Chapter 2 The Wedding "The nuptial wine has arrived."
The red candles flickered, and Jiang Zhiyao's vision was also filled with red, making her feel somewhat dizzy.
The day passed by in a flash, like a revolving lantern.
Everything went smoothly without any surprises, except that her heart was pounding the whole time during the wedding ceremony.
The sound was really loud. When they bowed to each other, the two were so close that Jiang Zhiyao even wondered if Yan Zhenxi could hear them.
Because of Yan Zhenxi's eye condition, the wedding night pranks were canceled, which actually made Jiang Zhiyao feel a little more relaxed, as she really disliked dealing with large crowds.
Perhaps she had been waiting for too long and was a little dazed, and was also too engrossed in her thoughts, so Jiang Zhiyao did not hear the approaching footsteps, nor Nan Zhi's words: "Greetings, son-in-law."
It wasn't until the red veil was lifted with a jade ruyi that Jiang Zhiyao came back to her senses.
She sat on the wedding bed, looking up at Yan Zhenxi in a daze.
The person in front of me was as beautiful as ever, with a high nose bridge, thin, rosy lips, and wearing a wedding dress, which made her look even more beautiful.
The only drawback was that he wore a red veil over his eyes, so Jiang Zhiyao couldn't see his beautiful phoenix eyes.
Jiang Zhiyao felt a rush of blood to her head and was momentarily stunned, her fair cheeks flushing red.
Perhaps because he couldn't see, Yan Zhenxi stood still without making any other move.
The slightly awkward situation was broken when the servants brought out the nuptial wine.
"The nuptial wine has arrived."
Yan Zhenxi turned his head slightly, and the servant behind him handed him the wine.
Jiang Zhiyao reached out and took the other cup of nuptial wine.
Ripples appeared on the surface of the wine in the glass, and the two completed the ritual of drinking the nuptial wine.
Although it was an intimate gesture like drinking from the same cup, the two of them performed it somewhat stiffly and awkwardly.
The distance between the two was like a galaxy, and they didn't touch each other at all throughout the entire process.
Because of Yan Zhenxi's blindness, some steps were omitted.
The servants from the Yan residence, as well as Nan Zhi who had been brought by Jiang Zhiyao, all withdrew.
Only Jiang Zhiyao and Yan Zhenxi remained in the bridal chamber.
Jiang Zhiyao lowered her head and twisted a corner of her clothes with her fingers, feeling extremely embarrassed.
The surroundings were quiet, except for the soft crackling of the wedding candles.
Just as Jiang Zhiyao was racking her brains trying to figure out how to start the conversation, Yan Zhenxi spoke up.
"It's late." His voice was as pleasant as ever, like a stream flowing over rocks. "You should rest now."
"I know you don't want this marriage, and I won't force you. We can just treat each other with respect."
"If you ever want to leave in the future, just tell me, and I will let you go."
"I'm going to the study now."
After saying that, Yan Zhenxi stood up from the bedside and prepared to leave.
Jiang Zhiyao instinctively grabbed his sleeve.
She wanted to tell Yan Zhenxi that she wasn't unwilling.
But the words lingered on Jiang Zhiyao's lips for a while before she could say them.
Even if I said it, what difference would it make? What he just said was just polite talk; he just really doesn't like me.
Before this marriage, he probably didn't even know that there was such a person as himself in the capital.
Moreover, regarding this marriage, Jiang Zhiyao actually felt very guilty and uneasy towards Yan Zhenxi. He was supposed to marry a lady from a prestigious family like Sister Ji, but she had taken his place because of her own selfish reasons and hadn't even asked for his opinion.
Sensing the movement at the cuff, Yan Zhenxi turned his head to look.
Jiang Zhiyao looked up at him. Although she knew he couldn't see, and there was a veil over her eyes, she inexplicably felt that he was looking at her.
She immediately looked away and loosened her grip on the sleeve.
"Is there anything else?" Yan Zhenxi's voice sounded very patient.
"You rest here, I'll go to the side room," Jiang Zhiyao said softly.
Yan Zhenxi asked gently, "Are you just being considerate of my eyesight? There's no need for that."
Although the statement was somewhat self-deprecating, when it came out of Yan Zhenxi's mouth, it didn't give off any sense of that meaning.
"No." Jiang Zhiyao shook her head. "I just didn't want to trouble you too much. The study is definitely not a convenient place to rest."
There's no reason why she should take over someone else's room as soon as she arrives, leaving him to sleep in the study.
A slight smile appeared on Yan Zhenxi's face.
"I won't rest in the study," Yan Zhenxi explained to Jiang Zhiyao. "I just want to take care of some things first. I'll sleep in another room."
"Ah, oh." Jiang Zhiyao's face turned a little red.
She thought Yan Zhenxi wanted to rest in the study.
Yan Zhenxi smiled and said, "Then I'll be going now."
"Okay," Jiang Zhiyao replied.
"I'll walk you to the door," Jiang Zhiyao said, knowing that Yan Zhenxi was not available at the moment.
"Thank you very much."
Jiang Zhiyao helped Yan Zhenxi and carefully escorted him to the door of the room.
There was Yan Zhenxi's servant at the door, and he was behind him escorting Yan Zhenxi to the study.
After the room door was closed.
Yan Zhenxi's usual smile vanished.
This young lady, who married into the family in place of the Minister, looks really timid.
That would be excellent.
However, her eyes are quite beautiful; you can clearly see her bright, almond-shaped eyes even through the veil.
Yan Zhenxi thought absentmindedly.
-
The next morning, Jiang Zhiyao got up early.
Just as she finished washing up, a servant knocked on the door: "Young Madam, it's time to serve tea. The eldest young master is waiting for you in the front yard."
Nan Zhi responded to Jiang Zhiyao and then continued to help her tie her hair into a bun.
"Alright, Nanzhi," Jiang Zhiyao called out helplessly.
She has way too many hair accessories on her head.
Nanzhi put down the hairpin in her hand and said playfully, "It's all because Miss is too beautiful."
"No way." Jiang Zhiyao genuinely felt that she was just an average-looking person. Although Nanzhi always praised her, she always thought it was just Nanzhi's affection for her.
After getting married, Jiang Zhiyao acquired many beautiful pieces of jewelry, and Nanzhi couldn't resist wanting to adorn her hair with even more.
The person in the mirror has a pair of beautiful almond-shaped eyes, a small and pert nose, and rosy lips. Her cheeks still have a bit of baby fat, making her look very charming. However, because of Jiang Zhiyao's gentle temperament, people always unconsciously overlook her beautiful and delicate features.
The hair ornament on her head is quite ornate. A normal person would probably be overwhelmed by such an ornament, and it would even look a bit cumbersome and overshadow the main character. However, Jiang Zhiyao is not overwhelmed at all. On the contrary, it makes her look even more beautiful and radiant.
But Nanzhi still removed a few hair ornaments, knowing that her mistress had never wanted to be too ostentatious in public.
Fearing that Yan Zhenxi would have to wait too long, Jiang Zhiyao quickly tidied up and then took Nanzhi out.
In the courtyard, a man dressed in moon-white clothes stood quietly beside the green bamboo. Today, he wore a plain white veil.
"You're here. Let's go now," Yan Zhenxi said, turning to the side after hearing footsteps.
After walking for about fifteen minutes, they arrived at their destination.
Jiang Zhiyao followed Yan Zhenxi inside.
Contrary to her expectations of a brief exchange of pleasantries, Yan Zhenxi's relationship with her parents seemed quite distant, and the tea ceremony was merely a ritual they had to complete.
After serving the tea, they left.
After returning to his courtyard, Yan Zhenxi said to Jiang Zhiyao, "My relationship with my father and mother is so-so, so you don't need to go to them to pay your respects so often in the future."
"Okay." Jiang Zhiyao thought this was a good idea. She never liked dealing with people she didn't know well, especially since she usually had to say some polite things.
"If you get bored at home, you can go out and walk around more. I won't restrict you."
Originally, Yan Zhenxi was about to leave, but looking at the very obedient Jiang Zhiyao, he inexplicably added a sentence.
"Okay." Jiang Zhiyao nodded.
After returning to the study.
Yan Zhenxi instructed his subordinates, "Remove those guards around her. Just keep one around to keep an eye on things. Report back to me if anything unusual happens."
"Yes, sir."
-
After serving the tea, Jiang Zhiyao never saw Yan Zhenxi again.
Jiang Zhiyao was a little troubled because tomorrow was the day she was to return to her parents' home.
But seeing that Yan Zhenxi hasn't made any statement yet, Jiang Zhiyao couldn't help but worry that he had forgotten or didn't plan to go.
Although she felt that such a leisurely life was quite nice, she didn't want the people in the Ji family to worry.
After much deliberation, Jiang Zhiyao decided to go find Yan Zhenxi.
After asking the servants, Jiang Zhiyao learned that he was currently in the study.
After hesitating for a moment at the door, Jiang Zhiyao raised her hand and gently knocked: "Young Master."
"Come in."
Jiang Zhiyao pushed open the door and went inside.
"Is there something you need?" The voice sounded very gentle.
Yan Zhenxi was playing chess alone on the couch by the window. Jiang Zhiyao's gaze was drawn to him. The black and white pieces looked the same size. How did he distinguish them?
“There’s a raised dot on the white piece.” As if knowing what she was thinking, Yan Zhenxi suddenly said.
"Oh, oh." Jiang Zhiyao was a little curious as to how he knew what she was thinking.
After regaining her composure and hesitating for a moment, Jiang Zhiyao softly asked, "Can you... come with me to my parents' home tomorrow?"
“Of course,” Yan Zhenxi replied.
"Okay, can you act a little more intimate with me?" Because she was a little embarrassed, Jiang Zhiyao's words were somewhat unclear.
Sister Ji felt very guilty after learning that Jiang Zhiyao planned to marry in her place.
Jiang Zhiyao thought that this might put Sister Ji at ease, so although it was difficult to say, she still forced herself to say it.
"Huh?" Yan Zhenxi probably didn't hear clearly.
Jiang Zhiyao had no choice but to repeat herself.
After repeating it twice, Jiang Zhiyao's face turned bright red.
"Okay, how intimate do you want to be?" His tone was perfectly normal, as if they were seriously discussing something, but Jiang Zhiyao seemed to hear a soft chuckle.
She must have misheard.
"Well, let's pretend we're... a little more affectionate." The blush spread from her face to her neck.
"good."
Jiang Zhiyao breathed a sigh of relief: "Thank you, young master."
"It's alright."
Jiang Zhiyao returned to her room.
Lying in bed, Jiang Zhiyao thought back to what she had just said. There shouldn't have been anything wrong with it, right?
I don't think my request will be too difficult for him, right?
Thinking about her return visit to her parents' home tomorrow, Jiang Zhiyao tried hard not to think about anything else and began to drift off to sleep.
In the study.
Yan Zhenxi laughed out loud.
How can someone be so timid and blush so easily?
Even though she's nominally his wife, she still speaks so cautiously in front of him.
If it were anyone else, they would probably have been dissatisfied with him for being blind and would have taken advantage of him.
Yan Zhenxi suddenly became interested in how she would pretend to be affectionate with him tomorrow.
A note from the author:
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