Chapter 93 Wedding Banquet
By the time the winter solstice arrived, the renovations on the newly acquired house were finally complete.
This time, without the small building, Grandma Guo felt that her knees were back to normal, and she busied herself tidying up a small vegetable garden in the yard.
Although the weather is cold now, the radishes and peas are still resistant to freezing.
When we run out of vegetables, we can still pick some pea shoots to eat.
Originally, she planned to live in the east wing herself, and let Guo Baiwen live in the main house, while Xiaohua would live in the west wing.
But Xiao Hua and Guo Baiwen insisted, and in the end they moved to the main house.
Guo Baiwen tidied up the east wing and had carpenter Hu custom-make a new carved bed, along with matching dressing table, wardrobe, and other items.
After all the belongings were gradually moved from the north of the city, the new house was almost ready.
As their wedding date drew closer, even though they had said they didn't plan on a grand affair, both families still took the time to discuss and arrange all the necessary procedures.
The day before the winter solstice, both shops posted notices explaining that they had a happy occasion the next day and would be closing for three days instead of the originally planned one.
Secondly, it means that everyone who comes to buy something today will receive a 50% discount, as a way to share the good fortune with everyone.
Everyone who came to the store today knows there's a discount, so there's nothing to say about the three-day break afterwards.
But once the news got out, many people wanted to join in the fun, even though it was originally just a simple celebration.
Needless to say, people from the shop's neighbors, as well as some from the small mountain villages of Guojia Village and Chenjia Village, also came to celebrate the wedding.
Since the rooms behind the shop in the north of the city were full, Guo Baiwen booked a few more rooms at the inn across the street, which at least made arrangements for all the people who came to the banquet.
After learning about this from Guo Xiaohua, Lin Niangzi explained that they went to the Chen family early the next morning to help out.
Not to mention that during dinner that evening, thanks to the matchmaker Sun Ya Po, the Zhao father and son had some free time and came over to inquire, learning that a banquet was to be held the next day. After sending a red envelope, they planned to call all the brothers from their yamen who had time off the next day to come and join in the fun.
After receiving the wedding candy, Master Guo and Master Cao from the academy also specially prepared red envelopes for the newlyweds.
When Guo Baiwen asked them if they would come to the wedding banquet the next day, the academy was closed for the winter solstice. However, because they still had to review their studies, they decided not to come during the day. They would just stay for a short while at the banquet in the evening before heading back.
The other students who were planning to join in the fun were wondering whether to skip the event when they heard that the teachers were also coming. However, they then learned that the teachers would arrive in the evening.
Immediately, they all patted their chests and said to Guo Baiwen, "Don't worry, we'll definitely be there on time!"
Guo Baiwen found the sight of it even more amusing.
Fortunately, Lin Zhongbin was more reliable. He told him privately that if things got too out of hand, he would help pull the person away.
That at least provides some safety net.
There have been so many things happening these past few days, with one small problem after another, but thankfully they were all resolved in the end.
When the day finally arrived, because Chen Baoyue was marrying from her own family, and the two families lived not far apart, she woke up exceptionally early.
When I got out of bed, it was still dark outside.
But by this time, Madam Lin had already arrived at the door with Guo Xiaohua.
This was the first time Guo Xiaohua had gotten up so early. She hadn't been unconsciously dozing off, but the cold wind outside woke her up completely as soon as she stepped outside.
Right now, he's following behind Madam Lin, running around busily.
This was the first time Chen Baoyue had seen her wedding dress. The fabric was a dazzling red, and the embroidered pattern on it was a joyous one.
Lin Niangzi had even prepared the veil for her wedding dress.
Now that I've changed my clothes, I can start preparing for my makeup.
Guo's shop was all tidied up last night.
Uncle Shi and Sister Xiuxiu, who stayed overnight at the shop last night, not only pasted big red double happiness characters on the doors and windows, but also hung red silk and lanterns on the door.
The new house also had new wedding quilts, which Grandma Guo specially asked the surrounding families about and arranged according to the customs of the county town.
Everyone got up early and hadn't eaten breakfast yet. Guo Banshan and Yang Xianu were in the kitchen, one making egg tea and the other helping to fry rice cakes. They would give two pieces to each person who came.
It's all drizzled with brown sugar, so it tastes really sweet.
If it's not enough, you can come back for more.
Chen Zhonghua had clearly not slept all night, as had Chen Youtian; both of them had dark circles under their eyes.
Chen Baoyue saw their reflection in the mirror and couldn't help but tell them to go and rest for a while.
"No more rest, no more rest."
After all, there were still things to do, and both Chen Zhonghua and Chen Youtian were getting restless.
In the end, the lady who was helping with the makeup couldn't bear to look at it anymore, so she took the powder that was originally meant for Chen Baoyue and pressed some powder under each of their eyes, which made them look much better.
Chen Zhonghua couldn't rest, so he thanked her and took the powder box from her.
While applying powder to both of them, he watched Chen Baoyue do her makeup, but as he watched, he couldn't help but feel a little teary-eyed.
Fearing that Chen Baoyue would discover her, she turned her face away and then pulled Chen Youtian out with her.
Seeing that the woman in the makeup was putting her hair up, Lin Niangzi pulled out two eggs from somewhere and stuffed them into her hand. Guo Xiaohua then handed her a meat bun.
Chen Baoyue was initially at a loss, but the makeup artist behind her spoke up: "Eat something first. It's okay that you haven't done your lipstick application yet, otherwise you won't be able to last long without food in your stomach."
The lady-in-waiting had attended many happy occasions, so she naturally knew how unpleasant it was to be hungry.
So while Chen Baoyue was eating, everyone in the room ate two steamed buns.
Seeing that it was almost time, he helped her apply lip rouge.
The bronze mirror vaguely reflected Chen Baoyue's forehead and face, and her originally loose black hair was carefully tied up.
This hairstyle is indeed quite complicated; at least Chen Baoyue had never styled her hair like this before.
Before she could even process what she was thinking, the person next to her opened the dressing drawer on the table and asked, "What jewelry are you planning to wear today?"
She glanced down as well.
There weren't actually that many pieces of jewelry inside; the one she used most often was a hairband.
Besides the hairband that Guo Baiwen initially bought for Chen Baoyue, the box now contains a number of other pieces of jewelry that Guo Baiwen has sent over over the years.
But the most eye-catching item was naturally the pair of wild goose hairpins that the Guo family had given them when they came to propose marriage.
As Guo Xiaohua helped place the two hairpins in the most conspicuous position, she also handed over a cloth bag.
Inside were two silk flowers, a wedding gift she had prepared half a month in advance for Chen Baoyue today.
Seeing this, at least the lady who was doing her makeup was very happy, "I thought it was a bit too plain before, but this is just right."
"It's really beautiful."
The group was busy inside the house and didn't realize how quickly time had passed outside. By the time Guo Baiwen rode a tall horse, followed by a bridal sedan chair carried by four people, with Yang Qiaomai and Guo Banshan on either side, the time had passed.
As they came along, scattering red dates and longans, Chen Baoyue had just put on her veil.
When she heard the sound of firecrackers outside, Granny Sun began to sing her lyrics, and Chen Baoyue found that her palms were starting to sweat.
"We're at the door! We're at the door!" Guo Xiaohua saw her brother from afar and quickly ran in to report the news.
The sound of firecrackers attracted a lot of people to join in the fun, and now they're all blocking the entrance.
Seeing that the road was blocked, Yang Qiaomai and Guo Banshan had no choice but to scatter more fruit candies. While everyone was scrambling for the candies, they seized the opportunity and pushed Guo Baiwen and the sedan chair through the gate.
Fortunately, he had specifically gone to a carriage and horse rental shop to rent horses and sedan chair bearers for this day.
Otherwise, if I were to ride my pet dog from home, I'd probably be swallowed up by the crowd long ago.
Before entering the Chen family's house, he didn't forget to tidy up his clothes, which had become a bit loose from the earlier commotion.
When he looked up and saw that Chen Youtian and Chen Zhonghua were both watching him, he lifted the front of his brocade robe and invited them in.
There was an auspicious time for the sedan chair to depart, and an auspicious time for it to enter the house. After Guo Baiwen rode his horse and the sedan chair bearers carried the sedan chair around Guo's shop in the north of the city, it finally returned to the Guo family's new home.
After another round of firecrackers and chanting, Chen Baoyue, supported by Guo Baiwen, stepped out of the sedan chair.
At this moment, a group of people had gathered at the entrance of the new house. In addition to sweets and fruits, some copper coins with red dots were scattered out as a token of celebration for the day.
Those who received the fruit and lucky money naturally showered out one congratulatory message after another.
Combined with the loud noise of firecrackers, it was incredibly lively.
The wedding banquet began in the evening. Outside, guests and the host kept greeting each other. Lin Niangzi stayed in the room to talk with Chen Baoyue. Guo Xiaohua brought four dishes from the kitchen at some point.
By the end of the day, not only Chen Baoyue, but both of them felt extremely hungry.
Fortunately, in addition to these dishes, Grandma Guo also brought in a few meat pies, so everyone got two.
After finishing everything, I felt alive again, but I still felt extremely tired all over.
Chen Baoyue didn't dare touch her veil, but secretly asked Lin Niangzi beside her through the gap, "Lin Niangzi, was your wedding veil like this too?"
Upon hearing this, Madam Lin was momentarily stunned, but couldn't help but smile. "When I got married, it rained on the way, but it wasn't as lively as your arrival today."
Chen Baoyue was wearing a veil and couldn't see, but she followed the group the whole time and saw many familiar faces.
I don't know when it will finally end.
When it was completely dark outside, the once noisy banquet gradually dispersed.
Guo Baiwen and Guo Banshan saw the person off together, while Yang Qiaomai and Grandma Guo were already packing their things.
The extra, clean vegetables were distributed to the families who came to help today, and the used dishes could only be soaked in a basin for the time being, to be washed tomorrow.
Everyone was exhausted, and only after seeing that most people had left did they close the courtyard gate.
The rest were all familiar faces from the family. Granny Sun, who was acting as the matchmaker today, did her job very well. After singing the lyrics, she invited the newlyweds to drink the wedding wine.
After finishing both cups of wine, Granny Sun collected the tray and then, with a smile, chased away the people who had been waiting in the room to watch the excitement.
There were still some people outside the courtyard who wanted to stay and make a ruckus in the bridal chamber, but they were all escorted out by Guo Banshan and Yang Qiaomai.
When Lin Zhongbin left with several classmates, he also said goodbye to Guo Baiwen.
Grandma Guo politely saw Sun Ya Po off, gave her a red envelope, exchanged a few auspicious words, and finally sent the rest of the people back.
Today's wedding banquet has finally come to an end.
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