Qi Junzhou looked Xie Ju'an up and down with a puzzled expression, then touched his forehead and said, "Are you delirious from the fever? No, you don't have a fever. In broad daylight, are you possessed?"
Xie Ju'an said, "Yes, I was obsessed! I searched for her for so long and couldn't find her, I was almost obsessed! If I hadn't met her here, I would have been resentful for the rest of my life!"
Qi Junzhou asked in confusion, "Looking for her? My cousin?"
Xie Ju'an excitedly pulled Qi Junzhou along and said, "She's actually your cousin!"
Qi Junzhou: "Yes!"
Xie Ju'an: "That's great! Let me ask you a few questions to confirm that I haven't mistaken you for someone else."
Qi Junzhou: "Okay, go ahead and ask."
Xie Ju'an asked, "Did your cousin go to the border a few years ago?"
Qi Junzhou: "Yes. My cousin has been guarding the border with my uncle."
Xie Ju'an rubbed his hands together and said, "That's it! It's her! Brother Junzhou, do you think I'm dressed neatly today?"
Qi Junzhou sized up Xie Ju'an and said, "Very neat and tidy. Xie Ju'an, the number one scholar in the capital, is handsome and excels in both character and learning!"
Encouraged by Qi Junzhou, Xie Ju'an became much more confident, and his steps unconsciously led him toward Xu Tingting.
After taking only a few steps, Xie Ju'an stopped again.
Qi Junzhou: "What's wrong?"
Xie Ju'an asked Qi Junzhou nervously, "I forgot to ask my cousin if she's married?"
Qi Junzhou: "No!"
Xie Ju'an was so happy he almost jumped for joy: "That's wonderful! Heaven has taken pity on us! Thank you, God!"
Xie Ju'an clasped his hands together and bowed to the sky.
Qi Junzhou smiled and pointed at Xie Ju'an, saying, "Could it be that you have feelings for my cousin?"
Xie Ju'an readily admitted, "That's right! Please grant my request, cousin!"
Qi Junzhou patted Xie Ju'an happily and said, "Great! You have a good eye! If you two get married, we'll be even closer relatives!"
Xie Ju'an: "I hope so, I hope so!"
Qi Junzhou waved to Xu Tingting, "Tingting, come over here for a second!"
Xu Tingting turned around, and her pitiful expression made Xie Ju'an even more moved.
She walked up to Qi Junzhou and said, "Cousin, what are your orders?"
Qi Junzhou: "Today I would like to introduce you to someone. This is my good friend Xie Ju'an. He is this year's top scholar in the imperial examination and now holds a sixth-rank official position in the Hanlin Academy."
Xu Tingting bowed to Xie Ju'an.
Xie Ju'an looked at her with teary eyes and said, "Do you still recognize me? I'm the little stone you saved!"
Xu Tingting then looked closely at Xie Ju'an: "You, you're actually Little Stone!"
Xie Ju'an said with shame, "Back then, I was in a rather embarrassing situation. Out of vanity, I only used my nickname. Please forgive me, young lady!"
Xu Tingting: It's alright. I never expected we'd meet here again.
Xie Ju'an: "Yes! I've been looking for you for many years, I never expected to meet you here."
Qi Junzhou said playfully, "As the saying goes, 'Those destined to meet will find each other even from a thousand miles away.' That's exactly what you two are like!"
Xu Tingting lowered her head shyly.
Xie Ju'an: "Are you free tomorrow, young lady? How about I treat you to dinner tomorrow?"
Xu Tingting nodded and said, "Mm."
Then, her face turned red.
Qi Junzhou joked, "Don't be so polite, calling her 'girl' all the time. Brother Ju'an, my cousin has a name, Xu Tingting. You can just call her Tingting."
Xie Ju'an looked at Xu Tingting affectionately and said, "Okay! Tingting! Tingting!"
To avoid an awkward situation, Xu Tingting said, "I have something to do, so I'll go take care of it now."
Qi Junzhou said, "Go, go!"
Xu Tingting had walked a long way when Xie Ju'an was still craning his neck to watch her back.
Qi Junzhou tugged at Xie Ju'an's clothes and said, "Stop looking, they've already gone far away!"
Xie Ju'an then came to his senses: "Oh, oh! They've gone far away..."
Princess Ningxin, who happened to be passing by, witnessed this scene and was so angry that her teeth were grinding together.
Princess Ningxin clenched her fists and said, "My beloved! That is her beloved! Today, I will destroy her!"
Princess Ningxin's maid, Xiaocui, comforted her, saying, "Princess, don't worry, I've already prepared the medicine!"
Princess Ningxin said, "Alright! Just follow my lead from now on!"
"Yes, Princess!"
The wedding banquet began, and the banquet hall was filled with relatives, friends, and officials.
The number of people who came was twice as many as expected.
The maids brought out all sorts of dishes and fine wines to the table.
No one bothered with pleasantries; everyone was busy picking up food and pouring drinks.
As someone ate the dish, they exclaimed, "Tsk tsk tsk, how can this dish be made so delicious? It's such an ordinary dish, yet it surpasses all the delicacies I've ever had!"
Someone took a sip of the wine and felt refreshed. He exclaimed, "I've heard that the wine at Madam Xu's wedding banquet was excellent, but I never imagined it would be this good! I've never tasted such fine wine in my entire life!"
The injured foreign ambassadors wolfed down their food and drinks, exclaiming, "Delicious! Delicious!"
While eating, someone moved their injured, bandaged arm and exclaimed, "My hand, my hand is actually healed!"
An injured messenger touched his leg, then walked a few steps on his own, happily throwing away his crutch and saying, "I'm healed! My leg is actually healed!"
"I never imagined that this wine and food would actually have a healing effect. The doctor said it would take at least three months to recover, but a glass of wine and a dish were all it took! Hahaha!"
Hearing about the amazing nature of the food and wine on the table, the bystanders secretly took the bowls and basins meant for takeout and packed them up.
Grand Tutor Chen and Qi Junlin greeted everyone, saying, "Eat and drink well, everyone! We'll add more if you need more!"
Someone stood up excitedly and said, "Can we really have another one? Give me another serving of this food and drink!"
"I want one too!"
I want two!
Grand Tutor Chen began to worry: I didn't expect the guests to have such big appetites! I wonder if the kitchen has enough food prepared.
In the kitchen, the chefs were sweating profusely, their hands practically sparking as they wielded their ladles.
The person chopping vegetables kept chopping like a machine, seemingly never stopping.
They complained, "What's wrong with today's guests? How can they eat so much? Should we tell them we're out of food later?"
Chiu Chiu walked over with her hands behind her back and said, "No, no!"
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