The Whole World Wants Me To Get Divorced chapter 47
Proposal
In the blink of an eye, it was the Lantern Festival.
Although many people were already back to work or school, the streets were still filled with a lively atmosphere, adorned with red festive decorations everywhere.
The courtyard of Rong Xiao’s residence had always been quiet and elegant, with little change throughout the four seasons. It never cared about festivals. However, this year was an exception. Red lanterns were hung in the courtyard.
Not seeking blessings from deities, purely adding a festive touch for Wen Yan’s birthday.
After days of preparations, Wen Yan’s proposal venue was also well arranged.
He had pretended to say that his classmates were throwing him a birthday party and slipped out of the house at noon, actually going ahead to make the final preparations.
As night fell, he sat in the flower house, like an underground party liaison, lowering his voice to message Yu Bu Wen, asking him to quickly bring the other protagonist of the proposal.
A few days ago, he talked with Yu Bu Wen, revealing his plan and arrangements. The purpose was for Yu Bu Wen to act as an accomplice and trick Rong Xiao out on the fifteenth day of the lunar new year.
However, what he didn’t know was that when he sent the location to Yu Bu Wen and asked him to proceed according to the plan, Rong Xiao was sitting next to Yu Bu Wen.
Every word Wen Yan said was clearly audible to him.
On the nearby table in Rong Xiao’s villa, there was an already empty jade-colored bowl, with only a bit of bitter medicinal residue left.
But the medicine Rong Xiao drank this time was not the same as the one he used to drink, and its purpose was not for treatment but for pain relief.
Rong Xiao leaned back in the recliner, his usually pale face exceptionally devoid of any trace of color, and the white coat he wore had been completely soaked through with blood.
The blood-red color dripped down from the hem of his clothes, making a ticking sound in the quiet room, sounding particularly heart-wrenching.
His injuries had just flared up again, more ferocious than any previous time. Yu Bu Wen busily tried to help him stop the bleeding, but it was still of no use. Layers of expensive hemostatic ointments were applied, only to be washed clean by the fresh red blood.
By the time the bleeding finally stopped, even the floor next to Rong Xiao had gathered a small puddle of blood.
But Rong Xiao seemed oblivious. He lowered his head to glance at the wound, confirming that it wouldn’t split open again in the short term, and then stood up to change his clothes, seemingly indifferent to the mess around him.
“It’s time to go,” he said to Yu Bu Wen. “We shouldn’t let Wen Yan wait too long.”
His eager fiance wanted to propose to him, and how could he be late?
Yu Bu Wen was still half-kneeling on the ground, silently clenching his fists.
He had countless words to persuade Rong Xiao, but he knew he couldn’t shake the old demon’s decisions.
In the end, he could only stand up in despair, go downstairs, and drive Rong Xiao to where Wen Yan was.
On the way, neither of the two demons spoke. The car was silent, not like heading to a proposal but more like attending a funeral.
Yu Bu Wen bit his lip all the way, afraid of saying anything presumptuous. However, when they reached the entrance of the estate, and Rong Xiao opened the car door to get out, he couldn’t help but speak.
He looked ahead, faintly able to see a sea of lights. In the depths of that illumination, Wen Yan was eagerly waiting for his fiancé.
The child knew nothing; he thought this was the beginning of his life’s happiness.
Yu Bu Wen closed his eyes, softly asking, “Sir, I know I can’t change your mind. But when you made all these choices, did you consider Wen Yan’s feelings? He’s only eighteen, but he’s not a child anymore. If he remembers all this in the years to come… he will hate you.”
Rong Xiao’s hand, about to push open the car door, paused for a moment.
But he didn’t answer Yu Bu Wen’s question. He just instructed, “Remember the tasks I assigned to you and make sure nothing goes wrong.”
Having said that, he got out of the car and walked straight through the estate gate.
He was going to attend a proposal.
As he entered the estate, he saw a winding path enclosed by a floral wall. Above the wall, colorful lanterns intertwined with flower branches served as both illumination and a display of the blooming roses.
Roses were flowers for lovers, symbolizing ardent love.
Rong Xiao followed this path.
Continuing until the end of the road, he saw a glass flower house.
Inside, lights shone brightly, resembling a lighthouse guiding lost wanderers in the quiet night.
He walked in.
As he stepped into the flower house, a silver-blue satin carpet lay beneath his feet. At the end of the satin, he saw a peculiar tree. It had branches but no leaves. On the branches hung numerous small glass lanterns, inside of which were burning flames, clearly imitating the appearance of the mythical “Endless Wood.”
Underneath this tree stood a figure Rong Xiao was all too familiar with.
Wen Yan wore a formal black suit, appearing slender and tall. His hair was carefully groomed, making an effort to arm himself as a mature adult. However, the nervousness in his eyes revealed his youth and innocence.
He waited for Rong Xiao to approach, and when he saw Rong Xiao enter, he couldn’t help but smile.
But halfway through, Rong Xiao stopped in his tracks.
He suddenly didn’t want to go any further.
Wen Yan was waiting eagerly at the end of this road.
He wished for time to freeze at this moment.
To pause on this Lantern Festival, on Wen Yan’s birthday, never welcoming the dawn.
He hoped Wen Yan would never turn eighteen, so they would never part.
But Wen Yan had no idea what Rong Xiao was thinking.
In his palm, he held a small black velvet box containing an emerald green jade ring, similar in color to Rong Xiao’s eyes.
It was a family heirloom, though not comparable in age to Rong Xiao, still a valuable antique.
He intended to use it to seek the promise of the demon he loved.
He had been waiting for this day for a long time.
So, when he saw Rong Xiao stop midway, he tilted his head in confusion, wondering what Rong Xiao was up to.
Rong Xiao stood and observed Wen Yan for a moment before slowly walking over.
He had seen human weddings, where the bride would walk down a long red carpet towards her groom.
He reached Wen Yan, and the distance between them was less than an arm’s length. He could clearly see every detail on Wen Yan’s face.
He noticed that Wen Yan had dressed up seriously today, like a proud little peacock, making every effort to showcase every inch of his beautiful feathers to others.
Rong Xiao smiled and asked him, “What are you and Yu Bu Wen planning by tricking me here?”
A rhetorical question.
Wen Yan took a deep breath.
Slowly, he knelt down on one knee.
Even though he knew Rong Xiao wouldn’t refuse him, an unprecedented sense of unease surged within him.
Under the room’s bright lights, he looked at Rong Xiao’s face and once again found himself captivated by the old demon’s charm. The old demon was just too good-looking. Even though Wen Yan wasn’t bad as a young grass, he still felt a great sense of crisis.
This was the first and only time in his life he would propose to someone.
He opened the small black velvet box in his palm, revealing the translucent jade ring inside. Gently, he slid it onto Rong Xiao’s finger.
“Mr. Rong Xiao, I, your boyfriend Mr. Wen Yan, solemnly propose to you.” Wen Yan looked up at Rong Xiao, his smile brighter than ever. “I guarantee that I will only love you for the rest of my life. After marriage, I will not spare a glance for wildflowers and weeds by the roadside, my heart and eyes filled only with you.”
“May I ask, would you marry me?”
Rong Xiao looked into Wen Yan’s eyes, feeling an immense pain for the first time, a pain that seemed to split his heart in half.
He had been penetrated by miasma through his heart, and bone nails had been hammered into his shoulder before, but he had never felt pain like this.
Nevertheless, he reached out and willingly put on the ring Wen Yan held.
The emerald green jade ring, slightly modified to fit his finger perfectly.
“I will marry you.”
The proposal succeeded.
Wen Yan suddenly jumped up from the ground and hung onto Rong Xiao.
“Are you surprised? Didn’t expect this?” Wen Yan, holding onto his neck, asked proudly, “I wasn’t meeting Li Zheng and the others, I was conscripting them as soldiers to help me set up the proposal scene.”
Rong Xiao held his waist with one hand and the other around his shoulder.
“Well, I am surprised. I didn’t expect it at all.”
“Of course. Do you think I don’t understand romance like you?” Wen Yan rubbed his face against Rong Xiao’s shoulder. “Although we’ve been engaged for a while, we still need to go through the proper procedures.”
Having hugged enough, he jumped down from Rong Xiao.
He lowered his head and fiddled with the ring on Rong Xiao’s hand, saying with a somewhat foolish smile, “This is our family heirloom, specifically passed down to daughters-in-law. There’s also a necklace passed down to daughters, but unfortunately, I don’t have a sister.”
Wen Yan asked again, “Do you like this ring? I think it matches the color of your eyes.”
Rong Xiao nodded. “I really like it.”
The proposal was completed.
Now, with just over half an hour left until midnight.
Wen Yan had arranged follow-up activities.
Behind this glass flower house was a vast, clear lake. A small boat floated on the lake, carrying prepared meals and red wine.
Wen Yan pulled Rong Xiao onto the boat, and fireworks burst into the sky, dazzling like a carnival.
He fed Rong Xiao cake while saying, “Fortunately, we’re on the outskirts. If I proposed to you in the city, there wouldn’t be any fireworks. After setting them off, I’d be fined and criticized.”
Rong Xiao laughed and ate the rose-shaped cake.
They spent the last half hour of the Lantern Festival together.
When the distant clock struck twelve, Wen Yan officially celebrated his eighteenth birthday.
He was an adult now, with a coming-of-age ceremony and a proposal arranged on the same day.
Floating on the lake with Rong Xiao, they watched the fireworks and discussed various wedding arrangements.
And when the last firework fell.
Wen Yan was about to speak when Rong Xiao abruptly pulled him into his arms, initiating a passionate and forceful kiss.
Wen Yan had never been kissed like this before.
The old demon, known for his cold temper, displayed lingering tenderness in his kissing technique.
But now, Rong Xiao seemed to have lost all his grace, turning into a fierce beast. He pressed Wen Yan onto the boat, his hands tightly gripping Wen Yan’s shoulders, forcefully and barbarically devouring his mouth. Wen Yan even suspected that his tongue might have been bitten, tasting the metallic flavor of blood.
But he was kissed so dizzy that he couldn’t care much, only knowing to cater to Rong Xiao and make him happy.
After who knew how long, Rong Xiao finally let go.
The starlight was just right, and Rong Xiao, with both hands on Wen Yan’s shoulders, looked down at him.
Wen Yan hadn’t fully recovered from this kiss, feeling a bit dazed.
Unexplainably, he felt that in Rong Xiao’s kiss, there was no trace of tenderness or joy, but rather, it was filled with despair.
But before he could ponder further, he heard Rong Xiao ask him, “Ah Yan, do you love me?”
Was there even a need to ask?
“I love you more than anyone else in the world.”
Rong Xiao also smiled.
“I love you too.”
Having lived for thousands of years, having witnessed the infatuations and grievances of lovers, he only understood what it felt like when it happened to him.
He raised his hand and gently caressed Wen Yan’s eyes.
When his fingers lifted again, Wen Yan had fallen asleep.
Quietly sleeping on this leaf boat.
The vast sky and earth were serene.
Rong Xiao gently kissed Wen Yan’s forehead.