12: Chapter 12 Wedding Ceremony

Upon hearing this, Zhuge Yue lifted her head slightly, shot a quick glance at Li Guidai, and immediately lowered it again. She let out a soft "Mn" sound, as quiet as a mosquito's buzz, and then, taking small, hesitant steps, she shuffled into the cave dwelling, almost hugging the door frame.

Li Guidai followed her in and watched the young girl standing stiffly in the center of the living room, her hands still nervously twisting the hem of her clothes. He felt that as the "master" and "husband," he should say something.

"I... I am called Li Guidai," he tried to make his voice sound as gentle as possible, "from Jicai Village, just a small village... In the future, er, please take care of me?"

Upon hearing him speak, Zhuge Yue's body trembled slightly. Then, gathering her courage, she lifted her head, shot a quick glance at Li Guidai, and lowered it just as quickly. In a voice that was tingly and soft, with a hint of a babyish tone, and trembling slightly from nervousness, she whispered:

"I... I am called Zhuge Yue... Brother said... I must listen to you from now on..."

This voice! Li Guidai felt as if a weak electric current had drilled into his ears, instantly spreading through his entire body, leaving him completely numb! This voice was just too... too unfair!

Looking at the girl before him, who found even a simple self-introduction so difficult and looked so pitiable, a sense of protectiveness unexpectedly rose in his heart, along with an unprecedented urge to treat her seriously.

He took a deep breath, trying hard to make his smile look more sincere and reliable, and asked softly: "Zhuge Yue... that is a very beautiful name. May... may I call you Yueer?"

Upon hearing this slightly intimate form of address, Zhuge Yue trembled again, her earlobes turning so red they looked like they might drip blood. She hesitated for a moment, but ultimately nodded slightly, the movement so small it was almost imperceptible.

Seeing her nod, Li Guidai felt an inexplicable joy in his heart. He took a small step forward, maintaining a safe distance, looked into Zhuge Yue's eyes, and said very seriously:

"Yueer, since you are now my... my wife." When he said the word "wife," his old face felt a little hot, but his tone was very firm, "Although the situation is a bit special, I feel that we cannot just live like this in a muddled way. I want... I want to perform the wedding ceremony with you."

"Ah?" Zhuge Yue finally lifted her head in surprise, her big, watery eyes filled with disbelief. A wedding ceremony? For people like them, who were arranged by their families and treated like mere tools—matrilocal sons-in-law and collateral branch women—this was an unimaginable ritual.

Li Guidai looked at her surprised expression, smiled, and continued: "Yes, a wedding ceremony! Although it might be simple, the necessary rituals should still be performed."

"And I promise you, when we have the ability in the future and can leave the Zhuge Family to go out and travel, I will take you to meet my parents!"

"At that time, I will definitely hold a grand, formal wedding for you to make up for this! I will let everyone know that you, Zhuge Yue, are the wife I married with proper ceremony!"

Li Guidai spoke these words with genuine sincerity. On one hand, he was truly moved by Zhuge Yue's purity and wanted to take responsibility; on the other hand, deep down, he still held onto the importance of marriage rituals from his past life, feeling that he shouldn't treat the young lady unfairly.

Zhuge Yue stared blankly at Li Guidai, looking at the gentle yet firm smile on his face, and listening to the future he described—a future that seemed like a dream to her: a wedding ceremony, meeting the in-laws, a formal wedding... these were things she had never dared to hope for.

The fear, anxiety, and grievance she had felt about being forced to marry a stranger were, at this moment, as if blown away by a warm spring breeze. The last trace of estrangement in her heart, caused by being a stranger and being at the mercy of fate, quietly melted away in the face of his clumsy yet sincere words.

She was still blushing, but this time, in addition to shyness, there was a faint glimmer of light in her eyes and an indescribable touch of emotion. She lowered her head again, but this time, the corners of her mouth turned up almost imperceptibly.

Watching the young girl in this state, Li Guidai also felt a strange sense of satisfaction and responsibility rise in his heart.

[Ding! Detected that the host has successfully acquired a wife (Zhuge Yue)! Mission 'Ambition of the Matrilocal Son-in-law' completion rate (1/?)!]

[Reward: top-grade foundation establishment pill x1, top-grade Qi-guiding pill x10, has been distributed to the system space, please check, Host!]

[Note: Congratulations to the Host for taking the first step in building the Li Family! Although the current family members are only you and your little darling wife~ Please continue to work hard to expand the family tree!]

Li Guidai: "..." System, can your notes... be a little more serious!

Inside the cave dwelling, the atmosphere gradually livened up thanks to Li Guidai's few clumsy yet sincere jokes. He watched Zhuge Yue's cheeks, which had flushed red again because of his teasing, looking like a begonia flower stained with morning dew, and felt an inexplicable sense of accomplishment.

"Yueer, you rest for a while, or see if anything needs tidying up." Li Guidai stood up, his tone relaxed, "I'm going out to find Senior Brother Zhuge Ming to report our situation, and by the way, go to the city to buy some daily necessities. This cave is so empty you could run a horse in it; we need to add some things to make our little nest look proper."

"Hus... Husband, go ahead." Zhuge Yue replied softly, still not daring to look him in the eye, her fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of her clothes, "Take... take care on the road."

This instruction made Li Guidai's heart warm. He grinned, waved his hand, and turned to leave the cave dwelling.

After Li Guidai left, Zhuge Yue looked at the empty cave dwelling, feeling a bit hollow inside. She wasn't the type to sit idle, and thinking of her husband running errands outside, she felt she should do something. Her gaze fell on the small bag of spiritual rice Li Guidai had left behind and the cooking utensils he had just bought, and a thought popped into her mind.

She rolled up her sleeves, revealing her two fair forearms, and began to clumsily light the fire and wash the rice. Although she came from the collateral branch of the Zhuge Family, as a woman with spiritual roots, she had mostly spent her time meditating and cultivating, and rarely cooked for herself.

Doing these mundane household chores now, she appeared a bit flustered. Her fair cheeks were flushed red by the flames leaping from the stove, and beads of sweat formed on the tip of her nose.

But she did it very seriously and with great care. The small kitchen gradually filled with the unique fragrance of spiritual rice. She also washed some durable, ordinary vegetables that Li Guidai had bought, and relying on vague memories, tried to make a simple stir-fried seasonal vegetable dish. The taste might have been ordinary, but it was filled with her intentions.

Finding Senior Brother Zhuge Ming, he briefly explained that he had met with Zhuge Yue and decided to live together. Senior Brother Zhuge Ming seemed to have expected this, calmly registered it, and then handed him a simple map of Qingling Pass, which marked the activity range and the route to the nearest town— "Lanyun City."

After expressing his thanks, Li Guidai followed the map's guidance and for the first time truly stepped into this immortal cultivation city managed by the Zhuge Family.