In a split second, a thought, both absurd and reasonable, flashed through Li Wanming's mind—could it be that he had recognized that this wedding veil wasn't embroidered by her and was trying to figure out how to mock her?!
...
Damn it!
Li Wanming was instantly consumed by rage.
I've been starving and on tenterhooks here, while you've been hemming and hawing for ages. And now you even dare to look down on me?
A sudden surge of nameless anger welled up in her heart. Li Wanming raised her hand, tore off the red wedding veil on her head, grabbed Xiao Jingnan's lapel, and roared, "If you dare to mock that this wedding veil wasn't embroidered by me, I'll skin you alive!"
Xiao Jingnan was still hesitating when he suddenly met her furious gaze. Surprised, the wedding scale in his hand froze in mid-air.
After a long moment of stunned silence, he suddenly smiled. His dark pupils were filled with undisguised doting and helplessness. "It's not very appropriate to skin the groom on the wedding night, is it?"
Li Wanming roared, "You don't know how much I suffered to embroider this. All ten of my fingers were pricked! I had no other choice but to use my eldest sister's embroidery as a substitute!"
Angrily, she balled up the wedding veil and threw it aside. Fuming, she said, "What a stupid rule. Why does a wedding have to use the bride's embroidery? I think this rule was specifically made to torture brides!"
A mischievous glint flashed in Xiao Jingnan's eyes. He reached out and gently grasped her wrist. His fingertips lightly brushed against her palm. His voice was low and gentle, like a gentle breeze rippling the pond, tinged with a hint of playfulness and pity.
"Yes, yes, it's all my fault. I've made my wife suffer... Does it still hurt? Do you need to apply more medicine?"
His eyes were burning with intensity, and his smile was full of tenderness, as if he had crushed the spring scenery of an entire pond into his eyes. The endearment "wife" from his lips carried an unprecedented intimacy and ambiguity, making Li Wanming's ears turn red and her face flush instantly.
She quickly withdrew her hand and stammered, "N-no, it's fine! It's been healed for a long time. There's no need for medicine..."
Xiao Jingnan let out another soft laugh. He put the wedding scale aside, gently lifted his robe, and sat down beside her.
The faint smell of wine mixed with the agarwood scent he usually wore wafted over faintly, like steaming spirits, making Li Wanming's face as red as rouge.
Her heart began to pound wildly again.
This wasn't a fake marriage. A husband and wife had to do what they were supposed to do...
She knew it, but she was still nervous.
Strangely enough, when she and Liu Yiyi huddled together before the wedding, reading all kinds of strange storybooks, neither of them was shy.
They could even seriously comment on how one story was not vivid enough and another was not well-written. But now that it was time to face the real thing, she was in such a panic.
Li Wanming tightened her fingers and constantly gave herself a mental pep talk in her heart: Don't be nervous, don't be nervous, I'm not nervous... Bah! It must be because I've been living under the same roof as Xiao Jingnan for too long. We're too familiar with each other. That's why I'm so at a loss when we're suddenly going to be intimate!
It's all his fault!
"Wife..."
Xiao Jingnan leaned over slightly and was about to say something when Li Wanming suddenly sprang up from the edge of the bed like a startled shrimp. "W-we still have to drink the nuptial wine! My mother specifically told me at home... We can't forget it!"
She grabbed the jade flagon on the table and began to pour the wine in a flurry.
Seeing this, Xiao Jingnan's smile deepened, but he didn't expose her. He just slowly stood up, walked to the table, and after she finished pouring the wine, picked up the pair of exquisite nuptial wine cups. "Alright, then let's do as my wife says and drink the nuptial wine first."
Li Wanming breathed a sigh of relief when she saw that he finally left the bed. But when she looked up and met his smiling eyes, her heart started beating uncontrollably again.
She bit her lip and took the wine cup from his hand bravely, but her fingertips accidentally touched his. She immediately retracted her hand as if she had been burned.
Xiao Jingnan took in all her reactions and the corner of his lips lifted slightly, but he didn't say much. He just gently raised his wine cup, intertwined his arm with hers, and said in a low voice, "Drinking the nuptial wine, we'll be united in heart forever."
Li Wanming lowered her head, not daring to look at him. She only felt the fragrance of the wine assailing her nostrils, mixing with the agarwood scent on him, making her feel a little dizzy.
The strong liquor went down her throat, spicy with a hint of sweetness, as if it had set her heart on fire.
Finally, after finishing the nuptial wine, Li Wanming quickly scurried back to the table on the other side. She picked up the scissors on the small tray and grinned stupidly at Xiao Jingnan. "The hair-tying ceremony, there's still the hair-tying ceremony..."
Saying that, she pulled out a lock of her hair, cut it off with the silver scissors, and then looked up at Xiao Jingnan. Seeing that he was still sitting at the table, looking at her with a smile and not saying a word, she had to slowly walk over and gently lift a lock of his hair with her fingertips.
Xiao Jingnan tilted his head slightly and cooperated obediently.
Li Wanming smelled the fragrance of the strong liquor mixed with the agarwood scent from his collar. His warm breath brushed against her earlobe, creating an indescribable sweetness.
Her palms were instantly sweaty, and the clicking sound of the silver scissors was especially clear in the quiet night.
She saw her black hair intertwined with his in her palm.
Both were black hair, but his hair had a cold blue sheen like a crow's feather under the candlelight.
When the two locks of hair were tied into a love knot with a red string and stuffed into a brocade bag, Xiao Jingnan suddenly reached out and held her trembling fingertips. The embroidery of the ruyi pattern on the brocade bag pressed against their overlapping palm prints, and the densely woven gold thread patterns on his cuffs were reflected in the flickering candle flame.
"Is my wife still scared?"
He asked, his voice like a feather caressing the tip of her heart.
"Who... who's scared!" Li Wanming quickly jumped back and stuffed the brocade bag into the small box on the table. "This has to be kept by Chuntao. My mother specifically told me to do so!"
After sealing the brocade bag, she wasn't done yet. She tilted her head and murmured, "It seems... there's still something else?" After a moment of confusion, she suddenly slapped her forehead and her eyes lit up. "Oh, right, dumplings!"
Li Wanming seemed to have finally found her target. She quickly walked to the table, picked up a white dumpling from the bowl that the wedding attendant had just brought in, took a big bite, and then spat it into the copper basin beside her.
"Raw!" After spitting it out, she shouted loudly with full energy, as if she had accomplished a great feat.
Then, she covered her burning cheeks and let out a long sigh of relief. "Oh my god, I've finally finished everything..."
At this moment, Li Wanming lay on the table, exuding an indescribable sense of relaxation. Even the corners of her eyes and eyebrows came to life.
Xiao Jingnan's eyebrows twitched slightly. After holding back for a long time, he finally slapped his thigh and burst out laughing.