Chapter 533 The Duke's Mansion Surpasses the Crown Prince
"Wasn't Miss Gu betrothed to the Crown Prince before? How did she become the top scholar? I thought the Gu family was going to produce another empress. What a pity!"
"What's there to regret? The Gu family is already incredibly powerful. What difference does it make if there's one more empress or one less? If you ask me, it's not a good thing that the Gu family has always held the empress's position. The person above can't tolerate it forever."
“Oh dear, marrying into the palace and becoming the empress is incredibly prestigious, but once you enter the palace gates, it's like entering a deep sea. It's no joke. It would be better to marry a top scholar and live a carefree and wealthy life in Jiangnan.”
"That's right, that's right! The top scholar is not only incredibly talented, but also very handsome. I've heard that his family is extremely prominent in Jiangnan. He's a perfect match for Miss Gu!"
"Hey, hey, stop talking, stop talking! The wedding procession is here! Look, the Duke's mansion is leading the way, and the eldest and second young masters of the Gu family are personally escorting their sister off to her wedding!"
"Oh my, the Duke's mansion is really daring! They've actually put the Crown Prince's procession behind! This is incredible!"
The festive sounds of suona horns and drums mingled together as the wedding procession from the Duke's mansion slowly made its way towards them, scattering copper coins and wedding candies as they went.
The onlookers cheered and scrambled to grab the wedding money and candy.
Shen Wantang reached out and took a piece of candy, looking at Gu Qianhan at the front of the wedding procession.
He was dressed in a magnificent deep purple brocade robe, riding a tall horse, his expression indifferent, looking more like he was about to kill someone than escort a bride.
His elder brother, Gu Qianling, however, had a friendly face and a smile in his eyes. When the surrounding people offered their congratulations, he politely bowed and thanked them.
As if sensing something, Gu Qianhan suddenly turned her head and looked at Shen Wantang.
Although she was wearing a veil, Gu Qianhan recognized her at a glance.
He immediately reined in his horse, turned it around, went to the bridal sedan chair, gently knocked on it, and whispered a few words.
The next moment, Gu Qianning, who was in the sedan chair, lifted the curtain and looked outside.
Shen Wantang immediately waved at Gu Qianning and shouted without regard for anything else, "The bride is so beautiful! Congratulations on your marriage!"
Gu Qianning was in a bad mood, but when she saw Shen Wantang here, she was overjoyed. When she heard Shen Wantang's voice, she couldn't help but laugh.
The surrounding people, who received wedding money and candy, also shouted along with Shen Wantang, "The bride is so beautiful!"
"Congratulations to the Duke's Mansion!"
Congratulations to the bride!
In an instant, the entire street was filled with a deafening chorus of congratulations.
The wedding procession moved slowly forward. Gu Qianning could no longer see Shen Wantang before she lowered the curtain.
But she didn't know that Shen Wantang had actually been following behind, and she only stopped when the wedding procession left the city.
Shen Wantang didn't even look at the Crown Prince's entourage. Her mind was on her only friend. Although she kept urging Gu Qianning to marry into Jiangnan, only she knew how reluctant she was to part with Gu Qianning.
Now that Gu Qianning has gotten married, the reluctance and sadness in her heart are stronger than she imagined.
Many locals followed the crowd to the scene, and they were all amazed.
"This Duke's mansion is indeed incredibly wealthy! The dowry for their daughter's marriage is a staggering two hundred and forty loads! Amazing, absolutely amazing!"
"I've lived this long, and this is the first time I've ever seen so many people carrying a dowry for a woman's wedding. This is a real ten-mile-long red procession! Look, Miss Gu's bridal sedan chair has been out of the city for so long, but her dowry hasn't even left the city yet!"
"This surpasses even the Crown Princess's dowry. I heard that the Yu family only provided 120 loads of dowry for the new Crown Princess! That's all, and it's probably already emptied the Yu family's coffers."
"Tsk tsk, who knows, there might even be some subsidies from the palace for the Crown Princess in there! I don't believe the Yu family could come up with that much dowry. Of those 112 loads, I'm afraid it's mostly fake and not much real!"
"Oh dear, 120 loads wouldn't have been a small amount, but unfortunately, the Duke's family is getting married on the same day, and their dowry is twice that of the Yu family, completely overshadowing the Crown Princess of the Yu family!"
"What a glorious moment! When I got married, I only had thirty-six loads of dowry. I really envy Miss Gu. I wish I were the Duke's daughter. Not only could I marry the newly appointed top scholar, but I would also have so much dowry to rely on. I would never have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of my life."
Hearing the surrounding chatter, Shen Wantang felt a little better.
They're right. Ah Ning has married very well this time. She'll never have to worry about food or clothing for the rest of her life. Her life will be much, much better than her last.
As the crowd gradually dispersed, many people ran off to look at the prince's procession. Only a few children remained by the roadside, searching for any copper coins and wedding candies that others had missed.
Shen Wantang sighed softly, "Dujuan, Qinxin, let's go back too. It's a pity I can't send A Ning to Jiangnan."
Behind her, a detached yet familiar voice rang out: "You've already sent her out of the city, isn't that enough?"
Shen Wantang turned around abruptly and saw Gu Qianhan riding on horseback. She widened her eyes slightly and asked, "Why are you back? Aren't you going to send her to Jiangnan?"
"My elder brother went to deliver it; I'll stay in the capital."
As Gu Qianhan spoke, he dismounted and walked up to Shen Wantang.
He was tall and imposing, and today he was wearing an exceptionally luxurious purple brocade robe, making him exude a sense of oppression.
Moreover, he was so dazzling and eye-catching that Shen Wantang couldn't help but take a step back and distance herself from him.
Gu Qianhan didn't seem to care about her aloofness. He glanced at her embroidered shoes and asked, "Are you tired from walking?"
Shen Wantang shook her head: "I'm not tired, you can go."
She wasn't tired, but the soles of her embroidered shoes were indeed too thin, and after walking so much, her feet ached.
But she would rather have a painful foot than have any entanglement with Gu Qianhan outside, otherwise she would be ruined tomorrow.
She couldn't help but touch her veil. Thankfully, the veil was still on, and people who weren't particularly familiar with her wouldn't recognize her.
Just as she was starting to feel a little relieved, Gu Qianhan suddenly swept her up in his arms and placed her on his horse.
Shen Wantang almost cried out in surprise. She glared angrily at Gu Qianhan: "Are you crazy? Do you know how conspicuous you are? Let me down right now!"
Gu Qianhan looked around and said calmly, "No one's watching. Just sit still. Aren't you wearing a veil? Who knows who you are? Even if they do, it doesn't matter. I'll marry you with an even grander ceremony than today."
Shen Wantang looked at him irritably, wanting to say that he might not even survive, yet he still talked about marrying her, but she felt that his words were too harsh and hurtful, so she had no choice but to swallow them.
Seeing her hesitant expression, Gu Qianhan chuckled and said, "What, are you scolding me?"
Shen Wantang snorted coldly: "That's right!"
"Then don't hold it in, say it out loud, let me hear how you curse."
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