Marrying the Soft-hearted Villain

Ruan Qiuqiu swallowed the crystal-clear water droplet from her fingertip. After a while, the splitting pain in her head subsided a little.

She supported herself against the uneven cave wall and slowly walked to the stone bed, lying down weakly for a while.

But she didn’t lie down for long before she forced herself to get up again.

—She only had one hour to pack her things. She had already wasted a lot of time confirming her abilities. Now, no matter how tired she was, she couldn’t rest.

Ruan Qiuqiu carefully packed the things in the cave, and then tragically discovered that she was penniless.

There were pitifully few things in the cave:

There were very few warm animal skins. Apart from the one spread on the stone bed as a quilt, there were only two rough-stitched animal skin clothes that looked like burlap sacks.

Besides these three pieces of hide, there was only a palm-sized bone needle, ground from the bone of some unknown animal;

A few long threads that looked like they were spun from lion hair;

A piece of frozen, dry jerky that could probably only feed her for one meal;

A clean wooden bowl and half a catty of tuber powder.

Other than that, not to mention daily necessities like toothbrushes and combs, Ruan Qiuqiu couldn’t even find a single chopstick.

She rubbed her forehead weakly, simply sewing the large animal skin on the bed into the shape of a leather bag, and stuffed all the things in the cave into it.

While folding clothes, Ruan Qiuqiu found a brand new red hairband in the light brown animal skin coat.

It was probably made from the fur of some rare animal. Although it was simple, the color was very bright, red, and festive, just like…

A bridal headdress.

For some reason, this word popped into her mind. Ruan Qiuqiu’s heart tightened. She hesitated for a moment, then took the hairband in her hand.

She touched the soft fluff on it, and for some reason, her eyes felt a little sore—

She had lived for more than twenty years, and she had never been in love. Now, she was going to marry a wolf so suddenly.

Thinking of her future husband, Ruan Qiuqiu pulled the corners of her lips, revealing an expression of whether she was laughing or crying.

A disfigured and disabled pervert Big Bad Wolf…

She had really made a big leap forward, directly from being single to becoming the bride of a wicked wolf.

Ruan Qiuqiu felt very complicated. She blinked her eyes and finally put the bright red hairband, along with the sharp bone needle that could be used as a weapon, into her pocket.

…

An hour passed quickly. When Ruan Qiuqiu walked out of the cave carrying the leather bag, the Lion Clan Leader was already waiting outside with a few Flame Wolf Tribe demons.

Ruan Qiuqiu pursed her lips and looked at the few wolf demons outside the cave—

They were generally not as tall as the lion demons of the Mountain Lion Tribe. In human form, they didn’t look that aggressive. They had blue-green wolf-shaped patterns painted on their right faces. Their eyes were not as piercing as the lions’, and even looked a little lazy, but they gave off a very dangerous feeling.

“Ruan Qiuqiu, just follow these wolves.” The Lion Clan Leader had probably gotten the three hundred catties of salt stones, and his expression looked much gentler than before.

He looked at the pale Ruan Qiuqiu, pointed to a leather bag on the ground, and said in a somewhat dignified tone, “Your… dowry is all in here. It’s about a day and a half journey from our tribe to the Flame Wolf Tribe. You… be careful.”

Ruan Qiuqiu nodded, walked forward, and opened the leather bag to take a look.

The things inside were similar to what she had requested. The herbs and salt stones were wrapped separately in a small animal skin.

Ruan Qiuqiu pretended to take food, took out the small animal skin wrapped with herbs along with two pieces of jerky, put them into the leather bag in her hand, and then straightened up, staggering to lift the large leather bag.

But dozens of catties of things were heavy after all, and she was weak now. The leather bag sank into the snow. She tried several times but couldn’t lift it.

Rou Yuerao watched her trembling hands and feet, feeling a little unbearable. She wanted to ask the surrounding lion demons to help her, but when she thought that Ruan Qiuqiu still liked Lu Ziran, who was not in the tribe because he was out hunting, the sympathy that had just surged in her heart immediately vanished.

Rou Yuerao didn’t say anything, and the surrounding lion demons who still remembered Ruan Qiuqiu saying bad things about her didn’t help.

Ruan Qiuqiu didn’t expect the lion demons to help her either. She had already thought that this might happen.

She took out twenty catties of jerky from the leather bag, walked to a middle-aged wolf demon who looked the oldest, met his cold gaze, and forced a smile. “This… Uncle Yao, I wonder if I can make a small deal with you?”

The middle-aged wolf demon looked at the thin, long-preserved, not-so-fresh jerky in Ruan Qiuqiu’s hand, and reluctantly accepted it. “You want me to help you carry the leather bag, right? Fine.”

He took the jerky and stuffed it into his large leather pocket, then casually picked up the leather bag on the ground that Ruan Qiuqiu couldn’t lift. “Don’t waste time, let’s go.”

After the middle-aged wolf demon finished speaking, the other four wolves followed behind him expressionlessly and turned their heads to stare at her.

Ruan Qiuqiu’s back turned cold. She didn’t dare to waste any more time and followed them with gritted teeth.

The wolf demons’ pace was neither fast nor slow. She followed behind them, and by the time she came back to her senses, they had already left the territory of the Lion Clan.

She hadn’t said goodbye to any of the people or demons of the Wind Lion Tribe, and they didn’t show any reluctance or concern for her departure.

It was as if she was really just a dispensable tool used to exchange for salt stones.

However, Ruan Qiuqiu didn’t have time to feel sad about the indifference of the lion demons. It was already hard enough for her to keep up with the wolf demons’ pace.

…

Ruan Qiuqiu had thought that after leaving the Lion Clan, the wolf demons would transform into their original forms and hurry on their way, perhaps giving her a ride.

But it turned out that she was overthinking.

Not only did the five wolves not transform into their original forms to take her with them, but they also had no intention of communicating with her. They were just like robots on a mission, indifferently taking her back to the tribe.

There were several times along the way when she was so tired that she couldn’t walk anymore, and they would look at her with fierce and disgusted eyes.

Fortunately, they didn’t encounter any dangerous animals or demons along the way, otherwise Ruan Qiuqiu highly doubted whether she could still live to marry that big gray wolf.

Just like this, they walked intermittently for a long time. By the evening of the next day, the animal skin wrapped around Ruan Qiuqiu’s feet was almost worn out from her walking, and they finally approached the territory of the Flame Wolf Tribe.

Just as they were about to walk out of the forest, the middle-aged wolf demon at the head suddenly turned around and said to Ruan Qiuqiu in a frightened and excited tone, “After this forest, we’ll reach the cave where your mate is ‘recuperating’.”

He emphasized the words “recuperating” particularly heavily. With a burst of jeering laughter, the other four wolves also turned their heads, as if they were suddenly interested in talking to her.

A younger wolf demon, with unconcealable fear in his voice, stared at Ruan Qiuqiu with some pity and said, “You’re so pitiful. Your dying husband has no interest in women at all…”

“What nonsense are you talking about?” Another wolf demon punched him. “That cripple has been hungry for so long, maybe he’s very interested in ‘eating women’.”

Ruan Qiuqiu: “…” Oh, so Mr. Big Bad Wolf might be craving her body.

“…” Seeing her expressionless face, the wolf demon paused for a moment, then said, “Aren’t you afraid of being eaten?”

“Is it useful to be afraid?” Ruan Qiuqiu said listlessly.

If it were her two days ago, she would probably have politely shown some fear as a sign of respect, but now she was too tired to die.

She just wanted to quickly find a stone bed to lie down on, otherwise she would fall into a coma and die on the spot.

Perhaps her reaction was quite admirable to the demon. Ruan Qiuqiu clearly felt that the middle-aged wolf demon’s eyes changed.

He took out a wrinkled large red animal skin coat from somewhere and handed it to her. “Put it on.”

Ruan Qiuqiu: “?”

“Wedding dress,” the middle-aged wolf demon said.

Ruan Qiuqiu: “…” So they even prepared a wedding dress for her?

A small wolf demon on the side gloated, “Yes, yes, and a wedding dress. I almost forgot about that. But that blind demon can’t see, right?”

Ruan Qiuqiu: “…” Blind demon? Wasn’t Mr. Big Bad Wolf just disfigured and disabled? Was he blind too?

Seeing her somewhat surprised gaze, the little wolf demon couldn’t help but say, “Blind demon, don’t you understand? Just like you humans, he’s blind. He can’t see this rare sunshine, these trees, this snow, understand?”

Hearing his words, Ruan Qiuqiu pursed her lips. “You hate my… husband very much?”

The little wolf demon sneered, “Of course.”

Ruan Qiuqiu couldn’t help but ask, “In that case, why did you spend three hundred catties of salt stones to marry him a wife?” And it had to be voluntary.

As soon as she finished speaking, she noticed that the expressions of the wolves changed instantly, and even revealed a trace of fear.

The middle-aged wolf demon roared in a bluff, “It’s our tribe’s rule, custom! Our Flame Wolf Tribe lacks everything but salt stones, why the hell are you asking so much?!”

Ruan Qiuqiu was stunned by his roar and wisely didn’t say anything more.

The wolf demons also fell silent. The group walked for about half an hour more. Just as they were about to approach the exit of the forest, Ruan Qiuqiu, who was mechanically moving forward, suddenly found that all the wolf demons had stopped.

She was a little puzzled and just wanted to ask when she heard a low, hoarse growl from her ear, a sound that represented threat and warning.

The long growl swirled at the edge of the forest filled with giant trees, carrying the howling wind, sending chills down her spine.

Ruan Qiuqiu’s scalp went numb. She turned her head and saw that the wolf demons behind her had already run away without a trace. Her dowry was scattered on the snow.

Ruan Qiuqiu let out a breath and forced herself to calm down.

She looked at the cave hidden under the giant trees not far away, then looked back at the desolate forest, unable to tell what she was feeling.

Going forward was her husband’s cave.

Going back was the forest, a hundred times more dangerous than it was now after sunset.

Ruan Qiuqiu didn’t hesitate any longer. She put on the red “wedding dress” and, after thinking for a moment, tied the hairband in her pocket to her head.

—No matter whether that big gray wolf could see or not, it was her first time getting married, so she couldn’t look too shabby.

Ruan Qiuqiu laughed at herself, picked up the leather bag that was now lighter by more than twenty catties of jerky, and walked towards the cave with great effort.

The closer she got to Mr. Big Bad Wolf’s cave, the heavier the smell of blood in the air became. Mixed with the cold wind, it was so heavy that she could hardly breathe.

Stepping on the crunching snow, she turned the last corner and finally arrived at a place less than ten meters away from the cave.

She panted slightly and, through the hazy sunlight, saw a limping wolf cub gnawing on the snow, swaying as if it might fall at any moment.

Ruan Qiuqiu blinked in surprise. When she focused again, the wolf cub was gone.

In its place was a huge, terrifying gray wolf, baring its fangs, its entire body enveloped in a strong smell of blood.

And the blood dripping from his body and the huge, festering wound, even from afar, Ruan Qiuqiu could see it very clearly.

Author’s note:

Mr. Big Bad Wolf was alarmed and apprehensive, revealing his terrifying fangs: “She shouldn’t have seen that, right?”

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