C3 Marriage Substitute 10

"Mu Yuxi, you can't imagine how grateful so many people will be for this."

"Get lost!"

"Mu Yuxi..."

"Get lost! I told you to get lost!"

A startled cry snapped Mu Yunhua out of her nightmare. Her eyes, a vibrant green like exquisite jade, were striking against her pale, frail face as she stared at the canopy above her bed.

But in an instant, the bright green was gone, replaced by a deep, dark black.

She covered her eyes with her hand, the sunlight from the window proving to be too glaring...

Even after five days, Qin Qing's sleep was plagued by memories of everything that had happened at the Nether King's Manor.

The white "wedding" characters on every door, window, and column; the white candles with black characters; the black gauze and white drapes; and the coffin she had been forced into—all of it served as a stark reminder of that absurd, hateful night. To think that she, a 365th-generation descendant of the Celestial Master Sect, had been married off to a ghost. And not just any ghost, but the famed Warlord Nether King of the Da Xi Kingdom.

Qin Qing was entirely unwilling!

The sensation of being unable to control her own life or death, to speak or move, merely lying there at the mercy of others, was something she never wanted to experience again. She wasn't afraid of dying, but she refused to die in such a humiliating way.

And certainly not to die for someone else's mistake!

Suddenly, she found herself in the role of Mu Yunhua, the legitimate second daughter of the Mu Family in this era, forced into a ghost marriage. The day after the ceremony, Nether King's Manor publicly shamed her for alleged premarital indiscretions and threw her out onto the streets to fend for herself.

This was the Nether King's Manor's punishment for the Mu Family's switcheroo, and though it was clear to her—and to everyone—why it was happening, Qin Qing couldn't understand why she should suffer for this error.

What had she, Qin Qing, done to deserve lying disheveled in the street, enduring the stares, jeers, and ridicule of the passersby? For three whole days, she suffered from a relentless fever, her mind clouded, until finally, someone showed mercy and rescued her.

As Qin Qing recalled the admiring glances cast toward Mu Yuxi by onlookers when she was lifted onto the carriage, she couldn't help but feel the sting of irony. She had suffered immensely in Mu Yuxi's stead, nearly losing her life, and yet Mu Yuxi showed not a hint of gratitude. Instead, she acted as if Qin Qing, Mu Yunhua, was the one who had erred, as if the fault lay with her. Now, Mu Yuxi's semblance of kindness was only because Qin Qing was part of the Mu Family, and Mu Yuxi couldn't bear to let her die without dignity. That was the extent of her mercy...

Why was it expected that she, the legitimate daughter of the Mu Family, should marry in place of a half-sister? Was it just because Mu Yuxi was celebrated as the Da Xi Kingdom's first talented girl, while the original mistress was labeled the kingdom's biggest fool, that Qin Qing deserved such a fate? Was she meant to endure any treatment, no matter how unfair?

The injustice was palpable; there was no semblance of law or fairness! Despite being the rightful young lady of the Mu's Mansion, she lived a life less dignified than that of a servant. Hunger was a constant companion, and beatings and insults were so common that she no longer bothered to count them.

At sixteen, her frailty made her appear no older than a child of thirteen or fourteen, with arms so delicate they looked as if they could break at the slightest touch. The two concubines in the mansion were far from benign. Without their "benevolent" efforts to cultivate her image as a simpleton, as dull as a donkey, her reputation would never have been so tarnished.

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