nucmednet Chapter 365: Anyway... I'm going there to enjoy myself
Chapter 365: Anyway... I'm going there to enjoy myself
After paying homage to the empress and the king's husband, Su Yue finally arrived at the Yongning Palace of the wise king.
Red candles were burning brightly in the hall. Zhou Ziqian was sitting in front of the mirror in a bright red wedding dress. A phoenix embroidered with gold thread was spreading its wings on the hem of her dress, ready to fly.
Hearing footsteps, he clutched his sleeves in panic, but did not dare to look back - according to the rules, the newlyweds had to wait for their wives to lift the veil with their own hands.
"Qian'er..." The virtuous king straightened his son's golden crown with red eyes, "When we get to the Su Mansion..."
"Don't worry, father." A muffled voice came from under the veil, "Your son...your son will live well."
Su Yue suddenly strode forward and, in front of the shocked gazes of the virtuous king and the maids, she directly grasped Zhou Ziqian's hand and said, "Ah Qian, I'm here to take you home."
"This is against the rules!" The etiquette nanny stamped her feet anxiously. "It's not time to lift the veil yet, the groom's feet can't touch the ground. It has to be..."
"I'll carry you, right?" Su Yue turned and squatted down. "Ah Qian, get up."
Zhou Ziqian froze in place.
Through the gap under the veil, he could see Su Yue's strong back.
In my ears were the nanny's exclamations, my father's gasps, and my own deafening heartbeat.
"Nonsense!" The wise king finally came to his senses, "What kind of situation is this..."
"Let them go." The retired emperor, who had appeared at the doorway at some point, waved his hand. "People from peasant families don't know the rules." She narrowed her eyes as she watched Su Yue steadily carry Zhou Ziqian on her back, her lips curled up slightly. "Anyway... they're going to enjoy themselves."
Xianjun looked at his son's back as he lay on Su Yue's back and walked away, and suddenly tears burst into his eyes - his Qian'er could finally be loved like an ordinary person.
When the wedding procession returned to the gate of the Su Mansion, the seven husbands had already returned home to prepare.
Mu Feng was sharp-eyed and was the first to spot the carriage approaching from a distance. He immediately shouted into the courtyard, "Here it comes!"
Sixteen horses led the way, and the golden-painted carriage slowly stopped in front of the mansion gate.
As soon as the car curtain was lifted, Su Yue jumped out first, turned around and reached out to support Zhou Ziqian in the car.
According to the rules, the groom should be carried out of the carriage by the nanny, but Su Yue simply waved her hand and said, "No need." She personally helped Zhou Ziqian out of the carriage, her movements as gentle as if she was treating some fragile treasure.
The onlookers were discussing: "Isn't this against the rules?"
"Rules?" Gu Qingyan stood at the door with his arms folded, sneering, "The last thing we have in the Su family is breaking the rules."
Liang Junze hurried forward and straightened Zhou Ziqian's slightly tilted veil: "Ah Qian, are you tired?" The "Ah Qian" he called out was natural and intimate, as if they had already been a family.
Zhou Ziqian's eyelashes trembled slightly under the veil.
A Qian...they called him A Qian.
"The auspicious time has arrived—" Shen Yunyan temporarily acted as the ceremonial officer, and said in a clear voice, "The newlyweds are in the hall!"
Without jumping over the fire basin or stepping on the saddle, Su Yue directly held the red silk and led Zhou Ziqian to the main hall.
Lin Yuxuan and Shangguan Haomu supported the pregnant Shangguan Haochen on the left and right. The seven of them stood in a row with smiles on their faces.
"Bow to Heaven and Earth——"
Through the gap under the veil, Zhou Ziqian saw seven different pairs of boots standing neatly on both sides of him - Liang Junze's cloud-patterned brocade boots, Gu Qingyan's black martial arts boots, Lin Yuxuan's plain cloth medical shoes... Each pair was firmly rooted to the ground, like silent support.
"The couple bows to each other—"
When he lowered his head, Zhou Ziqian's eyes suddenly felt hot.
No red tape, no flattery, just like that... we became a family.
"The ceremony is over!" Shen Yunyan announced loudly, then added with a smile, "Let the banquet begin!"
It was called a banquet, but in reality it was just the people in the mansion sitting around a table and eating a home-cooked meal.
The palace wedding banquet is grand enough
If Su Yue's opinion is followed, there is no need to invite guests to this wedding banquet, as it is just a formality for outsiders to see.
But the etiquette still needs to be followed, most of them are officials appointed by the court
Su Yue took Zhou Ziqian to toast and said some polite words
When the guests have left, the family can finally sit down and eat together.
"Ah Qian, try this." Liang Junze picked up a piece of steamed fish and placed it in Zhou Ziqian's bowl. "I heard that you like fish, so I asked the kitchen to make it specially."
Zhou Ziqian was about to say thank you when he suddenly felt the corner of his clothes being tugged.
He looked down and saw Yaoyao, who was one year and two months old, looking up at her little face and calling out in a baby voice, "Daddy!"
The word "Daddy" was like a key that instantly opened the floodgates of Zhou Ziqian's tears.
He hurriedly took off his veil, fearing that his tears would stain his wedding dress.
"Yaoyao, be good..." He choked up and took out the brocade bag he had prepared long ago from his sleeve. "Daddy has prepared a gift for you."
Inside the brocade bag were four exquisite gold lock pieces, engraved with "Yao", "Han", "Xin" and "Ning" respectively.
Zhou Ziqian carefully hung the "Yao" locket on Yaoyao's collar, and took out two unengraved lockets: "These two...will be engraved after Amu and Achen's child is born..."
"Wow!" Shangguan Haochen's eyes lit up, "We have a share too?"
Shangguan Haomu gently touched her belly: "The children will like it."
When Hanhan saw that his sister received a gift, he immediately crawled over and hugged Zhou Ziqian's legs. Although he still looked aloof, his eyes were clearly full of anticipation.
Zhou Ziqian smiled and put the "Han" locket on him, and then put them on Xinxin and Ningning as well.
"Thank you, Daddy!" Yaoyao threw herself into Zhou Ziqian's arms and gave him a kiss on the face.
Zhou Ziqian froze and looked at Su Yue helplessly.
Su Yue was grinning so hard that her teeth were showing. She casually put another piece of pork ribs into his bowl and said, "Eat more. You're too thin."
The meal was lively and the seven husbands talked about interesting things in the mansion and teased the children from time to time.
Zhou Ziqian gradually relaxed and occasionally responded in a low voice.
After dinner, Liang Junze took the initiative to pick up Yaoyao and said, "Ningning will sleep with us tonight."
"Leave Hanhan to me." Gu Qingyan rarely took the initiative to take care of the child, although Hanhan still looked disgusted.
Lin Yuxuan helped Brother Shangguan get up: "Pregnant women should go to bed early."
Mu Feng held Xinxin in one hand and held Shen Yunyan in the other: "Let's take Xinxin to count the stars."
In a blink of an eye, Su Yue and Zhou Ziqian were the only ones left in the bustling hall.
The red candle burns quietly, occasionally bursting into a spark.
"Nervous...nervous?" Su Yue scratched her head and suddenly pulled out an oil-paper bag from her sleeve. "Are you hungry? Aze secretly stuffed these almond cookies for me."
Zhou Ziqian took the almond pastry and his fingertips accidentally touched Su Yue's hand, and he immediately retracted it as if he was burned.
He lowered his head and said in a voice as thin as a mosquito: "Thank you...sister."
Su Yue looked at the little prince in front of her whose ears were red, and suddenly her heart softened.
She gently held Zhou Ziqian's hand: "You've been tired all day, do you want to... go and rest first?"
Zhou Ziqian suddenly looked up, tears still in his eyes, but he shook his head firmly: "No." After he finished speaking, he realized what he had said, and he was so embarrassed that he wanted to find a hole to crawl into.
Su Yue was stunned for a moment, then laughed out loud.
She reached out and wiped away the tears on Zhou Ziqian's face, and whispered, "Then... let's talk?"
Outside the window, several sneaky figures were eavesdropping against the wall. Hearing the word "chat", Gu Qingyan rolled his eyes and said, "Coward!"
"Didn't you also..." Liang Junze's mouth was covered before he could finish his words.
Everyone was pushing and shoving as they walked back, when they suddenly heard intermittent piano sounds coming from the house - it was Zhou Ziqian playing "The Phoenix Seeks the Phoenix".
The moonlight filled the courtyard, and the red lanterns of the Su Mansion swayed gently in the night breeze.
This night is destined to be a good start.