Side Story One: The Grand Wedding (3)
“Mm.”
A low voice tinged with tears sounded beside her ear. A cautious kiss fell upon her lips, and something seemed to land on her eyelashes, leaving them damp.
After all this time, why had Mr. Dragon still made no progress? The secret kisses he had given the wood-spirit bud in the room had been more forceful than the way he was kissing her now. →_→
Mu Wanwan sensed that something was not quite right. She tightened her arms around his waist and, for once, took the initiative.
The dragon offered no resistance at all. He obediently followed her movements, responding only with the utmost gentleness and care, as though the slightest force would cause her to disappear.
The kiss was lingering and tender. He was even gentler than before, so much so that Mu Wanwan failed to notice the slightly aggrieved position he was standing in.
From a distance, Jiu Qing glanced in their direction. After a single look, she immediately withdrew her gaze and blocked Hai Jiu, who had come upstairs hoping to see what Mu Wanwan truly looked like—
The dragon was bending awkwardly at the waist, standing there rather miserably as Wanwan gripped his clothes and kissed him. He did not even dare straighten his body. It would be better not to let anyone else witness something so embarrassing.
Only after a long while did the two finally separate. Looking at the tears glimmering in his eyes, Mu Wanwan smiled.
“Why are you crying again?”
Mr. Dragon turned his face slightly away. He did not want her to know that he had been afraid she had lost her memories. Even he found it rather embarrassing.
However…
Thankfully, she was all right.
She had not forgotten him either.
His large palm caressed her cheek as he rested his forehead against hers. His eyelashes brushed against Mu Wanwan’s eyelids, making them itch.
“Beautiful.”
Mu Wanwan smiled. “Really?”
“Mm.”
After answering, Mr. Dragon smiled as well, revealing the faint dimple beside his cheek.
…
After talking for a while, the two began walking back towards the room.
Mr. Dragon held her hand. Only belatedly did he notice the clothes she was wearing, and a trace of embarrassment appeared in his dark eyes.
Feeling somewhat dazed, he thought he probably understood why Madam had refused to come out of the wood spirit.
He had not been thoughtful enough.
He tightened his grip on Mu Wanwan’s hand slightly. When she raised her eyes to look at him, he pressed his lips together.
“When we return…”
Mu Wanwan looked puzzled. “Hm?”
“I’ll buy you lots of beautiful dresses.”
As soon as he finished speaking, his face began to feel hot, and the tips of his exposed ears turned bright red.
“Mm.”
Mu Wanwan blushed as well, warmth spreading around her eyes.
Mr. Dragon had noticed the clothes she was wearing. Did that mean he had guessed why she had refused to come out earlier?
Mu Wanwan felt rather embarrassed.
No, no. She had to adapt to this innocent and awkward dragon as quickly as possible. They still had a very long road ahead of them. Between the two of them, at least one person had to be less shy.
When they entered the room, the flames within the barrier were still burning. However, they had become much smaller than before, and the object inside could now be vaguely seen.
Mu Wanwan frowned as she looked at the tiny shape. Remembering how Chirpy had looked during the great battle, she placed her hand against the barrier with an aching heart.
“When will Mengmeng be able to come out?”
“Yu’er still needs several days before he can transform into a phoenix egg again. After that, it will take several more months for him to hatch.”
Mr. Dragon placed his large palm against the barrier as well.
Mu Wanwan: “……”
Still clinging to the hope that she might be able to persuade Mr. Dragon to change the name he had given Mengmeng, she asked uncertainly,
“Yu’er?”
“Long Mengyu. Mengmeng’s proper name.”
Mr. Dragon looked at her with sparkling eyes.
“Madam, doesn’t it sound wonderful?”
Faced with such an unfairly expectant gaze, Mu Wanwan remained silent for two seconds.
*Mengmeng, your mother is sorry. There will be plenty of time in the future. Once you grow older, you can change it yourself.*
Under Mr. Dragon’s hopeful gaze, she nodded against her conscience.
“It… it sounds quite nice.”
And so, the large fluffy bird still undergoing nirvana was sold out by his own mother. →_→
…
The two watched Mengmeng for a while, then hugged and kissed again. By the time they returned to their senses, the sky was almost dark.
Yifa City, which had not seen clear skies for a long time, was unexpectedly greeted by a brief sunset.
Orange-red sunlight broke through the thick layers of cloud, outlining Yifa’s dilapidated buildings in gold.
“Wanwan, are the two of you coming downstairs to have dinner with everyone?”
Jiu Qing’s voice came from outside the door.
Mu Wanwan called back in agreement, then took Mr. Dragon’s hand and led him downstairs.
When they descended the staircase, the room—which had previously been lively and almost completely full—suddenly fell silent as soon as everyone saw them.
Mu Wanwan was momentarily bewildered.
Why had everyone stopped talking the instant they appeared?
“Sit over here.” Uncle Chen waved them over and pointed to the two empty seats at his table. Mu Wanwan and Mr. Dragon went over and sat down.
Chi Yan looked at Mu Wanwan’s bewildered expression and shook her head helplessly. Everyone had fallen silent not because of Mu Wanwan, but because of the dragon holding her hand!
Before Mu Wanwan woke up, that ferocious dragon had spent three or four hours “hunting” every day. Most of the people here were demons, so they normally thought little of hunting.
However, one day, a demonic creature nearing the sixth rank had assumed its true form and was absorbing demonic energy near the abyss. It personally witnessed the dragon effortlessly capture a powerful seventh-rank abyssal monster, slice off the most valuable tail on its body, then drag it away as though it were nothing. The sight nearly frightened its soul out of its body.
After that, everyone fully understood. The man before them was many times stronger than even a seventh-rank abyssal monster—the strongest being on the continent, capable of scattering their souls with a single finger.
Whatever camaraderie they had once shared on the battlefield crumbled into dust before such overwhelming power.
Fortunately, Mu Wanwan had no idea that the spiritual energy she and Mengmeng had been absorbing came from such hideous abyssal monsters.
There was also the matter of the many valuable jade slips the dragon had previously exchanged for at the Xianqing Pavilion. No one knew what he intended to use them for.
Chi Yan shook her head and called for the dishes to be served. The hall soon became lively again.
The dishes brought out were all rich in pure spiritual energy and contained almost no impurities—the sort of food Mu Wanwan could never have afforded in the past. Her current body was also badly lacking in spiritual energy, and the food tasted excellent, so she ate quite happily.
Mr. Dragon, however, was probably unaccustomed to eating with other people. He barely touched his chopsticks. He sat extremely close to her, their legs pressed together, their body heat passing through the thin fabric between them.
After noticing her glance several times at a plate of stir-fried fourth-rank spirit beef, Mr. Dragon stretched out his long arm and picked up a piece she could not reach. His leg nudged hers.
Mu Wanwan turned towards him. Meeting his gaze, she felt a sweetness bloom in her heart and held out her bowl.
“Eat.”
Mr. Dragon suppressed the upward curve of his lips and instead brought the meat directly to hers.
Mu Wanwan felt a little helpless. She could only lean forward and bite the piece of meat, accidentally brushing her lips against the chopsticks.
Her face flushed slightly, but Mr. Dragon looked considerably more pleased. With his lips curved into a smile, he leisurely picked up a piece of spirit beef he had not originally intended to eat and placed it in his mouth.
Then he picked up another piece and repeated the same trick, holding it beside Mu Wanwan’s lips.
Jiu Qing, who had witnessed everything from across the table: “……”
She was going blind!!
Jiu Qing desperately wanted to complain. She had intended to exchange a knowing look with the flower demon, only to discover that Uncle Chen and Aunt Hua were whispering sweetly to each other.
Jiu Qing: “……”
There were five people at the table, and she was the only single fox. 🙂
After the meal, before everyone had even left, Mr. Dragon took Mu Wanwan’s hand and stood. At some point, numerous jade slips had appeared in his hand. With a sweep of his sleeve, one landed before every person present.
“When Madam and I hold our grand wedding, all of you must attend.”
His voice was cool and clear, yet it could not conceal the joy and pride beneath it. It echoed through the hall, every word perfectly audible.
Mu Wanwan was stunned by this sudden declaration, which sounded almost like a proposal. Her heartbeat gradually quickened. He had asked her before whether she would be willing to marry him once he returned.
But…
Wasn’t this moving a little too quickly?
Everyone picked up the valuable jade slips imbued with Mr. Dragon’s power. After briefly examining the marriage announcement and wedding invitation inside, they finally recovered and began offering overlapping congratulations. At the same time, they cast Mu Wanwan looks filled with both envy and sympathy.
Marrying such a ferocious yet romantic, powerful and wealthy husband truly left others with mixed feelings.
Under everyone’s gazes, the dragon appeared to become overly excited and suddenly swept the still-dazed Mu Wanwan into his arms.
She looked into his faintly golden eyes and clearly understood the emotions within them—
This time, their union would receive everyone’s blessings.
It would not be like when they first met, when he had lain paralysed in bed, covered in blood and mud, broken and wretched, while her fair hands carefully tended every scar upon his body.
It would not be like when they had been forcibly imprisoned in that cramped courtyard, with him still far from recovered and their future seemingly without light, while she had to calculate every coin merely to buy slightly better spiritual rice.
Nor would it be like their time spent fleeing, when shadows constantly loomed above them and threatened to tear them apart, forcing them to endure the heart-rending fear of losing each other at any moment.
He was no longer that small, helpless dragon.
At last, he had the power to give her happiness.
Mu Wanwan no longer cared about feeling embarrassed. She wrapped her arms around his neck and kissed the dimple beside his lips—
Hardship would never separate them.
It would only carve and refine their love.
She had always believed that with all her heart.
…
The first to propose leaving Yifa were Hai Jiu, Hai Xize, and the others. Hai Ren said that he had received some news from the merfolk kingdom and needed to hurry back to deal with it.
Hai Xize’s condition had also improved considerably. Most of the curses on his body had come from demonic creatures, and after two doses of Mu Wanwan’s light essence and several medicinal pills, they had weakened by nearly half. He was no longer in any serious danger.
He had wanted to leave long ago, but Hai Jiu had insisted on waiting until Mu Wanwan awakened.
Now that she had seen her yesterday, there was no longer any need for them to remain here.
“You need to treat him well.” Even at a time like this, Hai Jiu still refused to speak honestly. She said to Mu Wanwan, “Otherwise, I might steal such an outstanding dragon away from you. I like him very much.”
Having already become familiar with her and knowing that she actually meant, *You two must get along well and grow old together*, Jiu Qing fell silent.
“……”
Mu Wanwan, however, did not understand her well enough yet. She thought Hai Jiu was provoking her. Faced with an unrivalled beauty who might harbour thoughts about her husband, Mu Wanwan’s attitude became unusually firm.
“I’ll treat **my** dragon very well.”
She deliberately emphasised the word *my*. A certain dragon standing not far away immediately turned red at the ears. Warmth surged through his heart, and he even thought with secret delight—
*So Madam gets jealous too. How adorable. >////<*
Hai Jiu raised an eyebrow and was about to say something else when Jiu Qing, unable to watch any longer, pushed her arm.
“All right, hurry up and leave.”
“Hmph. I know the two of you have known each other for a long time, but you still won’t take my side.” Hai Jiu turned away in a huff and left behind a harsh warning. “Don’t come looking for me beneath the sea next time. I won’t pay any attention to you.”
Jiu Qing: “……”
After Hai Xize and his group became the first to depart, the demonic creatures and warriors began leaving one after another.
Feng left during the night on the following day. He told no one before departing. Just as quietly as he had arrived, he slipped away without a sound.
In fact, because he had arrived alongside the combined dragon and witch armies, Mu Wanwan did not even know that he had ever come.
Like the sound of his name, he was a gentle breeze.
By the third day, even Uncle Chen and the others were preparing to leave.
Jiu Qing jokingly asked whether Mu Wanwan wanted to leave with them now. The demon clan could serve as her maiden family, so perhaps she should return home and stay with them for a while before the wedding, leaving her future husband to wait.
Mu Wanwan declined, torn between laughter and helplessness.
Mr. Dragon had said that there were many things near the abyss that would benefit Mengmeng’s nirvana. Until Mengmeng transformed back into a phoenix egg, the two of them would have to remain here.
“All right.” Jiu Qing secretly pulled Mu Wanwan aside and slipped something into her hand. Lowering her voice, she said, “Dragons can be rather ferocious. This is extremely useful, so keep it.”
Mu Wanwan lowered her head and glanced at the small box in her hand.
Suddenly, she no longer wanted to know what was inside.
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