She got up before dawn this morning to wash and change. With the palace etiquette being so complicated, her legs were almost numb after going through the whole process.

Just as she was complaining about the complexity of the palace wedding, a sound of footsteps rang out.

Surrounded by his relatives, Xie Jingrun entered the Empress's bedroom.

When he saw the bride sitting on the bed, her hands folded and resting on her lap, looking dignified and gentle, a rare smile appeared on his face.

"Please, Your Majesty, lift the veil." At this moment, Madam Shangguan reminded him with a smile and handed a golden scale to Xie Jingrun.

Xie Jingrun came to his senses, took the golden scale, and slowly stepped forward. Using one end of the scale, he lifted the bridal veil covering Rong Qingqing's head.

When the blinding light suddenly swept over, Rong Qingqing blinked uncomfortably.

At this moment, a female official brought over a plate of dumplings. Xie Jingrun took the chopsticks handed to him by a lady-in-waiting, picked up a dumpling, and brought it to Rong Qingqing's lips.

Although Rong Qingqing had been told about all the wedding procedures by her nanny before entering the palace, she was not told that eating dumplings was one of them. Therefore, when Xie Jingrun suddenly picked up a dumpling and fed it to her lips in front of everyone, she was completely stunned and didn't react.

Especially when she caught a glimpse of the female official beside her, Madam Shangguan, and several other noblewomen secretly laughing out loud, her face flushed red with embarrassment.

She didn't want to eat, but Xie Jingrun insisted on feeding her, so she had no choice but to carefully open her mouth and take a bite.

The strange taste made her want to vomit.

But at that moment, a female official standing nearby suddenly asked, "To have the child or not?"

“Say it!” Rong Qingqing replied subconsciously, emphasizing her words.

Unexpectedly, as soon as she finished speaking, a burst of laughter erupted around her.

Of course, the laughter was not malicious, but rather a good-natured laugh.

Even so, her face turned bright red as she wondered in surprise if she had said something inappropriate.

But when she looked up, she saw Xie Jingrun smiling at her. His features were already handsome and deep, and today, dressed in a fiery red auspicious robe, his features were even more striking and imposing. When he smiled, the coldness in his eyes seemed to melt away.

Rong Qingqing suppressed her pounding heart and realized the meaning behind eating raw dumplings.

The female official removed the dumplings, and Lady Shangguan and the noblewomen brought out the nuptial wine.

Xie Jingrun took the wine glasses from their hands and handed one to Rong Qingqing.

After the two drank the nuptial wine, Madam Shangguan and the other noblewomen exchanged auspicious words before leaving the bedchamber with the rest of the people.

For a moment, the bedchamber fell silent, with only the sound of the wedding candles burning.

Rong Qingqing was feeling a little uncomfortable when suddenly, she felt a lightness on her head.

She turned her head and saw Xie Jingrun taking off the phoenix crown from her head.

Rong Qingqing let out a soft breath.

The phoenix crown was beautiful, but it was really heavy. It weighed on her head all day, and her neck almost broke.

When it was suddenly removed, she immediately felt much more relaxed.

She stretched her neck, stood up, and said, "I'm going to take a bath."

Xie Jingrun placed the phoenix crown on the table. Upon hearing this, he paused, glanced at her with his dark eyes, and said, "Together."

Rong Qingqing was taken aback and sat back down. "I... I actually showered this morning, so I don't need to shower again..."

After she finished speaking, she wanted to bite her tongue off. Who would believe such a lame excuse?