Chapter 67 Chapter 67 The answer is already clear in my mind.
Although it was called a wedding ceremony, the auspicious time for the wedding reception was set at dawn. Before daybreak, Yuan Wangshu was already dressed and ready to rush to the groom's residence to welcome the bride.
The knife wound on the back of her thigh hadn't healed yet, but due to etiquette, the bride's personal arrival was a sign of respect for her husband's family, especially one as prominent as the Fanyang Lu clan. She had to pad the wound with several layers of soft cotton to temporarily alleviate the friction from riding.
In the dim morning light, two people were already waiting outside on horseback.
Cui Yuanying tried hard to resist the urge to sleep, but still couldn't help glancing at Xie Tingyu from the corner of his eyes.
Today, Xie Tingyu wore a newly tailored, round-necked silk gown of crimson silk. Having risen early, she had let her long, dark hair down, tying it with a garland of peach silk flowers. A few small silver bells were adorned among the flowers, tinkling with their melodious tinkles as she walked. Perhaps in preparation for the wedding, she had even smeared lipstick on her lips. Her red lips and white teeth were striking, yet she exuded a certain uninhibited and romantic attitude.
"Wow, if you weren't so lazy that you didn't even want to comb your hair, just looking at your face, I would have thought you were going to marry the son of the Fanyang Lu family." Cui Yuanying marveled.
Before she could finish her words, she felt a sudden chill at her back. She immediately stopped talking, forced a smile on her face, and bowed to Yuan Wangshu, "Today is your auspicious day to marry your husband. Don't argue with me, or you'll miss the auspicious occasion."
"One day or another, I'm going to tear your rotten mouth apart."
Yuan Wangshu sneered, jumped onto his horse swiftly, and looked around at Xie Tingyu, "Your outfit today is quite decent." If she stood with her third brother, they would be a good match.
Xie Tingyu bowed and said, "After all, this is my first time serving as a best man, so I have to give you some respect."
Cui Yuanying interrupted, "You've made her proud. Maybe her legs won't be able to move on tonight's wedding night. Hahahahahaha—ouch!"
Yuan Wangshu whipped his horsewhip, barely grazing Cui Yuanying's mouth. Cui Yuanying covered her mouth and hid behind Xie Tingyu, then heard Yuan Wangshu's cold voice say, "There's a doctor in the garden. Go and see him yourself."
Xie Tingyu shook his head and sighed, "Yuan Ying, tell me, why do you have to say that?"
Just at this moment, the emcee in front sang loudly, "The auspicious time has arrived!", and everyone raised the red lacquered and colorful banners to welcome the bride, and marched towards the residence of Fanyang Lu family in a mighty procession.
Along the way, there were loud gongs and drums, and joy filled the air.
Everyone in Jiankang knew that today was the wedding of Yuan from Runan and Lu from Fanyang, so even though it was still dark, the official roads were already crowded with people who came to watch the fun and stretched out their hands to ask for wedding money and fruits.
The servants carrying bamboo baskets were well prepared and would occasionally grab handfuls of copper coins and wedding candies from the baskets and throw them into the crowd.
Xie Tingyu sat upright on horseback, her crimson silk dress blazing like flames in the morning light, making her look even more graceful.
She casually took out a handful of golden candied dates from the brocade bag beside her saddle and scattered them along the roadside with her sleeves raised. Her bright smile made the young men watching her stare in amazement. Some of the braver ones even threw the sachets and silk handkerchiefs from the red railings of the embroidered building, and for a moment, the sky was filled with brocade.
A young man beside the road tugged at his companion's sleeve and whispered, "Luckily, she's not getting married today, otherwise I would be madly jealous of the young master of the Lu family."
His companion gave him a gentle push and said with a chuckle, "You speak as if you were truly blessed to marry her."
Xie Tingyu didn't know if he heard something, but he actually turned around to look at the two young men in the crowd. The two men were so frightened that their ears turned red as if dripping blood. They hurriedly lowered their heads and pushed each other to hide in the crowd.
The wedding procession finally stopped in front of the Lu family mansion.
With the roar of gongs and drums, the master of ceremonies stepped forward, saluted with his arms crossed, and said in a loud voice: "The sedan chair has arrived. Please respectfully invite the new groom to get on!"
The vermilion lacquered gate of the Lu Mansion swung open, and everyone filed out, all beaming and congratulating one another. Seeing Yuan Wangshu dismount, Xie Tingyu followed suit, tactfully trailing behind, not stealing the show from the newlyweds.
The corridor was already crowded with guests who came to watch the fun. They stretched their necks to look around, whispering to each other and laughing from time to time.
Soon, Yuan Wangshu came out slowly, accompanied by a man holding a round fan with a phoenix pattern. The fan had a red silk base, with a phoenix pattern embroidered in gold thread, and just covered the man's face below the bridge of his nose.
This is the fanning ceremony that must be performed when a man of the Great Zhou gets married.
Xie Tingyu was about to move when she saw a young man hurried out of the wing room, stumbling and almost falling. She was quick to catch the man's arm.
As their eyes met, she smiled gently, "Sir, be careful."
The young man opened his almond-shaped eyes and stared blankly at Xie Tingyu's departing back, his fingers unconsciously tightening the silk belt around his waist.
"Who was the lady who came with me to pick up my brother just now?" the young man couldn't help but ask in a low voice.
Someone beside him answered, "Young Master, you've been living in the backyard for so long that you don't know. That's the legitimate daughter of the Xie family of Chen Commandery. She just returned from suppressing bandits a few days ago."
"Ah, it's her." The young man murmured.
Just as we were receiving the guests, Yuan's newly built garden was already full of guests.
The red silk lanterns hanging high in front of the garden gate make the vermilion plaque look particularly festive, and there is an endless stream of carriages and horses coming and going.
The welcoming staff were so busy that they had no time to rest. They had just bowed to welcome the distinguished guests, and had already received the gift list. They were writing on the gift book with a wolf hair brush, adding new names before the ink was dry.
Suddenly, a royal carriage slowly approached, stopping steadily in front of the garden. The carriage door opened, and a young man dressed in a moon-white, wide-sleeved robe stepped out. The lapel was embroidered with a whole branch of crabapple, and the collar was decorated with vibrant peonies and peonies. The entire garment was embroidered with dozens of different flowers.
The guests around were whispering, "Last time at the palace banquet, we could only watch from afar, but today we are lucky enough to see it up close. It really proves the saying that a beautiful woman is as beautiful as a flower and can speak, and her beauty emits fragrance.", "Why is the Emperor here too?" and so on.
The steward hurried forward, bowed to Ji Lian, and led the people inside.
At that moment, Cui Yuanying, having been whipped by a horsewhip, was applying medicine in the pavilion. Catching a glimpse of the radiant, graceful Emperor Qing in the corridor, he couldn't help but stare a few more times. The more he looked, the more familiar the figure seemed. He smacked his lips in amazement, then couldn't help but glance back repeatedly, until the moon-white figure disappeared at the end of the corridor. Only then did he turn back, angrily.
Cui Yuanying did not like to attend palace banquets, so he saw Ji Lian very rarely, but he had always heard about the stunning beauty of this imperial minister.
Seeing this, Wang Lanzhi, who was standing beside him, couldn't help but tease, "You're the only one who can be so audacious as to stare at Emperor Qing after just being whipped." Shaking his head, "Your neck must be stretched two miles."
“I don’t have any!”
Cui Yuanying waved his hand to signal the doctor to leave, but an inexplicable sense of familiarity surged in his heart. He couldn't help but look towards the corner of the corridor where Ji Lian disappeared, "I always feel that this figure seems familiar."
"You said the same thing when you met another handsome guy last time." Wang Lanzhi laughed.
Cui Yuanying had always seen countless men, and her tastes were extremely high. When she encountered the most stunning women she had ever met, she could still vaguely recall them. She poured herself a glass of sake, and as the cool liquor slid down her throat, she suddenly felt a revelation, and she suddenly remembered the beautiful woman she had met at Xie's Villa in the past.
The way these two people walk is somewhat similar. From a distance, it seems like... like they are the same person.
No, Xie Er, you have hidden Di Qing in your manor for several days!
As soon as this thought came to his mind, Cui Yuanying almost bit his tongue and choked.
“Cough, cough, cough, cough…”
"What's wrong?" Wang Lanzhi asked.
Cui Yuanying shook his head wildly, "It's okay, it's okay, it's okay."
...How is this possible? She must have woken up too early this morning and her mind was still unclear, which is why she had such a ridiculous idea. How could Xie Er hide Di Qing in a villa on the outskirts of the city?
Cui Yuanying raised his head and guzzled a few more glasses of wine, smacking his lips involuntarily. A wild horse began to run wild in his mind: "I must have remembered it wrongly. How could Xie Er be related to Ji Lian? I have never seen them talk to each other more than once. No, no, no! How could I think that..."
This wedding banquet did not follow the old customs. The bride and groom sat at the same table so that the unmarried guests could chat and laugh with each other.
As the saying goes, there is no such thing as too much good thing, and a few more marriages are considered merits.
After Ji Lian sat down, she half-closed her wide sleeves and sipped a cup of green plum wine.
The butler standing beside him was already sweating from his forehead with anxiety.
According to etiquette, the master should accompany the royal guests, but since the master passed away five years ago, Yuan Zhaoyun has never remarried, so this task naturally fell on the shoulders of Yuan Fuxue, the third son of the Yuan family.
The housekeeper hurriedly asked in a low voice: "Where is Mr. Sanlang?"
The attendant reported back, "Sanlang Jun went to the backyard early in the morning to supervise the preparation of the wedding banquet."
"You..." the housekeeper casually pointed at a maid, "Go and call Mr. San."
Soon the maid came back in a hurry and whispered a few words in her ear.
The butler had no choice but to bow and apologize to Ji Lian, "Your Highness, please forgive me. Sanlangjun is presiding over the willow dew blessing ceremony in the kitchen. When the newlyweds arrive, you must personally dip a willow branch in the morning dew and sprinkle it on the new groom to pray for safety and success."
Ji Lian glanced outside and asked, "What time is it now?"
"It's past five o'clock in the morning. The wedding procession must be nearing the garden gate."
Ji Lian stood up slowly and said, "I have never seen the folk custom of fanning, so I'd like to go and see it."
"I will lead the way for you right away." The butler bowed as if he had been pardoned and led the way.
As the saying goes, it is better to arrive at the right time than to arrive early. When Ji Lian arrived at the garden gate, she heard the faint sound of joy coming from the end of the official road.
Looking up, despite the throng and clamor of people, he could still spot the blazing red figure on horseback. Xie Tingyu, dressed in a charming red dress, was chatting and laughing with the others, occasionally bowing to the people who came to congratulate her.
He was so handsome and energetic, so dazzling that he couldn't take his eyes off him.
Ji Lian stood still, watching Xie Tingyu approaching on horseback. Suddenly, a sour feeling welled up in the corners of her eyes, and her heart felt as if it were being gripped tightly by an invisible hand.
If she gets married to Zhengjun in the future, it will probably be like this, right?
Ji Lian's eyes swept across the barrier carriage behind her. As the red veil fluttered, she could vaguely see the groom holding a fan to cover his face.
A tear silently slid down the corner of her eye.
He had once lied to himself and said that after she got married, he would never see her again, so that they could forget each other. But Ji Lian, Ji Lian, can you really watch her go through the three letters and six ceremonies to marry the new man?
Can you really tolerate that there is someone else beside her in the red gauze tent and warm pillow?
Can you really see her treating others as equals and staying together until old age?
Ji Lian stared at Xie Tingyu steadily, his eyes like a knife, carving through her bright eyebrows and eyes inch by inch.
The answer is already clear.
cannot.
At this time, the wedding procession had slowly stopped.
Xie Tingyu lightly pulled the reins, turned his wrist, and suddenly met the moon-white figure in the bustling crowd.
The moment their eyes met, the surrounding noise seemed to suddenly fade away.
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Jade-like appearance, beautiful and eloquent, with a jade-like fragrance -- Water Margin
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