't know better would think that no one had lived here for a long time, but although it was a little dilapidated, it would be a good home if it was cleaned up properly. 

As this was the place she would be living in in the future, Hua Tang smiled lightly and tidied up the room from top to bottom, aiming to be done before the man returned.

Just as she was kneeling on the wooden bed frame and pulling the blanket down, the man suddenly walked in.

Hua Tang turned her head around. Her movements were a little too rough, and her towel, the only covering on her body, actually slipped off. 

She cried out in surprise and reflexively hugged herself with both arms, but the man had already seen everything.

Hua Tang hurriedly pulled the blanket over to cover her body, her little face flushed red. When she pulled the blanket, she had a thought. 'Although this place is dirty, the blanket doesn't smell. It seems that this man isn't so lazy, right?'

The man's Adam's apple bobbed, and the look in his eyes became even more complicated. He slowly walked up to her and said, "We should sleep." 

A hint of huskiness could be heard in his low vocals.

This time, he emphasized the word "we."