Jiang Si lay on Jiang Zhan’s back, her head covered with a red veil. All she could see was her brother’s broad shoulders.
Those shoulders were wide and strong, no longer as thin as they were in his youth, giving her an immense sense of security.
Leaning on Jiang Zhan’s shoulder, Jiang Si’s tears silently fell.
In her previous life, when she married into Duke An’s family, it was also her second brother who carried her to the bridal sedan. At that time, she didn’t feel much attachment to the brother carrying her and even felt some disdain.
Other people’s brothers were talented and accomplished, achieving success at a young age, while her brother was an uneducated playboy.
She thought more about her life after marrying into Duke An’s family, with both anticipation and anxiety, but no fondness for the family members who had been with her for fifteen years.
Thinking about it now, she realized how excessive she had been.
As Jiang Si pondered this, she inexplicably felt more sorrowful, and tears fell one by one, landing on Jiang Zhan’s neck.
Jiang Zhan’s feet suddenly stopped, unable to move forward.
Fourth Sister was crying?
His sudden halt caused the onlookers to exchange puzzled glances.
What was happening? Could it be that Fourth Miss Jiang was too heavy for the Second Young Master to carry?
That shouldn’t be the case. Looking at Fourth Miss’s figure, she was quite slender.
Yu Jin was furious.
He was waiting for Jiang Si to get into the bridal sedan so he could quickly take her home. What was Jiang Zhan doing?
Did he think that by not moving, he could keep Jiang Si? He had seen brothers who doted on their sisters, but never one so shameless!
Yu Jin’s thin lips pressed tightly together. However, considering that his in-laws’ entire family was watching, he couldn’t just fly over and kick Jiang Zhan away.
This made him even angrier.
Jiang Si came to her senses with Jiang Zhan’s sudden stop and softly called out, “Second Brother.”
Jiang Zhan hesitated: “Fourth Sister—”
Jiang Si asked in a low voice, “Are you unable to carry me anymore?”
What, unable to carry her?
Jiang Zhan rushed to the bridal sedan like lightning.
Under Yu Jin’s threatening gaze, the bridal attendants hurriedly helped Jiang Si into the sedan.
Watching his sister, dressed in a bright red wedding gown, disappear behind the sedan curtain, and seeing the sedan chair move away amidst the thunderous sound of suona horns, Jiang Zhan felt quite unsettled.
So this is what it means to get married.
He decided that when he got married, it would be better to have sons. Sending off a loved one in a bridal sedan was too emotionally draining.
Yu Jin, however, felt entirely different.
He rode on a tall horse in front of the bridal sedan, a smile never leaving his face.
The crowd lining both sides of the street cheered continuously.
“Look, that’s Prince Yan!”
“Prince Yan is so handsome and still so young. Princess Yan is truly fortunate…”
“I heard that Princess Yan is a great beauty. Perhaps it’s Prince Yan who’s the fortunate one…”
“In that case, Prince Yan and Princess Yan must be a match made in heaven.”
Yu Jin listened to these comments with pricked ears, feeling extremely pleased. He slightly turned his head to glance at the attendant throwing wedding coins.
The quick-witted attendant immediately grabbed handfuls of red-stringed coins and tossed them in that direction.
The crowd erupted in cheers.
Amid the clamor of gongs and drums, the ten-mile procession of red moved forward, with the crowd surging along with the wedding procession, leaving behind a ground covered with flower petals and firecracker remnants.
After the excitement, an exceptional quietness settled in.
The side door of the Marquis of Yongchang’s mansion, adjacent to the Earl of Dongping’s residence, was open. The Xie siblings stood there, slowly withdrawing their gaze.
“Let’s go back,” Xie Yinlou said calmly to Xie Qingyao.
The siblings walked back side by side.
Xie Qingyao sighed softly, “I thought we’d be able to see Jiang Si off at her wedding…”
Although they were childhood friends who had grown up together, due to their mourning period, they naturally couldn’t attend such a joyous event.
For siblings observing filial piety for their parents, not only could they not attend such happy occasions, but they couldn’t even participate in ordinary banquets.
Xie Yinlou, a man of few words, simply listened silently to his sister’s musings as he strode inward.
Xie Qingyao, observing Xie Yinlou’s expression, noticed her brother’s ice-cold demeanor without a trace of a smile. She finally couldn’t help but ask, “Elder Brother, now that Jiang Si is married, are you… feeling unwell about it?”
Xie Yinlou paused in his steps and looked at his sister.
“Elder Brother—” Xie Qingyao somewhat regretted asking.
It was a meaningless question after all. What difference would it make to know the answer?
But thinking of her brother’s childhood innocence with Jiang Si, she couldn’t help but feel regretful.
How did Jiang Si end up becoming Princess Yan? The royal family was unlike ordinary families; Jiang Si’s life there might not be easy.
Xie Yinlou gazed at Xie Qingyao, his expression serious: “Not at all. You’re overthinking it.”
“Elder Brother—” Seeing Xie Yinlou walk away quickly, Xie Qingyao lifted her skirts to catch up.
The wedding procession circled the city once before finally stopping at the gate of Prince Yan’s mansion.
After much commotion, when Jiang Si finally sat down on the bridal bed in the new room, she felt as if her whole body was about to fall apart.
The time of day was unclear, but through the red veil, she could sense the brightness of the room.
Soon, the veil was lifted, and Jiang Si immediately saw Yu Jin standing before her, smiling at her.
Their gazes met, and for a moment, they forgot about everyone else present.
“Your Highness, Your Highness the Princess, it’s time for the ceremonial cup of wine,” a servant reminded, breaking their eye contact.
Yu Jin took the cup, drank it all in one go, then put down the empty cup and shooed everyone out of the bridal chamber.
“Your Highness, you should go to the front hall for the toasting ceremony,” the internal affairs manager reminded.
The manager was a middle-aged woman with a long face, surnamed Ji, known as Madam Ji.
She had been instructed early on by the Chief Steward to keep a close eye on the Prince and prevent him from causing any trouble.
Fortunately, the Prince was quite cooperative, and the Chief Steward’s worries seemed unnecessary.
Yu Jin frowned at Madam Ji: “You are—”
Where did this woman come from? Why did unfamiliar people keep appearing in the Prince’s mansion?
Madam Ji was exasperated but didn’t dare show it: “This servant is the manager of the inner court.”
Yu Jin nodded: “I see. You can lead them out now.”
“But the front hall—”
Yu Jin didn’t even lift his eyelids: “What’s wrong with going to toast a bit later?”
Madam Ji was dumbfounded. After a while, she forced a dry laugh and asked everyone to leave, thinking to herself: The Chief Steward was right!
Only the two of them remained in the bridal chamber.
The dragon and phoenix candles, as thick as a child’s arm, burned brightly, illuminating the new room.
Yu Jin gazed at the person sitting upright on the bridal bed, joy overflowing from the bottom of his heart.
Jiang Si had finally become his wife. From now on, she was his.
The loneliness of living alone on the estate as a child, the cruelty of fighting on the southern frontier as a youth—all the unpleasant memories became worthwhile at this moment.
He came into this world to meet and be with Jiang Si, didn’t he?
Yu Jin’s prolonged silence made Jiang Si impatient.
She directly removed her phoenix crown and asked with a smile, “Why are you in a daze?”
Yu Jin took her hand and said with a grin, “They say fools have fool’s luck. It’s okay to be a bit foolish as long as you don’t mind.”
Jiang Si rolled her eyes at him: “Go and toast quickly. The guests are waiting in front.”
“Alright, I’ll go toast.” Yu Jin took a few steps but suddenly returned.
“What is it?”
Yu Jin cupped Jiang Si’s face and kissed her forcefully.
The wedding candle crackled, and the room was filled with an endless romantic atmosphere.
“Wait for me,” Yu Jin said, wiping the corner of his mouth before striding out.