Chapter 101 The Grand Wedding
In September, Yu Mingshu and He Zheng were married at the Marquis's residence.
This must be the most unique wedding in the entire Liang Dynasty. The groom and bride were both marquises, and their mansions were closely adjacent. The side gates of the courtyard walls were opened up, and banquets were set up on both sides to entertain the guests of both families.
The wedding banquet was held at the Marquis's residence, but the wedding procession started from the Duke of Heyang's residence, passed through the East Market, picked up the bride at the Yu family's house in Yongning Ward, and then returned to Chongren Ward via another road.
Joyful music grew louder as it approached. Yu Mingshu gazed at her reflection in the mirror, her face adorned with a magnificent crown and a flowing robe, truly exuding elegance and nobility.
It's a pity there was no camera to record her.
She had mentioned the wedding record to He Zheng, who searched all over Chang'an for her and spent a lot of money to hire a painter, but she didn't know if the painter could paint what she wanted.
Luo Yan quietly approached her side, smiling and urging, "Miss, the auspicious time has arrived."
Yu Mingshu calmed himself down, got up and walked outside. From a distance, he saw He Zheng riding a white horse outside the door.
The wedding dress was exceptionally well-designed, perfectly accentuating his broad shoulders and narrow waist, making him look like a model.
Seeing her come out, He Zheng dismounted and walked towards her step by step until he reached her and extended his hand, saying softly, "I've come to take my wife home."
Yu Mingshu took his hand back, smiled and moved closer to him, her voice barely a whisper: "I'm carrying a heavy load, so please walk slowly."
Even though he knew she was referring to the heavy attire, He Zheng still had a fleeting moment of fantasies, a suspicious blush appearing on his face, before replying, "Okay."
After bowing to Wu Qiuniang in front of the hall, the two walked step by step to the bridal sedan chair amidst the congratulations of their neighbors. He Zheng leaned down to lower the steps and carefully lifted the hem of her dress for her.
Yu Mingshu bent her waist very low so that the tall crown on her head could pass through the car door and enter the carriage. He Zheng saw that she was hunched over and working hard, so he quickly reached out to protect the top of her head.
He lowered the carriage curtain, returned to his horse, and ordered the journey to begin.
Joyful music rang out again, and the wedding procession marched in a grand procession toward Chongrenfang.
Just as the bridal sedan chair left, Wu Qiuniang, Yu Dan, and Jiang Ruan also boarded a carriage and set off for the Marquis of Lin'an's residence to attend the wedding banquet.
As soon as she boarded the carriage, large tears began to fall from Jiang Ru'an's eyes, prompting Yu Dan to frantically pull out a handkerchief and hand it to her.
"Why are you crying on my sister's wedding?"
It's common for the bride's parents to shed tears when they see their daughter off to her wedding. But where did Jiang Ru'an and Yu Mingshu get such deep feelings?
Jiang Ruan shook her head while wiping away her tears, "I just remembered that on our wedding day, my parents couldn't come to the wedding banquet to see us complete the ceremony."
Yu Dan was speechless. He hadn't thought there was anything wrong with it, but after she said that, he felt inexplicably guilty.
He stammered, "There was never such a rule before."
Jiang Ruan tossed the handkerchief back to him, sighing to herself, "There will be more in the future."
Yu Dan muttered to himself, "That's all thanks to my elder sister."
As Wu Qiuniang listened to their conversation, she turned her gaze to the window.
The carriage drove out of the alley and onto the main road, where a wide and smooth road stretched out before it.
She lived in Chang'an for nearly thirty years after Yu Zhui entered the city, and she knew every road in the city by heart.
She had walked this road outside the window countless times. In the past, when she encountered the carriages of important people, she would always stop to let them pass. When she met the ladies of officials, she would inevitably exchange a few pleasantries with a smile.
Only now, passing through this place again, do I truly feel the sense of having seen countless ships sail by and being at ease.
Her brows relaxed, and she echoed, "Your sister has always been very promising."
The wedding procession returned to Chongrenfang in a lively manner and stopped outside the gate of the Pingyan Marquis's residence.
He Xiao and Tao Shi sat in the main hall early on. During the banquet, the guests craned their necks to look around, and some people in the corners whispered and complained that the wedding was not a proper ceremony.
These discordant voices quickly disappeared.
Jinghong played the role of an impartial wedding security guard, driving away all the unfriendly onlookers.
Regardless of what the rest of the people were thinking, they at least outwardly maintained a friendly demeanor, praising the Marquis of Pingyan and the Marquis of Lin'an as a perfect match, a couple so well-matched that it was impossible for heaven and earth to find such a wonderful couple...
He Zheng personally stepped down the steps again, helping Yu Mingshu out of the car. The two walked gracefully into the courtyard, stepping over the bright red carpet covered with flower petals, and arrived at the hall.
We pay our respects to Heaven and Earth, and to our parents.
At this stage of a typical wedding, it's time to send the bride back to her bridal chamber.
Yu Mingshu did not want to wait for He Zheng to return from the banquet in the room, so she discussed it with the elders of both sides early in the morning and changed the usual rules.
Surrounded by maids, she returned to the inner quarters to change into her second auspicious outfit, removed a few pieces of jewelry, and then returned to the main hall to host a banquet with He Zheng, toasting and drinking with the guests.
The couple first toasted the guests on the groom's side before going to the bride's side.
Yu Mingshu was completely surprised that Yang Leyi would actually attend her wedding banquet.
Yang Leyi raised her glass to the two of them and said, "His Majesty asked me to offer you both a toast, wishing He Erlang and Miss Yu a long and happy marriage."
Yu Mingshu and He Zheng quickly returned the greeting.
Yang Leyi finished his drink, then refilled his cup and said gently, "This cup is my toast to you all. Minister Yu, may we work together to assist His Majesty in governing the country and creating an immortal golden age."
Yu Mingshu replied, "Let's encourage each other."
Even though the other party made no mention of him, He Zheng still took the initiative to add, "Let's encourage each other."
…
They were busy until curfew, when the guests left and the two returned to their bridal chamber. They removed their hairpins, crowns, and hats, took off their heavy wedding clothes, washed off their heavy makeup, bathed and changed, and finally collapsed onto a couch.
He Zheng lay on his back for only a moment before turning to his side and wrapping his arms around Yu Mingshu's waist.
Did you have my wine switched?
Yu Mingshu was so tired that he could barely keep his eyes open. He murmured, "I was worried that you would drink too much and die from drunkenness, but now it seems that it doesn't matter whether you get drunk or not."
"How can you say it doesn't matter?"
"I'm tired, I don't have the energy to do anything."
He Zheng stopped his restless hands, looked closely at her tightly closed eyes and tired face, and sighed helplessly.
Yu Mingshu felt a warm breath on her ear, and slightly opened her eyes to look at him. "Don't you feel tired at all?"
Thinking about it, it makes sense. A general who fights battles would naturally be a thousand times stronger than her.
He Zheng pulled her closer, letting her rest her head on his arm, staring intently at her trembling eyelashes. After a long while, he murmured, "A moment of spring night is worth a thousand pieces of gold."
"That's for beginners," Yu Mingshu said, forcing himself to stay alert. His voice was muffled and somewhat unclear. "We don't need to worry about this once. I'll make it up to you tomorrow, okay?"
"You've made a promise."
His response was the sound of even breathing.
He Zheng's heart softened, and after a few hesitations, he gently kissed her lips.
…
On a high building in the southeast corner of the palace, Liang Yuanjun gazed at the scattered lights outside the city.
"His Majesty went up the high building alone?"
"yes."
A gentle evening breeze swept by, and He Ning's voice and that of the palace maid drifted downstairs.
"I understand, you don't need to come along."
As soon as he finished speaking, He Ning climbed up the corner tower and came behind Liang Yuanjun, draping a heavy cloak over her shoulders.
"You really want to officiate at He Zheng and Madam Yu's wedding?"
Liang Yuanjun pulled her cloak tighter, looked up to meet her mother's gaze, and shook her head with a light laugh, "I just wanted to see what mutual affection looks like."
He Ning remained silent, and the hand on her shoulder paused for a moment.
"During this time, some people have also subtly brought up your marriage to me, asking when you plan to establish an empress..."
She lowered her head and smiled, saying helplessly, "I know what they suspect. Your background can never be revealed to the world. In order to cover up this well-known secret, you still have to be made an empress to silence the gossip."
"The Yang family has served you diligently and handled matters with utmost care and meticulousness over the years." At this point, she looked into Liang Yuanjun's eyes again, "If you have no other candidate in mind, then let the Ministry of Rites take charge of the matter."
Liang Yuanjun asked her, "Mother, what's so good about the title of Empress?"
He Ning was stunned, as if he had been stumped by the question.
"Confined within palace walls her whole life, engaging in charades with others, enduring her husband's fickleness and infidelity, watching helplessly as he changes his mind, knowing he regrets it, yet still gritting her teeth and continuing this charade..."
Liang Yuanjun didn't mention the retired emperor at all, yet every word she uttered seemed to refer to the retired emperor's past.
"If one day in the future the court is stable, and I regret my decision and decide to reveal my true identity to the world, and then find a group of young and handsome men, how will Yueyi put herself in that situation?"
Liang Yuanjun's voice was somber, "I don't want to come to this with Le Yi."
Hearing this, He Ning felt gratified. "Just because you were able to say those words today, no matter how many years pass, you will never become like him."
Liang Yuanjun stubbornly insisted, "Le Yi's abilities are no less than Ming Shu's; she deserves a wider world."
"Then what about your marriage?" He Ning asked. "The position of empress is vacant, and there are bound to be many speculations in the court."
"Then let them guess," Liang Yuanjun said.
Some things don't need to be responded to.
When she was ten years old, a drunk man pointed at her copy of the Classic of Filial Piety and berated her, finally giving her the comment: "Weak family ties."
This prediction has indeed come true; she may never have any close relatives or loved ones again in her life.
He Ning frowned, looking very troubled. "If you don't want to establish an empress, then so be it. You still need to have offspring to carry on the family line."
Liang Yuanjun seemed to be deep in thought. "What does Mother think of Fu'an?"
When the conversation turned to serious matters, she switched back to addressing her as "Empress Dowager."
He Ning hesitated, "Princess Fu'an?"
Liang Yuanjun keenly sensed something amiss in her tone, "Does Mother have concerns?"
There were some things that Liang Yuanjun was unaware of.
In the early years of the Fengle reign, Zhang Zhuoyan gave birth to a son for the emperor outside the palace. The Zhang family attempted to use this prince to replace the emperor, so Empress Dowager Zhang instructed the head chef of the imperial kitchen to tamper with the emperor's meals.
The emperor only tasted one bite of that dish, and that very night he began to feel weak and powerless, his limbs turning blue and purple.
At that time, more than a dozen imperial physicians from the Imperial Medical Academy came to see the emperor, but they were helpless to cure his symptoms. Only Zhong Ping volunteered to say that he could cure the emperor's illness.
She was indeed quite capable; thanks to her skillful treatment, the emperor's symptoms quickly disappeared, leaving only one aftereffect—difficulty in conceiving.
It was extremely difficult for the emperor to have children. In twenty years, only Lady Wei was fortunate enough to conceive once, and she almost miscarried during her pregnancy because she ate the wrong thing.
She had her doubts about the origins of the Wei twins, but she was certain that the Wei family had no chance of contacting the outside world. Moreover, Liang Tianrui's features were becoming more and more like Liang Heng's, and Fu'an's appearance was seven-tenths similar to Qingluan's when she was young.
It can only be described as a miracle.
Thinking of this, He Ning concealed the complex emotion that flashed across his eyes, smiled slightly, and said, "Fu'an is a tough child who can withstand hardships, which is very good."
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