EVERGLOW

IX. When she says nothing

Hunan province

Shen Yue had insisted on keeping as much of Chinese traditional wedding rituals as they possibly could.

Which was why on an early Saturday morning, five tall handsome men stood outside the Shen's family home, drawing the curious eyes of a few neighbors. It was quite a shame that the media had no idea the wedding was happening that day. It would have been a treat to see F4, plus one adopted, back in formation.

Dylan, dressed in a red tang suit with gold details, was ready to pick up his bride.

The four men in black suits didn't bother to contain their smirks. Watching the groom calmly staring down the four mauve-clad bridesmaids, nobody could have guessed that they nearly had to physically restrain him in the limo. Despite the spacious car, four full grown men cooped up with an impatient Dylan was not a relaxing ride.

"What do you want Wang He Di?" Zi Wei, leading the other three bridesmaids, shouted through the black wrought iron gates that barred him from Yue.

"I want my bride!" he answered proudly with the widest grin spreading on his face, his gleaming eyes fixed on a window on the second floor.

"And what will you give to get her?"

"Anything," he answered quietly, meeting Zi Wei's gaze steadily.

He was here to gate crash. To subject himself and his friends to, hopefully not very humiliating, tasks to earn his bride. But he wanted her friends to know that he meant it, and that he wasn't just talking about the ritual.

Zi Wei waved a hand impatiently. "Ah, you're no fun. We all know that. Too bad Yue made us promise not to make you guys literally sweat."

Connor exhaled loudly. "Thank goodness you're marrying an angel."

"Jia Qi especially wanted to see Caesar sweat," Shui winked at the boys, dodging a playful slap from her friend.

"Just wait until I gate crash, babe," Caesar winked at a blushing Jia Qi.

"Don't call me that."

"Stop flirting on my wedding day!" Dylan's impatience started to emerge and the guys knew they had to start now before he made a spectacle of himself climbing over the gate. Yue would give them all an earful.

"Please help us get this over with," Connor implored the women. "The sooner he gets his bride, the sooner we can live our lives peacefully." He had been appointed as official beggar.

The bridesmaids shrugged. He had a point there. And so one by one they gave the tasks the men needed to accomplish to prove how much the groom wanted his bride, and how his friends had his back.

They had to spell "SHEN YUE HAS WANG HE DI" by biting into sliced bread to form the letters. Then finish a tray full of black coffee syringes, and a plate of ant omelet. When Dylan learned Yue herself cooked it, he ordered them to back off and ate the whole thing. He didn't even complain about the extra pinch of salt. They made him write down five things he hated about Yue that he needed to read to her when he saw her. And for the last task, he had to answer one question.

"What is Yue's favorite part of your body?" Xiaowen asked with a straight face.

Dylan frowned. He and Yue didn't exactly talk about stuff like this every day.

"Wait, she told you that?" he asked incredulously. "I want to know!"

"Hey, we can give each one of them a guess," Jia Qi suggested. "Anybody gets the right answer and they get the key."