Chapter 12: Rules of marriage.

Night fell. Guests departed, muttering about bad omens and all the fun they had after the bride retreated from the wedding hall.

Liwu and Weijun were led to the hotel suite prepared for their first night. The grand presidential suite was lavish, filled with Xixi’s favorite dusty rose silk drapes, peonies and amber fragrance. It was the subtle reminder that the wedding had not been meant for her.

The groom was also noticing the same thing. His brother’s favorite whiskey, cigars, wine and candied ginger. It resurrected the scowl on his face. He did not like cigars, whiskey and candied ginger but he had learned to embrace them for the sake of passing off as his brother.

If he had to eat candy, which he did often in secret, it was licorice flavored. Option two was cotton candy.

He closed a window, to prevent another lantern fire. Weijun wondered why they needed lanterns in the suite in the first place.

Then, from the ceiling, a lantern fell–missing him by inches.

Liwu froze. She looked at the same lantern that had nearly crushed her husband. It was swinging with determination, despite the lack of strong winds in the room. She wondered if it would fall, just to prove a pint.

Weijun rubbed his temples, glaring at her as if she had personally ordered the lantern to attack.

He straightened his back, voice sharp. “Listen carefully. This marriage is an alliance between two organizations. We are just a small part of it. But there will be many eyes on us so I must set some rules.”

Liwu blinked. “Rules?”

“Yes.” Weijun paced the room like a general preparing to face off against his enemy. “Rule one: don’t call me Weifeng, call me Wei. Rule two: do not expect to win my heart. I already have someone that I love and if it is the same for you, I will keep the appropriate distance to prevent the other party from misunderstanding you.

Rule three: do not meddle in my affairs unnecessarily, especially matters concerning the governance of One city. Rule four: if you have a way of controlling your bad luck, keep it outside my office and bedroom. I value my life.”

Liwu opened her mouth, then closed it. She wanted to say, why would I expect to win your heart when I am not even interested in it? She rolled her eyes, reminded of her mother’s story on the rules her dad had set on their own wedding night. Now, he was always eager to please her. So, rather than argue, she nodded solemnly, though her eyes twinkled with mischief.

“In that case, you should hear my rules too,” she sat upright.

Weijun stopped pacing.

“Rule one: I expect you to treat me with dignity and respect. Servants always follow the demeanor of their master. If you disrespect me, they will do the same and I will not tolerate that. Rule two: Infidelity is not allowed during the period of our marriage. You have a habit of giving roses to beautiful women you meet outside. That should cease as of today.

Rule three: Keep the woman you love out of our home. I do not want to find her in bed, wearing my clothes or occupying my personal space. Rule four: I am your number one priority, even though we are faking it. If I am sick, you take me to the hospital, if I have to attend an important social gathering, you go with me. If I am drowning, you save me.

Rule five: No scowling at me in public, shouting at me or using physical violence. If we argue, it is not in front of the servants or your assistants.

Rule six: I am in charge of our home. I can redecorate and make it tolerable for myself. I will not live like an unwanted guest who is too afraid to even leave a sock on the chair or a remote on the floor.

Rule seven: Do not meddle with my job. You are free to hate the Bureau, but I am a Bureau worker. So, do not expect me to betray my organization or surrender my job just to put you at ease.

Rule eight: I…..”

“How many rules do you have?” He cut her off. “Perhaps you should write them up and send them to me.”

She nodded.

Weijun stormed toward the door. “I must meet my men. My brother, the city master did not tell me about his vacation in advance. I am now stuck with the duty of governing One city and dealing with the alliance. I need to find him so that he can get back to work. Do not wait up.” He slammed the door so hard that the lantern finally gave up and fell to the floor, taking two others along.

Liwu sighed. “What a day?”

She looked at ring on her finger, not knowing whether to smile or cry. The impossible had happened, she was married! Her bad luck had done the unexpected. What would happen from now on? Would the fate that had been predicted for her follow as said? In that case, she had to make preparations to meet the Shen family.

Hopefully, they would not poison her!

She shook her head; the Shen’s were not foolish enough to do that. In fact, they were probably the group of people outside her family that hoped she would be safe. If she died at their hands, one angry dragon and old lord of the sea would hunt and wipe them out.

Her stomach grumbled, a firm reminder that she had barely eaten all day. So, she helped herself to some of the candied gingers.

She wondered what they were doing in the room. Most hotels gave chocolates or strawberries. Either they had not given chocolate because it had become ridiculously expensive since the system wars started, or they had made a mistake and assumed Xixi liked them.

Her husband did not look like a candy loving man.

She pictured him eating one and giggled. “Definitely not him.” He was too imposing to delight in sweets. 6’2, wide shoulders, chiseled jaw and that dark scowl with a cigar in hand half the time, definitely not a candy man.

But then again, his outfits, like his brother’s, tended to have lion cubs’ embroidery. Where the city master Weijun chose cute or fierce cubs, Weifeng chose goofy ones. That too was a choice which was odd in comparison to his temperament. The man was a puzzle.

Liwu was about to order for room service when suddenly, like a spark in her mind, something clicked.

A voice echoed inside her head.

[Bad Luck System Activated.]

Liwu froze. “What?”

[Congratulations, Host. You have met all the requirements and are now officially bound to the Bad Luck System. Your misfortunes are the greatest to exist in your world. They are no longer random. They can be applied tactfully, use them wisely.]

Liwu blinked. So many years of wishing for a lucky system and she got a Bad Luck System!!

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep