My enemies became my companions

Chapter 686 Consummating the Marriage

Donggong Ruoshu suddenly froze.

The moment Chen Yi's voice reached her ears, even the usually clueless and naive girl felt goosebumps rise on every inch of her skin.

The candlelight flickered, casting a hazy, yellowish glow, and the amber wine added to its rich aroma. Everything in the bridal chamber was perfectly arranged and complete, almost exactly like the bridal chamber that unmarried women imagined when facing marriage with a mixture of fear, shyness, and joy.

"Shu'er, what's wrong?"

And her wonderful husband was gently asking her questions from the side.

Donggong Ruoshu got goosebumps again. She hurriedly took a step back and almost fell to the ground, nearly knocking over the tables and chairs. Chen Yi pulled her up just in time so that she could barely stand.

Feeling the touch on her hand, the young lady of the Eastern Palace was both surprised and frightened.

Chen Yi frowned and said with a gentle reproach, "Why are you so flustered?" Then he leaned close to Donggong Ruoshu's ear and whispered, "You're so clumsy."

The young lady from the Eastern Palace was completely dumbfounded. She knew that sometimes her brain couldn't quite process things, but this wasn't like Chen Yi at all... Goosebumps rose one after another on her skin.

Chen Yi took her hand, raised his cup, and stepped closer. "If you don't understand, I'll teach you. Come, let's drink this cup of nuptial wine, and then we'll consummate our marriage. It'll be very gentle and painless."

Donggong Ruoshu was startled by these words. Ignoring the goosebumps all over her body, she hurriedly asked, "Chen, Chen Yi, how, how did you run into me?"

Upon hearing this, Chen Yi frowned in surprise.

His brows furrowed even more, as if she had asked a very stupid question. Fortunately, that was her nature, and Chen Yi never disliked stupid women.

Intelligent women are often difficult to deal with, while foolish girls can be bullied at will.

On their wedding day, Chen Yi was much more patient and refrained from teasing her. He gently stroked her increasingly cold wrist with his fingertips and said patiently, "Shu'er, are you confused? A ghost marriage, though a marriage between the living and the dead, still requires the act of being husband and wife. If we can't meet, how can we connect through yang energy, how can... you truly become mine?"

A slight smile played on his lips as he said softly, "Of course I'll find a way to run into you."

As soon as the words were spoken, fragments of what Donggong Ruoshu had heard flashed through her mind: red ropes binding spirits, paper money laid on beds, burning incense with rhinoceros horns to communicate with the dead... Those rural tales that she had only thought were stories told by the old women at the courtyard gate now seemed to have come to life, turning into invisible ropes that bound her.

Donggong Ruoshu was startled.
Will she really lose her virginity this time...?

In an instant, memories of the imperial palace in the capital flooded her mind. At that time, she wanted to persuade Chen Yi to stop, but due to a series of unforeseen events, her dress tore. He stared intently at the melon seeds back then!

Thinking of this, Donggong Ruoshu was so frightened that her soul almost dissipated. She suddenly burst out with strength and violently shook off Chen Yi's hand.

"I can't take it anymore! I won't marry you!"

She screamed and slammed her head through the vermilion door, stumbling and rushing into the outside world.

But the palace was no longer the familiar palace. The pillars, lanterns, plaques—everything seemed to be carved from the same piece of dark, black wood, stretching endlessly, layered and overlapping.

She ran desperately, but the bridal chamber behind her was long gone. The scenery on both sides remained unchanged, and only the hollow echo of her own footsteps resounded in the deathly silence.

After running for an unknown amount of time, almost exhausted, she finally saw a different, slightly taller door, like a glimmer of hope leading to the outside world.

With her last bit of strength, she lunged forward and shoved him away violently.

The familiar glow of red candlelight washed over her; the wedding tent with the character for "double happiness," the nuptial cup, the jade dragon and phoenix carvings… She had stumbled back into the bridal chamber adorned with the character for "double happiness," even the swirling arc of the two cups of wine on the table was exactly the same. Donggong Ruoshu froze completely, her blood running cold. She took a few steps back, about to turn and run.

Before she could turn around, she bumped into a solid chest.

Chen Yi was right behind him.

A corner of the man's uniform came into view. Chen Yi was very close, looking down at her with the same smile on his face, as if he had never left.

His voice was gentle yet tinged with laughter, but every word was chilling:
"Shu'er, this won't do. Back then in the capital, I was the one who ran away from your marriage. Today, it's time for you to run away."

"When will this cycle of revenge end?"

Donggong Ruoshu's face was stiff as could be.

"Now that you've seduced me, do you think you can escape?"

Even the little fox couldn't escape back then. In the end, she had to obediently submit and become his concubine, letting him play with her and make endless demands. All she could do was beg for mercy in a soft voice.

As for those subtle attempts to manipulate me later on, ha, it was all on my own initiative; I wasn't really being manipulated by her.

As for a clumsy girl like Donggong Ruoshu, there was even less of a way to deal with her.

Donggong Ruoshu had just recovered from her stiffness when she immediately realized that if she didn't try to make a move now, it would be too late. The deed would be done, and when she returned to Western Jin in a few years, she would probably be holding a child who looked like Qin Yue. How would she explain that to her father and family?
However, as soon as the thought arose, Chen Yi seemed to have already seen through her mind. With a slight movement of his fingertips, wisps of sword energy silently flowed into her acupoints, sealing off the vital channels through which true energy flowed. Donggong Ruoshu was unable to muster any strength. She still wanted to escape, but Chen Yi scooped her up from under her knees and carried her in his arms.

Perhaps because Chen Yi used too much force, the large melon, which was covered by the wedding dress, bounced up twice before smoothing down.

Donggong Ruoshu raised her head, wanting to speak, but Chen Yi pressed her acupoint to silence her, and said softly with a smile, "Women always say they don't want to, I thought Shu'er would be different. It's okay, don't be afraid, it won't hurt."

His words and his expression were all sincere and earnest, as if this were truly the perfect dream he had longed for and painstakingly cultivated.

Donggong Ruoshu was speechless, her eyes widening in astonishment, but no matter how wide she stared, it was no use. Chen Yi had already carried her back into the bridal chamber and gently placed her on the couch.

Immediately, with slight movements of her hands, she slowly, bit by bit, unbuttoned the shirt.

With a snap, freed from its restraints, the melon, seeds and all, bounced once before smoothly sliding to either side.

The silly girl was completely dumbfounded, her eyes wide open as wide as they could go.

Melon seeds again…

Thinking they were all ghosts, untouchable and unreachable, Chen Yi couldn't get his hands on them no matter what he did...

The moment those cool fingertips touched her skin, Donggong Ruoshu's mind went blank.

The silly girl's mind couldn't process it anymore, so she took a deep breath and decided to stop trying.

Neither good nor bad
Since they want to consummate their marriage,
If it's time to consummate the marriage, then it's time to consummate the marriage...

(End of this chapter)