Heaven's Shadow - Chapter 152: The Gray-Haired Old Man

Tang Qiu was a substitute bride–forced to take her half-sister’s place and marry the young master of the Jiang family, a deformed cripple with less than 6 months left to live.

“Who would have thought that even a sickly whelp like Jiang Shaocheng would find himself a bride?”

“I hear that he’s practically on his deathbed and he’s only marrying the Fengs’ daughter to improve his lifespan.”

Tang Qiu ignored the whispers around her and focused on her husband-to-be, who coughed violently in his wheelchair. At the altar, after they had said their vows, she lifted her veil and knelt in front of Jiang Shaocheng, pressing a hesitant kiss to his lips.

The marriage contract was signed. No matter his physical deformities, he was now her husband.

She wasn’t afraid of the scars that marked his face, nor was she repulsed by him being confined to a wheelchair. Every morning, she made him breakfast, attended to his needs, and thought of little else beyond her duties as a wife.

“Young Master Jiang is a cripple who can’t get it up,” her best friend argued. “When he dies, you’ll still be untouched. You should set your sights higher.”

“A sickly invalid like Jiang Shaocheng can’t give you happiness,” her ex-boyfriend insisted. “I’ll wait for you.”

But Young Master Jiang only scoffed. “I have plenty of time left to be with her.”

Later in their marriage, Jiang Shaocheng wanted to enjoy his little wife in all ways–the press of her lips against his, the brush of skin on skin; the way a husband and wife were supposed to. But Tang Qiu refused him, blushing. “No, we can’t. The doctor says you can’t exert yourself.”

Jiang Shaocheng’s desire was surging through him, a heat in his core that demanded to be satiated. He cursed, I should have gotten rid of that doctor and the wheelchair long ago.

But he yearned to make love to his little wife, and so he revealed his true identity. In the blink of an eye, the deformed cripple transformed into a powerful businessman–tall, dark, and handsome. He quieted Tang Qiu’s protests, his body positioned over hers, his arms caging her as she lay on the bed. His voice was low when he asked, “What about now?”

Arthur was a weak and cowardly boy who lacked the power to protect anyone—a truth brutally demonstrated when his parents were massacred while defending him during a Gate outbreak. As the sole survivor, Arthur spent weeks believing his life was over. When intense chest pains began, he assumed he'd been infected with corruption by the void creature that killed his parents and was merely waiting for death.What Arthur didn't expect was that these sensations actually signaled his Realm Core forming. In two months' time, he would be forcefully transported to the next realm and awaken new powers, becoming one of the world-renowned “Chosen” who protect humanity from Gate outbreaks. Now Arthur must rise through the heights of power, climbing each of the seven realms in hopes of saving his world... or does he?

Everyone told Wei Yingluo that her sister had taken her own life. But the mark left on the corpse told a different story. To unearth the truth, she entered the Forbidden City during Emperor Qianlong’s 6th year of reign.

After investigation, she found her sister’s death related to Prince Hongzhou, and became determined to avenge her. The kind Empress Fucha, worried that Yingluo would stray onto the wrong path, took her under her wing. With the help of the Empress, Wei Yingluo grew to be an honest and strong female official in the palace, letting go of her resentment and living her life seriously from then on.

Yet the Empress passed away unfortunately, causing Yingluo to misunderstand Emperor Qianlong. Hostile against each other, could they understand and support each other in the end?

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