Shen Yao was very worried because Li Qingming's case had more or less involved the Luo family.
Sending an invitation at this time would be like inviting someone into a trap.
"Su Yan, I think we should decline the wedding banquet."
Su Yan rejected Shen Yao's suggestion without hesitation, "No, nothing ventured, nothing gained. I'm definitely going to this wedding banquet."
Seeing Su Yan's resolute attitude, Shen Yao knew he couldn't persuade her otherwise, so he had no choice but to compromise, "I'll go with you..."
Before Shen Yao could finish speaking, Su Yan decisively refused, "No... you should go and protect Li Changyan's safety first."
“Su Yan, you’re going to the Luo residence. We don’t even know yet whether they’re friend or foe. I have to go with you…”
Su Yan knew that Shen Yao was worried about her safety, but she cared more about Li Changyan's life and death.
She was, after all, a fully able-bodied adult, but Li Changyan and the little stutterer couldn't even protect themselves. How could she just sit idly by?
"Shen Yao, don't worry about me. In broad daylight, I believe the people of the Luo family won't do anything to me."
Shen Yao looked very troubled. "How about I go with you? I'm really worried about you..."
“If you’re still worried, I’ll take more guards with me. If anything happens to Li Changyan, Shen Yao, you know I’ll never forgive myself.”
Finally, under Su Yan's persistent insistence, Shen Yao had no choice but to give in.
At this moment, Su Yan remembered something important.
He pressed Shen Yao beside him, "Has Wang Sizhi not replied yet?"
Shen Yao shook his head, "No..."
Since leaving Chang'an, Su Yan had already written to her senior sister Wang Ruofu, who was in Suizhou for nearly two or three months for her review.
However, she had not received a reply and did not know whether her senior sister was in Huai'an Prefecture.
………………
In the blink of an eye, three days have passed.
Su Yan arrived at the Luo residence carrying the wedding gifts for the newlyweds.
Losang, who was greeting guests at the entrance, was quite surprised to see Su Yan.
What brings you here?
Su Yan handed the congratulatory gift and invitation to the servant, explaining with a smile, "Of course I came after receiving the invitation."
Losang looked bewildered and asked, "Who sent you the invitation?"
"Luo Yan, I heard he's your cousin."
In the three days following receiving the invitation, Su Yan naturally didn't stay idle, inquiring about matters related to the Luo family everywhere.
The chieftain of Suizhou was over fifty years old and his health was deteriorating day by day. Of his children, Losang was the most promising, but he was too young.
Luoyan is Lausanne's biggest rival.
Luo Yan was in his prime, and his abilities and methods were in no way inferior to those of the Tusi of Suizhou.
Moreover, the position of Tusi was not inherited from father to son; the successor was chosen by the Luo family themselves.
So when Losang heard that Su Yan had been invited by Luo Yan, he was quite surprised, "Why would he invite you?"
Su Yan shrugged, indicating that she didn't understand either.
Now that Su Yan had arrived, Losang didn't want to delve any further into the matter and led him into the Luo residence.
Su Yan's eyes were already dazzled by the colorful wedding banquet decorations at the Luo residence.
The people of Daliang and the Qiang people have different lifestyles, and their marriage customs are naturally different as well.
In Daliang, for any joyous occasions such as weddings and birthday celebrations, auspicious red cloths are used for decoration.
In contrast, people in Suizhou prefer a colorful style and love to use flowers. When wedding banquets are decorated, it's like walking through a sea of flowers.
Su Yan was completely dumbfounded.
The wedding banquet was scheduled to begin in the evening, and Su Yan was already strikingly beautiful, so when she walked in the crowd, people kept staring at her.
At the Luo residence, Su Yan felt like a ostentatious peacock, not knowing a single person, and she had no idea where Shi Zhongyu had gone.
Su Yan had no choice but to chat with Losang about everyday matters, and curiously started gossiping, "Which Qiang family did Luo Yan marry?"
As soon as he finished speaking, Losang's expression suddenly turned serious. He stared at Su Yan and said sternly, "They are not Qiang people, but people from Daliang."
"ah?"
Su Yan was quite surprised that Luo Yan married a woman from Liang.
However, the Qiang and Liang people of Suizhou had been intermarrying for many years, but this was the first time that the Luo family had married a Liang woman, which made Su Yan even more curious.
"Where is that girl from? Where is her home? What do her family do?"
Losang thought for a moment, "It seems to be someone from Chang'an."
"A person from Chang'an?"
Upon hearing this answer, Su Yan felt a sense of unease, but thinking she was overthinking it, she didn't pursue the matter further.
Before you knew it, it was evening.
In Suizhou wedding ceremonies, the newlyweds must receive blessings from the guests by sprinkling water on them.
It was Su Yan's first time attending such a wedding, and she was incredibly excited, completely forgetting about the danger.
After waiting for about half an hour, when it was finally her turn to sprinkle water on the newlyweds as a blessing, the wind lifted the bride's veil, and she saw that familiar face.
Su Yan was so shocked she couldn't breathe.
How could the bride be my senior?
Shouldn't she be reviewing the case? How did she end up marrying Luo Yan out of nowhere?
Before she could figure it out, Su Yan wanted to call out her senior sister's name, but Wang Ruofu immediately shook her head gently and gestured to her not to speak.
Su Yan wasn't stupid; she instantly understood Wang Ruofu's meaning and continued to sprinkle water on the newlyweds with blessings while smiling.
The so-called "water-sprinkling blessing" is actually just dipping bamboo leaves in water and flicking them over the heads of the newlyweds, intended to ward off evil and bring good fortune.
The newlyweds then use flour to draw a dot between the eyebrows of the guests as a way of returning good fortune.
Just after Luo Yan applied white flour to Su Yan's forehead, Wang Ruofu suddenly grabbed her hand.
"I heard that you came from Chang'an, so you're practically family to me. How could I possibly skip giving you my blessings..."
After saying that, Wang Ruofu reached out to touch Su Yan's brow, but before she could touch her forehead...
A gloomy rebuke came from the man beside her, "Fer, don't go too far."
At this moment, Luo Yan's face darkened instantly, and he glared angrily at Wang Ruofu.
Although the Qiang people have different customs from those of Daliang, their understanding of the difference between men and women is exactly the same.
When the newlyweds return the blessings to their guests, it's always men to men and women to women.
Su Yan is now in a male identity, so he can only accept Luo Yan's blessing, but he cannot accept the bride's blessing.
Wang Ruofu, however, glared at Luo Yan with a cold face. "Luo Yan, I am a Liang person, not a Qiang person. Qiang people believe in male superiority and female inferiority, but I, Wang Ruofu, was born a Liang person and will die a Liang person. I don't follow your rules."
After saying that, Wang Ruofu still drew a line under Su Yan's brow.
Judging from their interactions, Su Yan knew that her senior sister was not willingly marrying the man beside her, but she didn't know what had happened, so she dared not make any rash moves.
Luo Yan was so angry at Wang Ruofu's resistance that he almost ground his teeth to powder, clenched his fists, and looked as if he was about to hit someone.
Seeing that things were going badly, the others quickly tried to calm Luo Yan down, and the scene suddenly became chaotic.
Su Yan slipped out of the crowd and slipped a note into her hand while her senior sister was giving her a blessing.
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