Werebeast Gongs CH 087 The So-Called Ceremony
After discussing a bit more, Xiya noticed Lei Jin shivering slightly from the cold. "Looks like we'll have to make another trip to the Avian Tribe before the cold wave hits," he said. "We need a thicker blanket. Now that the weather's cooling, his body can't handle the chill. Hold him tighter at night, but be careful not to press on his stomach."
Moya nodded, carefully lifting Lei Jin and placing him on the inner side of the bed before climbing in himself.
Xiya smiled as he watched Lei Jin instinctively curl into Moya's embrace the moment he got into bed. Leaning down, he stole a quick kiss from Lei Jin's lips and said, "Dad made the bed too small back then. If it were bigger, we could all sleep together."
There was no helping it—Lei Jin always chose Moya's bed when he slept. But Xiya wasn’t jealous. Just having Lei Jin accept him now was enough.
"Mingya's back," Xiya added. Earlier, while they were outside talking, Mingya had obediently stayed with Lei Jin until they returned, then bolted for the outhouse.
"Mingya, you’re sleeping with me tonight," Xiya declared, intercepting the little leopard just as he was about to jump onto the bed.
"Mingya wants to sleep with Lei Jin!" Mingya squirmed in Xiya’s arms, trying to break free.
"Be good. Lei Jin hasn’t been feeling well lately. If you sleep next to him, he won’t rest properly," Xiya coaxed, worried Mingya might accidentally kick Lei Jin’s stomach in his sleep. The first three months were still a risky period.
"Oh." Ears drooping, Mingya reluctantly agreed.
Xiya left, extinguishing the pine-resin lamp in the room. Since Lei Jin arrived, they’d grown accustomed to keeping a light on at night.
"Lei Jin, you’ll like our baby too, right? I wonder who they’ll take after. Well, it doesn’t matter—I’ll love them no matter what," Moya murmured under the blanket, gently stroking Lei Jin’s belly with a tenderness that softened his features.
Days passed like this. Lei Jin continued helping Roger at Qi Luo’s place, while Moya traveled to the Avian Tribe. Before the cold set in, the tribe needed to stock up on supplies.
The grasslands gradually lost their lush green hue, and the treetops began turning gold. Fallen leaves carpeted the yard every morning. Moya had been gone for nearly a month.
Lei Jin’s arms had improved significantly—they no longer hurt unless he made sudden movements. With continued treatment, they would soon fully heal.
"Don’t worry. Many from the tribe went this time. They’re exchanging a lot of goods, so it’s taking longer. Moya will be fine," Xiya reassured him over breakfast, serving a bowl of finely sliced milkfruit.
Lei Jin was no stranger to this fruit now—he’d been eating it for a while. To counter its tartness, Xiya had melted honey into a thin golden glaze, coating the slices. The result was a sweet-and-sour treat with a rich milky flavor. Lei Jin had never been fond of such snacks before, but lately, he’d grown addicted. Skipping a day left him feeling oddly unsettled.
Another thing that bothered him was his slightly rounder belly. Thankfully, the cooler weather and layered clothing masked it. His tall frame helped too, so outsiders wouldn’t notice. But Lei Jin knew it was gradually growing. Xiya, sharing his bed, often absentmindedly touched his stomach, making Lei Jin wonder if he really was pregnant.
He didn’t want to dwell on it, but he couldn’t ignore the possibility. The sooner he faced it, the better. He planned to ask Chunji first—someone familiar and easier to talk to—but Chunji had left word that he was heading deep into the grasslands to collect herbs and wouldn’t return until snowfall. The matter was postponed.
Apart from the slight bulge, Lei Jin had no other symptoms. Maybe he was overthinking it.
"How’s Berg doing?" Lei Jin asked. The merfolk was the real expectant parent, with less than a month until delivery. The family was taking extra care of him.
"He’s fine. Qing Qiao checked on him yesterday and said it’ll happen this month," Xiya replied, omitting the part where Qing Qiao had also detected faint fetal pulses in Lei Jin. For some reason, they were still very weak.
"Good." After all, Lei Jin didn’t want anything to happen to Berg. Changing the subject, he asked, "Why have you been so well-behaved lately?"
Take last night, for instance. Lei Jin had taken the initiative, only for Xiya to leap out of bed in panic. Sure, he’d gained a little weight, but he wasn’t that hideous, was he? Xiya’s reaction was downright insulting.
Xiya choked on air. The injustice! He wanted nothing more than to pin Lei Jin down daily, but Qing Qiao’s warning echoed in his mind: Pregnant individuals often have increased desires. After three months, gentle preparation could actually aid delivery. But given Lei Jin’s unusual condition, extreme caution was needed now.
So even if it killed him, Xiya wouldn’t lay a finger on Lei Jin.
"It’s getting cold. I didn’t want you sweating and catching a chill," Xiya blurted, offering a flimsy excuse.
Yeah, right. But Lei Jin let it slide. He had to help at Qi Luo’s place anyway—the ceremony was tomorrow, and the household was in chaos.
Qi Luo’s new home was finished, though the yard remained unpaved, scattered with loose yellow earth. Two saplings had been transplanted, and a pebble path led from the gate to the door—stones Lei Jin had hauled from the creek. The four spacious stone rooms of the house were bright and airy.
With the colder weather, animal hides now covered the windows as windbreaks, currently rolled up.
By the time they arrived, Qi Luo’s place was bustling with helpers—mostly females handling the finer tasks, since heavy labor wasn’t needed anymore.
Xiya dropped Lei Jin at the door and left. With Roger around, there was nothing to worry about.
The rooms still carried a faint smokiness from drying out the damp. Females bustled about arranging new furniture—nothing extravagant, just beds, tables, stools, and two wardrobes crafted from mountain timber, joined with wooden pegs and polished smooth.
"Uncle Roger! Lei Jin!" Mura, standing on a bed to spread out a vibrant red blanket, greeted them cheerfully.
"This blanket is stunning," Lei Jin remarked sincerely. The crimson base featured an intricate black, yellow, blue, and white pattern, bordered by blue-and-white flowers and edged with black-and-yellow threads—bold and elegant.
"When you guys hold your ceremony, we’ll weave an even prettier one!" Su Rui chimed in, carrying a gray blanket.
Lei Jin smiled noncommittally. Their ceremony would likely never happen.
Someone snorted loudly—undoubtedly Jia He’s younger sister Jia Nuo, who had a crush on Xiya and saw Lei Jin as a rival.
Lei Jin ignored such childish antics. He wasn’t about to star in some melodrama. Though, considering Xiya and the others’ ages, he did feel a bit like an old bull grazing among tender shoots. At twenty-eight, he’d never expected to get tangled up with teenagers.
"Snort all you want. Brother Xiya only likes Lei Jin," Mura shot back, always at odds with Jia Nuo. Both were among the tribe’s most attractive females, surrounded by suitors, and their personalities clashed. Mura especially despised Jia Nuo’s affected delicacy.
"You’re no prize either." The two were on the verge of another spat until Su Rui, as host, stepped in to mediate.
Lei Jin and Roger helped with final tidying—airing out the rooms. Aside from the eye-catching red blanket and two pots of red flowers on the table, this "newlywed chamber" looked no different from any other.
Tribal ceremonies began at dawn. Lei Jin had intended to attend but slept right through. By the time he woke, Xiya had already returned.
"Why didn’t you wake me?" Lei Jin grumbled, rubbing his sore lower back as he got out of bed. His stomach felt uncomfortably bloated.
"Nothing much to see—just simple rituals. They’ve entered the temple now and will come out by noon for a feast at Qi Luo’s. Want to go?" Xiya knelt to help him into his shoes.
"That’s it? Nothing special?" Seemed awfully plain.
"What were you expecting?" Xiya smirked, adding teasingly, "Why not experience it yourself someday?"
"Not interested," Lei Jin flatly refused.
Xiya’s eyes dimmed imperceptibly.
The midday feast was mandatory for Xiya and the others, who brought dried meat and premium pelts as gifts. Lei Jin, feeling sluggish, opted to stay home with Berg.
Mid-meal, Mura stormed in and plopped down at the table. "I’m so mad! If it weren’t his brother’s ceremony today, I’d challenge him to a duel! Who does he think he is? Just because he’s pretty—besides he's not even as pretty as Lei Jin!"
Clearly, another clash with Jia Nuo.
"Wow, females duel here too?" Berg tore off a chunk of meat, chewing lazily.
Mura glanced at Lei Jin.
"Because of me?" Lei Jin raised a brow. He hadn’t even gone—how had he sparked conflict?
"Lei Jin, can I ask you something?" Mura hesitated before speaking.
"Go ahead." The greasy meat had killed Lei Jin’s appetite anyway.
"Is it true you can’t have babies? Even after taking the jade mugwort?" Earlier, he’d overheard Jia Nuo gossiping with others, mocking Lei Jin for being attractive but barren, saying even a werebeast mate would be better—at least they could support each other. He’d laughed at Xiya and his brothers for their poor taste.
"Who told you that?" Berg cut in. Though not a secret, Mura made it sound like common knowledge.
"Yeah, it’s true." Lei Jin sipped hot water to wash away the grease. No point hiding facts.
"So… Xiya and the others will never have children?" Mura murmured, crestfallen. Jia Nuo had been right.
"They will. Don’t worry about it." Once Lei Jin left, surely they wouldn’t stay single forever.
"What do you mean?" Mura was baffled.
"You’ll understand someday. So, was Qi Luo’s place lively?" Lei Jin changed the subject.
"Same as usual. The important part’s the Sacred Lake afterward, but since Qi Luo and Jia He aren’t having kids, it doesn’t matter." Mura, still downcast, replied absentmindedly.
"Sacred Lake? What’s that got to do with having babies?” Lei Jin asked, confused.
Only then did Mura realize what he had just said. His face flushed slightly with embarrassment. After all, he was an unmated female, and talking about such things wasn’t exactly appropriate. But looking at the two people beside him—one was pregnant, the other also a female—there shouldn't be any issue, so he spoke openly about what he knew.
“On the mountain behind our tribe, there’s a Sacred Lake. Normally, no one is allowed to go there, but mated pairs who’ve completed the ritual must go there the next day and stay for a month…” Mura’s face turned redder and redder, and he trailed off, hesitant to continue.
“Why?” Lei Jin was curious. Could this be their version of a honeymoon?
“Because there, it’s very difficult for werebeasts to maintain their human forms. In their beast form, they... mate with their partner for a whole month. It increases the chances of getting pregnant.”
Lei Jin’s hand suddenly twitched for some reason, and the water bowl rolled out of his grasp, spinning until it stopped right at the foot of someone who had just entered the room.