Night fell.
Lights blazed throughout Luojing. Along the white-stone avenue outside the Marquis's Residence, countless pedestrians streamed through the fragrance of wine and the clamor of gongs and drums. The hubbub carried all the way to the distant Imperial City.
The front gates of the Marquis's Residence stood open. Scarlet lanterns illuminated every corner of the enormous mansion, and maids and servants hurried back and forth. From the central hall came the master of ceremonies' booming voice: "First, bow to heaven and earth!"
"Coo-jijiji-"
Dressed in a scarlet robe, Xie Jinhuan stood in the hall beside twelve brides wearing red veils. Their figures and bearing were all different, but every one of them possessed peerless beauty. Yet even A Piao, who was ordinarily capable of anything, felt a little nervous on the most important, joyous day of her life.
For instance, when they bowed to heaven and earth, all his other wings bowed properly, but A Piao remained standing. Only after Xiaomei tugged at her did she respectfully bow to herself-
As the Xie Household's only elder, Xie Wen sat at the head of the hall, the corners of his mouth stretching to his ears like the God of Wealth. Though his heart brimmed with joy, this gathering was rather too grand, and he dared not move carelessly.
After all, one of the brides was his immediate superior, the Empress Dowager, and those entitled to sit inside the hall were a veritable gathering of heroes.
Emperor Qian, Zhao Xiao, doted on his daughter and could not possibly miss her wedding. But since his elders and foreign heads of state were also present, he had come incognito to avoid overly complicated formalities. He sat in the front row with Empress Xu and his son.
-
Seeing his precious daughter sharing her