Chapter 197: Chapter 197: Prince Longevity (27)
 

Yan Gui was suddenly granted kingship, which was originally a gesture laced with humiliation as he was bestowed upon Prince Cheng’s Residence; however, in the blink of an eye, it turned into a formal granted marriage.

Nobody knew why the Emperor wanted to do this.

Even Yan Gui himself was clueless.

The Little Taoist Priest was complaining to Chuzheng at this time, “Raise my pay! I must have a raise! I have to be cautious about everything in the palace! You think this is easy for me?”

“Everyone in the palace treats you like an honored guest, you get whatever you ask for, and you’re still not satisfied?” Chuzheng was of course very willing to go along with his suggestion.

A Little Taoist Priest who got a raise was a good Taoist Priest.

“You try staying in the palace,” retorted the Little Taoist Priest with a roll of his eyes. “I’m meant to wander the world, how can I waste my life within those palace walls?”

One late evening, Chuzheng suddenly sought him out.

He was sleeping soundly when he was abruptly awakened, and in his dazed state, he heard her proposing that he should go into the palace to enjoy some blessings.

He snapped awake in an instant.

Enjoy what blessings in the palace? Beheading?

Yet, she actually asked him to go and bamboozle the Emperor.

That tyrant, how did she even come up with that!!

But considering the face of the silver note…

The Little Taoist Priest shamelessly capitulated without much spine.

Chuzheng’s expression was cold as she spit out two words, “Deceiving him?”

“…”

Grumbling, the Little Taoist Priest stuffed the silver note into his chest pocket, “I won’t speak with you anymore, I’m heading back to the palace. If I get caught, that’s it.”

Reaching the doorway, the Little Taoist Priest turned around, “Where did you get these potion recipes? They look kind of familiar to me…”

“An old man sold them to me.”

“…You better not tell me it was a blind old man?”

Chuzheng nodded.

“…”

The Little Taoist Priest bristled with a strange look, grinding his teeth, “I knew they looked familiar. Where did you see him?”

How would Chuzheng know what place it was.

She just told the Little Taoist Priest to jump off Qi Mountain and then keep walking to the west.

The Little Taoist Priest: “…”

“Do you know him?”

“I know him,” the Little Taoist Priest said between clenched teeth. “The skills I have were all thanks to that old man’s ‘generosity’. Of course, I know him.”

“Your master?”

“Bullshit!” burst out the Little Taoist Priest suddenly with a curse, “He killed my wife! We are sworn enemies, irreconcilable!”

“…” That old man was quite formidable!

The Little Taoist Priest left in a torrent of fury.

It was not until much later that Chuzheng learned that the Little Taoist Priest’s ‘wife’ was actually a flower; he had planted it since he was a child and had cared for it as if it were his wife. Then, before he knew it, the old man had plucked it to use in his potions.

–

Prince Jin’s Mansion chose a previous mansion site, which didn’t require major repairs, just some slight refurbishing and the hanging of Prince Jin Mansion’s sign.

Yan Gui remembered that it was bad luck for the marriage parties to meet on the eve of the wedding, so he truly did not go looking for Chuzheng.

The wedding was presided over by the Ministry of Rites, and everything was done in the most expensive way possible.

After all, the funds were coming from Prince Cheng Residence, and since they could also profit from it, the people of the Ministry of Rites naturally obliged.

On the wedding day, Yan Gui donned the wedding garb and stood in front of the bronze mirror, his fair face tightened slightly.

The red wedding attire made the young man look even more like a deity.

No longer did the air around him hold that tranquil tension; it was now filled with comfortable festive cheer.

His brows and eyes were relaxed, and within his beautiful hazel pupils, shards of pale gold shimmered.

“Your Highness, don’t be nervous.”

“I’m not,” the young man pursed his lower lip slightly, “Take another look for me.”

“No problem, Your Highness,” Xiao Guizi said with a smile. “You’ve had me check over a dozen times already.”

The young prince adjusted the red silk on his chest and took a deep breath, “Let’s go.”

“Alright!”

No sooner had he stepped out of Prince Jin’s Mansion than the young prince paused slightly.

On both sides of the street, carpeted with red, begonia flowers competed to bloom, blazing like a sunset, a fiery red expanse.

A gentle breeze passed, and petals from the begonias fluttered down, weaving the entire street into a dreamlike scene.

“So beautiful.”

“These are said to be planted by Miss Cheng, perhaps they were damaged in transport and didn’t bloom during their season. Who would have thought they would bloom today?”

“Could this be considered a good omen?”

“One hundred thousand begonias welcoming the bridal procession, Princess Consort Jin is indeed fortunate.”

“You’ve got it wrong. These were planted by Miss Cheng…”

The young man rode his horse down the ten-mile-long street, his flowing garment, the red silk lifted by the breeze, the falling begonia petals—each scene unfolded like a painting before his eyes.

Many people also gathered in front of Prince Cheng Residence.

This wedding was the grandest they had seen in the Imperial City.

Every item used for the wedding was reportedly bought at great expense, luxurious and exquisite.

Even the horse that Prince Jin rode on was a rare treasure worth ten thousand gold.

Yan Gui stopped in front of Prince Cheng Residence, when someone stepped forward to stop him, “Oh my, Prince Jin, you’ve arrived early.”

The young man blinked, a bit at a loss, “Is, is that so?”

“It’s not yet the auspicious time.”

The youth carefully asked, “…Should I wait then?”

The onlooking crowd chuckled softly.

The young man stood amidst the brilliant sea of begonia blossoms, his gaze lowered, quietly waiting.

Only he knew how forcefully his heart beat and how rapidly his blood flowed.

He tried to take deep breaths to calm himself down.

But the fingers tucked in his sleeve could not help but tremble, his palms were full of cold sweat, and a mix of nervousness and anxiety intertwined at the bottom of his heart.

The auspicious time arrived—

A girl cloaked in red like the glow of dawn was surrounded by attendants as she appeared.

The bright red wedding dress seemed to glint with flowing gold, shining brilliantly under the sunlight as she moved.

“That’s the set from Embroidered Brocade Pavilion…” someone recognized the bridal gown the bride was wearing.

“Good heavens! That’s the wedding dress that took the shopkeeper of Embroidered Brocade Pavilion five years to complete.”

“I heard that even the Princess didn’t get it for her wedding…”

“The wedding attire that Prince Jin is wearing seems to be from Embroidered Brocade Pavilion as well, that’s silk woven with golden threads.”

“Prince Cheng Residence is really wealthy…”

The fabrics from Embroidered Brocade Pavilion were easy to recognize, as only they carried such materials in the entire Imperial City.

Worn on the body, they moved like flowing clouds and were exceptionally beautiful.

However, due to the rarity of the fabric, besides those dedicated to the palace, Embroidered Brocade Pavilion kept only a limited stock for themselves.

Yan Gui wiped the cold sweat from his hands.

His heartbeats mingled with the joy of the moment.

In his light brown pupils, the brilliant glow of the begonias resembled the evening sky, reflecting the figure approaching him.

The youth stepped forward to lift Chuzheng horizontally and walked towards the bridal sedan.

Yan Gui wanted to speak to Chuzheng, but it was improper at this moment, so he could only set her down.

From Prince Cheng Residence to Prince Jin Mansion, people scattered gold leaf and coins to the onlooking crowd along the way.

With the sound of gongs and drums filling the air, the celebrations were extraordinary, and the blessings were like the incoming tide.

The ten-mile-long street was showered with fallen begonias.

An era’s grand wedding to welcome the peerless beauty.

Ancient weddings were complicated and troublesome, fortunately for Chuzheng, all she needed to do afterward was to sit in the room. Had she known it would be so bothersome, she would not have done it this way.

She must not do this again next time!

Chuzheng pulled down the head covering from her head.

Lv Zhu was frightened, “Miss, what are you doing?”

“I need some fresh air.” I could suffocate, the crown is so heavy, and the clothes as well!”

“That won’t do.” Lv Zhu covered her head with the veil again, “It’s inauspicious; you must wait for the Prince to lift your veil.”

“Then call him over,” Chuzheng insisted righteously.

“…” The Prince was still outside attending to guests.

Chuzheng tried to pull at it again, but Lv Zhu, helpless, could only urge her not to do so and quickly went to call Yan Gui.

As soon as Yan Gui heard, he couldn’t possibly care about the guests and hurried back to the room.

Lv Zhu tactfully left the room, giving the couple a private space to themselves.