Is twenty the dowry?

When Hua Mi woke up again, the snow had nearly melted, and the village meadows were showing sporadic patches of green.

She realized that ever since she became a yokai, she had either been unconscious or on the verge of becoming so. Her default state was weak, pathetic, and helpless.

Staring at the budding trees outside the window, she didn't need to guess to know she hadn't just slept for a night; she had likely slumbered through the entire winter.

Vaguely accustomed to this habit of sleeping for months or even years at a time, Hua Mi didn't give it much thought. She let out a yawn and discovered that her demonic energy was unexpectedly abundant. Every scale on her body seemed polished, shimmering with a brilliant luster.

Looking around, the campfire had gone out, and the clay pots were nowhere to be seen. Most strangely, Sesshomaru was gone. If not for the fact that the house remained the same, Hua Mi would have suspected she had transmigrated again.

So, Sesshomaru disappeared... he must have gone out for a stroll by himself, right? Hua Mi wasn't sure, but it seemed logical enough.

Waking up this time, she felt refreshed, lacking the lethargy she had experienced during her previous transformations. She was a little hungry.

Wiggling her snake tail, she noticed her scales had changed color. They had shifted from pure white with blue markings to a gradient of blue at the top and white at the bottom. Not to brag, but it actually looked quite stylish.

Even as a yokai, one must be a stunning beauty with striking features. Hua Mi was very satisfied with her mutated scales and muttered to herself, "Next time I hibernate, I hope I turn pink!"

The snake tail: ...

In any case, Sesshomaru's disappearance and the color change of her scales didn't give Hua Mi too much cause for concern. She calmly walked out of the house to embrace the breath of nature. Lady Hua Mi was back—

Hm?
Wait, what?

The moment she stepped outside, she was stunned by a bizarre scene. Why were there so many chests outside her house?

There were three tall, sturdy, and exquisitely crafted solid wood chests. Carved on the outside were birds, beasts, and exotic flowers. The designs were unique. Hua Mi had seen many similar ones when she was a princess; these were the types of dowry chests that only noble ladies could afford to display.

Stacked together, the chests stood over two meters tall.

With a swish, she propped herself up with her snake tail, instantly gaining height, and flipped open the lid of the top chest.

If this were an animated series, the scene would undoubtedly feature the classic "sparkling" effect that would have blinded Hua Mi’s snake eyes.

Seeing the items inside, Hua Mi gasped in awe, her lack of worldly experience showing: "Wow—"

Jade! Gold! Gemstones!

There was a set of radiant jade face jewelry, and among the soft feathers lay a set of crimson hair ornaments, looking fresh and delicate.

As a beauty-loving snake lady, Hua Mi felt a shameful, irresistible urge.

She took out the jade piece from the top. The verdant, piercing green of the jade glowed with a warm luster under the sun, as if one could see the green essence flowing within it.

This time, it wasn't just her tail that felt weak; her head felt a little dizzy. This was more effective at raising her adrenaline levels than being chased by a predator.

"...That is truly wealthy." These weren't just real; they belonged to the category of legendary heirlooms.

***

The region of Obon had excellent geography with many mineral veins. Influenced by the suzerain state, jade and gold jewelry were very popular. Of course, there were gemstones, but because they lacked purity and luster, they were generally less popular than jade and were often used as pigments for painting.

However, the gemstones in the chests were of such color, purity, and size that they would be considered extremely rare in modern times.

Lying flat and getting rich. These four words were the only thing in Hua Mi's brain right now.

The question was, whose were these?

Sesshomaru's image surfaced in her mind.

So, could these chests be a dowry gift from Sesshomaru to provide for her? Thinking of this, Hua Mi was so happy that her little tail couldn't help but tighten and sway. It wasn't her fault for thinking this way; after all, given the financial resources and the willingness to give such gifts, it could only be Sesshomaru.

After all, Sesshomaru had lost his memory and mistakenly believed she was his wife.

It had to be!

In this godforsaken backwater village where people were too stingy to use salt in their food, where else could one get so much jewelry? It had to be Sesshomaru!

Feeling as though she had uncovered the truth, Hua Mi swallowed hard.

In her past life and this one, she had never seen so much jewelry, let alone owned it.

Hua Mi touched this and that, shedding tears of envy.

It was a pity that once Sesshomaru regained his memory, these things would have to be returned to their rightful owner. Thinking of this, her heart ached! No, she couldn't imagine a life without her precious treasures.

She couldn't help but wrap her tail around the wooden chests, displaying a fierce, territorial posture.

There were three chests in total: one with matching jewelry, one with gold and silver, and another with various loose ornaments.

Lying on the chests, a happy, twisted smile spread across her face.

They were hers—all hers.

She now declared: Sesshomaru was her husband!

...

The arrival of spring saw the half-demons becoming active again.

Hua, as usual, came to check if Lady Hua Mi had awakened. Humming a tune, she hadn't even approached yet when she saw the beautiful snake tail coiled around the chests. Hua’s eyes instantly lit up.

Revealing a row of little white teeth, she waved her arms happily: "Lady Hua Mi, you're awake!"

Hua Mi, who was lying on the chests, raised her head and reluctantly slid off, though her snake tail still tightly coiled around the crates.

No one could separate her from her precious treasures!

Hua Mi suddenly realized she was a bit reluctant for Sesshomaru to regain his memory.

It turned out that rather than being greedy for his beauty, she was greedier for his wealth.

Hua Mi tried her best to hide her greedy gaze, attempting to maintain the image of a poised and elegant Mountain God. She gave a light cough, "Hua, these things are—"

Just in case, she had to be sure.

"They were sent by the Karasu Tengu, who said they were for the Mountain God," Hua answered obediently. "It was the day after your husband left."

These were gifts sent to the Mountain God by the Nura Clan. Hua didn't find it strange at all that yokai would offer sacrifices to the Mountain God, because in her mind, the Mountain God was the most beautiful and best Mountain God of all!

***

Karasu Tengu? Hua Mi tried hard to recall; she hadn't heard of them in *Inuyasha*, only in folklore about yokai, noting they were of the same lineage as the Great Tengu.

Ignoring the strange and absurd description of "the Mountain God's husband," Hua Mi blinked, trying to analyze: In other words, the day after Sesshomaru left, the Karasu Tengu sent all these chests?

Was there any need to think about it?

It must be that Sesshomaru had asked the Karasu Tengu to deliver the dowry after he left!

The more she thought about it, the more she felt it was a surprise gift from Sesshomaru. After all, besides Sesshomaru, Hua Mi couldn't think of any other yokai who would be so wealthy and generous as to send her so much jewelry.

Only that brooding, sentimental Sesshomaru would do good deeds without leaving a name.

Those were wooden chests large enough to hold a grown man; one could imagine how much jewelry was inside.

As expected of Lord Sesshomaru, wealthy and generous in every sense. Secretly giving Sesshomaru a thumbs-up, Hua Mi even had a new thought: Should she just take Sesshomaru once and for all? That way, all this jewelry would officially be hers.

But what if he woke up in the middle of it? Her snake life might be in jeopardy.

"Sigh—"

Comparing one yokai to another only leads to frustration.

Noticing that Lady Hua Mi didn't seem happy, Hua tilted her head, full of worry: "Lady Hua Mi, are you not feeling well?"

Mourning the wealth she had never possessed, Hua Mi sighed gloomily: "If I had never known wealth, I could have endured poverty."

Hua: I don't understand.

"Forget it, I'll enjoy it while I can." Hua Mi decided that she would sleep with her jewelry tonight!

Diligently using her tail to move the jewelry back into her room, Hua Mi’s mood improved again.

...

On a nearby cliff, several small yokai were sneaking around, tiptoeing as they watched the now-bustling half-demon village.

To be precise, they were watching Hua Mi, the Mountain God. Hidden in the shadows, wearing a haori jacket embroidered with the Nura Clan’s crest, the raven-faced Karasu Tengu saw the Mountain God move the chests into her house and immediately tapped the small yokai beside him.

"Go report to the leader! The snake woman has accepted the jewelry! She has agreed to our request!" the Karasu Tengu said, trembling with excitement.

The smaller yokai flapped its wings and responded loudly: "Yes! Boss, I'm going right now!"

The small yokai flew to the forest and said to another yokai standing guard: "Go report to the leader, the Mountain God has agreed to go to the Nura Clan!"

"Yes!" The sleepy golden-haired yokai spread its wings and flew away.

The small yokai rested a hand on its forehead, muttering to itself: "Is that guy really reliable?"

The golden-haired yokai flew back to the Nura Clan's territory at top speed and shouted: "The Mountain God has agreed to marry the leader!!!"

Nura Rihan, who had just stepped out of the house: ???

Rihan, who was usually charming, elegant, and carefree, suddenly widened his eyes and turned his head in disbelief toward his son, Rikuo, behind him: "What did he say?"

The handsome young man with golden eyes and long black hair paused, then smiled: "Am I about to have a stepmother?"