Chapter 76
As the crown prince is the heir to the throne, the ceremony for marrying the crown princess is of extremely high standards. The wedding gown on the wedding day is intricate and luxurious, sewn stitch by stitch by stitch by the embroiderers in the palace, so there can be no delay at all.
After waking up, Gu Yanling heard the palace maid report that someone from the Imperial Wardrobe had been waiting in the side hall early in the morning, so she got up to wash. The female official came to measure Gu Yanling's body. After they finished measuring, Gu Yanling suddenly remembered that the Crown Princess's wedding dress in the past was a phoenix coronet and a bridal robe, but he was a man.
The female official listened to his inquiry and replied with a smile, "His Royal Highness has already instructed that the Crown Princess's wedding dress will be improved."
Gu Yanling was about to get married, so she didn't care much about these things. She just asked casually. After the female officials left, he started to eat.
After An An got up and washed, she was taken to pay her respects to the Queen Mother. She had breakfast there and then went bird watching. After Xiao Xinghan attended the morning court, he handled official business in the Imperial Study.
Gu Yanling felt bored in the East Palace, so she took the badge given by Xiao Xinghan and left the palace and returned home.
Gu Qifu was also free at home today, drinking tea in the living room. When he saw his son, he asked, "Where's An An? Why didn't you come with us?"
After Gu Yanling sat down, she said, "Dad, An An entered the palace yesterday."
Gu Qifu: “…”
After all, An An is the prince and grandson of the emperor. It is only a matter of time before he is recognized. The two elders have been mentally prepared for the past two days.
Su Lixiao: "You came here by yourself. Is An An afraid in the palace?"
Gu Yanling thought she was already enjoying herself, with food and drink and a group of palace servants to play with. "Don't worry. By the way, Dad and Mom, the auspicious date for His Highness and I has been set. It's the ninth day of the twelfth lunar month."
Su Lixiao was surprised: "So urgent? Then the wedding dresses must be prepared, as well as the dowry."
The main reason is that this is the first time to marry a son, not to mention that he is marrying the prince, so the more dowry, the better.
Gu Yanling: "There's no need for wedding dresses. The embroiderers in the palace will prepare them. Don't worry about it, mother. I'm not sure about the dowry either. I'll ask His Highness tonight. I guess the engagement gifts and marriage certificate will be delivered to our house after the autumn hunt."
Su Lixiao nodded: "It's fine to get married, but it's not good to keep living in the Prince's Mansion without a name or status. It won't be good if the news gets out."
Gu Yanling: “…”
At this point, Gu Qifu had nothing to say. Being the Crown Princess was better than being a male favorite.
"We're getting married in just over two months. You should focus on your studies and stay home. Don't go out so often."
Gu Yanling: "I would like to stay at home for a few days. Dad, do you believe that if I don't go back tonight, His Highness will come and arrest me?"
Gu Qifu: “…”
The main reason why Gu Yanling came back was to tell his parents the date of the wedding in advance, in case someone from the palace came to offer betrothal gifts and they had no preparation. He stayed in the hall with his parents to chat for a while, did not stay for lunch, and returned to the palace.
Xiao Xinghan had just changed into casual clothes and was about to leave the palace to find him when he saw him coming back with two candied haws.
Gu Yanling walked up to him and put the candied haws to his mouth. Xiao Xinghan didn't like eating these. "Where have you been?"
Gu Yanling took back the candied haws and ate one herself. "Go back and tell my parents the date of the wedding. They need to prepare the dowry. Please send someone to tell them what to prepare. We don't understand these things either, so don't be rude to them."
Xiao Xinghan hummed and said, "Regarding your father's title and your mother's conferring of the title of Imperial Consort, I have mentioned it to the Emperor, and he has agreed."
Gu Yanling: "Really?"
Xiao Xinghan: "How can this be false?"
Gu Yanling smiled happily: "Thank you, Your Highness! My father must be very happy, his status has risen sharply.
Xiao Xinghan snorted and laughed: "You and I are still saying thank you."
Gu Yanling bowed in thanks, still holding the candied haws in her hand, and said pretentiously, "Etiquette should not be wasted."
Xiao Xinghan pinched his cheek and said, "Thanking you with words alone is not enough."
Gu Yanling waved his hand and ignored him, "Where's An An? I bought him some candied haws, it's time to melt them."
After saying that, An An came back, and Li Youfu followed behind, "Your Highness, go slowly, be careful not to fall."
An An ran over and said, "Daddy! Father!"
Xiao Xinghan picked him up and saw that he was sweating profusely, his little face as pink as a peach. "Be careful not to catch a cold if you sweat so much in autumn."
An An's eyes were fixed on the candied haws in his father's hand.
Gu Yanling smiled and said, "Little greedy cat."
An An happily took it and took a bite, then said vaguely, "Daddy, are you going out? Why didn't you bring An An with you?"
Gu Yanling: "When I woke up, you had already gone to pay your respects to your royal grandmother."
An An ate a candied haws and muttered, "Daddy, you woke up too late."
Gu Yanling: "I have nothing to do if I get up so early."
Xiao Xinghan: "If you feel bored, I can find you a leisurely job to pass the time?"
Gu Yanling hurriedly said, "Forget it, forget it. I'm fine the way I am. I was born to enjoy a happy life."
Xiao Xinghan: "..."
An An hadn't seen his good friend the little parrot all morning. He felt that those birds were not as cute or smart as the little parrot. He was thinking about it, so he got down from Xiao Xinghan's arms, went back to the bedroom, and plucked a candied haws. "Try the mung bean cake, it's delicious."
The little parrot pecked at the candied haws for a long time, but finally Li Youfu had someone crush the candied haws so that the little parrot could eat it.
…
Time passed quickly and soon it was time for autumn hunting.
Gu Yanling was almost getting moldy staying in the East Palace, so naturally she wanted to join in the fun, and even An An was taken there as well.
The emperor personally came to the royal hunting ground, and the scene was extraordinary and grand.
Today, many civil officials, military generals, and brave soldiers from the camp outside the capital are eager to show off their abilities in front of His Majesty and the Crown Prince.
Emperor Xiao was not in good health as before, and was not as adept at riding and hunting as he was in his youth. He only said a few polite words from a high position next to the tent and let them go hunting. Those who caught more prey would be rewarded.
An An happily rode on his pony, guarded by Li Youfu and Chang Feng on both sides, and followed by the guards of the Eastern Palace. The little parrot was also brought with it, holding An An's shoulders tightly with its claws, holding its head high and chest out, and slowly strolling in the hunting ground with An An.
Xiao Xinghan and Gu Yanling rode on the same horse, picked a deserted forest, and rode slowly and leisurely through it.
Xiao Xinghan taught Gu Yanling how to shoot arrows, and they also hunted a lot of prey, which made Gu Yanling very happy. The whole forest was filled with Gu Yanling's cheerful and clear voice.
"Your Highness, you are amazing!"
“It’s like every arrow hits its target!”
"Your archery skills are truly extraordinary! Your Highness, you are a master archer!"
…
Xiao Xinghan was very pleased with Gu Yanling's praise and admiration, but this guy was so excited that he not only screamed and groaned, but also moved around. The two of them were already close to each other on the horse, and it was easy for him to be distracted by him twisting his butt and rubbing against him like this.
Xiao Xinghan calmed himself down and pinched Gu Yanling's waist: "Don't move."
Gu Yanling sensed Xiao Xinghan's reaction and immediately became honest. He was a little speechless and condemned him, "You, what's wrong with you? Is this the right time to think about this?"
Xiao Xinghan: "I'm very hot-tempered because of the dietary therapy you've been taking lately."
Gu Yanling originally wanted to nourish herself, worried that she would become weak, but every time she drank, she insisted on giving Xiao Xinghan half a bowl as well, saying that they should prepare for a rainy day. Autumn was already very dry, and now hearing Xiao Xinghan say this, she felt insecure: "...I did that for your own good."
Xiao Xinghan felt a little overwhelmed.
Gu Yanling couldn't ignore the increasingly vigorous eagle pressing against his waist: "What should I do?"
Xiao Xinghan looked around and asked his followers to take the prey away. He took Gu Yanling on horseback and rode into the woods.
Because of the autumn hunt today, Xiao Xinghan did not bother Gu Yanling last night, but he gave him medicine for maintenance every day, so it was easily broken.
Gu Yanling lay on the horse, her face flushed with shame. It didn't matter what kind of nonsense the two of them made in the study, bathroom, or bedroom, but it was really exciting to do it in broad daylight, outside.
The horse was walking slowly and didn't run, but even so, Gu Yanling was sweating from nervousness.
Xiao Xinghan covered his back, felt his nervousness, and kissed his ear, "Relax, there's no one here."
Only Gu Yanling's panties were stripped off, and her clothes were still on. Because it was autumn, she also wore a cloak with crabapple flowers. Even if someone came over, they would not know what ridiculous things the two of them were doing.
Xiao Xinghan kissed Gu Yanling's neck, cheek, and lips, and as the horse ran, he slowly tormented Gu Yanling.
…
The two stayed in the forest for an hour. Gu Yanling was carried off the horse by Xiao Xinghan. She was a little unsteady on her feet and her legs were shaking. Because she was outside, she couldn't clean herself up. Gu Yanling glared at Xiao Xinghan angrily, but with a springy look in her brows and a pink tint at the corners of her eyes, she looked completely intimidating.
Xiao Xinghan knew he was in the wrong, so he coaxed her, "You can rest in the tent for a while. If you don't want to stay here tonight, I'll ask Li Youfu to take you back."
The autumn hunting will take three days to end.
Gu Yanling snorted: "Let's talk about it tonight."
Emperor Xiao had already rested in the tent, surrounded by patrolling guards. The others were still hunting. Xiao Xinghan's tent was not far from Emperor Xiao's. After returning with Gu Yanling, he asked someone to bring hot water, closed the tent, and asked someone to guard outside to clean Gu Yanling and change her into clean clothes.
Gu Yanling finally felt relieved. When she heard An An's voice outside the tent, she hurried out.
An An excitedly pointed at the spoils behind him: "Daddy, Father, look, these are all our hunts!"
It was mainly hunted by Chang Feng, and there was also a large bison.
Gu Yanling: "So impressive! Your father and I have hunted quite a bit and are roasting the venison. We'll be ready to eat soon."
When An An heard about food, she was very happy. She went into the tent to wash her hands, and then went to Emperor Xiao's tent to tell the emperor about the spoils of war she and those people from the Eastern Palace had taken.
The grandson was less than three years old, but he dared to ride a pony. Even if someone was protecting him, he was not afraid of large wild beasts. Naturally, Emperor Xiao was happy, and he rewarded An An and the people in the Eastern Palace with many good things.
After returning home, An An received praise from Xiao Xinghan again. She couldn't stop smiling and kept asking her father and mother to describe the scene. She didn't stop talking until the barbecue was ready and started to concentrate on eating the meat.
Gu Yanling and An An's identities had been announced in the court before. With the Imperial Master's words, no one would doubt or comment on them. Therefore, it was not surprising for the court officials to see them today. Especially since the Minister of Rites took the initiative to greet Gu Yanling. Gu Yanling remembered him and thought of the few times she had met Xiao Xinghan at Baowei Tower. He was there every time. After everyone left, she quietly asked Xiao Xinghan, "Did you go to Baowei Tower with him for dinner later?"
Xiao Xinghan found it funny when he thought about it: "I had previously told him the details of his marriage, and when it was noon, I invited him to Baoweilou, but he said he had something to do at home."
Obviously, he was afraid of meeting Gu Yanling again and making a wasted trip.
Gu Yanling was overjoyed: "He even dared to refuse His Royal Highness the Crown Prince. I guess the previous times really left a shadow on him."
The autumn hunting was very lively and the weather was good. Gu Yanling did not go back at night and stayed here for three days in a row, having a great time.
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