Just as the rumors were being cleared up, an unpleasant guest arrived at the door. Bai Peixuan, who had just returned from a trip a few days ago, came to question him, blaming Si Yiyuan for his lack of foresight, which caused Hua Yaoyao to suffer an injustice and ruined her reputation. He also complained about how loyal and devoted Hua Yaoyao was to him, and how he did not know how to cherish the person in front of him.
After a barrage of questions and complaints, Si Yiyuan could only manage one sentence: “Are you in love with Hua Yaoyao?” With Hua Yaoyao not present, he naturally spoke without restraint. Last time Bai Peixuan came to the Prince’s Mansion, he suspected that he had fallen for his wife. Today, he was being so obvious. If Si Yiyuan still couldn’t see it, he would truly be a fool!
Without Hua Yaoyao present, Bai Peixuan spoke more directly, frankly admitting, “That’s right, I do like Yaoyao, but I don’t want her to know. As long as she’s happy, I’m satisfied. If this hadn’t happened, I wouldn’t have even told you.”
Si Yiyuan rolled his eyes dismissively: “Do you think I can’t see it if you don’t tell me? Do you think I’m stupid?” He paused, then said seriously: “We have known each other for many years and are like brothers. But a wife is not as interchangeable as an object. Yaoyao and I are in love, and I will never give her up.”
“I humbly accept what you said today for Yaoyao’s sake. However, I will naturally protect my wife, so there’s no need for you to worry about her. You should hurry up and marry a wife and go back to take better care of your own wife!”
Bai Peixuan rolled his eyes at him, annoyed. This guy knew exactly what he felt for Yaoyao, and instead of comforting him, he acted like he couldn’t wait for him to leave and never appear in front of him again. He was a complete jerk!
The eighth day of the twelfth lunar month was an auspicious day chosen long ago, suitable for weddings, moving, and moving into a new house. Before dawn, Hua Yaoyao was dragged out of bed by palace maids to prepare for things like facial hair removal and hair combing. Since Hua Yaoyao’s family was from Dayu, she stayed directly in the palace to wait for her wedding.
Hair removal, makeup, hair combing, changing clothes… It took more than an hour to finish preparing for the wedding. Exhausted, Hua Yaoyao couldn’t help but miss the time when she first transmigrated. At least she could just wait for the wedding night right away and didn’t have to go through all this trouble!
Next, Hua Yaoyao ate a whole bowl of comfort noodles to avoid being hungry after a long day of work, and then obediently sat in the house waiting for Si Yiyuan’s wedding procession to come and pick her up.
Si Yiyuan was beaming with joy today, dressed in a bright red wedding robe. He rode a horse and led a sedan chair all the way to the palace gate with a wide grin. The wedding procession, which resembled a street parade, stretched out in a long line, followed by a group of daring commoners who wanted to watch the spectacle. Prince Yu was getting married, and he was the emperor’s only younger brother. He would have something to brag about when he got back!
Although Hua Yaoyao’s family members were not present, her entourage of relatives and friends was not missing. From the palace gate onwards, Si Yiyuan was subjected to unanimous difficulties by his relatives and friends, including composing couplets, writing poems, and even having a martial arts contest. He had to overcome all obstacles and use every trick in the book before he could finally see his bride.
The moment of witnessing a miracle had arrived! Si Yiyuan was almost speechless when he saw the bride! His mother had arranged for ten brides dressed in identical wedding gowns! She even declared that he should stand three meters away and carefully observe them, choosing whichever one he liked to marry, with no refunds for the wrong one!
Si Yiyuan rolled his eyes at his mother for siding with outsiders! But since he was under her roof, he had no choice but to obediently stand three meters away.
The Empress Dowager eagerly awaited her son’s display of incredible skill—the ability to conquer the world and strike from afar—to find his bride! But instead, Prince Yu simply stood three meters away, his face contorted with rage, and cried out, “Wife! Darling! Come out quickly! I’m going to be tormented to death by my mother!”
For a moment, the room was filled with soft chuckles. Even the Empress Dowager couldn’t help but laugh out loud: “Have you no shame! You need your own wife to help you cheat when you get married!”
Si Yiyuan looked disgusted and contemptuous: “Who cheated? None of these ten people are my wife!” Huh? The Empress Dowager looked surprised: “How do you know?” Could this guy have also seen “Flirting Scholar”?
Si Yiyuan looked at her disdainfully: “Look at the wedding clothes they’re wearing!” The Empress Dowager covered her face upon seeing them. What a huge blunder! Si Yiyuan and Hua Yaoyao were wearing wedding clothes befitting a prince and princess. Si Yiyuan’s clothes were embroidered with a qilin, and Hua Yaoyao’s with a crane. But these counterfeit products had embroidered pheasants on their wedding clothes!
The groom performed exceptionally well, so the Empress Dowager had no choice but to admit defeat and bring out the bride as a reward. Since none of her family members were present, Hua Yaoyao was exempted from the farewell ceremony, and Bai Peixuan carried her to the bridal sedan chair on behalf of his brother.
When Si Yiyuan received his wife again, he felt that this time she was different from the last time. His heart was filled with a smile, so much so that he couldn’t stop smiling.
The bride, sitting in the sedan chair, was just as shy and sweet as he was. This was her first love and her first marriage in both her lives, and she hoped that her happy days would last forever.
Upon arriving at the Yanhua Palace, the venue for the wedding ceremony, Hua Yaoyao instantly transformed into a kowtowing worm. With her head covered by a bridal veil, she was helped by the nanny beside her to kneel and bow to one side and then to the other.
After finally finishing her kowtows in a daze, Hua Yaoyao hadn’t even had time to react when she heard a voice announce: “Send her to the bridal chamber!” Immediately, a man in a wedding robe appeared beside her, picked her up, threw her into a bridal sedan chair, and carried her directly back to the Prince’s mansion’s bridal chamber. Hua Yaoyao felt her already confused head spin even more.
Back at the Prince’s Mansion, Si Yiyuan was not having an easy time either. One after another, the guests and friends who had been freed from the palace toasted him, and for the entire afternoon, they made him even more dizzy than Hua Yaoyao!
Especially Bai Peixuan, that ungrateful bastard! Not only did he not help him out, he kept leading the charge in pouring him drinks! Just wait for his wedding day! He’s not Si Yiyuan if he doesn’t get him drunk!
After making this solemn oath, Si Yiyuan simply lay down on the table, pretending to be drunk and refusing to get up! After all, it was their wedding night, so no one wanted to press the groom too hard with drinking, and they could only let him be carried back to the bridal chamber by the servants.
As soon as Si Yiyuan entered the room, his gaze immediately became leisurely. The scene before him was just as it had been before. The woman in red was still sitting upright on the bed, quietly waiting for her husband.
Now, however, the girl’s lips curved in a certain smile, and he was no longer indifferent. With the matchmaker’s reminder, Si Yiyuan carefully picked up the wedding scale and lifted the bright red veil. Sure enough, the girl under the veil had starlight in her eyes, but she was no longer timid—only full of expectation and longing.
He grinned slightly, sat down next to Hua Yaoyao, and the matchmaker brought two bowls of dumplings for fertility, feeding two to each of Si Yiyuan and Hua Yaoyao. She then asked Hua Yaoyao with a grin, “Bride, do you want to have dumplings?”
Having been instructed on how to answer this question beforehand, Hua Yaoyao answered without any shyness and readily replied, “Give birth!” The matchmaker smiled broadly, “Give birth to twins next year! Wishing the Prince and Princess a prosperous and blessed future with many children and grandchildren!” The other maids in the room then added a string of auspicious words.
Si Yiyuan listened to their blessings with a smile, waved for the matchmaker and maids to leave, and turned to Hua Yaoyao: “You are finally my lawfully wedded wife!”
Amused by his sigh and smug tone, Hua Yaoyao smiled slightly and said, “Would you like to have a cup of tea to sober up first?” After saying that, the two of them were stunned and looked at each other. At the same time, they remembered that when the substitute got married, Hua Yaoyao’s first words to him were the same.
Recalling the initial flutter in his heart when he saw those eyes, Si Yiyuan felt a surge of tenderness in his heart and said with a light smile, just like that day, “My wife is so considerate, so naturally I will obey.”
Seeing that he was acting like a drama queen, Hua Yaoyao played along and got up to pour him tea. However, her clear eyes were fixed on Si Yiyuan with a smile and affection in them.
Si Yiyuan felt comforted by her gaze and continued, “My wife is much more generous now, so I suppose she’s no longer interested in my clothes!”
Hua Yaoyao gave him a playful, reproachful look, her charm captivating him. The man was aroused by her gaze and took the nuptial wine, saying, “It seems my wife can’t wait any longer. Of course, I cherish my wife. So please drink this cup to the fullest and we will become husband and wife. From now on, we will hold hands and grow old together.”
He still emphasized the words “marital relations” with extra emphasis, but it was no longer the playful tone of the past. Instead, it revealed a ruthless determination to devour the alluring little woman in front of him, skin and bones!
Hua Yaoyao was naturally not afraid of him, and flirtatiously gave him a seductive wink: “Your concubine obeys, husband, please.” The man could not resist such provocation, so he drank the wine in one gulp, casually threw the wine cup aside, and pounced on the little woman beneath him.
The young woman looked at him with a grin and said coquettishly, “Husband, are you so impatient? Can’t you wait even a moment longer?” The man said fiercely, “My wife is in a hurry, so of course I’m considerate of her!”
The young woman was neither ashamed nor angry, but just smiled and teased, “Then my husband must allow me to undress and change my jewelry!” Hearing her say this, the man also felt that wearing the wedding dress was indeed uncomfortable, so he stood up and said, “Then my wife, please help your husband change his clothes first!”
Hua Yaoyao smiled and nodded obediently. She got up to remove the hairpin from the man’s head and take off his outer clothes. Taking advantage of the man’s relaxed moment with his hands behind his back, she pulled a rope from the headboard and tied him up as he was enjoying his wife changing clothes.
Si Yiyuan instinctively tried to struggle, but Hua Yaoyao stopped him with a shout of “Don’t move!” Confused about what the little woman was up to, the man’s voice carried a hint of doubt and confusion: “Yaoyao?”
Hua Yaoyao ignored his question and used all her strength to tie him up tightly. Then she pushed Si Yiyuan down onto the bed: “Husband! Your wedding night has just begun!”