Grand Wedding
The ceremony for the marriage bestowed by the Emperor didn't need to be elaborate. Gu Sidu was just a civil official. The procession of the sedan chair from the palace was just for show, to impress the newly arrived civil officials. The Emperor valued high-ranking officials, while Gu Sidu had to stand at the palace gate, kneel before the Emperor, and express his gratitude for everything the Emperor had done. After that, the sedan chair was taken to his residence.
The entire route was paved with red carpets, and wedding candies were scattered throughout the capital. The music and the spectacle were a grand display of honor that ordinary families could not match. Gu Sidu rode his tall horse, watching the bridal sedan chair stand at the palace gate. He hadn't seen Jiang Yufan for a long time, and he missed her dearly. He wondered what the Bodhisattva would look like in her wedding dress. He gripped the saddle tightly, waiting for the sedan chair to approach him under the watchful eyes of the officials.
Raising his head, Gu Sidu looked at the majestic imperial presence. He dismounted at the command and, amidst the eunuchs' loud expressions of gratitude, walked forward step by step, kneeling on the stone steps that had accumulated some heat, to express his thanks to the emperor.
The ceremony was solemn, and Gu Sidu's kowtow of thanks was loud. But just as the ceremony was about to end, untimely footsteps pressed down on Gu Sidu's shoulders, urging him to kneel down again.
Gu Sidu looked up and saw that the person who had come was Jiang Yaoguang.
Gu Sidu didn't know what Jiang Yaoguang was up to, but he knew that Jiang Yaoguang's appearance at this moment was definitely not for good reasons. These past few days, he had been secretly observing Jiang Yaoguang, following the words of the Bodhisattva, but the Jiang family remained calm and made no move, like a stagnant pool.
No wonder it was so quiet before, it was all for today. Gu Sidu suppressed his emotions and asked, "Lord Jiang, what are you going to do?"
Jiang Yaoguang didn't even look at Gu Sidu. He simply said, "Your Majesty, I have something to report."
"Yun, what do you have to say?" A majestic voice came from beneath the canopy, powerful and unyielding, leaving no room for argument.
"Lord Gu Sidu has no wife at all. The person in the bridal sedan chair has nothing to do with him. It was just someone Lord Gu hired to impersonate her in order to gain favor. This person is none other than a Buddhist nun from Chenxiang Temple who is impersonating a Bodhisattva."
Jiang Yaoguang's words caused an uproar in the court. This was a crime of deceiving the emperor! What was even more infuriating was that this Lord Gu had actually found a bodhisattva who had broken the precepts in a temple, and a fake bodhisattva at that, to deceive the emperor. This was simply showing no respect for the emperor. All the good reputation he had gained, all the pretense of his reputation, his unwillingness to accept bribes, were all an act. He was just trying to get promoted and make money.
This is a slap in the face to the Emperor, for this was a marriage bestowed by His Majesty.
Upon hearing Jiang Yaoguang speak, Gu Sidu's legs went weak, and he collapsed to his knees. He couldn't believe that Jiang Yaoguang was going to reveal their secret in public, reconnecting the events to create a flawless story filled with Gu Sidu's ambition, and intentionally or unintentionally making it all Gu Sidu's will.
Moreover, Gu Sidu's words still implied that he intended to destroy Chenxiang Temple.
The temple of Chenxiang hired someone to impersonate a Bodhisattva, which resulted in a surge in incense offerings. This is an outrage against all reason.
Jiang Yaoguang didn't want anyone to live. He resented Jiang Yufan's cold-hearted scheming and the abbot of Chenxiang Temple for driving him out. He would take revenge one day.
To outsiders, Gu Sidu's actions have largely confirmed the truth.
"Such a thing is true?" came the Emperor's voice, which was filled with suppressed anger.
"Your Majesty may send someone to investigate. Gu Sidu once spent one hundred taels of silver at Chenxiang Temple to invite a fake Bodhisattva down the mountain to pray for him, all for the sake of promotion and wealth. If Your Majesty does not believe it, the Madam Gu in the sedan chair parked at the palace gate is probably still a virgin."
"Your Majesty, if someone like Lord Gu obtains an official position today, many others will follow suit in the future, taking shortcuts and trying to gain favor with Your Majesty. How can this be tolerated?"
"Insolence!" The suppressed anger finally erupted because of the statement that anyone could slap the Emperor's face.
"Investigate! Send people to investigate!"
Upon hearing this, Gu Sidu immediately spoke up: "Your Majesty, please hear me out."
"Silence! I will make my own judgment."
Before he could say anything more, Gu Sidu hadn't even seen what the person under the canopy had thrown when the people around him stepped forward, pinned him to the ground, and made him unable to move.
Just moments ago, Gu Sidu was so radiant, even wearing the imperial wedding attire bestowed upon him. But now, that bright red had become the most conspicuous mark, and he was held between two court canes, becoming a dog who had failed the imperial examination.
Gu Sidu's hair fell loose, a few strands fluttering in the east wind obscuring his captivating eyes, but a hint of surprised desolation could still be seen in his brows. Gu Sidu looked up and saw Jiang Yaoguang looking down at him, smiling smugly.
Jiang Yaoguang seemed to be saying: You can't beat me at all.
The smile on her lips slowly drifted into the air, transforming into wisps of spring breeze that landed outside the palace where people were celebrating their success in the imperial examinations.
It's great to pass the exam! Passing the exam means you can become a disciple of a sage, and your future will be bright!
It's great to pass the exam! From now on, you'll be rich and powerful, a person above others, riding a tall horse down the street, envied by everyone.
It's great to have passed the exam! Now I can realize my Confucian and Mencian aspirations and share the burdens of the world.
It's great to have made the list...
The cheers and the sound of horses' hooves gradually faded away at the palace gates, but the palace remained quiet, and no one came out to take the bridal sedan chair away. The auspicious hour had passed. Daoyun, holding his sword, frowned and asked Jiang Yufan in the sedan chair, "Buddha's Maiden, why hasn't Lord Gu come out yet?"
"Did he change his mind?"
Jiang Yufan already had something on her mind. Now, she removed her veil, stepped down from the carriage, and looked at the tightly closed palace gates. The suona music had stopped, but Jiang Yufan's eyelids were still twitching. As soon as her feet touched the ground, someone tried to stop her.
"The bride cannot get out of bed; it's considered bad luck."
"The veil, how can the veil be taken off? The groom has to take it off."
Jiang Yufan didn't believe any of this. She threw the veil directly into the hands of the person next to her and stood only beside Daoyun: "Gu Sidu didn't come out, right?"
"It seems there's trouble coming from within the palace gates."
"But Lord Gu has been checking these past few days and there has been no movement from Jiang Yaoguang."
What she feared most was silence. Before Jiang Yufan could figure it out, the palace gates opened. A large group of people came forward and surrounded them completely.
Those urging Jiang Yufan to get into the sedan chair thought the wedding ceremony was about to continue, but before the person urging them could finish speaking, she was dragged away. Also dragged away was the veil that Jiang Yufan had lifted.
Seeing that things were not going well, Dao Yun, who was being led by palace eunuchs and guards, raised her sword to protect Jiang Yu Fan: "What do you want to do? Where is Lord Gu?"
First, a distinguished eunuch arrived, leading a man carrying a medicine chest. He stood before Jiang Yufan and asked, "Is Madam Gu waiting for Lord Gu?"
"Yes, the auspicious time has passed. Why hasn't he come out yet?" Jiang Yufan replied politely, keeping a close eye on the surroundings. "Has my husband done something wrong?"
“Lord Gu can’t get out,” the eunuch said with a smile. “The Emperor has ordered that Lady Gu raise her hand for inspection.”
"What are you checking?" Jiang Yufan frowned.
"Some people say that Madam Gu is not Lord Gu's wife, but an imposter. Please, Madam, enter the sedan chair so that the imperial physician can examine you and verify whether you are still innocent."
Dao Yun became even more nervous upon hearing this, and she glared at them angrily, saying, "You have no manners at all!"
"So what if I am a virgin? Sidu and I have never been married, so it is also in accordance with the rules that we have not consummated our marriage. What does that prove?" Jiang Yufan was still rational and could still answer fluently.
"Then Your Majesty would like to ask, since they are not husband and wife, why did they share a room when refusing the Vice Minister of War? And if they shared a room, why were there clear boundaries? Was it all an act, with them watching Your Majesty's bestowal of marriage from the very beginning?"
It turned out they had been watched all along. Jiang Yufan looked at the imperial physician who stepped forward and knew in her heart that there was no way to salvage the situation. Surrounded by imperial guards, she had no way to escape. At this moment, she heard the eunuch say, "Madam Gu, please leave."
Jiang Yufan had no choice but to hold Daoyun back, get back into the sedan chair, and lift up her wrist sleeve so that the imperial physician could examine her.
During the time she spent investigating, Jiang Yufan figured out her current situation. Since the meeting and invitation from the Vice Minister of War could be known, then her every move in the palace these days must have been monitored. So when she was waiting outside the palace gate just now, the Emperor must have heard what others said and knew everything about them these days.
Jiang Yufan knew that Jiang Yaoguang was behind it all.
It must have been him. He started by spreading those rumors, labeling them as a loving couple. Then, taking advantage of the Vice Minister of War's marriage proposal, he went along with it. The Emperor probably already knew about her ability to predict fate. And during her time in the palace, she didn't restrain herself at all, even interpreting fortunes for the women in the harem. These are all irrefutable proofs that she is different from others. She is a Bodhisattva. Even if she is a fake Bodhisattva, living in the Chenxiang Temple, all of this probably reached the Emperor's ears.
She couldn't refute these claims; she had done them all.
So all that preparation was for this day, just to pin a charge of deceiving the emperor on her and Gu Sidu at this grand wedding. She and Gu Sidu shouldn't have fallen for it, but why have they ended up in such a passive position?
Jiang Yufan thought for a moment, took a deep breath, and finally understood. They both felt the same way, believing that they could make each other who they were in this wedding ceremony. Jiang Yufan didn't know what Gu Sidu was thinking, but she herself had truly thought that if they could have such a grand wedding, they could live like this for the rest of their lives.
They were defeated by that one unwarranted hope.
The examination took little time, and the imperial physician quickly delivered the results: Lady Gu was still a virgin, and Gu Sidu had committed the crime of deceiving the emperor. All the evidence he had collected over a long period of time was piled up before the emperor. Gu Sidu had been to Chenxiang Temple and invited a Bodhisattva to descend the mountain, but Lady Gu was that fake Bodhisattva, who had chosen a husband for the Vice Minister of War and interpreted the divination slips for the women of the harem to know their destiny.
These are irrefutable pieces of evidence.
Of course, whether the evidence is conclusive does not depend on the evidence itself, but on whether the emperor is willing to believe it.
Outside the palace, cheers still echoed from the newly rich. Gu Sidu was not the only talented person; many more newcomers would enter the court in the future. No one would give important positions to a minister who dared to deceive the emperor in exchange for an official post.
The emperor's majesty is of utmost importance. He can bestow honor upon you if he so desires, or send you to hell if he so wishes. Honor and disgrace are separated by a single thought, not by evidence, but by whether one has won the emperor's favor.
The authoritative voice fell, each word tearing away the red robe from Gu Sidu's body: "Gu Sidu, the guilty subject, is hereby imprisoned to await further punishment."
"The entire Gu family is confined to their home and forbidden from leaving."
"Including that fake Bodhisattva."
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