Perfect Match – CH 094

Chapter 94 [End of Main Text]

Teng Yue obtained all the evidence against Zhu Tingguang and his collusion with the enemy.

However, he already had enough achievements. The Earl of Xianning title had made him uneasy in front of someone, and now, with the evidence of the Prince of Yanshan’s Mansion’s treason, the court would add another reward. Her little head was still trying to figure out what to do.

As for escorting General Wu, the night raid on the Chief Eunuch’s firearms camp, and today’s capture of Zhu Tingguang, Shen Yanxing had made great contributions in all of these.

Wang Fuxiang, because of his cooperation in suppressing the rebellion of Prince Enhua, had already received his reward, and this guy was urging them to return to Ningxia for a feast. Kong Hui, on the other hand, was steady and adept at social maneuvering and had a bright future ahead of him.

Only Shen Yanxing had been unable to rise in the army for many years due to the suppression of the Shen family.

This time, Teng Yue directly gave him all the credit.

“Yu Chuan, you… ” He was a little embarrassed.

Teng Yue glanced at Zhu Tingguang, who was glaring with his eyes wide open and had his mouth gagged, and chuckled as he patted Shen Yanxing’s shoulder.

“Consider this my wedding gift to you and my cousin. Do not forget to invite me to the head table for the banquet.”

Upon hearing this, Zhu Tingguang’s eyes practically bulged with rage, while Shen Yanxing’s face flushed slightly.

“I want to have a grand wedding with Ah Yun, a grand procession with eight bearers and a ten-mile-long red bridal procession, to welcome her into my family. Then you will be my brother and brother-in-law, so you will definitely be at the head table. But…”

He paused, looking at Teng Yue. “But, you and my sister-in-law?”

Upon hearing this, Teng Yue could not help but sigh.

They had rescued her brother today, but the fact that he had married Yunniang because of a contract could not be hidden. He did not know how his brother-in-law would react.

As for Yunniang herself, Teng Yue sighed again.

“With her, I reckon there’s still a long road ahead.”

It could be a year or two at the fastest, or who knew how long it might take. But Teng Yue was prepared to slowly wear her down. He handed Zhu Tingguang and his men over to Shen Yanxing and went outside to find the siblings.

He had just stepped out of the mansion gate when he saw the two of them under the moonlight by the woods.

The pure white moonlight fell like snow, landing on the overlapping hems of their clothes. Yunniang buried her head and face in her brother’s arms, sobbing uncontrollably.

She cried as she recounted the hardships the family had endured over the years. Tears streamed down Deng Ruheng’s face; at that moment, all he could do was hold his sister tightly.

She wept until her body trembled.

Teng Yue had never seen her cry in his arms like this before. It was as if she had let down all her guard, as if she had become the little girl she was before her brother left home, pouring out all her hardships and grievances into her brother’s arms.

The brother and sister embraced and wept under the moonlight in the woods.

Having endured a long period of life and death, separation and reunion, to be able to meet again in this vast world—how could this not be a stroke of luck amidst misfortune?

Teng Yue did not disturb them, staying outside the woods to watch over the brother and sister.

He also thought of his father and brother, but even though he had personally avenged his enemy, they would never return.

The moonlight flowed silently through the woods, the winter night wind howling through the trees, its sound indistinguishable between a furious growl and a triumphant laugh.

Teng Yue listened to Yunniang’s incessant sobbing, her little nose twitching, her voice hoarse with grievance.

His eyes also welled up with tears.

The night wind was too cold, so the brother and sister slowly walked through the woods, slowly recounting their experiences of the past few years.

Until the sky began to lighten, the distant city of Xi’an, shrouded in darkness, gradually revealed its majestic grandeur as the sunlight dispelled the morning mist.

They gazed intently from the mountainside, their eyes fixed on the view.

Teng Yue then approached.

“The city gates are about to open. Shall we go home?”

He spoke with some uncertainty, wondering what her brother Deng Ruheng’s attitude towards him was after Yunniang’s “truthful account” that night.

But Deng Ruheng turned and smiled at him.

“General, you are right! We can go home!”

He nodded and smiled at Teng Yue, who was slightly startled, then quickly added,

“Brother, just call me Yu Chuan.”

Deng Ruheng nodded again. “Alright, Yu Chuan.”

Teng Yue was secretly delighted. He saw Deng Ruheng walk towards the mountain path first, calling Dafu to go with him, leaving only him and Yunniang behind.

The morning light illuminated Xi’an city below the mountain. In the city center, the Bell and Drum Towers were faintly visible; perhaps someone had rung the morning bell. The vast city seemed to awaken completely in the morning light, wisps of smoke rising from chimneys and flags fluttering in the wind atop the city walls.

Teng Yue, however, looked at the person left behind.

Her eyes were already red and swollen from crying, like a rabbit’s, but in the morning light, they seemed clean and clear.

Teng Yue looked at her, hoping her attitude might have changed.

Would she be willing to take him back?

But then he saw her small, willow-leaf eyebrows slightly raise above her red eyes.

She did not say another word, only blinked and said to him, “I want to go home too.”

Teng Yue: “…”

Fine.

He really still had a lot to work out with her.

He could only tell her to stop standing on the windy mountainside, beckoning her back to the roadside, and escorted them down the mountain towards Xi’an.

*

In Xi’an, at the Deng family courtyard.

Aunt Juan had just finished preparing breakfast, feeling somewhat worried about Yunniang, who had not returned since leaving last night.

However, Yunniang was no longer the infant she had held in her arms; she was now the renowned owner of Yuyun Hall, so Aunt Juan did not need to worry about her constantly.

Right now, she had Xiuniang gather up the medicinal herbs drying under the eaves. Looking at the clouds slowly gathering in the sky and the dampness in the wind, it might snow.

But a good snow promises a good harvest. Although Yunniang had built up Yuyun Hall, Aunt Juan was more concerned about the medicinal herb fields she managed.

It was not easy for this family of women to make a living. Business always had its ups and downs, but even if things went badly in the future, as long as they had land, they could still eat.

As she spoke, she called to Changxing to go back into the shop and look for Yunniang.

Changxing obeyed and left the house. Aunt Juan took a broom, swept the fallen leaves in front of the door, and returned inside.

Just as she put down the broom, footsteps sounded outside the door.

The footsteps stopped at the door. Someone raised a hand and gently knocked on the door knocker.

Aunt Juan did not know who it was, but with Teng family guards both inside and outside the courtyard, she was not afraid.

She turned and opened the door.

But the moment she saw him, she froze.

The person before her was thin, with sunken cheeks, but his eyes held an incomparably clear light.

And now, tears welled up in his eyes. He looked at her and called softly.

“Aunt Juan.”

“Heng’er?!”

The door latch in Aunt Juan’s hand clattered to the ground. She stepped forward and grasped Deng Ruheng’s arm.

“Heng’er, it’s you; it really is you! Yunniang really did find you!”

She simply could not believe it. So many years, so many people, so many searches for him, and in the end, only an unrecognizable body was found beyond the Great Wall.

She truly believed then that he had left his entire family behind, perishing in the sandstorm.

But now, he appeared before her again.

She looked at his thin figure, and there seemed to be scars on his face.

Aunt Juan’s hand trembled. “What have you been through these past few years?”

It could not be explained in a few words, so Deng Ruheng could only shake his head.

But Aunt Juan’s tears fell again.

“But your parents, especially your wife, they… they are all gone…”

Deng Ruheng’s tears fell uncontrollably.

He could imagine the heartbreak his parents must have felt searching for him and the immense hardship his family had faced without their eldest son, the pillar of the household.

And his wife—they had only been married for two years, and Linglang was still an infant. She had refused to accept it; she had searched for him repeatedly, only to find a fake corpse—a cover for Zhu Tingguang’s scheme.

Zhu Tingguang deserved to die and deserved to go to hell!

But how could his parents and wife ever return?!

Deng Ruheng’s heart was shattered.

But compared to his fellow practitioners who had been killed beyond the Great Wall by the Prince of Yanshan’s men, he had managed to survive thanks to his medicine-making skills.

He had returned.

Aunt Juan pulled him straight home, then turned and called for Linglang. “Linglang, Linglang! Your father, your father is back!”

Deng Ruheng frantically searched the courtyard for his daughter.

When he left home, she was just a baby. Four or five years had passed; what did she look like now?

But Aunt Juan called out repeatedly, yet he saw no one running into the courtyard.

Aunt Juan was puzzled. “The child did not go out; she’s at home!”

She could not find anyone, but Deng Ruheng spotted a small piece of clothing behind the corner of the side room wall.

A little girl, about four or five years old, peeked over the wall, secretly hiding behind it, her large eyes trembling as she looked at him.

Her eyes were already brimming with tears, but she watched him from a distance behind the wall, perhaps afraid of mistaking him, afraid of disappointment, feeling wronged and resentful. She hid there, refusing to approach.

Deng Ruheng’s heart shattered with unbearable pain. He wiped away his tears and walked towards her step by step until he reached the wall where she was hiding.

Tears welled up in her large eyes and fell in a steady stream, shattering on Deng Ruheng’s heart.

He looked at his daughter’s face, where the image of his wife was faintly visible, and slowly reached out his hand to her.

“Is that Linglang? Father… Father is back.”

But as he reached out his hand, he saw his daughter’s tears fall like a broken string.

But she still did not come forward, only asking him.

“Is it true? I have a father too, right?”

Deng Ruheng could no longer hold back; tears streamed down his face like a torrential rain.

He nodded repeatedly to her, repeatedly reaching out his hand.

The next moment, the little girl emerged from behind the wall and rushed straight into his arms.

Aunt Juan’s tears fell incessantly. Xiuniang, who had rushed over upon hearing the commotion, looked on in disbelief as her young master returned, tears welling in her eyes as well. She pulled out a handkerchief and placed it in Aunt Juan’s hand.

“You wipe your tears first, then I will wipe mine.”

Aunt Juan, caught between sorrow and joy, could not help but smile at this.

“You silly child, there’s an order to wiping tears?”

Xiuniang nodded repeatedly, saying yes. Just then, the door creaked open twice, and an elderly woman with white hair emerged.

The old woman did not see the newcomer in the courtyard. She looked up at the gathering clouds in the sky and smiled kindly.

“Is it going to snow?”

She asked, and Deng Ruheng turned directly to look at her.

He saw that the old woman, who had had black hair before he left, now had a head full of white hair.

He kissed his daughter and put her down from his arms. He took two steps forward and stood before the old woman.

“Grandmother!”

He knelt down abruptly, kneeling before his grandmother.

The old woman was startled, looking down at the kneeling figure.

“Heng’er?”

“Grandmother, it’s me!”

She reached out her trembling hand and touched his sunken cheek, her eyes filled with tenderness.

“How did you get lost? You’ve been gone for days, you’ve lost so much weight, and it took you so long to find your way home?”

She had thought he had only been missing for a few days.

Deng Ruheng kowtowed at her feet.

From this day forward, he would use all his knowledge to cure his grandmother’s old ailment!

“Grandson should not have gotten lost. Grandson has found his way home today, back to your side!”

The old woman smiled lovingly at his words.

As Deng Ruyun and Teng Yue followed them in, they heard her slowly speaking to the people who had just returned home.

“It’s good to be back. Come home and have a meal.”

… …

That evening, the Deng family held a long-awaited family dinner.

The meal lasted from sunset until nightfall.

Even as it grew late, the family remained gathered around the fire. Deng Ruyun had Xiuniang light a fire and brew fruit tea. Listening to the howling north wind outside, they drank tea and chatted around the fire.

Teng Yue, however, heard the drumbeats and realized it was getting late. Although the Deng family had not kicked him out, he could not linger in her room tonight.

He watched her family, overjoyed at their reunion, huddled around the fire, their faces glowing red in the firelight. He was happy for them, too, but it was late, and he did not want to disturb them.

Xiuniang started telling jokes, and Aunt Juan, standing nearby, made a pointed remark. Xiuniang did not understand, but Changxing blushed. She and her brother exchanged a smile. Linglang, leaning against her grandmother, covered her mouth and giggled softly, and even Dafu barked.

Xiuniang asked, “What’s wrong with you all?”

Her question caused everyone to burst into laughter and joking. Teng Yue did not disturb them further, got up, and quietly went out the door, crossing the courtyard to go home.

The sky was covered with thick, cotton-like clouds that had gathered all day. The air was slightly damp; he wondered if it would snow that night.

Teng Yue looked up, pushed open the courtyard gate, and had someone bring Cangju. He was going back to his mansion.

As for that certain person, things were getting better. With time, he would slowly work things out with her.

He led Cangju and turned to walk towards the alley entrance.

… …

In the lively room of the Deng family home…

Deng Ruyun suddenly felt someone was missing beside her.

She turned around and looked, but the tallest figure was no longer beside her.

The winter wind howled by the door. Deng Ruyun paused, slightly startled, and looked towards the doorway.

Had he left alone so as not to disturb them?

She stared at the door, which was rattling in the wind, for a moment.

Just then, someone gently touched her arm. Deng Ruyun looked up; it was her brother.

Her brother said nothing, only smiled at her, and then slightly raised his chin towards the door.

Deng Ruyun paused, but then she saw that around the warm fireplace, the family had stopped laughing and joking.

She looked at them; their gazes fell on her, and smiles appeared on their faces.

Deng Ruyun felt her face flush.

But the next moment, she abruptly stood up, turned, pushed open the door, and ran outside, under their gazes.

… …

The night air carried a faint dampness, as if carried by snow.

She ran out of the room and then out of the courtyard gate. Looking in the direction of his mansion, she saw, in the dim, moonless night, a lone figure leading a horse towards the alley entrance.

A flickering lamp at the alley entrance cast a dim light on his and his horse’s feet, inexplicably making him appear utterly alone.

Deng Ruyun suddenly spoke.

“Teng Yue.”

The man, leading his horse to the alley entrance, was about to turn and mount to go home. This sudden call from behind startled him.

He turned and saw someone approaching from the damp night breeze at the entrance of the Deng family courtyard.

She carried a dim, yellow lantern, its light illuminating her feet and causing her skirt to sway with each step, swirling like a lotus in the wind. She walked in the lamplight, each step as if treading on lotus blossoms.

Teng Yue was momentarily captivated.

He did not notice Cangju snorting, nor the clattering of the lantern at the alley entrance in the wind. He was only focused on the person carrying the lantern approaching him in the night breeze.

Her steps were light and steady; she walked faster and faster.

Until she reached him, the wind from her footsteps reversed the direction of the wind in the alley.

And a faint scent of herbs wafted from her sleeve to his nose.

Teng Yue’s heart skipped a beat for no apparent reason.

She spoke, slightly out of breath.

She looked up at him.

“Let me be your wife.”

The words left her lips, and Teng Yue froze, half-standing.

“You…you say that again?”

He looked at her intently.

Her delicate eyebrows arched slightly, a mischievous glint appearing in her eyes, but beneath that mischief lay no falsehood.

She spoke again, her voice clear and bright like a spring cascading over rocks.

“A wife who has shared hardship should not be abandoned. Teng Yue, I want to be your wife. Will you agree?”

The instant her words left her lips, Deng Ruyun was suddenly lifted high into the air.

She had anticipated this and hurriedly placed the lantern on the ground.

But she was still being carried high into the air by the man.

Deng Ruyun instinctively wrapped her arms around his neck, leaning urgently against his shoulder.

“Really? Really? You mean it?!”

He was almost deliriously happy; Deng Ruyun could clearly feel his heart pounding in his chest.

But she had already said it twice; how many more times did he want her to say it for him to believe her?

Now, held so high in his arms, she could not keep her balance without his support. She simply said…

“If you do not believe me, then hurry up and put me down!”

But putting her down was absolutely out of the question.

He suddenly lifted her even higher, carrying her directly onto his steed.

The next instant, the man leaped onto the horse from behind her.

In the lamplight, he suddenly pulled her close, spurred the horse, and rode straight towards his mansion.

Deng Ruyun had only come to tell him that she could barely accept being his wife.

But who would have thought that this man would simply snatch her away!

This scene seemed strangely familiar.

Deng Ruyun gently called out to him and patted him, but he refused to listen.

“You said it yourself, you cannot go back on your word!”

Deng Ruyun did not back out, but she also did not say she wanted to go back to his mansion with him that night.

“Teng Yue! Teng Yu Chuan!”

But she was already unable to explain herself to him.

The steed galloped through the deserted streets, and almost instantly, he had carried her to the gates of his mansion.

He lifted Deng Ruyun off the horse and strode against the night wind, trampling the biting wind beneath his feet, until he carried her back to Liumingxuan, back to the room where they had shared countless intimate moments.

Having come this far, Deng Ruyun no longer wanted to go back.

Instead, she wrapped her arms around his neck, and in the brief moment he paused, she suddenly and gently kissed his lips.

In that instant, it was as if a celestial flower petal had fallen from the heavens, landing only on his lips.

He stared down at her, stunned.

She quickly forced a smile, her delicate eyebrows arching to the side, still trying to pretend nothing had happened.

But Teng Yue directly pressed her down into the brocade quilt within the canopy bed.

“Lady Xianning, you cannot escape tonight.” His voice was low and hoarse, like grinding sand.

His actions made her dizzy, and Deng Ruyun could not help but cry out in surprise.

Before the cry faded, his burning lips, ignited by her presence, were already raining kisses down on her neck.

They had not been like this in a long time; his warm, wet kisses made Deng Ruyun’s body burn.

Her clothes were quickly tossed aside, freeing her from all restraints. At this moment, he was like a leopard descending from the mountain.

Deng Ruyun had nowhere to hide, so she tried to gently climb towards him. However, with just the slightest initiative, the man lost all control.

“You are so good at manipulating me, so good at…”

He said this, but the next instant, the leopard-like man pressed down and pounced upwards, Deng Ruyun feeling as if he had penetrated her completely.

It was as if a large, humid, rosy rain was falling in the canopy bed, pouring down and soaking everything.

Within a few breaths, Deng Ruyun’s hair was soaked and hung down, while beads of sweat from the man’s forehead dripped onto her nose.

He repeatedly entered and exited her uninhabited space, his speed and control perfectly controlled, and Deng Ruyun trembled uncontrollably.

And in that tightly intertwined, humid place, under his diligent digging, water gushed out like a spring, the sound of running water filling the air, and he could not help but chuckle softly.

Deng Ruyun could not help but bite her lip, but his actions did not slow down at all, and he even lowered his head to gently bite her ear.

She could only try to climb onto his muscular arms. He sensed her intention and easily lifted her.

In that instant, he penetrated her completely, leaving no space between them.

… …

After a while, the rain stopped, leaving the quilt a swamp.

After he carried her to wash her, Deng Ruyun’s sensitive areas still trembled slightly. She was exhausted, her eyelids barely open.

She dared not take the initiative again; she feared she could no longer bear the consequences of provoking something she should not.

But he, however, was still full of energy, and now he carried her to the couch by the window.

Deng Ruyun did not know why he had not gone back to sleep; was he going to continue?

But he wrapped her in the quilt and opened the window.

Deng Ruyun could not open her eyes at all.

But there were faint rustling sounds outside. She suddenly opened her eyes wide and turned to look outside.

Before she knew it, the outside world was a blanket of white.

The scene of last year’s first snow suddenly flashed into her mind.

“It’s snowing.”

She was stunned and turned to look behind her. It was still him; he was still there.

No, not.

He was not the Teng Yue from last year but someone who had traveled from a distant past, wading through rivers and streams, slowly making his way here.

He was also Teng Yue, also Teng Yu Chuan, but the young general she had loved since she was a young girl experiencing her first love.

That young man had finally come to her side.

She turned to look at him, and he lowered his head and gently kissed her lips.

The first snow fell again outside the window. In the vast, pure white expanse, it was as if two jade discs had joined together and then intertwined, gently falling into this pristine mortal world.

*