To Get Married - Chapter 3

Chapter 3

After a brief moment of joy, Lu Yudong realized that Manzhu’s phone had very few messages.

One was the unsent draft memo, and the other was the rental apartment address sent by someone named “Mu Chensan,” who she assumed was either the landlord or an agent.

The rest were just a few messages about data usage and a city welcome text…

Seeing this, Lu Yudong quickly sat up, closed the phone, and put it back exactly where it had been, not daring to look at anything else.

It was wrong to look through someone else’s phone without permission, especially since this person had a habit of cleaning communication records and must be particularly sensitive about privacy.

This inadvertent mistake made Lu Yudong tense up for a while. Her fingers couldn’t stop kneading each other, and her posture became visibly nervous.

Soon after, Manzhu returned with two bowls of spicy oil wontons.

She said she had taken a walk downstairs and saw a dumpling shop with a long queue and good business. She figured the taste must be good, so she bought it.

In addition to the dumplings, she also bought an order of chicken strips, two cups of milk tea, a few skewers of chicken skin, and roast wings.

Lu Yudong had been eating very bland food while hospitalized and had been craving this kind of rich, spicy food. But remembering the doctor’s instructions before discharge, she looked up at Manzhu, bit her lower lip, and whispered, “Can I eat these now?”

“Eat if you want to. Don’t worry, your body is fine,” Manzhu said.

“Really?” Lu Yudong’s eyes were bright.

“Of course. Didn’t the doctor say your injuries are recovering exceptionally well?” Manzhu sat down by the coffee table, set down the bags of food, and gestured for Lu Yudong to come over.

The child’s wounds were recovering very well and quickly, but it wasn’t because of good dietary restrictions. It was entirely because she had gained a small amount of Manzhu’s yāo power after the Soul-Bond.

Demons don’t worry about dietary restrictions when injured; as long as the food isn’t poisonous, they can eat anything. The yāo power nurtures and protects them anyway.

Manzhu had long noticed that Lu Yudong disliked the clear, bland food, but since the doctors and nurses were just doing their job and being kind, they would always advise against or stop her, making it difficult for Manzhu to bring the kind of food patients shouldn’t eat.

Nearby, there was a Wenhai Experimental Middle School, one of the top junior high schools in Yuanchuan City. Mu Chensan had mentioned the paperwork was almost done, and she could register in a few days, so Manzhu had taken the opportunity to check the route.

When she arrived, it was just before the evening self-study period’s dinner time. She wasn’t allowed into the school, but it was bustling outside.

Across the street from the school were rows of cheap eateries, bookshops, and stationery stores. Just two steps down an alley, there were many sidewalk stalls set up.

The students going in and out of the school were buying this kind of food, so she bought some that matched those children’s tastes.

“I didn’t know if you’d like these,” Manzhu looked up at Lu Yudong sitting on the edge of the bed.

Lu Yudong jumped off the bed, her steps unusually light, and bounded over to the table. She sat down next to Manzhu, eagerly pulling open the bags, and said, “I like everything!”

That night, Lu Yudong ate until her little belly was bulging.

After proactively cleaning up the coffee table, she leaned back on the sofa, watching the evening news while sucking the last few pearls from the bottom of her milk tea, completely forgetting the brief worry she’d had earlier about looking at the phone.

When the news ended, the 8 o’clock slot on TV started playing a currently popular, dramatic idol drama.

Manzhu sat beside Lu Yudong, cracking sunflower seeds and watching with gusto, her emotions fluctuating with the plot.

Finally, when the drama was over, she discussed it with Lu Yudong, still unsatisfied, before picking up her change of clothes and heading into the narrow but blessedly dry/wet separated bathroom.

Lu Yudong sat on the bed, leaning against the window, looking out at the night of this unfamiliar city.

The lights outside weren’t exactly dazzling, but they weren’t sparse either.

The 10 o’clock costume drama was still playing on TV, and the sound of running water from the bathroom behind her—all of it made Lu Yudong feel especially safe and secure.

This was her first night since leaving Jiangzhong, in a small rented room, with someone who was exceptionally good to her.

She still didn’t know how to address that person, just like when they first met two months ago—silly and clumsy, afraid of calling her the wrong name and making her unhappy, yet also afraid that asking directly would be impolite.

She was so terrified of being abandoned that she had always been careful, trying her best to please others.

Only now, truly having a small new home, did she finally feel relieved.

The strange night sky seemed to become beautiful in this moment.

The sound of water in the bathroom suddenly stopped. Before long, Manzhu pushed the door open and slowly walked out.

She was wearing a single layer of thin white inner clothing. The ties of the garment were loosely fastened with two small white bows at the chest and waist. The neckline was slightly open, half-revealing her delicate collarbone.

She tilted her head slightly, gathering her silk-smooth long hair in front of her chest, gently wiping it with a towel while lightly combing it.

Finally, she looked up and dramatically flipped her waist-length hair behind her. Damp strands near her temples clung to her smooth cheek, and droplets of water from the ends of her hair slid down her beautiful neck, slightly dampening the thin fabric of her shirtfront.

Noticing this, she reached up to tuck the hair behind her ear, seeming slightly uncomfortable, and pulled the neckline open a little further.

Some people are simply born with a seductive charm; every movement, every smile, is so captivating.

Lu Yudong snapped out of her daze, quickly reached back, and gently closed the curtains. She then whispered, “Your hair is so long, it will take a long time to dry. Is there a hairdryer in the house?”

“What is that…” Manzhu caught herself mid-sentence. “I still prefer to let it dry naturally.”

She didn’t want the child to know how little she knew about the modern world’s novelties.

Lu Yudong nodded. “That’s true. Mom said using a hairdryer too much can damage your hair.”

The clock ticked. Manzhu looked up at it, then walked over to the sofa and sat down, gently reminding Lu Yudong, who was sitting on the bed, “You should brush your teeth and go to sleep quickly.”

This human child was at the age of growing. Staying up past eleven wouldn’t be good.

“Okay!” Lu Yudong rolled off the bed, put on her slippers, and took light, quick steps past Manzhu.

Inside the closed bathroom, the eleven-year-old child unwrapped her new toothbrush. It was blue and had a cute little cat printed on the bottom.

There was only one mouthwash cup on the sink. She tilted her head in thought for a moment, then picked it up and used it.

After brushing her teeth, Lu Yudong instinctively placed her toothbrush in the cup, just as she used to do at home.

This habitual action made her pause for two seconds. When she regained her senses, she looked at the purple toothbrush lying on the side, pressed her lips together, picked it up, and dropped it into the mouthwash cup as well.

Lu Yudong smiled, washed her face, and hung her small towel next to Manzhu’s.

She stepped back to look at the sink and the towels hanging side-by-side on the wall, leaving the bathroom feeling completely satisfied.

The lights and TV in the living area had been turned off at some point. Manzhu was still sitting on the sofa, drying her hair, having already switched to a new towel.

Lu Yudong tiptoed to Manzhu’s side. Seeing Manzhu look up at her in confusion, she couldn’t help but reach out and gently touch the ink-black long hair. Seeing no displeasure in Manzhu’s eyes, she smiled brightly.

“What is it?” Manzhu asked.

“How long will this take to dry?” Lu Yudong sat down next to Manzhu. The slightly cool long hair slid through her fingers.

She had been rubbing it for a long time; it was damp, but still too wet to sleep on.

Manzhu knew Lu Yudong wanted to wait up for her, so she shook her head and smiled. “It’ll be done soon. You go to sleep first.”

Lu Yudong thought for a moment, then nodded obediently. She climbed back onto the small bed and peered at Manzhu. “Should I… should I sleep on the inside or the outside?”

Manzhu replied, “Either is fine.”

Lu Yudong pressed her lower lip, grabbed the blanket, and carefully rolled to the inner side next to the wall. Her right arm was against the wall, and her small body lay perfectly straight and still, taking up very little space, as if afraid of crowding the other person.

The room was dark and quiet, but she closed her eyes for a long time and still couldn’t fall asleep.

The wooden clock ticked. Lu Yudong couldn’t help but open her eyes, roll over, and call out softly to Manzhu, “Manzhu… Auntie…”

Manzhu was momentarily stunned. She was quite old, but the Demon Clan had long lifespans. She had no relatives or friends left in the deep mountains and had never been married, so while there were many lively younger demons in Shennongjia, none of them had ever called her “Aunt” or “Grandaunt.”

Snapping out of it, she asked, “What’s wrong? Can’t sleep?”

“No, I washed my hair this afternoon, and it’s barely dry. Wiping it like that will take a long time… You should turn on the TV and watch it. Watching TV won’t be so boring,” Lu Yudong whispered. “My bedroom at home used to have a TV. Mom and Dad watched it before bed, and I’m used to it. I’ll be able to sleep.”

Manzhu felt a warmth in her heart upon hearing this. “Then I’ll keep the volume low.”

With that, she picked up the remote control, turned on the TV, and significantly lowered both the volume and the brightness.

After a while, the breathing sounds coming from the bed gradually softened.

The child had fallen asleep peacefully.

Manzhu’s palm flashed with a faint spiritual light, instantly drying the dampness from her hair.

It seems that old friend wasn’t entirely reliable after all. For all his questions, he still forgot a few things.

A hairdryer… she’d have to buy one tomorrow.

She turned off the TV, stood up, and slowly walked to the bed with light steps. She saw that Lu Yudong’s hands were outside the blanket, her arm separated from the wall by only a thin curtain. Her small body was sleeping straight, occupying only a small corner, as if afraid of squishing the other person.

It’s getting cold. The wall must be freezing.

Manzhu gently nudged Lu Yudong further out. Relieved that she hadn’t woken her up, she carefully lay down beside her.

This was the first time in nearly three thousand years that she had shared such a small bed with a human.

The noisy city had fallen quiet at this moment.

The child’s breathing was slow and even, and somehow, it was more calming than the calls of the birds, beasts, and insects in the mountains.