Transmigrated as the Villain and Driven Crazy by the Vengeful Male Lead - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Young Master Lu Is Getting Married. Su Cheyue Has Lost Weight.

The main hall of Qifeng Ferry.

“A-Yao has grown taller.”

Sect Leader Su Xun of the Su family was Su Cheyue’s uncle. His face bore a striking resemblance to Cheyue’s. Sitting beside him was his only son, Su Qingyang.

Lu Qingsong replied awkwardly, “Indeed. It’s a pity Qingcheng is unwell these past two days and cannot come out to greet you personally.”

“No matter,” Su Xun said politely. “The Baoshan Sect has the finest nourishing elixirs and sacred healing springs.”

“The journey to Yangshuo is long and the mountains are high…” Lu Qingsong tried to stall. “I worry my sister’s body cannot handle it. Could we wait a few more days…?”

Su Xun’s eyes were sharp as torches. “Is Lady Lu unwilling?”

Unwilling was an understatement. She was screaming and crying, locking herself in her room, protesting loudly that she wouldn’t marry.

“Both legs crippled, both eyes gone—he’s a useless man! Brother, you want me to marry a cripple!”

Lu Shuyao frowned upon hearing those words.

Su Xun continued, “Sect Leader Lu, our families have been engaged for a long time. I needn’t explain the cause of this Ghost Purgatory disaster. Though Che’er is severely injured, with our sect’s strength, he will soon recover. What exactly is Lady Lu’s concern?”

“…”

“Or perhaps,” Su Xun smiled gently, “the Lu family intends to ‘abandon the bow once the birds are gone’ and break the engagement with the Su family?”

“Absolutely not!” Lu Qingsong explained agitatedly. “Qingcheng is simply overwhelmed by the news of the Second Young Master. She needs time to process…”

“Until when?” Su Xun asked. “To be honest, Che’er has returned with a changed temperament; he refuses to let us near. Since Lady Lu is his fiancée and they are to spend their lives together, perhaps Che’er will be different with her.”

“If Lady Lu returns with us now, they can be married shortly. To have a couple share joys and sorrows and help the ‘Number One Gentleman’ rise again—would that not be a beautiful tale?”

Lu Qingsong had no reply. Su Xun turned kindly toward the youth: “A-Yao, what do you think?”

All eyes shifted. Lu Shuyao didn’t hesitate; he followed his plan: “I’ll go.”

“…?”

The silence in the hall was deafening.

Su Qingyang, sitting next to Su Xun, stared with handsome, wide eyes. “What did you say? You mean you’re going to replace Lu Qingcheng and marry A-Yue?”

“Uh… hmm? Not ‘marry,’ just… go to take care of him. To look after the Second Young Master.”

“Impossible!” Su Qingyang slammed his teacup down. “How could A-Yue marry a man? And a brat whose hair hasn’t even fully grown yet!”

I said I’m not “marrying” him! Does this guy not understand human speech?!

“A-Yang, do not be rude!” Su Xun barked, then turned back to the hall. “So the Lu family’s meaning is: Lady Lu regrets the marriage, but Young Master Lu is willing to take her place, return with us, and live with the Second Young Master?”

Lu Qingsong and Lu Shuyao looked equally pained. That was the meaning, but why did it sound so awkward? Is “poor reading comprehension” hereditary in the Su family?!

The discussion ended on a sour note, but surprisingly, it only took one day for Sect Leader Su to agree.

The condition: Young Master Lu must enter the Su family under the title of a “Male Wife.”

Lu Shuyao was full of question marks. What kind of kink is this? They love marrying men?? He was as straight as a pole!

But the need to lower the Hatred Value was urgent. He had to go. After thinking it over, titles and formats didn’t matter—staying alive did. Besides, in the original book, the Second Young Master had three wives and four concubines; he definitely liked women. Currently, he was “out of commission,” so no “this or that” could happen anyway.

Moreover, if he stayed at Qifeng Ferry, who knew when his aunt would try to lay hands on him again! It’s truly too hard for a boy to protect himself out in the world!

Lu Qingsong’s eyes were red. “Are you truly willing?”

“To share my father’s burdens, I am naturally willing. Besides, my cultivation has fallen behind; going to the Baoshan Sect is my good fortune.” Smiling on the outside, cursing on the inside!

Lu Qingsong gave him a heartfelt embrace. “We depart tomorrow.”

…

The next day was sunny. The Su family’s party prepared to leave Qifeng Ferry.

Lu Shuyao, looking sharp in his purple robes, stared at the bright red bridal sedan nearby. “…Can I just ride a horse or a sword?”

Su Qingyang looked over from his horse. “No.”

“How can Young Master Lu follow us back to the Su family for no reason, and then serve day and night by the Second Young Master’s side without a proper status?”

“…”

The Lu family’s move was essentially a broken engagement, a huge humiliation for the Su family. So, the Su family insisted on giving Lu Shuyao this “status” as payback?

Fine. Forcing the only young master of the Lu family to be “married off” as a wife was indeed a way to return the insult.

The wedding procession set off. They took the land route, passing through various territories. Because the Second Young Master was incapacitated, the Su family decided to keep the wedding simple—no ceremony, no guests. However, this gave every other sect along the way a chance to join in.

People came to congratulate them, throwing candy and sending scrolls. Some rude ones even lifted the sedan curtain to peek in—

“A man?!”

“The Second Young Master is marrying a man—it’s the Young Master from the Lu Sect!”

Lu Shuyao poked his head out and waved. “Hi! Yep, it’s me.”

He was twenty, quite tall, and had to hunch slightly in the sedan. With a high brow and eyes like clear pools, he looked particularly innocent. He was incredibly good-looking, and his penchant for smiling made it hard for people to look away.

“So pretty!” the girls blushed.

“It really is a man…”

“What of it?” Sect Leader Su turned his horse around. “Tell me, which of your families could find a man as beautiful as Young Master Lu?”

The crowd went silent, then chimed in, “True, true…”

Su Xun smiled. “The Baoshan Sect celebrates! Everyone gets a share of spiritual tools and pills!”

“Wow!” The crowd cheered. As expected of the number one sect—very generous!

“The Young Master is indeed handsome, possessing a feminine grace!” “A match made in heaven with Young Master Su! Their future children will surely be peerless beauties!”

…Money really does make the world go ’round, and pills make people talk nonsense.

Amidst the cheering, Su Xun whispered to Su Qingyang, who immediately handed a bright red object into the sedan.

Lu Shuyao looked at it: A bridal veil.

“…………”

…

The journey was long, and Lu Shuyao suffered ten days of public gawking. They arrived at the Baoshan Sect at night. Outer disciples rushed the “bride” through a bath, put him in red wedding robes, covered him with the veil, and shoved him into the bridal chamber like a hot potato.

Decked out in clinking wedding ornaments, Lu Shuyao cursed his luck again.

The room smelled strongly of bitter medicine and was deathly quiet. Lu Shuyao was forced by etiquette to kneel on the red felt rug before the bed. His whole body felt stiff. He was about to ask when he could go to sleep when someone rushed in, shouting: “Second Young Master, the auspicious hour is here! Lift the veil!”

“Huh?” Lu Shuyao hurriedly pulled the veil off himself. “You’re here?”

So this was Su Cheyue’s room.

The room was simple: a long table, a wall of books, a small desk with tea and medicine stoves, and an ancient zither. Quite elegant. However, for the wedding, the room had been draped in gaudy, ugly red cloth.

But what caught Lu Shuyao’s eye most was the figure in red sitting on the bed.

Su Cheyue had lost weight. That was his first thought.

Lu Shuyao tried to sound casual. “Brother Su, out of the ‘prison’? How are you?”

Su Cheyue didn’t answer. His lips were pressed thin, and his eyes were out of focus—he seemed to be looking at him, yet looking at nothing.

“The Second Young Master cannot hear right now,” a young page whispered.

Lu Shuyao remembered: Su Cheyue was currently blind, deaf, and mute.

“Understood,” Lu Shuyao said.

The page placed the ritual “wedding scale” (used to lift the veil) into Su Cheyue’s hand. Su Cheyue felt it, his expression changing subtly. He nodded.

The page shouted to Lu Shuyao, “Young Master, put the veil back on and come closer!”

Lu Shuyao slowly covered his head and shuffled over. The page guided Su Cheyue’s hand; the scale lifted the veil, and their faces were illuminated by the flickering red candles.

The page marveled at how the two were competing in beauty, then continued the ritual: “Fine scenery on a lonely day, frost on the river under the moon! This feeling remains a memory, but a moment of the wedding night is worth a thousand gold! Please drink the nuptial wine and rest well!”

He grabbed Lu Shuyao’s hand, shoved it into Su Cheyue’s, and ran away blushing.

??!!! Why the physical contact?!

Su Cheyue’s palm was ice cold, his long fingers bony. Lu Shuyao’s warm hand felt the chill and he instinctively pulled back. His hand hadn’t been this cold that day in the Ghost Purgatory.

Lu Shuyao stripped off his heavy wedding gear, sat down beside Su Cheyue, and propped his head up to observe him.

“Second Young Master?” “Su Cheyue?” “Brother Su?”

He called several times, but there was no reaction.

Can’t hear, can’t see, can’t move… at least he can’t do anything to me for now.

Lu Shuyao sighed in relief. Exhaustion hit him; he slumped onto the bed. “I’m exhausted.”

The bed was huge. Seeing that Su Cheyue was sitting steadily on one side, Lu Shuyao half-closed his eyes and sank into the warm red quilts. He started to drift off, but before sleeping, there was one more thing he wanted to do.

He rolled over and felt something hard underneath him. Looking down, he saw the bed was covered in red dates, peanuts, and lotus seeds—symbols for “blessings of many children.”

Lu Shuyao stared for a long time, seemingly moved. He murmured, “Fine scenery, a moment worth a thousand gold…”

He looked at Su Cheyue and said softly, “We shouldn’t waste it. Don’t you think so, Second Young Master?”

No one answered. Lu Shuyao didn’t hesitate; he reached out to embrace the man.