“Causing trouble. Wuhua Wine is brewed with Zhi Yang’s divine power. You used it in a competition with mortals. A single sip could extend a mortal’s life by a hundred years, or even make them immortal outright. You’d have thrown the realms of ghosts and immortals into chaos. How could you, after tens of thousands of years as a chief god, still act so childishly?”
As he spoke, he adjusted Shang Gu’s slightly rumpled robes with a natural, gentle touch.
Bai Jue, typically cold and reserved, spoke with a soft tone even while reprimanding her, his words carrying a protective warmth. Though she hadn’t noticed it before, Shang Gu could clearly see his caring demeanor now.
Although none of her imagined confessions came true, Shang Gu felt a profound joy at his words. Tugging on Bai Jue’s sleeve, she restrained her usual majestic aura as the ruler of a realm, displaying a rare bit of girlish charm.
“I only wanted to share a bit of fortune with them. If we have good wine, they deserve some blessings.”
After all, if talented winemakers died young, who would make wine for Bai Jue? Shang Gu knew this very well. If Bai Jue hadn’t inadvertently interrupted her, she would have gladly continued granting fortune to the mortals.
Bai Jue knew she acted unconventionally and assumed it was her youthful spirit, so he didn’t continue the lecture.
“Where did you get the Wuhua Wine? Did you get it from Zhi Yang?”
Moments ago, Shang Gu had been brimming with bold thoughts, but now, realizing Bai Jue hadn’t seen through her intentions, she shrank back timidly and laughed it off. “Yes, yes, our dear old Zhi Yang has taken a liking to wine brewing these past years. I happened to be free and asked him for a jar to bring to the mortal realm for the competition.”
“If you want it, just come to my palace and take it. Every year he sends a jar, and there are still four or five left in my wine pavilion. Why bother asking him for more?”
Shang Gu, naturally lazy, usually treated her wine competitions as lighthearted fun, but ten years of roaming the mortal realm for fine wine seemed unusual. Could it be…?
Bai Jue knew his own preferences well enough, and suddenly a thought struck him, filling him with unexpected joy and disbelief. Was Shang Gu collecting fine wines for him? The very idea sent waves through his heart, which had remained calm for millennia, leaving him momentarily at a loss.
Worried that Bai Jue might notice her feelings, Shang Gu nodded repeatedly, trying to change the subject.
But Bai Jue, uncharacteristically serious, pressed on in a deep voice, “You don’t like wine. Why go down to the mortal realm just to compete in wine contests?”
The very question she dreaded had come. Shang Gu took a deep breath, wanting to hide her intentions, and replied casually, “All of you enjoy wine. I thought I’d win a few jars to bring back as birthday gifts.”
“All of us?” Bai Jue’s eyes darkened at the word “all,” and his swirling emotions were forcefully suppressed, his gaze returning to calm. He didn’t speak for a moment, long enough for Shang Gu to sense something amiss. Then, he took a step back, his expression neutral.
“I see. Then, on my next birthday, I’ll look forward to your gift.”
Among the four True Gods of Shang Gu’s realm, aside from Bai Jue, Tian Qi also enjoyed fine wine. It seemed Bai Jue had misunderstood her intentions yet again, realizing he might have assumed too much.
Bai Jue’s hand instinctively moved to brush his sleeve, ready to laugh at his own folly, but before he could, Shang Gu grabbed his hand.
Still dressed as a young man of Jin in disguise, she looked at him with a clear smile, saying, “We’re rarely in the mortal realm, and today is the Lantern Festival. Let’s take a moment to experience mortal life before returning to the Heavenly Realm.”
She tugged him playfully into the bustling crowd. Bai Jue, seeing her laughter and bright eyes, held her hand a little tighter and did not let go.
The Lantern Festival on the fifteenth day of the first month was a time for families to reunite—a tradition that hadn’t changed through the ages.
In Yue Mi’s palace in the Heavenly Realm, Yue Mi, the goddess of stars and moon, sighed in exasperation as she watched the scene unfold through her water mirror. She muttered to herself, shaking her head, thoroughly frustrated.
“Two blockheads! After all the effort I put in, they still don’t understand each other’s feelings… Combined, they’re older than the Heavenly Realm itself, yet they’re clueless about love!”
The days flew by, and soon it was nearing the birthdays of Bai Jue and Tian Qi.
Shang Gu had already instructed her palace guards to deliver the fine wines she had collected over ten years of competitions in the mortal realm to Bai Jue’s palace, including the nine jars of premium Nü’er Hong she had won from the Qin Chu Tavern.
The wine barrels left Shang Gu’s palace in a grand procession, filling three carts, dazzling the entire Heavenly Realm.
Shang Gu thought to herself, “Although it’s nothing compared to Bai Jue’s quiet devotion over tens of thousands of years, I’ve spent ten years collecting these ‘marital gifts,’ so I should have some confidence in proposing now.” She lay back in her Star-Plucking Pavilion, waiting for Bai Jue’s birthday, ready to enter his palace on an auspicious day to finally achieve her goal and bring her beloved husband home with joy.
When Bai Jue heard the news, he was both surprised and delighted but dared not fall into the same misunderstanding as last time. After a brief moment of reflection, he ordered his guard.
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