Chapter 53: Chapter Forty-Six: 【Outrageous!】

As for Chen Yan’s state of mind right now…

He wasn’t afraid anymore.

A little confused, a little curious, a little excited, and a lot complicated.

Marriage contract?

The childhood betrothal my own father arranged for me?

So this stunningly beautiful Gu Qingyi… she came from another world, showed up at my door…

Traveling a thousand miles to deliver me a wife?

Chen Yan couldn’t help raising his head to study Gu Qingyi again.

Large eyes, small face, smooth skin, every feature perfectly formed—yet her eyebrows slightly arched upward, lending her otherwise delicate and gentle face a touch of seductive allure.

That aura, to certain men, added an extra layer of attraction—yes, Chen Yan was one such man.

From appearance alone, every woman he’d ever met or seen on screen—whether the so-called divine beauties hyped as goddesses, or real-life beauties like Lu Sisi or the boss lady—

Were utterly outclassed, without any contest.

Childhood betrothal wife?

So now a Gu sister just fell from the sky?

As Chen Yan drifted into daydreams, he grew increasingly conflicted.

He…

Had never planned to get married this early!

I’m only twenty-two—I just hit the legal marriage age!

After getting Old Grandma’s secret manual, I’m on track to become a true Daoist master. Wealth and fame will roll in… how could I possibly lack women?

Shouldn’t I enjoy the mortal world for at least ten or twenty years first?

Why would I even think of marriage?

But Gu Qingyi’s appearance…

Chen Yan swallowed hard.

Maybe it’s not so bad…?

·

Lost in chaotic thoughts, Chen Yan blinked hard, then spoke with a complicated tone: “I understand your intent…

But I hope you can understand—this is far too sudden for me.

I’m only twenty-two; I’ve never imagined marrying this early. Miss Gu Qingyi, I’ll be honest: you’re the most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen, and we do have this betrothal…

But please forgive me—I have no intention of marrying yet. If you’re willing, perhaps we could start by getting to know each other, building feelings…”

Gu Qingyi’s expression had remained calm as Chen Yan began speaking, but as his words grew increasingly absurd, her face darkened.

By the end, her cheeks flushed crimson, and a flash of anger blazed in her eyes.

In one sudden motion, she leapt from her chair and kicked him straight in the chest.

Crack!

The bamboo chair beneath Chen Yan shattered instantly. He couldn’t catch his breath, collapsed onto the floor, and felt his Qi scattered from his chest and abdomen—his vision darkened, his throat filled with the taste of blood.

“Wait, just because I refuse to marry you, you have to beat me up?!” Chen Yan cried, clutching his chest and abdomen.

Gu Qingyi roared: “Are you blind?!”

She yanked him off the ground and threw him beside the translucent golden scroll: “Open your eyes and look clearly! Do you think I’m marrying you? How dare you utter such blasphemous nonsense!”

Chen Yan froze, then stared closely—and saw the floating golden characters on the semi-transparent scroll, clearly written:

…Chen Clan’s Seventeenth Generation Heir Jue, having pledged his union in advance, hereby solemnly binds this covenant. Betrothed to Gu Clan’s Seventeenth Generation Direct Daughter; henceforth, a blessed union is sealed, the red thread tied from the start, lifelong companionship assured…

Chen Yan read it, then read it again.

Chen Clan’s Seventeenth Generation Heir Jue…

Chen Clan’s Seventeenth Generation Heir Jue…

Chen Jue? My father?

Chen Yan looked up at Gu Qingyi standing before him.

Gu Qingyi sneered, pointing at the phrase 【Gu Clan’s Seventeenth Generation Direct Daughter】: “That refers to me!”

Chen Yan swallowed hard: “So this marriage contract… isn’t between you and me…?” He barely finished before seeing her eyes flare again—he rushed on: “The betrothal… is between you and my father?”

Gu Qingyi clenched her teeth: “Yes!”

Chen Yan: “…”

Wait, wait a minute… this is confusing!

Let me, Chen the Good Man, sort this out!

Chen Yan widened his eyes: “How old are you?”

“Twenty-one.”

“I’m twenty-two! That means when this contract was made, you weren’t even born yet—and my father, Chen Jue… he must’ve been at least forty when he sired me!”

Gu Qingyi coldly replied: “And what of it? When this contract was made, it was years before my birth.

It was your father Chen Jue’s youth when your Chen Clan’s Ancestor and my Gu Clan’s Ancestor forged this pact. As cultivators, our lifespans are long—twenty years’ difference means nothing.”

Hearing this, Chen Yan exhaled in relief—he wasn’t being forced to marry? Then it was fine.

But…

Blinking slowly, Chen Yan chuckled bitterly: “So you traveled across worlds just for this contract? You could’ve just ignored this arranged marriage. And from your tone, you clearly dislike Chen Jue—why go through all this?”

“If it were that simple,” Gu Qingyi bit her lip, face icy, “this covenant was written by a Great Celestial Sovereign with supreme power, woven into my destiny. As a cultivator, you know—once written into destiny,

If it’s a calamity, you must face it.

If it’s fate, you must face it too!”

Chen Yan couldn’t help internally rolling his eyes.

Seriously? A Great Celestial Sovereign… used supreme power to write this into my destiny?

That Celestial Sovereign—did you run out of things to write?

With that kind of power, why not write something useful?

“I broke through to the Heavenly Human realm at nineteen, and since then, no matter how hard I train, I’ve made zero progress! The next realm beyond Heavenly Human demands severing all emotional ties—because my marital bond remains unfulfilled, the Dao forbids me from ascending further, unless I… resolve this marriage.”

Gu Qingyi glanced at Chen Yan and sneered: “Otherwise, do you think I’d willingly marry Chen Jue, that infamous scoundrel of the Chen Clan?”

Watching Gu Qingyi’s fury, Chen Yan slowly rose from the ground, stepping back two paces: “But… my father Chen Jue is already dead. He’s gone—how can you possibly marry him?”

At this, Gu Qingyi’s sneer slowly twisted into something strange, eerie.

“I’d already considered this before coming,” she said slowly, her voice calm: “If I could find him, we’d marry. If he’s dead…”

“A ghost marriage is still a marriage!”

What the hell? Chen Yan froze.

·

After several seconds of stunned silence, Chen Yan stared: “Wait, your pacing is throwing me off… what do you mean?”

Gu Qingyi narrowed her eyes: “Even if Chen Jue is dead, as long as you, a Chen Clan descendant, serve as witness and perform the ghost wedding ceremony, and inscribe your testimony on the contract as the Chen Clan’s legitimate heir… then I will have fulfilled this destiny!”

Chen Yan’s eyes widened, his heart reeling!

“Lady, you’re seriously insane!!”

Chen Yan rarely admired anyone—but right now, he couldn’t help wanting to give Gu Qingyi a thumbs-up.

Hearing Chen Yan’s sincere remark, Gu Qingyi suddenly frowned: “What did you call me?”

“Huh?”

“You cannot call me ‘sister.’”

Gu Qingyi took a deep breath, stepped back two paces, and sat again on her bamboo chair, fixing Chen Yan with a steady gaze: “Now that we’ve clarified things, you may pay your respects.”

Chen Yan: “What kind of respect?”

Gu Qingyi waved a hand, forcing a composed expression onto her youthful face, clearing her throat, and speaking in her high-pitched voice, deliberately calm: “My betrothal to your father was written by a Great Celestial Sovereign, fused into destiny.

Therefore, no matter how many other women your father took in this world—even if he had ten thousand concubines—they could never rise above the rank of secondary wives.

Destiny is supreme. I, Gu Qingyi, am the lawful wife of your father, the Seventeenth Generation Heir of the Chen Clan.

And you, Chen Yan…”

As she paused, Chen Yan felt dread rising.

Sure enough, she continued: “…you are the son of a concubine—thus, a bastard.

By law and ritual, as a bastard, you must address me, your father’s lawful wife, as ‘Elder Mother!’”

Chen Yan: “……………………”

What the hell is this bastard-and-legitimate cult?!

·

Chen Yan had lived twenty-two years.

Now, in one blink, he’d become a bastard?

And a girl younger than him sat there, demanding he bow and call her Mom?

Fine, fine—this world really is insane!

“No!” Chen Yan rolled his eyes: “Don’t you realize how absurd what you’re saying is?”

Gu Qingyi slowly stood: “I know this is absurd. But who else can do it?

I need you, Chen Jue’s son, to acknowledge me as your Elder Mother. I need you to perform the ghost wedding, and to inscribe your blood-written testimony as a Chen Clan heir on the contract—so I must trouble you…”

She took a deep breath, then stood there rolling her wrists.

“Wait, wait! What are you doing?” Chen Yan immediately stepped back, swiftly forming a hand seal, the incantation for the Law Seal: Escape Character already ready on his lips: “Talk reasonably—don’t start fighting!”

Gu Qingyi squinted, then extended one finger, pointing toward a corner of the courtyard.

“I already told you—I’m a Heaven-People Realm cultivator. You probably don’t understand what ‘Heaven-People Realm’ means.”

Chen Yan stared wide-eyed at Gu Qingyi!

Under the Heaven’s Eye’s Qi Perception, he “saw” Gu Qingyi’s entire body’s Qi surging like rolling thunder.

As Gu Qingyi pointed, a beam of light shot from her fingertip.

In the northeast corner of the courtyard stood a Taihu stone, placed as a decorative ornament.

The Taihu stone stood nearly three meters tall and weighed at least a ton.

Under Gu Qingyi’s single finger, the beam shot instantly into the Taihu stone—and before Chen Yan’s eyes, the massive stone, weighing nearly a ton, crumbled bit by bit, turning to powder like dry flour!

Chen Yan: “...”

Gu Qingyi’s tone remained calm: “I already told you—you didn’t have to believe me, or even listen. For me, it’s ultimately just a matter of beating you until you believe, until you submit.”

Chen Yan: “...”

But Gu Qingyi suddenly softened her tone, speaking slowly: “Before I left home, my third uncle told me that one should handle matters with method and wisdom—there’s no need to rely solely on brute force.”

I’ve thought about this, so... if you refuse to obey, then I’ll beat you.

But if you choose to obey, things will be very different.

From now on, we’ll be mother and son. If you run into any trouble, tell me—I, as your legitimate mother, will protect you in every way. Even if the sky falls, I’ll carry it back for you!

From this day forward...

Whoever you dare not provoke, I’ll provoke!

Whoever you dare not beat, I’ll beat!

No taboos—maternal love towers like a mountain!

This is my promise to you, Gu Qingyi!”

Chen Yan spoke flatly: “What does that mean?”

“I can let you walk around like a king.”

“...” Chen Yan, upon hearing this, suddenly wiped his face, his expression now utterly sincere:

“I’ve drifted through life... if you won’t reject me...”

·

【Hmm... didn’t anyone see this twist coming?

One blink, and a childhood betrothal becomes a little mom.

Well, guess I wrote a little mom novel? (winking)】

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