Soon, a young eunuch ran in shouting, "Your Highness, the auspicious hour is almost here! Prince Lu has come to fetch you!"
The third princess took a deep breath, stood up and said, "Let's go, let's pay our respects to Father Emperor."
The Emperor and the Crown Prince have been sitting in the main hall for quite some time.
No matter how much trouble my daughter has caused since she was little, or how reckless and stupid she is, she is still my own flesh and blood.
Today, as he is about to be married, and under such hasty circumstances, the Emperor feels somewhat guilty.
At this moment, seeing his daughter in a bright red and gold wedding dress, being helped in by two nannies, the Emperor's eyes reddened slightly, but he quickly coughed twice to suppress his excitement.
The Crown Prince, however, laughed and said, "Father, my third sister looks truly beautiful today, so elegant and graceful!"
After saying that, he said to the third princess, "Third sister, rest assured that you are getting married. No matter what grievances or hardships you suffer in the future, just come back to the palace. Your brother will take care of you! Of course, you should also come back often when you have nothing to do. Father and I will always remember you."
These words struck a chord with the Emperor, who knew his days were numbered and that Tianwu would ultimately be his son's.
He would naturally feel more at ease if his son took better care of his daughter.
"I am truly pleased to see you siblings getting along so well."
At this moment, Lu Zong had already entered from outside, followed by the master of ceremonies from the Ministry of Rites.
Lu Zong immediately knelt down and kowtowed, showing the utmost respect.
A cold glint flashed in the Emperor's eyes. Even though they were getting married today, he couldn't forget the boy's previous pretense of illness.
But since it was his daughter getting married, he couldn't show his dissatisfaction no matter how much he was unhappy.
"Lu Zong, today I entrust my precious daughter to you. I hope that you two will treat each other with respect and support from now on."
"The princess has been spoiled by me since childhood, and her temper may be a bit arrogant, but she is also reasonable and kind. If you explain things to her more and be more tolerant, life will naturally become more harmonious."
"Yes, Your Majesty's teachings will be heeded." Lu Zong knelt upright and answered readily.
Seeing that his father had finished wielding the "stick," the prince quickly took over and fed him "sweet dates."
"Brother-in-law, please rise. From now on, we're all family. Whenever you have free time, accompany your third sister back to the palace for a visit. Don't feel constrained; just make yourself at home."
Lu Zong was probably nervous about his first marriage. He bowed again but didn't say much.
And so, with just a few simple words, the auspicious time arrived.
The master of ceremonies led the Third Princess and Lu Zong to kneel down and bid farewell to the Emperor.
The Crown Prince stepped forward and knelt down. The Third Princess nimbly jumped onto his back, and they continued until they reached the outside of Zhilan Palace before getting into the bridal sedan chair.
The wedding procession seemed to be instantly activated, and the atmosphere immediately became lively.
The procession included a procession of attendants, drums and music, a bridal sedan chair, and finally, the dowry items, some of which were carried in horse-drawn carriages.
The Emperor and the Crown Prince stood in front of the door, gazing at the scene. The Emperor couldn't help but sigh.
"This child has been wronged, getting married in such a hasty and simple manner."
It's difficult to persuade the Crown Prince; you can't very well say that the one in Kunning Palace can't wait any longer.
The weather was too hot, and even with large quantities of ice kept warm every day, the body began to decompose.
The eunuchs and palace maids in charge of keeping vigil have reported this countless times.
Just two more days, until the Third Princess returns home, that will be the limit...
As the wedding procession left the palace and walked through the streets, people would occasionally cheer and shout auspicious words.
The palace maids and eunuchs following behind the bridal sedan chair did not disappoint them, always scattering copper coins and the like.
Thus, when the bridal sedan chair arrived near the commercial street, half of the dowry procession was still not out of the palace.
The onlookers couldn't help but gasp in amazement, their eyes reddening with envy and jealousy.
"Did His Majesty give the entire Imperial Treasury as the princess's dowry?"
Even if it's not there, it's close enough.
"The Emperor has few children to begin with, and since the princess grew up by his side from a young age, he naturally dotes on her more. Besides, when the princess gets married, she receives not only the Emperor's gifts but also the Empress's."
"The Empress has accumulated so many fine things over the years; if she doesn't give them to her only daughter, who else could she give them to?"
"That makes sense."
As the crowd discussed and expressed their envy, the bridal sedan chair arrived near Cyclamen.
Upstairs in a private room, Jiayin, Baozhu, Xu Xi, and Meilan had been waiting for a long time.
Baozhu was so anxious that she was about to lean out of the window, but Jiayin, afraid that she would fall, pulled hard on her clothes.
"Princess sister, princess sister!" Baozhu shouted, but her voice was quickly drowned out by the sound of drums and music.
Baozhu was a little frustrated. "Princess, you can't hear me at all. Should we go to the Lu family's gate?"
Before anyone could speak, the window of the bridal sedan chair was suddenly pushed open halfway.
Baozhu immediately went crazy, waving and shouting even more frantically!
"I hope Princess Sister will be happy! Princess Sister is the best!"
Jiayin was also excited, but even more worried, and she craned her neck to look around.
Mei Lan and Xu Xi jumped up and down, waving their hands...
Inside the bridal sedan chair, the Third Princess held her veil with one hand and grasped the window sash with the other, her eyes already red-rimmed.
The old nanny following outside the bridal sedan chair was extremely anxious and whispered, "Princess, you can't be seen by outsiders at this time! Quickly close the window!"
The Third Princess, however, did not listen at all. Only when the bridal sedan chair turned the corner and the windows of the cyclamen were no longer visible did she withdraw her hand, lower her veil, and hide all her emotions.
Caiyun had always been by her master's side and knew far more inside information than others.
At this moment, suppressing her heartache, she stepped forward and carefully comforted her mistress, "Princess, the other princesses are all looking forward to your well-being. We're almost there, are you hungry? I'll prepare some food for you to tide you over in a bit."
The third princess did not respond, so Caiyun quickly closed the small window.
Ahead, Lu Zong rode a tall horse, the veins on the back of his hand holding the reins bulging, but his expression was indifferent and cold.
Just now, he also saw the person in the window.
But that person didn't even glance at him, not even once!
Soon, the procession arrived at the gate of the princess's residence. Amidst the booming of firecrackers, the third princess alighted from her bridal sedan chair.
Lu Zong took a large red silk flower ball, placed one end in the Third Princess's hand, and held the other end himself. The two slowly walked into the gate of the Princess's residence.
Because the Third Princess had long requested that everything be kept low-key.
Therefore, officials and noblewomen were not invited; only about a hundred relatives came to observe the ceremony, but a dozen or so tables of food and drink were set up.
After the newlyweds paid their respects to heaven and earth and the princess entered the bridal chamber, Lu Zong stayed behind to greet the guests, chat for a few minutes, and then serve the dishes.
Jia Xu and the others were accompanying the wedding procession, and now they had to help fend off the drinks.
But Lu Zong rarely used them; he almost always drank his wine dry and enjoyed it to the fullest.
Seeing him like this, the clansmen were delighted.
People used to say that the prince consort was slippery, but after seeing him today, they realized that the rumors were unreliable.
Judging solely from his drinking habits, the prince consort is a rare and genuine person.
Jia Xu followed behind, extremely anxious, fearing that his friend would get him drunk to death.
Fortunately, the people were still somewhat sensible and stopped toasting after a few rounds.
But this went on until the sun was setting and the guests had left. Lu Zong then had a new banquet served to Jia Xu and a few other friends, to thank them for their hard work that day.
Jia Xu could tell he was trying to avoid the bridal chamber, but he couldn't expose him, so he could only sigh and drink to his heart's content. The rest...
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