Red silk hung from the vault of the Hall of Heavenly Favor, bolt after bolt, so densely that no light could pass through.
Gold satin covered the floor. Ambergris incense poured from the beaks of eighteen bronze cranes, its smoke climbing the pillars and winding around the dragon patterns on the carved beams and painted rafters.
Gu Moran stood in the place of honor, his princely ceremonial robes weighing on his shoulders until they ached. The golden crown on his head was three times heavier than he had imagined.
He secretly stretched his neck.
The wound Lin Zhenshan had left on his ribs still throbbed faintly. Bandages were wrapped beneath his ceremonial robes, and the slightest movement made them chafe against his flesh with a burning sting.
Officials of the third rank and above stood in two rows inside the hall, civil officials on the left and military officials on the right, a dense sea of heads.
Drums and music rang out together, and the master of ceremonies raised his voice for the first announcement.
"The auspicious hour has arrived-"
"Welcome the first bride-the prime minister's legitimate daughter, Su Yao-into the hall-"
The hall doors swung wide, and sunlight poured in.
A figure in red appeared in the doorway.
Su Yao's scarlet wedding dress had taken the Imperial Household Department three full days to make in haste. A phoenix embroidered in gold thread wound from the hem of her skirt all the way up to her shoulder.
The moment she stepped over the threshold, every sound in the Hall of Heavenly Favor vanished.
It was not quiet; everyone had closed their mouths at the same time.
Her bridal veil covered her face, hiding her expression completely, but her bearing was more piercing than the gold thread on the outside of the veil.
Her back was ramrod straight, and her pace was neither fast nor slow. She walked with a rhythm she might have practiced a hundred times.
Gu Moran watched her approach, step by step, and caught sight of the potted white plum blossoms arranged along the left side of the hall.
Twelve pots of white plum blossoms lined the way from the entrance to the place of honor. They accompanied Su Yao at every step.
When she reached the third pot, her steps paused.
It was so brief that the guests beside her did not notice.
But Gu Moran did.
She had recognized the white plum blossoms.
Su Yao continued forward and stopped before the place of honor.
The master of ceremonies began the recitation.
First, bow to heaven and earth.
Su Yao bent at the waist, her movements proper, the angle not off by the slightest measure.
Second, bow to the elders.
Noble Consort Chen sat on the phoenix chair at the head of the hall and accepted the bow with a smile.
Su Yao bent and straightened again, the entire sequence flowing like clouds and water, without a trace of hesitation.
"Husband and wife, bow to each other-"
The master of ceremonies drew out the words.
Gu Moran and Su Yao stood facing each other.
He could not see her face. Her bridal veil hung down, and nothing was visible beneath the red silk.
They bowed at the same time.
At that very moment, a voice came from beneath the veil, soft enough to reach his ears alone.
"You'd better not regret today."
Gu Moran remained bowed, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly.
He replied at a volume only the two of them could hear.
"Eldest Miss Su, rest assured. I, this prince, am hard to kill."
Su Yao said nothing more.
When they finished bowing, she withdrew to the brides' seats on the right, without a single unnecessary movement from beginning to end.
A line of text popped up in the upper right corner of the system.
[Su Yao's current favorability: -67. Emotional state: extreme resistance, heightened sense of humiliation. However, the white plum blossom detail has been noticed. No positive feedback will occur in the short term; continued observation required.]
Gu Moran glanced at it, then looked away.
Just as expected.
The white plum blossoms were not meant to win in a single move. They were meant to plant a seed.
When the seed would sprout depended on how it was watered from here on.
Prime Minister Su Wenyuan stood at the very front of the civil officials' row, his old face as stiff as an iron plate.
Li Yuan said something softly behind him. Su Wenyuan's lips moved, but he made no sound.
After a brief interval, the master of ceremonies called out the second announcement.
"Welcome the second bride-Shen Ling'er, granddaughter of Elder Shen, head of the Imperial Medical Bureau-into the hall-"
A second patch of red appeared at the hall entrance.
She was completely different from Su Yao.
When Su Yao entered, the entire hall fell silent. When Shen Ling'er entered, the entire hall was struck speechless.
The bride's manner of walking was simply too improper.
She did not take dignified little steps; she skipped and bounced.
She stepped on the hem of her wedding dress twice, and the phoenix embroidered in gold thread looked like a sparrow flapping its wings on her body.
The noblewomen attending the ceremony exchanged glances.
Lord Chen of the Censorate opened and closed his mouth, then closed and opened it again. In the end, he chose to turn his head and pretend he had seen nothing.
Shen Ling'er bounced up to the place of honor and stopped, tilting her head toward Gu Moran.
A sweet voice came from beneath her bridal veil.
"Husband, I'm here!"
Gu Moran looked at her, maintaining the smile on his face perfectly.
"Good girl."
The master of ceremonies wiped the sweat from his forehead and steeled himself to begin the recitation.
First, bow to heaven and earth.
Shen Ling'er bent two inches farther than proper and nearly knocked her head against the floor tiles.
She swayed as she stood up and muttered, "So heavy."
The wedding robes were indeed heavy, with layer upon layer weighing more than ten jin altogether.
But Gu Moran knew he had replaced the lining of her wedding dress with medicinal-scented cotton.
Second, bow to the elders.
Noble Consort Chen looked at the bride who had skipped into the hall, and her lips curved.
Elder Shen sat among the guests. No expression could be seen beneath his graying beard, but his grip on his cane had loosened a little.
"Husband and wife, bow to each other-"
Halfway through her bow, Shen Ling'er suddenly reached up and lifted a corner of her bridal veil.
Half her face appeared.
Her rounded cheeks were rosy and tender, and the red velvet flower on her twin buns had tilted to one side.
Her eyes shone as she blinked twice at Gu Moran.
Then she spoke.
"Husband."
"Hmm?"
"Did you know I like feeding my husband medicine?"
Her voice was as soft and sweet as freshly steamed glutinous rice balls.
The entire Hall of Heavenly Favor turned to stone.
Someone in the civil officials' row hiccupped, while a military official nearly dropped the court tablet in his hand.
The emperor sat on the dragon throne at the highest point, the corner of his mouth twitching.
Noble Consort Chen paused with her teacup for a moment, then patted the emperor's hand. "A little teasing between husband and wife adds spice to their marriage."
The emperor glanced at his beloved consort and sighed.
Prime Minister Su Wenyuan looked back at Elder Shen, who stroked his beard awkwardly.
Gu Moran stared at the half of her face she had revealed, stunned for two seconds.
Every last one of them is this fierce? I'm royalty!
What kind of setting was the book I've lived in for twenty years supposed to have?
The author of Chronicle of Great Yan's Heavenly Mandate has no common sense at all. The setting is far too outrageous!
These women-I'll teach them with a stick someday!
"Beloved consort, do you want to drink medicine with your husband?"
He sounded as though he were discussing the weather.
"That's perfect. Your husband loves to nest and fly together."
Shen Ling'er's eyes blinked once.
Her mouth opened slightly, then closed again.
She lowered the bridal veil and covered her face once more.
A breath of silence passed.
"Your Highness is quite interesting."
The words came from beneath the bridal veil, her voice a little softer than before.
The mutual bow was complete.
Shen Ling'er withdrew to the brides' seats beside Su Yao. She no longer skipped on her way over, and her steps were much more normal.
She stopped beside Su Yao, turned her head, and spoke in a voice only the two of them could hear.
"Sister Su, do you think he's really a fool, or is he pretending?"
Su Yao did not look at her. She stared straight ahead, her lips unmoving.
Shen Ling'er did not wait for an answer, instead muttering to herself.
"There aren't many interesting people around. I'll keep him and play with him slowly."
Su Yao's fingers curled slightly inside her sleeve.
New data popped up in the system.
[Shen Ling'er's current favorability: -10. Emotional state: curiosity slightly piqued. The "interesting" tag has been activated. The medicinal-scented cotton detail has not yet been discovered.]
Gu Moran glanced at the number.
Minus ten.
It had risen two points since the marriage decree was first issued.
Not much, but it was heading in the right direction.
Shen Ling'er's conquest route was completely different from Su Yao's. Su Yao needed to be simmered over a slow fire, while Shen Ling'er needed an unconventional approach.
She was used to being the hunter, used to controlling the situation.
What he had meant by his words just now was simple: you can't poison me to death, but you can't run away from me either.
When a hunter discovered that the prey was not running according to the usual pattern, the first reaction was not to give up, but to chase after it and find out why.
The guests in the hall were still whispering among themselves.
Crown Prince Gu Moyuan stood at the front of the princes' row, watching Shen Ling'er withdraw. The corner of his mouth twitched.
The second prince, Gu Mochen, leaned forward from behind him, keeping his voice very low.
"Elder brother, this girl from the Imperial Medical Bureau is rather interesting."
Gu Moyuan did not answer.
Gu Mochen added in a low voice, "Third Brother's wedding is quite lively. All six of them are troublemakers. Can he handle them?"
Holding his court tablet, Gu Moyuan shifted his gaze from Gu Moran to Su Yao, then to Shen Ling'er.
"All the better if he can't."
His voice was so soft that only Gu Mochen, half a step behind him, could hear.
Gu Mochen smiled and retreated to his place.
On the dais, the master of ceremonies wiped his sweat for the third time and unfolded the register in his hands, preparing to announce the third bride's name.
He had just opened his mouth when a sound completely different from Huaxia's ceremonial music came from outside the hall.
Drums.
Not the festive drums of a wedding procession, but war drums.
The muffled pounding of great oxhide drums came from afar, each beat striking the ground and making even the floor tiles of the Hall of Heavenly Favor hum.
The drums drew closer and grew louder.
A clamor of startled cries rose from the commoners outside the hall.
Everyone turned to look at the entrance.
In the sunlight, a snow-white warhorse was climbing the steps before the Hall of Heavenly Favor to the beat of the drums.
A figure in red sat on its back, long silver-white hair falling on either side of her bridal veil and fluttering in the wind.
A curved saber hung at her waist.
Murong Xue had arrived.