The Master and His Wealthy Fiancée

Two suns hung high in the sky amidst the chirping of birds and the droning of cicadas. It was already noon.

On a bumpy, uneven main road, a procession of several dozen people surrounded two horse-drawn carriages. The carriage in the front was exquisitely decorated, with fragrant, patterned curtains. The one behind it was much simpler and plainer, and half of a fine, mahogany coffin was sticking out from its rear.

The men walking around the carriages were all able-bodied and dressed as servants. Their faces were masks of either anger or dejection.

”Damn it, the Liang Family actually fled!” the man leading the group said in frustration.

”Brother Yang, what do we do? If we can’t catch Young Master Liang, we’re all going to be punished!” a young servant beside him said, his face dejected and his eyes filled with terror.

Brother Yang replied helplessly, ”What else can we do? We’ll just have to accept the punishment. The Master had us bring the coffin along, saying he didn’t care if the man was dead or alive. Who knew the Liang Family would flee overnight? Since we couldn’t catch our man, you think they’ll use you to fill the spot?”

The young servant frantically shook his head, his face looking miserable. ”Brother Yang, don’t scare me! I’m not ready to die yet! Besides, the Master wouldn’t even consider me. Once the Young Miss breathes her last, her husband is supposed to be buried with her!”

The man, Wang Yang, shot him a contemptuous look. ”At least you know you’re ugly. The Young Miss is the number one beauty in Drunken Immortal City, after all. It’s not just about looks—you’re no match for her. You’re leagues behind in education and status, too. That Young Master Liang is a Scholar, you know!”

The young servant sighed as he walked. ”Sigh... The Master sent us to grab a man for the Young Miss’s restorative wedding, and we rushed over first thing in the morning only to find he’d already fled. If we go back empty-handed, we’ll be skinned alive, if not worse!”

”Just shut your trap! I’m frustrated enough as it is. You lot might get skinned, but I’ll probably get a few bones broken. My failure to capture him is a much greater crime than yours! If Miss Wan’Er hears you, she might just kill you on the spot to let off some steam!”

At these words, the young servant immediately clamped his mouth shut, glancing at the first carriage with lingering fear.

Just then, their leader, Wang Yang, shouted, ”Everyone, halt! Someone’s blocking the road ahead!”

The main road was only wide enough for a single carriage, and now someone was lying in the middle of it. They had no choice but to stop.

Wang Yang ordered a young servant at his side, ”Go take a look. If it’s a drunk, get him out of the way!”

Drunks in Zhou Village, near Drunken Immortal City, were countless, and it was a common sight to see them passed out on the roadside in broad daylight. Wang Yang assumed the figure ahead was just another one.

The young servant ran closer and saw that the person lying on the road was dressed in strange clothes. Though surprised, he still went up and nudged the body with his foot. ”Get up, hey, get up! You’re drunk and blocking the road!”

The person on the ground didn’t react. The servant leaned in to check and then shrieked in alarm, ”AAAH! He’s dead! Brother Yang, it’s a dead man!”

Wang Yang’s brow furrowed. He walked over for a look. The man on the ground was dressed strangely, but he was incredibly handsome. His skin was as fair as a highborn lady’s, and he had sharp, sword-like eyebrows and a fine nose. ’Have to admit,’ Wang Yang thought, ’even in death, this guy’s looks are a cut above that Young Master Liang... and only a smidgen less handsome than me, of course.’

There were no obvious fatal wounds anywhere on his body; he had clearly just dropped dead. Dressed in such peculiar clothes, he likely wasn’t a local—perhaps not even from the Qixia Sect’s territory. An idea suddenly sparked in Wang Yang’s mind.

He hurried over to the first carriage, bowed respectfully, and said, ”Miss Wan’Er, there’s an unclaimed corpse up ahead. From what I can tell, he just died. He’s also quite handsome. Why don’t we use him to replace Young Master Liang?”

A flash of green shot out from the carriage, landing beside the corpse in an instant.

She was a lovely, striking young woman of about eighteen or nineteen, dressed in a green gown. Sizing up the corpse on the ground, she murmured, ”He doesn’t seem to be from around here. And with no one watching over the body... it looks like he was just abandoned.”

Wang Yang hurried over, adding quickly, ”Yes, Miss Wan’Er! He must have been all alone and just dropped dead right here. If we take him back, the Master won’t hold you responsible.”

Wan’Er hesitated. ”He’s handsome enough for the Young Miss... ’If she were well, this would probably be her type.’ Very well. We’ll do as you say. Take him with us.”

Several servants quickly hauled the corpse into the coffin in the rear carriage. This body was, in fact, Chen Dong.

This procession was from the Wang Family of Drunken Immortal City. The family had a daughter named Wang Xian’Er, aged twenty, who was renowned as the city’s foremost beauty. Not long ago, however, she had fallen gravely ill. Despite consulting countless famous doctors, her condition only worsened until she fell into a deep coma. In a desperate attempt to use a joyous occasion to ward off misfortune, Master Wang ordered his men to arrange a marriage for his daughter.

Wang Xian’Er’s plight was common knowledge throughout Drunken Immortal City, so naturally, there were no takers. Even with the Wang Family’s immense wealth, no one wanted to marry a bride who was on death’s door—especially since Master Wang had once declared that if his daughter died, her husband would be buried with her.

Thus, even a fortune in betrothal gifts could not secure a single groom.

Unable to find a volunteer, the Wang Family resorted to force. They had set their sights on a handsome Scholar from the Liang Family in a nearby village, but the Liang Family unexpectedly packed up and fled in the middle of the night.

Master Wang knew his daughter was beyond saving. He no longer cared if the man was dead or alive. While he called it a restorative wedding, what he truly wanted was a posthumous marriage for his daughter, ensuring she wouldn’t be lonely in the afterlife. That was why Wang Yang and his men had brought a coffin.

They had failed to capture Liang the Scholar and were set to return empty-handed, facing certain punishment. But now, they had found a perfect substitute. Returning with this man might even earn them a handsome reward. The only pity was that he was already dead. It would have been better if he were alive, as Miss Wang herself had not yet drawn her last breath.