My brother said we should speak less today and not ruin Father and Mother's wedding!
She was so incredibly cute.
With the help of a young eunuch, Qianqian jumped down from the imperial carriage, then handed her younger sister's hand and led her down as well.
The two little ones ran up quickly and grabbed their mother's skirt again.
The old ministers, who stood in neat rows on both sides of the hall, were moved to tears.
Heaven knows how much they worried about the emperor's marriage.
When Chu Heng ascended the throne, he was already twenty-four years old. Not only was his betrothed Crown Princess nowhere to be found, but he also had no concubines or secondary wives. The issue of offspring was the most pressing concern for an emperor.
They brought it up countless times, both openly and secretly, each time ending in angering the young emperor.
Just when they were extremely anxious, they suddenly learned that the Emperor had not only found the Empress, but also brought back the twins.
Some people had worried that the twins, who grew up outside the palace, might have questionable bloodlines, but after seeing them today, they realized that the dragon and phoenix twins' features were at least 50% similar to the emperor's, and their worries were finally put to rest.
Especially the eldest prince, with his serious little face, was almost a miniature version of Chu Heng, even his aura was exactly the same.
After the announcer chanted the three bows, the emperor and empress slowly turned to face the assembled officials.
The two little ones stood on either side of their father and mother.
The courtiers bowed respectfully, saying, "Welcome Your Majesty the Empress! May Your Majesty live a thousand years!"
"Welcome back to the palace, Your Highness the Crown Prince and Your Highness the Princess."
At this moment, You Ran's heart, which had been hanging in suspense, finally settled down.
What she fears most is that once the children appear on screen, different opinions will emerge.
The officiant chanted a few more lines about the harmony between the emperor and empress and the blessings upon the world before announcing the ceremony was complete and sending them to the bridal chamber.
Chu Heng held You Ran's hand tightly under his sleeve as they followed the master of ceremonies outside.
You Ran sensed his tension, squeezed his hand to comfort him, and then turned her head slightly to look at Qianqian and Wanwan.
Chu Heng said in a low voice, "Don't worry, Mother and Father are here."
She nodded slightly, her feet never stopping, and turned the doorway, but instead took out her little notebook to eavesdrop.
1000 points of luck value equals 1000 points.
It was an unfamiliar place, and the two children were bound to be scared as they were new to the area.
Over there, the two children saw their father and mother leave and knew that the ceremony was over. Just as they were about to look for their grandmother's position, a group of officials crowded around them.
"Your Highness, may I ask if you have begun your studies?"
"Your Highness, I have experience teaching children early education. If I were fortunate enough to..."
"Go away, go away! Grand Tutor Lin hasn't even spoken yet, and you, an old scoundrel, dare to recommend yourself? Your Highness, I have a young son who is about your age; he could be a study companion..."
"Your Highness,..."
Qianqian was initially startled, but eventually understood. Her lips twitched, and she glanced around indifferently.
Officials who had rushed forward to recommend themselves immediately shut their mouths, feeling as if a familiar imperial pressure was coming down on them again.
Empress Dowager Zhou, standing to the side, beckoned lovingly to the two children, "Children, come here."
Wanwan quickly pushed through a group of old men, took her brother's hand, and ran towards her grandparents.
Wanwan called out in a clear voice, "Grandpa, Grandma, these old men are so scary."
Emperor Shunqing glared at them and said, "Hmph, I told you not to urge me to get married, I told you not to urge me to have children. Now look what happened, two of you have come here."
He straightened his back and said, “They are not old men, but your subjects. You don’t need to be polite to them when you see them in the future.”
The courtiers: ...
They dared to be angry but dared not speak out.
Upon hearing all this, You Ran couldn't help but smile and felt completely relieved. Following the instructions of the master of ceremonies, she and Chu Heng boarded the phoenix carriage and headed to Feng'an Palace.
Empress Dowager Zhou suppressed a laugh, stood up, and led the two women, one in each hand, toward the inner palace.
The ministers, their eyes following the Crown Prince with longing, reluctantly departed.
Emperor Shunqing also put his hands behind his back and left the Hall of Diligent Governance.
He looked very proud.
When I was young, I was bullied by this group of old men. After I finally handed the reins over to my son, they didn't spare him either, and all sorts of petitions urging him to get married and have children kept coming up.
Fortunately, his son was more authoritative than him and never paid any attention to him.
It seems this grandson has surpassed his master.
Will he be able to use his position to bully others in the future?
...
Inside Feng'an Palace.
After all the procedures were completed, the master of ceremonies and the group of female officials, eunuchs, and palace maids left.
Chu Heng sat next to You Ran, somewhat at a loss.
The two had just drunk the nuptial wine and were sitting side by side on the bed.
He felt as if everything before him was a dream, and he was afraid that if he moved even slightly, he would ruin the dream.
You Ran felt the stiffness in the person beside her. She lifted the golden beaded curtain in front of her with one hand and touched him with the other. "May I trouble Your Majesty to remove the phoenix crown for me?"
Chu Heng snapped out of his daze and hurriedly removed the phoenix crown from her head while murmuring, "You Ran, there's no need to be so formal when there are no outsiders. Why don't you... call me... Zi Yuan? Zi Yuan is my courtesy name, that's what my mother called me when I was young."
While helping him remove his hair, You Ran asked curiously, "But on the way back to the capital, I heard the Empress Dowager keep calling you Heng'er. What's your courtesy name...?"
Chu Heng gave a bitter smile. "Yuan Bai's name has one character in it, so we became good playmates when we were young. Later, he died protecting me from an arrow, and my mother felt that this courtesy name was not auspicious, so she stopped calling him that."
He got up and placed the phoenix crown on the dressing table beside him.
You Ran also got up and saw two basins of water on the shelf in the corner. She walked over, rolled up her sleeves, and began to wash her face.
Chu Heng instinctively wanted to call a palace maid in to serve him, but saw her extend a hand, "Do you have any dry towels?"
Chu Heng was overjoyed and quickly stepped forward to take a clean towel from the shelf next to him and hand it to her.
She carefully dried herself before lifting her face and smiling, "Not as scary as before, right?"
Chu Heng was taken aback for a moment, then smiled and said, "You Ran's face is always so beautiful. She looked great just now too."
You Ran suddenly leaned closer to examine him closely, then nodded. "Hmm, so Zi Yuan also wears powder. Shall I cleanse Zi Yuan's face?"
After saying that, she went to another shelf, took out a towel, and rinsed it in a clean basin.
Chu Heng then realized what was happening and felt annoyed. Did he have to wash his face before the wedding night?
Why didn't any official in charge of rites mention this to him before?
If I had known this would happen, I would have made sure the palace maids and eunuchs took good care of me before I left!
He couldn't bear to let You Ran come and serve him.
Thinking this, he turned his head to avoid the towel that You Ran offered, his tone somewhat displeased, "Someone come here!"
You Ran was taken aback. Why call someone at this time?
Eunuch Changfu's voice immediately came from outside the curtain, "Your Majesty, this servant is here!"
Chu Heng's tone was icy, "How dare you have the Empress serve me while I wash my face? Why aren't you all getting in here to serve me?!"
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