"Spring Wedding in the Capital - Part 4"
Ying Xiaoman went to bed late and woke up late the next morning.
Her Adoptive Mother quietly entered the room, opened half the window, and searched through boxes and trunks in the dim morning light. Ying Xiaoman asked groggily, "Mother, what are you looking for?"
The Adoptive Mother anxiously asked, "Where did you put the embroidery prepared for your husband's family?"
Ying Xiaoman yawned, slipped on her shoes, and pulled out a small wooden box from under the bed.
Twenty embroidered items lay quietly at the bottom of the box. The Adoptive Mother let out a long sigh of relief.
"You won't have a mother-in-law above you. I heard the Old Matriarch of the Yan Family is very old and a bit confused? That's good, no one will check your needlework after you enter the family. These sachets are to be given to your sisters-in-law on the second day of your marriage. It's better to have extra than to be short one."
There were twenty-six cousins of the Yan Family. Ten were already married, and sixteen were still unmarried. Twenty pouches were prepared in the trunk.
During those idle winter days back home, Ying Xiaoman embroidered two herself and showed them to her Adoptive Mother. The Adoptive Mother sighed and helped her daughter embroider the other eighteen pouches.
"Keep those two you made at the bottom of the trunk, don't take them out," the Adoptive Mother advised while packing the trunk. "They would be embarrassing to show."
Ying Xiaoman didn't think her embroidery was bad. She had spent an entire day stitching each one, wasn't it the thought that counted? The sentiment wasn't embarrassing.
She took out the two pouches she had embroidered - one with a design of pine trees, a stream, and cranes, the other with summer lotuses and dragonflies. She examined them in the morning light and was quite satisfied, so she put them back in the small wooden box.
While washing up, she mentioned to her Adoptive Mother some news she had heard from Seventh Young Master the night before.
"Mother, do you remember Seven Scholars Lane? The house we used to live in has been renovated last year but has remained empty until now. I heard the rent has been reduced significantly, and it can be rented for just one string of cash."
"Really?" The Adoptive Mother was surprised. "Seven Scholars Lane is considered a good location in the Capital City. Why is it still unoccupied even with reduced rent? Is it because of the fire last year?"
The reason the houses in Seven Scholars Lane couldn't be rented out wasn't just because of last year's big fire.
The main reason was that the primary renters in the Capital City - officials and gentry families - believed the feng shui of Seven Scholars Lane was unfavorable for officials.
Look, the Zhou family of clerks at the west end of the alley had their entire household burned down by arson; the Shen family of censors at the east end was in disgrace. Both ends of the alley were considered unlucky.
The once-popular houses in Seven Scholars Lane became undesirable. Even with repeated rent reductions, they remained vacant until now.
As the Adoptive Mother listened, her mind began to work.
"Feng shui is only as powerful as you believe it to be. I'm not sure if Seven Scholars Lane is good or bad for officials, but one string of cash for rent is a great deal!"
After Ying Xiaoman's marriage, the Ying family would need a place to stay in the Capital City. Seventh Young Master had offered several times to gift them a house, but the Adoptive Mother refused to accept.
"Our families are already so different in status," the Adoptive Mother confided to her daughter in private. "We can't provide much for your dowry, it's all prepared and sent by your husband-to-be, passing through my hands to be presented as your dowry. If I were to accept a house from your husband as well, and then live in his house with Zhi, relying on his family for food and shelter, it would seem like we're selling you rather than marrying you off."
The Adoptive Mother continued, "Seventh Young Master is genuinely good to you, willing to give you the best of everything. But his family is large! I'm afraid... afraid that after you marry into his family, some people might gossip..."
Ying Xiaoman didn't think there was anything to fear.
Seventh Young Master had explained clearly last night that apart from the Old Matriarch who needed to be respected, the others were of no consequence.
If any family members deliberately caused trouble, she could simply beat those younger than her, and use her authority as the mistress of the household to severely punish those older than her.
But her Adoptive Mother's worry was evident. Ying Xiaoman pulled out a long box from under the bed and presented it to her mother.
"Mother, all the money I've saved from doing business is in this box. The butcher shop opened for half a month in February and will bring in four or five more strings of cash. We're quite well off. If you want to move back to Seven Scholars Lane, let's do it."
As the Adoptive Mother counted the money in the box, she discussed with Ying Xiaoman, "After you're married, will you still run the butcher shop? I heard from the Yan Family's maid that ladies from big households in the Capital City stay at home to support their husbands and raise children, never going out. They seemed to look down on you for doing business in public, though they were polite about it."
Ying Xiaoman replied, "Who looks down on me? Let them say it to my face, and I'll slap them. It's our own butcher shop. I'll work there when I have time, and hire someone when I don't. Who does it bother?"
There were thirty to forty strings of cash saved in the box.
The Adoptive Mother carefully counted the family's savings twice, listening to Ying Xiaoman's confident responses. Her anxiety about her daughter leaving home for marriage gradually eased.
"It's always more comfortable to spend money you've earned yourself. Seventh Young Master's family is rich and powerful, but we can't rely on your husband's family for our entire lives. If we keep depending on them, we'll lose our backbone. We still have to marry off your little sister in the future."
The Adoptive Mother put the money box back under the bed and gazed at Zhi playing in the small courtyard outside the window. She muttered a few words of reflection before making up her mind to discuss with Ying Xiaoman.
"Let's keep the butcher shop open if possible. When you're not available, I'll go back to Tongluo Alley to find some reliable old neighbors to help. It would be best if we could keep it running long-term. If we can save enough money to buy a house in the Capital City, regardless of the location, we'll finally have a stable place to live."
Ying Xiaoman went over and hugged her mother. "Our family will keep getting better."
The Adoptive Mother had been holding up well, but the moment her daughter's warm arms embraced her, her eyes immediately welled up with tears. "The child I've raised for seventeen years is going to another family."
Ying Xiaoman's eyes also reddened. "Mother, you should rent the house in Seven Scholars Lane. We'll be living close by, and I'll come back to see you and little sister whenever I have time."
"No matter how close we live, we'll still be two separate families. My child, I can't bear to part with you, wuwuwu..."
"Wuwuwu... Mother..."
The mother and daughter embraced each other, sobbing in the room.
In the small courtyard, Zhi was practicing kicking a feather shuttlecock. Noticing the commotion inside, she quickly tossed the shuttlecock aside and ran into the room, expertly wedging herself between them.
"Mother! Sister! Why are you crying? Wuwuwu..."
The crying suddenly stopped.
The little head that had forcefully squeezed in was unceremoniously knocked twice:
"What are you crying for?"
*
Time flows as swiftly as water, yet as slowly as the rings of a tree.
Day after day, in silent waiting and anticipation, amidst the city's greenery of sprouting willows, the Ying family passed through the long month of February.
The Ying family's butcher shop opened normally for half a month.
Many old customers came to buy meat, but there were even more new faces. It was hard to tell how many came just to see the commotion, but in any case, there was a long queue at the butcher shop. The amount of fresh meat sold increased from 20 jin to 60 jin, then 80 jin, selling out before noon every day. Business was booming.
On the last day of February, after finishing business, Ying Xiaoman cleaned up the butcher shop and posted a notice on the door announcing a half-month closure.
The third day of the third lunar month was the Shangsi Festival.
It was not only a great day for outings outside the city but also an auspicious day for weddings in the city.
The Capital City was very lively that day.
Towards the various city gates, there was a steady stream of carriages and horses heading out for spring outings. In the streets and alleys of the city, crowds gathered to watch the wedding processions.
In the Yan Family's bridal chamber.
Early in the morning, Ying Xiaoman was seated at the dressing table, being prepared by the wedding maids. Her Adoptive Mother, more nervous than Ying Xiaoman herself, watched intently as the maids dressed her daughter, worried that something might go wrong.
But how could anything go wrong? The old matriarch from the palace valued this marriage, and the Yan Family was putting their utmost effort into sending off the bride. The two wedding maids hired today were renowned experts in the wedding industry in the Capital City.
Zhi wore a festive red jacket with floral patterns, her hair tied into two small buns with gold-threaded ribbons, and pattered around the room in tiger-head shoes.
She stopped by the dressing table, curiously staring at her sister's elaborate outfit in the bronze mirror.
Ying Xiaoman grabbed a handful of golden dates from a large porcelain plate nearby and gave them to Zhi.
"Here, eat these."
The wedding maid smiled as she continued to style Ying Xiaoman's hair, "It's fine to eat three or five dates, but don't eat too many. The whole plate will be used for scattering on the bridal bed later."
"What about after that?" Ying Xiaoman asked. "Can Zhi eat the dates after they're scattered on the bed?"
The two wedding maids covered their mouths and laughed.
The older one lowered her voice and replied with a chuckle, "After scattering the dates, the groom enters the bridal chamber, lifts the veil, and the newlyweds perform the wedding night ritual... who will care about the dates then?"
The two bridal attendants arrived early, spending an entire hour to prepare everything properly. The sunlight had just begun to shine into the small courtyard.
It was a beautiful spring day. A few rays of sunlight filtered through the half-open eastern window, gradually revealing the radiant bride in the bronze mirror. A red flower ornament adorned her brow, accentuating her porcelain-white skin. Her meticulously drawn eyebrows and eyes were as exquisite as those of a fairy in a painting.
Zhi had long forgotten about the golden dates, staring intently at her sister's unfamiliar yet familiar face in the bronze mirror. After a while, she hesitantly raised her hand, tentatively reaching out to touch her cheek.
Ying Xiaoman didn't shy away, allowing her to touch her face, then reached out to pinch Zhi's little cheek. "What are you doing?"
Having touched her face, Zhi's expression turned to one of relief.
"I wanted to see if it was really Sister. You look too beautiful, not like a real person."
The two bridal attendants chuckled quietly on the side.
Ying Xiaoman raised her hand and flicked the little girl's forehead. "Are you asking for a spanking?"
Zhi covered her forehead, now completely at ease, and sat quietly in the corner to eat her dates.
The bridal attendants and the Adoptive Mother huddled in the corner, whispering for a while. The Adoptive Mother repeatedly assured them, "We've prepared, we've prepared. Nothing will go wrong."
The bridal attendants left, reassured.
Only the three members of the Ying family remained in the bridal chamber. The Adoptive Mother sent Zhi to play in the small courtyard, instructing her not to rush back inside, and to close the door carefully. From some hidden corner, she produced an old scroll painting and solemnly called Ying Xiaoman closer.
"Child, before you go to your husband's family, your mother has something to tell you."
Ying Xiaoman had been eyeing this development, and her suspicions grew stronger. She gasped.
"Mother, what you're holding... it couldn't be the legendary... that thing!"
"Shh!" The Adoptive Mother nervously gestured for her to lower her voice. "Yes... it's that thing!"
The Adoptive Mother had just unrolled the scroll when she nervously rolled it back up again. She opened the window once more to check - Zhi was happily playing shuttlecock with the Yan Family's maids.
The Adoptive Mother quickly closed the window and, mustering her courage, unrolled the scroll and spread it out before her daughter.
Ying Xiaoman curiously leaned in to look. After a few glances, she picked up the scroll in surprise and examined it back and forth.
What on earth was this?
"Mother, this 'avoiding the fire' illustration must be quite old," she said with a hint of disappointment and dismay, holding the scroll up to her eyes and staring at it for a long time without being able to make out heads or tails of it.
"The people have all faded. I can't even see where the faces are, just silhouettes. What am I supposed to look at?"
"This is something I brought from my maiden home. Of course it's old," the Adoptive Mother said, pointing at the blurry human silhouettes and instructing Ying Xiaoman:
"Why would you look at faces in an 'avoiding the fire' illustration? Look at the positions. On the night your father and I consummated our marriage, we relied on this very illustration. Child, you have good eyesight, take a good look. Use it for your wedding night tonight."
Ying Xiaoman stared frustratedly at the ancient 'avoiding the fire' illustration in the tightly closed room. The blurry large silhouettes vaguely showed several strange postures.
"Which parts are hands, which are feet, Mother?"
The Adoptive Mother's face reddened. "Figure it out yourself. How can you ask your old mother about such things?"
Even with the best eyesight, one couldn't make out the details in the faded shadow play, and her mother wouldn't let her ask questions.
Ying Xiaoman pondered for a long while, then rolled up the illustration and handed it back to her Adoptive Mother. "I've finished looking."
"Have you really finished?" The Adoptive Mother became worried and pressed her, "Can you use it for your wedding night?"
Ying Xiaoman said confidently, "I've finished looking. I can use it." She sat back down at her dressing table and grabbed another handful of sweet dates to eat.
It wasn't as if she would be alone on her wedding night. The Seventh Young Master would be there too.
If there was anything she didn't understand, she could just ask the Seventh Young Master.
Compared to the small matter of the wedding night, she was more concerned about where the Seventh Young Master was now, what he had encountered, and whether he had been beaten when he came to pick up the bride today...
The auspicious hour was in the afternoon. Seeing that there was still time, the bridal attendants brought four kinds of sweet and savory buns for Ying Xiaoman to eat.
One attendant whispered, "There are customs for the bride sitting in state. Some brides are not allowed to eat or drink all day from leaving their maiden home to arriving at their husband's home. The Yan Family is lenient with the Third Young Miss. It's alright to eat some buns, but drink little water."
Ying Xiaoman tore open half a bun and whispered to her mother while eating, "Just eating two buns from morning till night is considered lenient towards the bride? If I get hungry at noon, I'll go find something to eat. If Yan Erlang dares to stop me, I'll knock his head off."
The Adoptive Mother sighed and said, "You're always talking about knocking people's heads off. Although the Yan Family is following the Empress Dowager's wishes for this wedding, they've still put in a lot of effort. Look at all the festive decorations around us - Yan Erlang supervised all of it. If today's wedding procession goes smoothly, listen to your mother's advice and stop quarreling with Yan Erlang in the future."
Ying Xiaoman pondered as she took a bite of her bun.
Yan Erlang seemed frivolous and had a temper like a dog, but he wasn't bad-hearted. She still remembered that night when she had climbed over the wall with her grappling hook, angry and not telling Yan Erlang. He had waited for her return at the gate late into the night, his nose red from the cold.
If today's wedding procession truly went smoothly, she did indeed plan to "turn swords into ploughshares" with Yan Erlang.
"If he follows the Empress Dowager's instructions and escorts the bride properly without causing trouble for the Seventh Young Master, I wouldn't mind calling him 'Second Brother' when I see him in the future. But I feel like he's... unpredictable. It's hard to say."
Ying Xiaoman closed her mouth, pondering for a while, still unable to fathom Yan Erlang's thoughts and couldn't completely put her mind at ease.
As she was eating her buns and keeping track of time, with clearly still three quarters of an hour until the auspicious noon hour, suddenly there was a loud commotion of gongs and drums outside the door.
The sound of a crowd could be heard outside, with the faint cheers of children. Many footsteps ran back and forth in disarray.
The Adoptive Mother became excited, repeatedly asking, "Has the Yan family arrived? Has the Seventh Young Master come to pick up the bride?" She was about to go out to check but was desperately persuaded by the two bridal attendants to stay.
It would be improper for the mother-in-law to go out to greet the groom before he entered.
Ying Xiaoman quickly finished her bun in a few bites, restraining herself to sit and wait.
The two bridal attendants busily touched up her lipstick, adjusted her flower ornaments, and ensured her makeup, wedding dress, hairpins, and accessories were all properly in place. They repeatedly praised the dazzling bride in the bronze mirror, then brought out the red veil and gently covered her face.
Ying Xiaoman's vision was covered by a sea of red. The Yan Family's maids and women came and went, relaying news.
"The Yan family has come to pick up the bride! They scattered dozens of baskets of wedding coins along the way. Children from more than a dozen streets nearby are all following to pick up the coins. It's so crowded outside that you can't move in the alley."
"The Yan family's groom brought seven or eight brothers and over a hundred people to pick up the bride. Erlang sent people to block the wedding procession at the entrance of the alley. He said that since the wedding is on the third day of the third month, three is an auspicious number. Apart from the groom himself, only two brothers are allowed to enter the alley... pfft."
The woman relaying the message suddenly covered her mouth and giggled at this point.
"Forgive me, Third Young Miss. Just now, ten baskets of large ganders were sent out to the entrance. Erlang announced that it would be the three Yan brothers against ten adult ganders. If the men could defeat the geese, the Yan family would be qualified to enter and pick up the bride. Adult ganders can be quite fierce when they peck people. I don't know what's happening outside now... pfft~"
The red veil shook twice, then was suddenly pulled down by a slender white hand and tossed aside. Ying Xiaoman gritted her teeth and rolled up her sleeves.
That Yan Erlang, you were told not to cause trouble, and you send out ten large geese?! Just you wait.
The bridal attendants hurriedly picked up the red veil, trying to cover the bride's face again.
"This won't do! The red veil should only be lifted when entering the bridal chamber after the ceremony—"
Ying Xiaoman silently rolled up her sleeves and stood up, her jewelry jingling as she walked towards the courtyard. Before she could leave the room, another woman rushed in with news.
"Prince Jin, His Highness Prince Jin has arrived to attend the ceremony!" the woman called out urgently:
"How are the preparations for the bride? The groom has already entered and is reciting the bridal chamber urgency poem. When the bridal urgency music starts in the front courtyard, the wedding party will come to the second gate! Oh my, bride, where is your red veil?"
The bridal attendant chased after her with the red veil.
Ying Xiaoman stood by the courtyard gate, raising her hand to block the red veil, and asked the messenger woman in confusion: "Who is Prince Jin? I don't know him. What ceremony is he here to observe? How were the ten geese at the gate dealt with? They're not still pecking at the groom, are they?"
The woman hurriedly explained that Prince Jin was the Eleventh Prince, newly enfeoffed as a prince during the New Year. He was a good friend of today's groom from the Yan family...
"Oh, don't mention those ten ganders at the gate. They were truly fierce when released! They chased the two Yan family brothers who came to escort the bride halfway down the alley, pecking at them. Taking advantage of the moment when the geese were lured away, the groom stood at the gate and recited a bridal chamber urgency poem."
"Just as he finished reciting the poem, Prince Jin happened to ride into the alley on horseback. He was suddenly confronted by a goose flying towards his face, nearly pecking his nose. Fortunately, an imperial guard pulled him away just in time."
"Then Erlang quickly ordered people to catch the geese. After bustling about for half a day, they finally managed to cage all ten geese and welcomed Prince Jin into the house."
"The groom followed inside. Standing in the front courtyard, he finished reciting the second bridal chamber poem. As the groom urged the bride to hurry, the bride emerged. I rushed over to see if the bride was ready."
Ying Xiaoman said, "I see."
She smoothed out the rolled-up cuffs of her sleeves and turned to walk back into the room. The matron of honor replaced the red veil over her face.
With Eleventh Young Master presiding today, there shouldn't be any more unexpected troubles.
During the brief time waiting for the auspicious hour, the sound of string and wind instruments gradually drifted in from the front courtyard.
As the jubilant wedding music urging the bride to hurry reached her ears, her Adoptive Mother, overcome with emotion and unable to hide her grief, retreated to a corner to quietly wipe away her tears.
Zhi didn't quite understand why her Adoptive Mother was crying. She stood on tiptoe to wipe away her tears, then bounced over to sit beside Ying Xiaoman. "Sister, will I be going with you to Seventh Young Master's house later? Can I still eat the sugared jujubes after they're scattered on the bed?"
Ying Xiaoman took Zhi's hand and gently tweaked her little nose. "Of course you're coming with me. After the bed is strewn, you can roll around on it. There won't just be jujubes on the bed, but lots of peanuts and longan too. You can grab as many as you can hold, and whatever you can grab, you can take with you."
Zhi was thrilled, rubbing her hands together in excitement, hardly able to wait to go to Seventh Young Master's house and grab the jujubes and longan.
The sunlight outside the window moved slowly. The quiet of the bridal chamber made the bustling noise from the front courtyard seem even louder.
After waiting for who knows how long, a loud cheer suddenly erupted from the direction of the front courtyard: "The auspicious hour has arrived!"
Ying Xiaoman's heart skipped a beat.
Her Adoptive Mother was even more nervous, instantly standing up straight before forcing herself to sit back down.
Moments later, many matrons and women flooded into the bridal chamber. Amidst countless congratulatory voices, people threw open the courtyard doors and laid out red carpets from the entrance all the way to the main house.
A strange woman's hand reached out to support the bride, but before it could touch her arm, Ying Xiaoman instinctively shrugged it off.
The next moment, her mother's familiar slender hand appeared beneath the red veil, grasping her arm.
"My child, let mother see you out," her Adoptive Mother said, her voice choked with emotion.
Ying Xiaoman's vision blurred beneath the red veil. She blinked rapidly.
As she walked along the red carpet out of the courtyard, she gripped her mother's hand tightly.
"Mother, you're gaining a son-in-law. You're not losing a daughter."
The closer they got to the front courtyard, the louder the voices became.
Her mother let go when they reached the second gate, surrounded by the Yan Family's womenfolk as she went to board the carriage.
Now it was Zhi's little hand holding her sister's, with the matron of honor supporting her on the other side as they continued towards the front courtyard.
The Yan Family's mansion was vast, with winding corridors. With her vision blocked by the veil, Ying Xiaoman asked four times along the way, "Are we there yet?"
By the fourth time, the matron of honor answered with a smile, "We're here. Congratulations, bride." She released her supporting hand and stepped back with a curtsy.
Ying Xiaoman froze, stopping in her tracks.
Zhi, who had been clinging to her side, suddenly tugged her hand forcefully, indicating for her to turn left. She called out excitedly, "Sister, sister, Seventh Young Master is here!"
Beneath the swaying red veil, a pair of men's black boots appeared. Footsteps approached her calmly.
A slender hand with distinct knuckles appeared beneath the red veil, steadily grasping her arm. A familiar, pleasant voice sounded in her ear, drowning out the surrounding cacophony.
"Xiaoman, I've come to receive you."
Ying Xiaoman blinked beneath the red veil. The next moment, she smiled silently, her eyes curving.
She held Zhi's hand and followed his lead.
The traditional gesture of the groom lightly supporting the bride's arm to guide her forward had, before they even reached the carriage, unconsciously transformed into an intimate interlocking of fingers.
Ying Xiaoman asked in a low voice, "Why does your voice sound a bit hoarse? Did the Yan Family's ten ganders give you trouble?"
Yan Rongshi's voice was indeed a bit hoarse, but it had nothing to do with the geese.
"Fortunately, Eleventh Young Master arrived in time. Fifth Young Master suffered a bit outside the door, and Eighth Young Master got the worst of it. As for myself..."
He thought for a moment. "I was eager to receive you. I arrived a bit early."
When the Yan family arrived to escort the bride, it was about 45 minutes before the auspicious hour.
Although Eleventh Young Master was there to keep things in check, many of the Yan Family's prepared tricks weren't used, and Yan Rongshi safely entered the Yan Family's gates.
But "teasing the groom" was an open and aboveboard wedding custom in the Capital City.
Just as he led Eleventh Young Master through the gate, the Yan Family slammed it shut again.
Yan Rongshi stood in the front courtyard and recited twenty-four bridal chamber poems in succession.
After each poem, amidst thunderous applause from the onlookers, the Yan Family would open the main gate and let in one of the waiting Yan brothers.
First, they let in Fifth Young Master and Eighth Young Master, who had been pecked black and blue by the ganders.
Then they let in the other six Yan brothers waiting in the alley outside.
Finally, they admitted the dozen or so musicians and ceremonial staff essential for the wedding.
After reciting all twenty-four poems and finally getting everyone through the door, he had to toast and exchange pleasantries with everyone in the Yan household.
"With Eleventh Young Master and the Marquis of Xingning present, there wasn't much to say. We drank every toast offered. After twenty cups of wine, my throat's a bit hoarse. But I'm fine, I could drink another round if necessary," Yan Rongshi chatted with her.
By now they had reached the carriage. The matron of honor helped Ying Xiaoman board.
As she got in, the red veil shook violently. She raised her hand to steady it.
Even after she was seated, her slender fingers still gripped the edge of the veil, revealing half of her lovely face inside the carriage.
Yan Rongshi was holding Zhi, coaxing her to go sit in her Adoptive Mother's carriage. After settling her, he turned back as if sensing something—
Their eyes met.
"Oh my, this isn't proper. Quick, lower the bride's veil," the nearby matron of honor urged in a low voice.
Ying Xiaoman paid no attention. From beneath the red veil, one bright, clear eye carefully examined the groom before her.
Yan Rongshi stood in the sunlight, smiling at her.
Although his voice was a bit hoarse, he looked energetic and in good spirits.
Today he was properly dressed in full wedding attire, his brow relaxed and expression content. Those attractive almond-shaped eyes now focused intently on her, making no attempt to hide his amazed admiration. The tender affection in his gaze was almost overflowing, like a vast spring lake.
Ying Xiaoman felt her ears growing hot.
She sensed that if they kept staring at each other, that rippling spring lake would soon flood into the carriage...
The corners of her own lips had long since unconsciously curled upwards. Still gripping the edge of the red veil, she affected a serious tone and said:
"I'm glad you're alright. Shall I get in the carriage now?"
Yan Rongshi's gaze lingered on her lovingly as he held up half of the carriage curtain. His tone, however, remained perfectly proper as he said, "I'll escort you alongside the carriage."
Ying Xiaoman: "Alright."
"You sit down. Once I see you're settled, I'll let down the curtain."
"I'm settled. You can let down the curtain now."
"Are you really settled? You haven't lowered your veil."
"I really am settled. I'll lower my veil once you let down the curtain."
"Let me check once more to make sure you're settled."
The two of them stood there talking for ages without moving. The two matrons of honor escorting the bride were at their wits' end by the carriage, urging:
"Groom, please lower the carriage curtain. Bride, please lower your red veil. We'll count to three. There are so many people watching, please, we beg you, hurry and let go!"