Irritated by Pei Ziying’s attitude, Pei Lianyi slammed his jade teacup down with a bang. His voice was icy. “Then who are you willing to be with?!”
Pei Ziying froze in his tracks. He looked out into the vast night, a flash of pride bursting from his clear, youthful eyes. “The man worthy of being my husband must have unmatched martial prowess, the talent of a top scholar, second only to one, above ten thousand others.”
Hearing this, Pei Lianyi’s breath caught. A faint hint of sorrow flickered through his sharp brows and refined eyes. He sighed.
“How could such a person exist?”
“Of course he does.” Pei Ziying turned to meet his gaze. “The Young Sect Master of the Nine Blossoms Sect is such a man.”
His tone was exceedingly proud, but Pei Lianyi’s expression changed. His voice grew even colder.
“I’ve heard of this Young Sect Master. They say his temperament is bizarre and eccentric, his conduct dissolute and unrestrained. Not only that, his household keeps a flock of concubines and Male Courtesans, indulging in nightly revelries…”
“A fickle, dissipated playboy like that—entry into my Pei family’s gate is absolutely out of the question.”
“What does Dad know?!” Hearing his father’s merciless judgment of his heart’s desire, Pei Ziying broke out in an anxious sweat and immediately shot back, “A true hero like the Young Sect Master, lacking beautiful admirers around him would be the strange thing. Such a man has seen the world, been with many people. He understands romance and is skilled in passion. Dad… an old fuddy-duddy like Dad would never understand…”
“Pei Ziying, you’ve gone too far.” Before he could finish, the words fell from Pei Lianyi’s lips, deep and cold.
He had started in business as a child, shouldering burdens too heavy, too soon. He had long cultivated a disposition among crowds that showed no emotion. Even when angered, he rarely raised his voice, always indifferent and mild. But the stillness of his gaze, like a deep pool, held immense authority, instantly silencing Pei Ziying.
“Dad…” With no other options, he knelt down in silent defiance.
Seeing his beloved son kneeling on the cold tile floor, Pei Lianyi frowned. But he quickly averted his gaze and declared with finality, “In short, you are marrying this man whether you want to or not. And only someone with Huo Jingzhao’s gentle temperament, his honesty and kindness, could possibly tolerate you.”
Without waiting for Pei Ziying’s reaction, Pei Lianyi stood up and strode swiftly out of the hall.
“What do you mean, tolerate me?! Since when do I need his tolerance?! A good-for-nothing like him—is he even worthy?!”
Even from far away, Pei Ziying’s unwilling howl could be heard.
Listening to his furious curses, Pei Lianyi clenched his hands. His usually composed face finally revealed cracks filled with pain, his complexion turning slightly pale.
“Ziying, don’t blame Dad… because…”
And now, sitting in his desolate bedchamber, Pei Lianyi’s hazy eyes shimmered faintly with light.
“Because I just don’t want you to suffer too much,” he murmured.
Sitting stiffly for a while, his mind a chaotic mess thinking of his missing son, Pei Lianyi couldn’t sleep. He picked up a candle lamp and walked out of his bedchamber.
“Family Head, you’re…?” He bumped right into Cao Xian upon stepping out.
Pei Lianyi was silent for a moment before speaking slowly. “I’m going to the Ancestral Hall. Command everyone—no one is allowed near the rear courtyard.”
“Family Head…! Yes.” Hearing the words ‘Ancestral Hall’, a clear shock registered on Cao Xian’s face. Only then did he bow his aged head and say, “This Old Servant will immediately order tomorrow’s meals changed to blood-nourishing and body-replenishing dishes.”
Pei Lianyi responded with an “Mm” and walked away, treading the quiet moonlight into the distance.
The Pei family Ancestral Hall was situated in the deepest part of the rear courtyard. The location was remote, the space small. Aside from a mute servant who swept there, almost no one dared set foot in this place.
Though the Pei Manor was immensely wealthy, the Ancestral Hall housing the spirit tablets of its ancestors paled in comparison to the manor’s luxury. Walking up to the old, decaying building, Pei Lianyi suppressed the discomfort inside him and pushed open the brown wooden door.
The small door creaked open. He knelt upon the prayer mat before the hall.
Dim candlelight flickered over Pei Lianyi’s form, rendering his white sleepwear almost transparent.
But he had no attention to spare for the exposure of his body. He picked up the small knife on the table and used it to cut his own wrist.
“Ah— arghh…!” Accompanied by Pei Lianyi’s groan, full of suppressed pain, beads of crimson blood quickly welled from the delicate skin. They dripped into a small shrine like a string of red pearls, soon completely covering the patterns on it.
Watching this, Pei Lianyi put down the knife. He endured the pain, pressing on the wound, his lips trembling. “Ancestors above, the Seventeenth Generation Family Head Pei, Pei Lianyi, courtesy name Minrou, comes here today for the sake of the next Family Head, Pei Ziying…”
“Minrou knows he has failed to properly instruct his son, bringing the shame of a broken engagement upon the Pei family. But Ziying is still young. If there are any sins to be borne… let them fall on me.”
He had bled quite a bit, yet his aura remained firm and cold. “I will make offerings to you with my own body. But if you harm Ziying, I will certainly not let it go lightly!”
As soon as Pei Lianyi finished speaking, the blood on the shrine’s patterns slowly receded, returning to its original state.
Seeing it “devour” his blood, Pei Lianyi grabbed the curtain beside him to stand, his fingers spasming with pain again.
Decades ago, when the Rong Kingdom had not yet been unified, the various cities were in constant conflict and chaos. Two tribes possessed the greatest power: the Earth Tribe, skilled in horsemanship, archery, and construction; and the Shaman Tribe, adept at manipulating witchcraft.
In the final struggle, the wealthy Pei clan chose to support the Earth Tribe, thus planting the seeds of calamity.
The Earth Tribe won the victory. When the last Shamanic Poison user was being eradicated, that person cast the most sinister Curse upon the Pei clan.
“Men of the Pei clan, I curse you to enjoy endless glory and wealth for generations, yet always suffer the agony of a cursed seed tearing out of the womb—!”
“I curse you to feed ghosts with your body, to nourish Gu Poison with your blood, forever unable to leave the man who planted his seed in you!”
After that, the Pei family business indeed grew larger and larger, the envy of all. But what no one knew was that the bloodline of each successive Family Head would bear children, forced to shoulder the duty of reproduction.
“Father, Mother… Lianyi has no great wish. I only wish to join hands with a kind, gentle person… one couple, a lifetime together.”
Once, he too, like Ziying, had cherished hopes for his own marriage.
And all of that came to an abrupt end when he overheard his parents’ secret conversation.
“Even if we have to tie him up, we’ll send him there…!”
“We raised him, pampered him… wasn’t it all for this day?!”
“Enough… enough.” Pei Lianyi blinked his red-rimmed eyes and whispered, “At least Ziying won’t have to suffer this.”
With a gentle, considerate man like Huo Jingzhao by his side… Ziying would never end up like him. He pursed his lips, comforting himself.
Despite thinking this, recalling the night’s events, Pei Lianyi still decided to visit the Huo family once more.
The next day at noon, the Pei Manor’s most prestigious sedan chair descended outside the Huo residence.
Seeing his arrival, the Huo couple was first a bit tense, then just as nervous and fearful as last time, hurriedly inviting him to sit in the main hall.
Observing their awkward stances, Pei Lianyi touched his own face, a little self-consciously. Am I that frightening…? Why do they look at me like I’m a ferocious beast?
He had no idea that the Huo couple was simply too overwhelmed by his beauty to look directly at him.
It was scorching hot today. Disliking sweat, and thinking it was just a visit to the Huo family, not some major business occasion, Pei Lianyi had worn a green gauze robe woven from silk. The fabric was dense, light as a feather. Not only did it accentuate his well-maintained, mature physique, it made his already cold face even more imposingly noble.
Dressed like this in the Huo family’s modest little courtyard, it could only be described as glaringly out of place. That was why the couple was so intensely nervous.
Pei Lianyi himself didn’t find it strange. Seeing Madam Huo present a cup of some unrecognizable coarse tea, he was silent for a long moment before asking where Huo Jingzhao was.
“Jingzhao is currently washing up in the Woodshed. Master Pei, you… why don’t you sit for a while? I’ll go call him right away…”
“No need.” Pei Lianyi indifferently stopped her and proposed waiting in Huo Jingzhao’s bedchamber instead.
Madam Huo dared not neglect him and immediately led Pei Lianyi to Huo Jingzhao’s room.
Just as Pei Lianyi let out a breath of relief at avoiding that coarse tea, Madam Huo’s next words froze him in his tracks.
“Jingzhao didn’t come back last night. The room is a bit messy, please bear with us, Master Pei…” Madam Huo said apologetically as she unlocked the door with a key.
“Didn’t come back? Where did he go?” Pei Lianyi’s cold pupils contracted sharply. The heat on his body rapidly cooled, filling his clothes with a clammy chill.
“He was working at the wharf,” Madam Huo answered with a smile, not noticing his sudden anxiety.
“All night? Right there by the sea?”
“Yes, this child is particularly hardworking when he works. Master Pei, please sit. I’ll go and call him.” Speaking words of praise for her son, Madam Huo smiled and left, leaving the relatively cramped space to Pei Lianyi.
“So that’s how it is…” Having come this far, Pei Lianyi had no choice but to steel himself and step into the man’s room.
Huo Jingzhao’s bedchamber was built of wood and mud, sealed on all four sides, without even a single window. It could accommodate at most two adult men.
Small as it was, it was neatly arranged with a table, chairs, and a low bed.
Seeing the plain floral patterned mattress on the bed, Pei Lianyi lowered his head, his face flushing faintly.
Born into a high-ranking family, raised and coddled in the depths of a grand estate, he had been bound by all sorts of rules since childhood. Coming to someone else’s bedchamber like this was a first for him.
Thinking of the Ghost-Faced Man’s rude and reckless behavior the previous night, Pei Lianyi’s heart beat even faster.
“Forget it. I’ll just ask him clearly in a moment.” After forcefully suppressing the sudden unease, Pei Lianyi was about to sit down when he noticed the outer garment Huo Jingzhao had changed out of, lying on the cabinet.
If he had really spent the entire night at the seaside, the clothes should carry the salty, briny scent of the sea.
He, who dealt with wharf laborers year-round, knew this better than anyone.
So he stepped forward and picked up the blackish-gray garment, holding it to his nose to smell.
The rough fabric was slightly damp, loose and fluffy in his hand, mixed with the faint scent of the sea breeze.
An overwhelming wave of masculine scent, slightly salty with sweat, flooded his senses. Pei Lianyi’s mind went blank.
At this moment, he was like a fish on a dim deck, disoriented by the tide, momentarily losing himself.
“Smells good, doesn’t it?” A low male voice suddenly sounded right by his ear.
Startled, Pei Lianyi spun around. Meeting that pair of handsome eyes, he instinctively hid the coarse cloth garment behind his back.
