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On the ninth day of the sixth month, it was an auspicious day for betrothal and marriage!! Early that morning, Qingyun City became lively. To the sound of gongs and drums, Hong Gu led the way, while Zhuang Buzhou, riding a tall horse with a red flower pinned to his chest, led the wedding procession from the Zhuang Family to the Li Family residence.
The city's residents were also drawn to the spectacle, watching with great excitement, and many eccentric individuals stood among the crowd.
“Whose wedding is this? Why haven’t we heard any news about it before?”
“You wouldn’t know, would you? This is the Li Family’s happy occasion, which means it’s the County Magistrate’s happy occasion. His niece is getting married. I just didn’t expect her to marry Captain Zhuang. There wasn't any hint of it before, but yesterday I heard that Captain Zhuang was preparing the betrothal gifts, and the Li Family was also preparing the dowry.”
“Rumor has it that Young Miss Li’s fate is too strong; she has caused the death of many fiancés before. They didn’t even enter the husband’s Family’s door before the husband’s Family was gone. Captain Zhuang is a good man. If he marries her, nothing unexpected will happen, will it?”
“I’ve heard that too. It’s said that this Miss Li is a Sky Fiend Lone Star. Any close relatives of hers, one by one, none can escape. The County Magistrate was only spared because he had official Qi protecting him; otherwise, he probably wouldn’t have survived either.”
The surrounding residents discussed animatedly, all expressing a sense of worry about this marriage.
Li Yueru’s reputation in Qingyun City was also quite prominent. In this era, such matters spread the fastest. It was hard not to know. Now that she was getting married again, and the groom was Zhuang Buzhou, this made many residents in the city anxious.
This was Zhuang Buzhou’s popularity in the city.
No one wanted to see him come to harm.
But no one could stop such a marriage; they could only watch with concern.
The wedding procession entered the Li Manor, and soon after, the bride, dressed in a grand red robe and Phoenix coronet and robes, was escorted into the sedan chair amidst a flurry of firecrackers. Various fruits and candied treats were scattered to the streetsides, and Zhuang Buzhou, with a smile, cupped his hands in greeting to the surrounding residents.
“Today is Zhuang’s wedding day. I have prepared a humble feast at home. All neighbors, if you have time, please come to my home for a few drinks.”
Zhuang Buzhou said with a smile to the surrounding residents.
“Congratulations!”
“Congratulations, Mr. Zhuang!!”
For a moment, on both sides of the street, many residents offered their congratulations, making it seem very lively. Of course, not many would actually go to drink the wedding wine; everyone felt a bit uneasy about Li Yueru.
“Interesting. It’s rare to encounter a wedding right after arriving in Qingyun City. Today, I, Suona Zhang, will also join in the fun and soak up some of the good fortune.”
Among the crowd, a middle-aged man in short attire grinned, reached behind his waist, and pulled out a suona.
He put it to his lips and began to play.
He played the famous wedding tune, “Seeing Off the Bride.”
As soon as the suona sounded, the entire street was instantly filled with an atmosphere of overwhelming joy. The previous sounds of gongs and drums were all suppressed, as if the suona had suddenly become the absolute protagonist of the band.
Zhuang Buzhou was slightly stunned when he saw this, but he didn’t say much, only nodded in acknowledgment. The procession continued forward.
Subsequently, the wedding procession continued with music and fanfare all the way to the Zhuang Family residence, where it finally stopped.
Inside the courtyard, a banquet had already been set up.
Many people came; some Families in Qingyun City sent their disciples to attend the banquet and present gifts, and former colleagues from the government office also came to congratulate. There were also some extraordinary individuals mixed in. Of course, on this joyous day, all guests were welcome, and Zhuang Buzhou smiled as he ushered them to their seats.
“Congratulations, Brother Zhuang, on marrying a beautiful wife.”
“Young Miss Li is as beautiful as a flower, Mr. Zhuang is truly blessed.”
“The same to you, the same to you…”
Zhuang Buzhou toasted each guest at the banquet, his face full of smiles.
This was not merely a pretense, but a smile from his heart. After all, this was his first marriage, both in this life and his previous one. Moreover, the wife he married could be described as devastatingly beautiful and virtuous; what more could he be dissatisfied with?
Unbeknownst to them, the celebration lasted for a full day.
“Young Master, it’s time to enter the bridal chamber.”
Xiao Cui came to Zhuang Buzhou’s side and whispered a reminder. She was Li Yueru’s accompanying maid, and from now on, she would also be a close confidante. She secretly glanced at Zhuang Buzhou a few times, and a hint of shyness could be seen in Xiao Cui’s eyes.
Life’s three great joys are a long-awaited rain after drought, meeting an old friend in a foreign land, and the wedding night. Zhuang Buzhou had naturally been looking forward to this for a long time.
So, he smiled and bowed to the many guests, saying, “Please excuse me.”
“Haha, Brother Zhuang, go on, go on! Don’t neglect the bride. We should also take our leave.”
“Yes, we’ve had enough to drink today, it’s time for us to go back.”
“Don’t make the bride wait too long.”
As for disturbing the bridal chamber, this was Li Yueru’s wedding night, and no one dared to cause trouble here. To be honest, many of the guests felt uneasy coming to the banquet.
Amidst the laughter of the many guests, Zhuang Buzhou walked lightly to the outside of the bridal chamber.
Outside the room, the maids who had accompanied Li Xian were standing guard. Seeing Zhuang Buzhou arrive, they quickly bowed.
“Alright, you may all leave.”
“Yes, Young Master.”
Zhuang Buzhou did not have the habit of letting people listen in on his affairs, and besides, it was not appropriate today. This marriage was specifically for dealing with the Red Chamber, and whether it would succeed was still uncertain. If anything unexpected happened, these ordinary people might lose their lives.
He dismissed the servants, then pushed the door open and gently stepped into the bridal chamber.
Two large red candles were burning, and the room was filled with a mix of scents, all very pleasant, seemingly a special fragrance, permeated with an atmosphere of joy.
Looking at the bride sitting upright on the bed, still wearing her red bridal veil, Zhuang Buzhou felt a surge of warmth in his heart. He picked up a steelyard scale, extended it, and slowly lifted the veil.
In tradition, the steelyard scale symbolizes the Dragon, and the Phoenix coronet and robes worn by the bride symbolize the Phoenix. Therefore, lifting the red veil means “Dragon lifting Phoenix,” “Luan and Phoenix singing in harmony,” and “Dragon and Phoenix bringing auspiciousness,” while also implying “as you wish.”
He lifted the veil, looking at the beautiful woman, her face flushed with shyness.
“Yueru, starting today, you are my wife, Zhuang Buzhou. For the rest of my life, I wish to always have you.”
Zhuang Buzhou said with deep emotion.
“Husband!!”
Li Yueru nodded shyly, her excitement uncontrollable.
“My dear wife, let us rest.”
Zhuang Buzhou said with a smile.
“Mmm!!”
A sound like a mosquito or fly was heard, so faint that if one’s hearing wasn’t good, they wouldn’t even hear it.
Seeing his stunning wife before him, Zhuang Buzhou could no longer hold back. He embraced Li Yueru and fell onto the bed.
For a moment, the red candles flickered, and the room was filled with fragrance.
“Mmm!!”
Not long after, accompanied by a low cry of pain, a fierce battle began.
A poem says: “Willow color, yellow and tender; pear blossoms, pure white and fragrant.”
“The new room’s candles brightly gleam; the swallows dance lightly in pairs.”
“The luan returns, the mirror almost full; the crane looks back, the market should tilt.”
“Inside the cave, the universe is vast; in the pot, the sun and moon are long.”
Crack!!
Rumble!!
And just as they entered the bridal chamber, a flash of lightning streaked across the sky above Qingyun City without warning, followed by a clap of thunder, and a patch of dark clouds obscured the moonlight, giving people an inexplicable sense of ominous foreboding.
“Lightning with thunder, there will definitely be a change today. This Brother Zhuang is truly terrifyingly brave; he even dares to marry a Sky Fiend Lone Star. I bet this sudden thunder is a warning from the heavens. Li Yueru’s fate is too fierce. I just don’t know if Brother Zhuang can withstand it. That fate, even a Cultivator would have to kneel on the spot if they encountered her.”
Outside Zhuang Buzhou’s courtyard, on a certain restaurant, today was very unusual. Normally, by evening, business would start to slow down, but today was different. The restaurant was constantly filled with guests, and once they came in, they didn’t leave.
Not a single one of the people who came in was ordinary. Although they looked ordinary on the outside—there were beggars, nuns, children, old and young, all sorts of people—their gathering here subtly gave one no sense of abruptness. It was as if this was normal.
The speaker was Zhang Yinlong. He had just attended the wedding banquet inside, but he didn’t dare to stay long. As soon as Zhuang Buzhou left his seat, he departed. However, he didn’t go far; he entered this restaurant and sat on the second floor with a few friends, his gaze fixed on the Zhuang Family’s location.
Those with him were also very special: a little girl who looked only thirteen or fourteen, but on whom one could feel a special temperament not belonging to her age, with a hint of slyness and liveliness in her eyes. Her physical development was absolutely precocious. Wherever she was, she would attract attention and be cherished. Her name was Xiao Mi, originally Tian Erniu, but of course, now everyone called her Xiao Mi, and no one called her by her original name anymore.
There was also a scholar, exuding an elegant scholarly aura that naturally made people feel good about him and not be too wary. He was only in his twenties, named Hu Shuhuan.
Both of them knew Zhang Yinlong, and their presence here together was mostly due to the Red Chamber.
Their attention to the Zhuang Family contained even deeper meaning.
Even without deliberate spreading, people still knew that the Red Chamber had sent a golden hairpin sticker to the Li Family, and the golden hairpin sticker was given to Li Yueru. This hurried marriage, from its decision to the wedding, took less than two short days. This point also indirectly confirmed the credibility of the rumors.
The Red Chamber’s golden hairpin.
The Red Chamber had selected Li Yueru as a golden hairpin candidate. And now, Li Yueru’s hasty marriage was undoubtedly a provocation to the Red Chamber, and also an attempt to break the Red Chamber’s curse and even her own destiny.
What Zhuang Buzhou and Li Yueru did, putting aside the Sky Fiend Lone Star fate, just the Red Chamber alone would absolutely not ignore it. Therefore, many Spirit Masters who had already rushed to the city gathered around, secretly peeking—no, one could even say openly observing.
Such was the case for almost everyone in this restaurant.
They anticipated a grand show was coming, and no one wanted to miss it.
Everyone wanted to see what the Red Chamber would do.