At the forefront of the wedding procession stood a young man.
In his early twenties, his hair neatly tucked into a scholar’s headband, his lean face accentuated his refined and handsome features. He exuded the unmistakable air of a well-read scholar.
Although such a man, despite his good looks, wouldn’t normally stand out in a crowd, at this moment, he had captured the attention of countless onlookers.
He wore a red robe that rivaled the vibrancy of Prince Xiang’s wedding attire atop his chestnut horse. Yet, this wasn’t what drew people’s eyes. What truly left the crowd dumbfounded was the long banner the young man held aloft on a bamboo pole.
The banner, over ten feet long, bore six large ink characters: “Cui Guniang Is My Wife.”
Those who could read the banner were momentarily struck speechless.
Illiterate onlookers, frustrated, tugged at their neighbors, asking, “What does it say? Why are you all stunned?”
“Cui Guniang Is My Wife.”
“What?”
“Cui Guniang Is My Wife.”
“Are you out of your mind, Goudan? How dare you say such things?”
Everyone knew that today’s groom was Prince Xiang, and the bride was the eldest Miss Cui from the General’s Manor.
The man pointed at the banner, his voice trembling with shock, “That… that’s what it says!”
After a brief, eerie silence, the crowd suddenly erupted into an uproar.
Was this a bride kidnapping?
Heavens, this spectacle was worth watching!
Such events were only heard in tales from elders, but today they were witnessing it firsthand. More thrilling was that the victim was a royal prince!
In a country, how the emperor rules influences the people’s behavior. Emperor Jingming was a tolerant ruler, allowing his subjects to live more freely and boldly. In this situation, despite it involving a prince, the spectacle became even more enticing.
After all, they couldn’t arrest everyone, and the prison couldn’t hold them all anyway.
Prince Xiang was almost stupefied atop his chestnut steed.
Zhu Ziyu’s eyes flashed coldly as he raised the banner higher, shouting, “I, Zhu Ziyu, and Mingyue are in love. Why must Prince Xiang tear us apart?”
The crowd grew even more restless.
“What? So Prince Xiang is stealing someone’s love?”
“Tsk tsk, I heard before that Zhu Ziyu harmed his wife for his lover, who was the eldest Miss Cui from the General’s Manor. I didn’t believe it then, but now it seems true!”
From the incident at Baiyun Temple where Jiang Si unhesitatingly reported to the authorities, to the later severing of ties between the Dongping Earl’s family and the Zhu family, Zhu Ziyu’s name had become infamous.
Anyone who hadn’t heard of the unfaithful Zhu Ziyu was considered out of touch.
In the wedding procession, someone finally reacted.
“Quick, drive this madman away!”
On such an auspicious day, though there were guards from the prince’s manor in the procession, they carried no weapons.
Several men immediately rushed to drag Zhu Ziyu away.
This being a royal wedding, “driving him away” wasn’t so simple; they’d remove him first and deal with him later.
Zhu Ziyu struggled desperately, crying out, “Mingyue, Mingyue, have you forgotten our vows? You said you’d be my wife, how can you marry Prince Xiang? Are you being forced?”
The discussions grew louder.
“It seems Zhu Ziyu is deeply in love with Miss Cui. Perhaps Miss Cui feels the same…”
“Hiss—Doesn’t that mean Prince Xiang is stealing someone’s love?”
Prince Xiang, dumbfounded: ??
Inside the bridal sedan, Cui Mingyue tore off the wedding veil embroidered with twin lotuses, her face ashen.
Zhu Ziyu—
Wasn’t he insane? How could he appear here?
No, it was precisely because he was insane that he could do such an outrageous thing.
He was determined to ruin her, even at the cost of his life!
“Mingyue, Mingyue, come out—”
The calls from outside the sedan were like death knells, tormenting Cui Mingyue’s every nerve.
She raised her hand several times, wanting to lift the curtain to look outside, but lacked the courage.
Outside was a sea of people, countless eyes watching this farce, likely all focused on her.
With Zhu Ziyu’s disruption, what would Prince Xiang think? If this reached the ears of the Empress Dowager or the Emperor, what would they think?
Sitting in the bridal sedan, Cui Mingyue felt truly afraid and lost for the first time, as if trapped in a cage on a lonely island with the tide rising around her.
What should she do?
Cui Mingyue suddenly felt a pang in her heart, leaning against the sedan wall, struggling to breathe.
Inside the sedan was quiet, with only her labored breathing; outside, it seemed to have quieted down too, the suffocating shouts gone.
Had Zhu Ziyu been taken away?
Cui Mingyue couldn’t look outside, only anxiously guessing.
Zhu Ziyu had indeed been dragged away, leaving behind only the banner that had fallen from his hands.
Those nearby could still see the large characters on the banner: “Cui Guniang Is My Wife.”
Countless gazes fell upon Prince Xiang.
Everyone was curious how Prince Xiang would handle this after Zhu Ziyu’s disruption.
To be fair, Prince Xiang was quite unfortunate, encountering such an inauspicious event on what should have been a joyous occasion.
However, many quietly sighed: What could be done? Who told Prince Xiang to steal someone’s love?
Prince Xiang: ??
In the wedding procession, people looked at each other, and no one dared to take the lead, all turning to the wedding facilitator.
The facilitator, sent from the palace, though accustomed to grand occasions, had never encountered such a situation. She had only just regained her composure.
Regardless, the wedding had to proceed.
Under the urging gazes of the crowd, the facilitator steeled herself and approached Prince Xiang.
“Your Highness—”
Seated on his horse, Prince Xiang stared at the red flower in the facilitator’s hair, finding it particularly jarring.
He cast a cold glance at the bridal sedan, tugged on the reins, and man and horse galloped away, leaving behind only a trail of dust and a bewildered wedding procession and spectators.
The crowd fell silent, broken only by the facilitator’s shrill cry: “Your Highness, you can’t leave—”
Jiang Si watched from the second-floor window of a street-side teahouse, smiling slightly.
Years ago, Princess Rongyang had stolen her mother’s happiness. Now, her daughter was abandoned by the groom on her wedding day. This must be karmic retribution.
Virtuous families will be blessed with good fortune, while wicked families will be cursed with misfortune.
Who says there’s no retribution? Sometimes it’s heaven’s will; when heaven doesn’t act, people will.
Jiang Si interlocked her fingers, squeezing them tightly.
She enjoyed being the one to carry out heaven’s will.
“Ah Si.”
“Hm?”
Yu Jin shifted his gaze from his wife’s tightly clasped hands and smiled, “We should head to Prince Xiang’s manor now.”
Jiang Si stood up, smiling sweetly, “Alright.”
Outside on the street.
Cui Mingyue suddenly lifted the sedan curtain.
Ahead, apart from countless eyes looking her way, there was no sign of the groom.
Had she been abandoned by Prince Xiang halfway through her wedding?
Although she had prepared herself for the consequences after hearing Zhu Ziyu’s commotion, this outcome was still unbearable for Cui Mingyue.
Her hand loosened, the curtain fell, and she collapsed inside the bridal sedan.