WN:TRMSHADSW 03

The Next Day, Early Morning

A few rays of sunlight filtered through the red checkered glass window, streaked with cracks.

Su Jin rubbed her eyes and raised her hand to shield them from the blinding light.

Why am I here?

She looked around, bewildered.

The first word that came to Su Jin’s mind was: dilapidated, utterly dilapidated.

The walls were made of bricks mixed with yellow mud, pockmarked and uneven. Lying in bed, she might get hit at any moment by a chunk of falling mud.

The furniture in the room was minimal: a bed, a simple table, and two low stools.

As Su Jin lifted the bright red quilt and turned around, she noticed a red paper pasted on the wall by the bed with a large “Double Happiness” (囍) character on it.

She was puzzled. What is going on? Isn’t the “Double Happiness” symbol only used for weddings?

Looking at her bed, she realized it was just four bricks stacked at the corners with a wooden board on top. Somehow, that was supposed to pass as a bed.

Creak— the wooden door was pushed open.

“You’re awake. Hungry?”

Jiang Heng immediately noticed his wife standing there, fiddling with her earlobe, looking dazed.

She clearly hadn’t adjusted to the situation yet.

As he approached, Su Jin instinctively stepped back a few paces and watched him warily.

Sure, the man in front of her radiated raw masculinity, with striking features and a perfectly shaped skull—even the back of his head was handsome. But she wasn’t in the mood to admire him.

Then she remembered last night: the man before her was the same one.

Biting her lip, she realized she had thought she was dreaming something… risqué!

Jiang Heng, seeing her tightly pursed lips, silently closed the door and stepped out.

Su Jin slapped herself hard.

“Ow! That actually hurts! Is this real?”

Had she really been reborn in someone else’s body?

She got out of bed and searched the table near it, finally finding a mirror with a few chipped corners.

“What—the face is really mine!”

Indeed, the reflection showed her fair, flawless, beautiful face.

“What is happening?”

Suddenly, Su Jin heard a loud laugh. She was even more baffled.

A rotund old man in a bright red robe appeared out of nowhere. His face was kind and gentle, and several red threads were wrapped around his hands.

“Ah—who are you?”

Su Jin almost jumped three meters into the air from shock.

The old man smiled warmly, stroking a face completely free of a beard.

“Little guest, I’ve delivered your marriage fate. Remember to leave a five-star review.”

“Marriage… fate?”

Su Jin’s eyes widened in confusion.

A memory flashed in her mind. Ah, that’s it! she realized.

The old man, the Matchmaker God, said: “Little girl, you went to the ancestral temple to pray for love, and I’ve found a suitable match for you as requested. Don’t give me a bad review!”

Su Jin nearly fainted.

Indeed! Three days ago, she had gone to the famous ancestral temple in neighboring Lingshui City to pray for love.

At twenty years old, having earned dual degrees from prestigious universities, Su Jin was lying in her luxurious apartment in Huanjiang Mansion, pondering life. Invincibility is so lonely! she thought. Her life needed a new direction—something she had never tried before: dating!

Who wouldn’t want sweet romance? Especially someone like her, beautiful, talented, and incredibly wealthy. She deserved to wake up every day under the sun, in the arms of a man with eight-pack abs.

Her best friend knew how thrilled she was when “a miracle finally happened” and exclaimed tearfully, “Finally! After all these years of acting uninterested in men, I thought you had a crush on me!”

Su Jin replied, “I really need to knock some sense into you!”

She just had high standards for her future partner’s looks!

When her friend eagerly introduced young, eligible men, she barely looked at them.

Her eyes showed seven parts disdain, three parts nonchalance. “This level of looks is only good enough to carry my bag!”

Her friend had told her about a temple in Lingshui City known for its powerful matchmaking abilities. Many young people went there to pray for love.

Without hesitation, she took Su Jin to the temple.

Su Jin, being highly educated, believed only in rigorous science, considering superstitious activities nonsense.

“Don’t doubt it, Xiao Jin! My friend’s son found love here. It’s better to believe than not!”

“Come, you need to be sincere.”

Urged on, she reluctantly picked up an incense stick.

Standing before the stone statue of the Matchmaker God, she casually said:

“Matchmaker God, if your temple is truly magical, find me a husband like this. Listen carefully:

1. He must be tall and handsome, with a perfect body. What’s handsome? Chiseled features so sharp even Greek sculptures would smash themselves in envy. Even the idols of South Han would call him a ‘face pioneer.’

2. I don’t want a man who leeches off me. He must be reliable, rich, preferably richer than me, easily giving me a few hundred million for pocket money.

3. He must pamper me endlessly, without limit.”

…And so on. Su Jin finally finished listing her requirements.

Her friend counted on her fingers, stunned: “Xiao Jin, your standards are fine, but are you sure a man like that exists?”

Su Jin waved her hand casually. “I’ve listed my requirements. Didn’t you say this temple is powerful? Let’s see if the Matchmaker God can deliver.”

Aunt Wu Xiaoqin sighed helplessly. She had to bring Su Jin here, knowing it was practically an impossible request.

In a hidden corner, a few drops of sweat slid down the back of the Matchmaker God’s stone statue.

Meanwhile, in heaven, under a massive Bodhi tree, Su Jin’s voice echoed from a tree hollow, startling the dozing Matchmaker God.

He listened to her list and felt his head explode.

No way! These demands are outrageous!

In all his years, he had never seen such absurd requirements. And she doubted his abilities!

In the mortal world, everyone praised him, and in heaven, he was a model worker. “Heavenly Hard Worker!” “Gold Medal Matchmaker God!” “The industry’s conscience, a heavenly example…” Praise like this had long bored him.

And now, someone doubted him? Impossible!

Besides, with the competition in heaven heating up toward year-end bonuses, he could not afford to fail.

Picking up his brush, he tapped his tongue and began recording notes.

…

Su Jin’s memory ended. She had just been rambling nonsense at the time.

“So, are you satisfied with the man or not?”

The Matchmaker God clasped his hands like a cat folding its paws.

Su Jin: “…..”