marriage
On this day, an imperial edict was issued from the palace, granting the King of Chu and Lady Zhao permission to marry in the capital.
Zhao Youyi was somewhat surprised to receive the imperial edict. Why would the emperor suddenly bestow such a "favor"? Could it be that he knew the marriage agreement was merely a temporary measure?
When Chu Chanyin arrived, he saw her staring blankly at the imperial edict and unconsciously slowed his pace.
"Cousin," Chu Chanyin called out to her, his voice devoid of emotion.
Zhao Youyi stood up to bow, but Chu Chanyin stopped her, saying, "There's no need for such formalities. What does my cousin think about this?"
Zhao Youyi gestured to Xiao Qing to serve tea, and said with a headache, "I guess the emperor guessed that the marriage agreement was just a temporary measure between us, and he can't wait to finalize it."
"It's also possible that they're afraid the marriage agreement will be null and void once we reach Fuzhou. If I marry a girl from a powerful family as my queen, I'm afraid the lady in the palace won't be able to eat." Chu Chanyin rubbed his temples, feeling a bit of a headache.
This matter wasn't exactly troublesome, but it was all too rushed. The two of them had no romantic feelings for each other. Chu Chanyin originally planned to drop the matter once he reached Fuzhou. He recognized Zhao Youyi as his sworn sister, and he could also tell that Zhao Youyi didn't want to get married.
There are only a few days left before they leave the capital, and the emperor probably won't let them leave easily if they don't get married.
The room was completely silent.
“Then let’s get married. For me, it’s just a marriage in name only,” Zhao Youyi said after thinking for a long time.
Chu Chanyin was taken aback and turned to look at her, "Cousin, are you willing?"
"Cousin, you don't want to?" Zhao Youyi met his gaze, her eyes clear and bright.
After these words, the two fell silent again.
"Since my cousin doesn't object, I'll tell the servants at the Prince's residence to get things ready quickly so we can leave the capital as soon as possible after the wedding." Chu Chanyin stood up to leave.
Zhao Youyi called out to him.
Chu Chanyin stopped and looked at her with a puzzled expression. "Is there anything else, cousin?"
“Cousin,” Zhao Youyi lowered his eyes, his voice low, “you’ve been asking me, but you still haven’t said whether you have someone you love, whether you’re really willing to marry me, even if it’s just in name. Are you really willing?”
Chu Chanyin looked at her sincerely and smiled: "I don't have a sweetheart, so of course I'm willing to marry my cousin. I promised Brother Nianling that I would protect you for life, no matter what identity I use."
Hearing his sincere words, Zhao Youyi was speechless, her lips opening and closing. Seeing her like this, Chu Chanyin understood everything.
He stepped forward and gently stroked her black hair as he had when they were children, with a very light touch. "I am willing, and I am happy to do so."
The marriage between the King of Chu and the Zhao woman was arranged hastily, but the scene was grand. In the midst of the swirling snow, the blood-red silk and wedding dress stood out. The gongs and drums were deafening, and the whole city was watching closely, since the Zhao woman's affair had recently caused quite a stir.
Under the veil, Zhao Youyi's expression was inscrutable. Two or three years ago, when the brother and sister were chatting and laughing, Zhao Youli said that when she got married in the future, he, as her older brother, would definitely not be able to bear to carry her out of the mansion.
Now she is married, while his body is still warm.
The matchmaker helped her to the door. According to custom, the bride's brothers usually carry her out of the house, but now the Zhao family... Just as the matchmaker was at a loss, Chu Chanyin walked up.
"Let me do it." Chu Chanyin squatted down in front of her. The matchmaker glanced at the two of them and decided to go along with the King of Chu's wishes, carefully helping the bride onto his back.
"Cousin." Chu Chanyin called out to her softly, and then felt her gently tap his back with her fingers.
Chu Chanyin said softly, "From now on, I will protect you and not let you get hurt. This is my promise as your brother... and also my promise as your husband."
Zhao Youyi was at a loss for how to react, so she could only tap his back again.
He walked with such steadiness that it gave people a great sense of security. "Cousin, get in the sedan chair."
As she sat in the sedan chair, the sound of suona horns filled the air. Zhao Youyi could only see her bright red wedding dress and hear the commotion outside. She felt completely disoriented.
The bridal sedan chair stopped in front of the Chu Prince's mansion, and she heard Chu Chanyin's clear and melodious voice, "Huai Cong, please alight from the sedan chair, my lady."
Zhao Youyi's hand reached out from behind the curtain and was enveloped by a strong hand. He led her out of the bridal sedan chair, then carried her on his back. Taking advantage of the absence of any elders, he ignored the matchmaker's gesturing and carried her across the brazier.
The people around were about to say something, but then they remembered that both the groom and bride's parents had passed away early, and the wedding was rushed, so they probably had no one to teach them about these things. They weren't the type to meddle, so they all shut up.
The two held the two ends of the red silk. After bowing to heaven and earth and their parents' memorial tablets, the couple accidentally bumped their heads while bowing to each other.
Zhao Youyi, who was under the veil, couldn't help but smile.
Chu Chanyin led her into the bridal chamber by the other end of the red ribbon. The steward was about to say that it was improper, but seeing Chu Chanyin's gentle expression, he suddenly fell silent. Anyway, in the Prince's mansion, the Prince could do whatever he wanted.
Chu Chanyin picked up the wedding scale and lifted the veil. He saw that she had beautiful features and was smiling at him. She had applied rouge to her lips, which made her look much better. Her almond-shaped eyes curved up. "Cousin."
The matchmaker's brow twitched upon hearing this address. "Your Highness, you should address the Prince as 'husband' or 'sir'."
Chu Chanyin waved his hand, "Call me whatever you like, cousin."
The matchmaker fell silent. She had figured it out; calling each other "cousin" was just a playful gesture, and she had been meddling.
"Your Highness, we need to go out and greet the guests later." The matchmaker stepped outside the door and, seeing the two still looking at each other, couldn't help but call out out of professional ethics.
Chu Chanyin instructed his servants to prepare food for her, smiled at her, and then hurriedly left.
After the wedding banquet, Chu Chanyin did not come over again. The two slept in separate rooms, and she rarely saw Chu Chanyin until the group prepared to leave the capital.
The snow was light on the day they left the capital. Zhao Youyi sat in the carriage, holding a hot water bottle in her hand and resting with her eyes closed, while Xiao Qing read a story to her beside her.
Out of respect for the proper separation of men and women, Zhao Youyi and Chu Chanyin traveled in separate carriages. It would take at least half a month to travel from Shenjing to Fuzhou by carriage, and even longer by water.
As night fell, the group rested at the post station for the night, and Zhao Youyi knocked on Chu Chanyin's door.
Chu Chanyin, who was reading a military book, got up and opened the door, and was somewhat surprised to see that it was her who came in.
"Cousin, what's wrong?" Chu Chan stepped back to let her into the house, then walked to the table and poured her a cup of tea. "Are you reluctant to leave the capital?"
Zhao Youyi shook her head. She had noticed someone following her as soon as she left the city gate. With Chu Chanyin's keen observation skills honed on the battlefield, she didn't believe he hadn't noticed.
He probably only regarded her as an ordinary girl raised in seclusion, so he kept these things from her as much as possible.
"It's nothing, I just came to chat with my cousin." Zhao Youyi said as he walked in. Chu Chanyin was probably getting ready to rest, his hair was just loosely held in place with a hair tie, and under the lamp, he looked even more gentle and beautiful.
Chu Chanyin looked at her with surprise upon hearing this, then glanced at the moonlight outside the window. "Cousin, it's late. How about we talk again tomorrow?"
"What are you afraid of, cousin? I won't do anything to you." Zhao Youyi closed the window, her smile gentle.
With her exceptional hearing, she noticed a rustling sound coming from outside the window and took a step forward.
Chu Chanyin felt a headache coming on. Those assassins were probably after him, and Zhao Youyi would likely be affected if she stayed here. "Cousin, this is really unreasonable. You should go back to your room and rest."
Before Zhao Youyi could say anything, the wooden window slammed shut with a loud bang, and the man in black leaped in. Chu Chanyin quickly pulled Zhao Youyi behind him and drew his sword.
The sounds of fighting came from outside; it seemed that the other assassins had already engaged in combat with the guards.
Chu Chanyin pointed his sword at the man in black. His movements were superb, exuding elegance. The two engaged in a fierce battle, with Chu Chanyin maintaining the upper hand throughout.
Seeing that the situation was not good, the man in black blew a whistle, and four or five men in black flew in. Several people joined the battle, and Chu Chanyin stabbed the leader of the men in black in the chest with his sword. Blood gushed out and splattered on his snow-white face.
"Cousin, run!" Chu Chanyin shouted back after killing one of the assassins.
Unexpectedly, after he killed one, about ten more rushed in through the window.
Zhao Youyi frowned, drew the soft sword from her waist, and leaped into the fray. Chu Chanyin caught a glimpse of her out of the corner of his eye and saw that the soft sword in her hand was like a deadly blade, slicing off a person's neck in just a few strokes.
Chu Chanyin stopped being distracted and began fighting the people in front of him.
Although the soft sword was soft, its killing power was not weak. Zhao Youyi's expression was cold and stern as he slit the throats of more than ten assassins with unstoppable force.
After Chu Chanyin had killed all the assassins in front of him, the guards, covered in blood, finally arrived late.
What they saw was Zhao Youyi smiling charmingly, approaching Chu Chanyin and gently wiping away the bloodstains on his face with her slender fingers, saying, "It's not good for your handsome face to be injured, cousin."
Oh no, it seems like I'm witnessing the ruthless side of the future princess!
Chu Chanyin stared at her in a daze. The two were so close that he could even smell the fragrance of plum blossoms on her. "Thank you, cousin."
When Chu Chanyin spoke, the guards reacted and knelt down to beg for forgiveness, "Your Highness, we are late! Please forgive us!"
Chu Chan stepped back, glanced at their blood-covered appearance, and waved his hand helplessly. "Get up. No one expected the emperor to be so generous, sending most of the Black-Clad Guards."
The guards exchanged glances, bowed again, and withdrew.
Even a fool could tell that this group was sent by the emperor. Chu Chanyin simply left no survivors. The room was in complete chaos due to the fighting, and even the windows were broken. Chu Chanyin ordered someone to compensate the owner and then took the military treatise to the next room to sleep.
Before leaving, he suddenly stopped, turned around and looked at Zhao Youyi: "Cousin, did you know there was an assassin following us all the way?"
Zhao Youyi nodded. "Yes, why did you keep it from me, cousin?"
"I thought I could handle it myself and didn't want to disturb my cousin's sweet dreams, but I didn't expect that my cousin would save me in the end." Chu Chanyin couldn't help but lower his head and smile. "Years ago, I heard Brother Nianling say that my cousin was not healthy since childhood and was not suitable for martial arts. Therefore, I always thought that my cousin was not good at martial arts. I didn't expect that my cousin's martial arts were superb. I underestimated my cousin."
Zhao Youyi stepped forward, pondered for a moment, and frankly said, "Because the royal family had the idea of marrying into the Zhao family when I was young, I did not want to marry, so I have been pretending to be sick and weak."
Chu Chanyin nodded without saying anything.
Just as Chu Chanyin was about to continue urging her to go to bed, he heard her speak again: "Cousin, do you mind that I kept this from you before?"
“No,” Chu Chanyin approached her and couldn’t help but reach out and touch her black hair. “I was thinking that you clearly don’t want to marry into the royal family, but I’m using a marriage certificate to trap you. I’m also a member of the royal family.”
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