Chapter 44 The Princess' Wedding
Zhao Xiaofei emerged from the palace, riding a white horse, followed by the princess's sedan chair, carried by twelve men. Flanking him were Jinyiwei, dressed in flying fish uniforms, acting as his personal guards. Behind them followed palace maids and eunuchs. Further back were the honor guard and drummers.
There were music and dancing along the way, but there weren't the usual TV dramas, with people booing and cheering, and no children asking for wedding money. All the intersections had long been blocked off with red cloth. Even if one wanted to watch, one could only glimpse from a distance.
According to tradition, the princess and her husband were to stay at the Tenth Prince's Mansion on their first wedding night. This was near Wangfujing today. However, Zhao Xiaofei had made contributions, and Chongzhen promised him that the princess could stay at his place after her wedding. So the large group went directly to the Prince Consort's Mansion.
Before entering, the palace maid took Kunxing's blanket down and placed it at the door. There was a brazier at the door, and Zhao Xiaofei stood inside, holding the princess's red silk. Kunxing stepped directly over the brazier, not allowing him to step on the threshold.
This was a big step, but it was nothing for Kunxing, who didn't have bound feet. Because Zhao Xiaofei's family didn't have an ancestral hall, they skipped it and went directly to the main hall to worship heaven and earth. After entering the hall, Liu Chun, the Minister of Rites, shouted, "Bow to heaven and earth!"
Zhao Xiaofei pulled the princess's red silk and bowed with her.
"Bow to your parents twice!"
Zhao Xiaofei and the princess bowed together towards the two tablets on the chairs in the main hall. One tablet had Liu Aiping's name on it, and the other had the name of Zhao Xiaofei's father, Zhao Yuanshan.
"Husband and wife bow to each other!"
Zhao Xiaofei and Princess Zhu Mianzhu bowed to each other.
"Perform the hair-tying ceremony!"
At this point, the palace maids came over to comb the hair of the prince consort and the princess, braiding their hair together. Zhao Xiaofei thought, this is what they often say in TV dramas about a married couple tying their hair together. Now I finally understand. Unfortunately, after the Qing Dynasty's hair-shaving order, only the rat-tail braid was allowed, and tying the hair together was no longer possible. So, after the couple bowed to each other, they skipped this process and went straight to the bridal chamber.
This time, Zhao Xiaofei had to walk carefully. He couldn't pull the princess too far, otherwise her scalp would hurt. After entering the bridal chamber, the two sat together. The palace maid came in and untied her hair.
At this moment, a palace maid brought a weighing rod. After entering the bridal chamber, the groom used the rod to lift the bride's red veil, symbolizing "satisfaction and fulfillment." Zhao Xiaofei stood up and used the rod to lift the red veil off the princess's head, finally revealing her face. How can I describe it? According to Zhao Xiaofei's aesthetic, it's not offensive. After all, it's a bit awkward for a 14-year-old girl to wear adult makeup. In Zhao Xiaofei's eyes, children are just natural beauties.
Fortunately, bridal makeup wasn't as extravagant as in the Tang Dynasty. Similar to modern times, Kunxing even used the cosmetics Zhao Xiaofei had given her. Foundation, essence, highlighter, eyebrow pencil, lipstick—all of which made Concubine Tian, who was applying the princess' makeup, incredibly envious. Kunxing generously gifted her her makeup, too. Concubine Tian was a master of all arts, from music, chess, calligraphy, and painting, so applying Kunxing's makeup was a piece of cake. Originally, a palace maid would have done the makeup, but Concubine Tian offered to do it herself. However, after encountering these new cosmetics, she immediately returned to the palace to apply them herself, awaiting Chongzhen's arrival that night.
After Kunxing's veil was lifted, she looked at the man in front of her with reserve. Zhao Xiaofei's first question was, "Are you tired?"
"Not bad!" Princess Kunxing said softly, her face flushed.
"Shall I ask the palace maid to remove your makeup? It's not good for your skin!" said Zhao Xiaofei.
"My dear Prince Consort, isn't Kunxing beautiful like this?" Kunxing asked, blinking her big eyes.
"It looks good! But we're going into the bridal chamber, so let's not wear makeup anymore." Zhao Xiaofei thought to himself, "You little kid likes to wear makeup. Be careful if you keep using makeup in the future, or you'll look old when you get older."
"Listen to the prince consort!" Kunxing said with a red face.
Zhao Xiaofei took out the makeup remover and gave it to two palace maids, telling them how to use it and asking them to wash the princess's face. After washing her face, Kunxing revealed her pure and lovely face.
After washing his face, Zhao Xiaofei picked up the wine glass, and with Princess Kunxing's arms, they began to drink from the wedding cup. It was Kunxing's first time drinking, and the spicy taste made her cough. Zhao Xiaofei quickly took out a glass of juice and poured it for her. "Here! Take a sip to calm your nerves! This is sweet!"
Kunxing picked up the cup and quickly drank it, and then he felt better. Zhao Xiaofei laughed at this, thinking that children are just children. Kunxing saw this and pouted and said, "Why are you laughing, Prince Consort?"
"You're so cute when I smile!" Zhao Xiaofei pinched Kunxing's little face while smiling.
Kunxing blushed and said coquettishly, "Prince Consort!" Then she glanced at the two palace maids beside her. The two palace maids held their breath and dared not laugh.
Zhao Xiaofei said to the two palace maids, "You two, get out!"
The two maids looked at each other, bewildered. They were assigned to accompany the princess to her husband's bed, but they had never heard of maids being asked to leave the bedchamber on the wedding night.
"My dear husband! They can't go out. I... I'm afraid I can't serve my husband." Kunxing said with a red face, clutching the corner of his clothes in his hands.
"I don't need anyone else sleeping with me. If I don't like them and I break their virginity, how will they ever get married again? You can't be so selfish." Didn't Zhao Xiaofei want to? Wrong! Despite his righteous words, he really didn't mind having too many beauties in his family. The two young palace maids were not very old, only about fourteen or fifteen. Although they were also very beautiful, Zhao Xiaofei had learned from practical experience that two or three women were enough. Otherwise, his waist would not be able to bear it! He also felt that doing so was too selfish and he couldn't let her be a widow.
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