Chapter 45: My Love, My Husband

During these two days at the bamboo courtyard, Liu Fuying noticed that the guards outside no longer frequently came in to check as they had before.

This was certainly a good thing.

Yet, holding the wedding dress, Liu Fuying did not seem particularly happy.

Because Pei Zhouwu could neither take off his clothes nor put them on—wouldn’t this wedding dress just go to waste?

For her, it didn’t matter much. Her goal wasn’t truly to marry him; she just had to keep up appearances, pretending to feel regretful for Pei Zhouwu.

“Why didn’t I think of this yesterday?”

Frowning, she sighed, holding the wedding dress as she sat down by the bed.

“Didn’t you think of it either?” She looked up to ask Pei Zhouwu, who stood before her.

He raised an eyebrow, wearing an indifferent expression, and nodded in reply, “I did.”

“Then why didn’t you remind me? Or were you afraid I’d be sad or disappointed and deliberately didn’t say anything? Did you think that even if we bought a wedding dress and couldn’t wear it, we could just hang it up as a decoration for the occasion?”

Pei Zhouwu, however, only smiled mysteriously without answering.

Outside the window, the sky had already darkened. After dinner earlier, Liu Fuying had originally planned to change into the wedding dress for the ceremony.

Now that the dress couldn’t be worn, she sighed in frustration.

Just as she was feeling displeased, Pei Zhouwu turned and walked behind the bamboo cabinet. He gently moved it aside, then reached behind it, feeling along the back of the cabinet.

Before long, he stood up and returned.

Standing before Liu Fuying, he extended his hand from beneath his sleeve. In his palm was a stick of incense.

Her brows furrowed, and Liu Fuying sprang to her feet.

“This is the…”

The knockout incense!

The same knockout incense that had severely injured Pei Zhouwu last time.

Looking closely, faint traces of blood still clung to the incense.

“Last time, that guard surnamed Yang used knockout incense against me. During the struggle, another stick fell from his pocket, and I hid it.”

Liu Fuying couldn’t help but click her tongue in surprise.

Last time, she had spread a rumor in Shangjing City that someone saw a stick of knockout incense fall from the body of a dead guard. The uproar that followed led the emperor to send investigators, ultimately clearing Pei Zhouwu’s name.

She never expected that a guard had actually dropped a stick of knockout incense.

The only difference was that the incense had fallen right under Pei Zhouwu’s nose.

“You… what are you planning to do?”

Liu Fuying’s heart raced, unsure whether from excitement or fear.

Behind her, the half-open window was pushed wider by the wind, and the rustling of bamboo leaves seemed to fuel the pounding of her heart.

Pei Zhouwu withdrew his gaze from the wind-blown window and gave her a reassuring smile. “Wait for me to return.”

It was as if he had been waiting for this very gust of wind.

With that, he turned and walked out the door.

Liu Fuying set down the wedding dress and hurried to the doorway to watch. She saw him first head to the kitchen at the front, then, covering his mouth and nose with his sleeve, disappear into the small bamboo grove ahead.

A bonfire burned in the guard camp, making the surroundings appear even darker.

From that direction, it would be difficult to spot anyone lurking in the shadows, let alone Pei Zhouwu hidden behind the bamboo grove.

The wind blowing from the pond was steady and gentle, carrying forward continuously.

The knockout incense was potent. Last time, Liu Fuying had only caught a whiff of the already burned-out incense and immediately felt her head grow dizzy.

The incense smoke, dispersed by the wind and drifting through the air, would take effect on anyone who breathed it in.

Moreover, on such a hot day, the guards would not stay cooped up in their tents but would certainly be outside seeking cool air. This place was not as strictly regulated as the capital, and without supervision, the guards were bound to be even more lax and negligent—most likely gathered together chatting.

When Liu Fuying went to the front house last night, she had vaguely noticed this.

She waited for what felt like an eternity, her anxiety growing with each passing moment.

Unable to bear it any longer, she quietly approached, tiptoeing carefully behind Pei Zhouwu.

The incense in his hand had already burned halfway, and several guards outside the fence had already collapsed.

Seeing her approach, Pei Zhouwu inserted the incense into the soil at his feet to extinguish it.

“Is it done?” she whispered.

“Wait a little longer.”

“Are you worried the incense isn’t enough, or its effect is insufficient?”

Pei Zhouwu shook his head and replied, “This is a specially made Soul-Entrancing Incense. A single stick costs two gold coins. Its smoke is different from ordinary incense that dissipates quickly—one stick can knock out an entire camp of over a thousand people. I’m not worried about its effect, but I’m taking precautions just in case.”

Just in case someone wasn’t here or hadn’t come out of their tent.

Waiting a little longer would ensure that if anyone hadn’t been affected by the incense and came over to find everyone unconscious, they would surely raise an alarm.

“Go back to the room first,” Pei Zhouwu added.

“I…”

“You haven’t put on your wedding dress yet. Don’t you need to freshen up?”

Liu Fuying knew that Pei Zhouwu was sending her away as a precaution as well.

Understanding his intentions, she obediently turned and left.

But come to think of it, what held Pei Zhouwu captive was not the Xiangshan prison, nor the chains on his hands and feet, nor the guards outside—it was himself.

Look, if he wanted to, even without the pond leading to the outside world, he could escape.

Regardless of whether there was incense or not, with his abilities, killing his way out or escaping would not be difficult. All the guards outside combined were likely no match for him alone.

Liu Fuying suddenly felt a pang of worry.

If she left him after becoming pregnant, would he escape and come looking for her in Shangjing City?

No, he wouldn’t!

For the sake of the Pei family, the Empress, and the Crown Prince, he wouldn’t.

If he escaped, he would be branded a traitor, bringing ruin and extermination to the Pei family. The Empress and the Crown Prince would also be deposed. These were the shackles that bound Pei Zhouwu. He was not a selfish man—he would not do such a thing.

After what felt like another eternity, the guard camp remained eerily silent.

Pei Zhouwu emerged from behind the bamboo grove, lightly tapped his toes, and used his qinggong to leap out.

There were thirty-one guards on duty. He inspected the camp one by one, confirming the count before taking the keys from the guard captain.

When he returned to the bedroom, he was met with Liu Fuying’s astonished gaze.

Because the chains on his hands and feet had already been removed.

And Liu Fuying was already dressed in her wedding gown, the bright red color making her look exceptionally radiant.

Pei Zhouwu walked toward her step by step, slowly.

For the first time, there was no clanking of chains accompanying his movements.

Liu Fuying frowned slightly, overwhelmed by a flood of emotions she couldn’t quite put into words.

Standing before her, Pei Zhouwu softly asked, “Would you be so kind as to help me undress, my dear?”

The term “my dear” made Liu Fuying’s heart leap into her throat.

The most intimate endearment between lovers, spoken from Pei Zhouwu’s lips, stirred her even more deeply.

Slowly, she reached out to untie Pei Zhouwu’s belt, then helped him remove his outer robe.

The wedding robe from the rack fit him perfectly, yet Liu Fuying still insisted on combing his hair and adding the red jade crown. Looking at him now, it seemed as though no groom in all the world could be more handsome or striking than he.

Pei Zhouwu then retrieved the Glowworm Hairpin from the bamboo cabinet and handed it to her, asking her to pin it into his hair.

Though the wooden hairpin did not quite match the vibrant red of his wedding attire and crown, it carried the rarest and most heartfelt sentiment.

Liu Fuying took the hairpin, and as Pei Zhouwu bent down before her, she gently inserted the wooden pin into his crown.

There was a saying: a newlywed husband bowing his head before his Madam signified his willingness to humble himself before her for a lifetime.

Liu Fuying’s hand trembled slightly as she withdrew it.

The thought of soon having to call him “husband” stirred a flutter of nervousness within her.