Qi Xu looked over following the sound and saw that the Stinky Fortune-Teller was wearing a yellow Daoist robe with a mask resembling a ferocious ghost on his face, yet he earnestly tried to persuade the Ghost Bride in front of him.
“It was you who said that we had to perform the wedding rites. What’s wrong with what I’ve done?” The Ghost Bride was clearly displeased upon hearing the Stinky Fortune-Teller try to stop it. It put on a sullen face, which actually resembled Xia Zhiming quite a bit.
The Stinky Fortune-Teller glanced at Qi Xu before continuing to persuade the Ghost Bride: “In worldly matters, there must always be mutual consent. If she is willing, well, that would be the best, wouldn’t it? Let this poor Daoist persuade her. She still has so many friends here, so she will surely agree in the end.”
“Then make her agree now. Otherwise, I’ll kill one of her three friends every hour!”
Upon hearing the Ghost Bride’s words, Qi Xu’s three roommates immediately turned pale. Qi Xu clenched her teeth so hard they nearly shattered. She wanted to hurl some harsh words, as the Ghost Bride clearly wouldn’t respond to soft tactics, and if she didn’t speak up now, there might not be another chance.
However, as Qi Xu glanced around, she spotted an unexpected person.
After the Stinky Fortune-Teller stepped out from the crowd, the area where he emerged wasn’t blocked, so from behind, she vaguely caught sight of a corner of pink fabric and a somewhat familiar Fox Mask.
—It was Xia Zhiming!
At that moment, Qi Xu’s heart pounded fiercely, but her whole body involuntarily relaxed a bit. She had known Xia Zhiming wouldn’t abandon her—this proved it! Though she didn’t know why Xia Zhiming hadn’t stepped forward earlier to save her, she must have her own plans!
No matter what, confirming that Xia Zhiming was present finally allowed Qi Xu’s suspended heart to settle.
No problem, there definitely wouldn’t be any problem!
The Stinky Fortune-Teller then had the Paper Effigies take Qi Xu down first while he stayed behind to talk with the Ghost Bride for quite some time. Qi Xu returned to that bridal chamber, where the dragon-and-phoenix candles still burned, occasionally emitting popping sounds as the wax melted.
Qi Xu sat there, lost in thought about many things. For instance, how to rescue her friends and those innocent passersby; for instance, why the Ghost Bride insisted on forcing her into the wedding rites, especially the couple’s bows to each other. Moreover, from the few words she had just overheard between them, it was clearly the Stinky Fortune-Teller who had taught the Ghost Bride to make her perform the rites with it.
Qi Xu sat for a good while without knowing what was happening outside. The Paper Effigies had all left, leaving her alone. She cautiously searched the room, looking left and right, but found no way out. The doors and windows were all sealed tight, leaving her no opportunity.
She found a stool to sit on and then began examining the Talisman Wedding Dress she wore. The light had been too dim before, so Qi Xu hadn’t seen it clearly. After the Ghost Bride’s reminder, she now flipped it open under the candlelight and examined the inside.
As the Ghost Bride had said, the inner side was covered in eerie patterns painted with dark gold pigment. Qi Xu tried to take off the Talisman Wedding Dress, but strangely, even though she had removed it, the moment she blinked, it was back on her body.
It was odd, but Daoists and ghosts both had many bizarre techniques, so this wasn’t too surprising.
Qi Xu propped her chin on her hand and, for the moment, couldn’t think of any solution.
Just then, Xia Zhiming’s voice came from outside. It was very soft; if the surroundings hadn’t been so quiet, Qi Xu wouldn’t have heard it at all.
“Qi Xu.”
The voice startled Qi Xu. She jumped to her feet and rushed to the door. Even through the door, she felt like crying: “Why did you take so long to come?”
Xia Zhiming ignored the slight sob in Qi Xu’s voice and simply said, “Look inside the door. There should be a hair wedged in the door crack. Remove that hair, and then the door can be opened.”
Qi Xu followed Xia Zhiming’s instructions, searching left and right until she finally found the inconspicuous hair in the door crack. Without Xia Zhiming’s reminder, Qi Xu never would have guessed that such a tiny hair was what kept her from opening the door.
After Qi Xu pulled out the hair, the door indeed loosened. Xia Zhiming pushed the door open and entered. Before Qi Xu could say a word, she shoved her backward and quickly closed the door. She cautiously glanced outside, as if someone were chasing her.
Pushed back by her, Qi Xu’s eyes filled with shock before she fell silent.
Xia Zhiming explained over there, “There’s a huge problem here. It took me a great deal of effort to reach this place. Let me ask you—did you perform the wedding rites with that Ghost Bride?”
Qi Xu looked at her for a moment, then shook her head: “No.”
Xia Zhiming nodded: “Good that you didn’t. You absolutely cannot perform the rites with that Ghost Bride.”
Seeing her say that, Qi Xu simply asked, “Why does it insist on dragging me into the rites?”
“There are many reasons for that. I’ll explain everything to you once we leave here. For now, don’t ask about it.”
With Xia Zhiming saying so, Qi Xu could only nod and say “Okay.” With that topic ended, Qi Xu asked again, “What about my roommates? How can we rescue them?”
“Colleagues from the Third Bureau are providing support outside. Once we handle things here, we can save them quickly.”
“Oh.”
With that, the conversation stalled again. Xia Zhiming seemed very busy as she inspected the room thoroughly. Only after a long while did she come over to Qi Xu: “They definitely won’t let you go. Soon, that fortune-telling Daoist will come to find you and use your roommates’ lives to threaten and tempt you into performing the rites with the Ghost Bride.”
“I have a method. I don’t know if you’re willing.”
“Tell me.”
Seeing how agreeable Qi Xu was, Xia Zhiming smiled: “It might sound a bit strange, but—perform the rites with me first. Once we’ve done that and informed heaven and earth, even if it forces another rite later, it won’t count.”
Upon hearing Xia Zhiming’s words, Qi Xu revealed a surprised expression, then shook her head vigorously like a rattle-drum, her voice even carrying a hint of refusal: “No way. We’re both girls—how could we perform wedding rites?”
Xia Zhiming’s expression stiffened briefly at Qi Xu’s refusal. After a moment, she pursed her lips and said, “This is just a stopgap measure. It’s not a real marriage, so don’t worry.”
“No, no, absolutely not.”
Qi Xu still refused.
Because—the person in front of her definitely wasn’t Xia Zhiming.
Qi Xu had a radar for Xia Zhiming. Although she had only heard the voice at first without seeing the person and thus mistakenly thought it was Xia Zhiming outside the door, and the later instructions on opening the door further subconsciously made her think “As expected of Xia Zhiming, so capable.”
But when “she” pushed open the door and shoved Qi Xu, she knew that no matter what, the person before her wasn’t Xia Zhiming.
The subsequent words and actions from “Xia Zhiming” only confirmed this—she absolutely wasn’t.
Think about it: how would the real Xia Zhiming react to Qi Xu’s “Why did you take so long”?
She would probably glare at Qi Xu while saying, “This lady coming to save you at all is already damn good, and you’re still picky?” Let alone patiently saying she’d explain everything clearly after the matter ended.
No way—that was completely out of character for her.
Xia Zhiming was a riddle person through and through. A riddle person would never explain clearly to Qi Xu; at most, she’d say “Figure it out yourself.”
Impersonating someone can’t deviate too much from character, or others will spot the fake in seconds.
At this moment, Qi Xu also suspected the identity of the “Xia Zhiming” before her—it was probably the Ghost Bride, who had been pestering her to marry. Now disguised as Xia Zhiming to wed her, that must have been the Stinky Fortune-Teller’s idea.
Come to think of it, the Ghost Bride’s earlier address to the Stinky Fortune-Teller had been far too friendly—not Xia Zhiming’s style at all.
Even the final line about “girls can’t marry” fell flat.
If it were the real Xia Zhiming, she would first size Qi Xu up and down a few times before sneering, “This lady deigning to wed you should make you thrilled. Wasn’t it you clinging to me? Now playing pure—playing your dad, are you?”
Seeing Qi Xu unmoved, the Ghost Bride started to falter. After a long pause, wearing Xia Zhiming’s face, it suddenly put on a shy demeanor: “If it’s you, faking the rites wouldn’t be impossible.”
“…” Qi Xu nearly broke out in goosebumps. Xia Zhiming wasn’t without such shy expressions either—after much intimacy, when her lips were moist, her cheeks would flush red, looking bashful.
But Xia Zhiming’s shyness wasn’t like this. Her eyes would widen, resembling a bluffing kitten, glaring resentfully at her as if she had committed some heinous crime.
Her bashfulness always carried dominance.
It was completely different from what the Ghost Bride showed.
Thinking about it, Xia Zhiming’s shy expression moved Qi Xu’s heart even more. She recalled Xia Zhiming’s face again and began to zone out. Qi Xu wasn’t worried that Xia Zhiming hadn’t come, because that fleeting glimpse earlier was definitely her.
Her radar for Xia Zhiming was spot on.
The Ghost Bride, seeing her like this, fumed inwardly. It furrowed its brows, its tone turning sour: “What exactly will it take for you to wed me?!”
Oh, that did give a bit of a Xia Zhiming vibe.
With the red candles flickering in the bridal chamber, her angry expression even made Qi Xu feel for a moment like she was about to wed Xia Zhiming. Qi Xu inwardly scorned herself for it, then secretly savored a little thrill. She just couldn’t let Xia Zhiming know—if she found out Qi Xu was using a ghost as a stand-in for her, she could kill both Qi Xu and the ghost.
The Ghost Bride seemed to realize its attitude wasn’t good and looked downcast. After a while, it reverted to a normal expression. It said, “Stop fooling around. Do you think I don’t know what you feel about me?”
Hearing the Ghost Bride say that, Qi Xu actually felt quite embarrassed. She had some inkling that the Ghost Bride couldn’t possibly resemble Xia Zhiming this much by coincidence—she had even mistaken Xia Zhiming’s back before. Perhaps the Ghost Bride truly had the ability to discern what others loved and impersonate it.
But having it pointed out like this brought back that “forced outing” embarrassment for Qi Xu.
