Chapter 304: Yu Chan’s Side Story – Conclusion

Chapter 304: Yu Chan's Side Story - Conclusion

The wedding date for Qi Yun and Xiao Yuchan was set for the fourth day of the first lunar month in the third year of Yong'an.

Originally, Xiao Yuchan had wanted to choose a day when the weather was warm and flowers were in bloom, but Qi Ling had to return to the capital to report on his duties and would be leaving with his wife and children for Hanzhong after the fifth day of the new year. Qi Yun hoped that his brother and sister-in-law could attend his wedding banquet. He only had one elder brother, and since they were going to get married sooner or later, Xiao Yuchan was naturally willing to accommodate her handsome fiancé.

With the wedding date so close to the New Year, the entire second branch of the family simply celebrated the New Year at Xiao Yuchan's princess's residence.

On the third day, relatives and friends of the Xiao Family came to the princess's residence to add gifts to the bride's trousseau.

Before dawn, Xiao Yan was awakened by the sound of firecrackers from a nearby neighbor. Despite this, fearing he might disturb his wife beside him, Xiao Yan lay still without moving until Lin Ningfang turned over and opened her eyes. Xiao Yan scooted closer, hugged her, and asked, "Did you sleep well?"

Lin Ningfang: "Yes, let's get up. Today will be busy."

Xiao Yan touched her belly: "No matter how busy, you don't need to worry."

Last Mid-Autumn Festival, while he was still on a southern tour with his second brother, his mother wrote to tell him that Ningfang was pregnant again. Xiao Yan was so happy he wanted to return early but was scolded by his second brother.

But Xiao Yan was still happy. When his wife was pregnant with Huai Zu, he was kept in the dark the whole time, and by the time he returned home, Huai Zu had already been born. This time, although he missed the first three months of his wife's pregnancy with their second child, he could at least be there to take care of her for the rest of the pregnancy.

As Xiao Yan lowered his head to focus on feeling the baby, Lin Ningfang looked at the face she had been seeing for seven or eight years. With his eyes downcast, hiding the cold fierceness in them, only his handsome features remained, filling her with a sense of calm.

When the couple arrived at the main courtyard with Huai Zu, Xiao Shouyi, Madam He, Xiao She, and Lu Qiu were already there. Xiao Yuchan and Yao Ge Er, who both liked to sleep in, were the last to arrive.

Madam He: "Even on such a joyous day, you can sleep in. Yao Ge Er is just learning from you to be so lazy."

Xiao Yuchan: "Lazy folks have their own luck. Besides, mother isn't much more diligent than us."

Madam He glanced at her youngest daughter-in-law, the only one who hadn't seen her as a village woman in Lingshui Village, and gave her daughter a meaningful look.

Xiao Yuchan: "...Fine, Madam He is not lazy, she is the most virtuous lady among all the noblewomen in the capital."

Xiao Shouyi, who was about to drink tea, held his teacup a little longer.

Lu Qiu and Lin Ningfang exchanged glances, understanding each other without words.

Whether a noblewoman or a peasant woman, women of their status could tell at a glance. However, one's background is innate; a noblewoman might not remain noble forever, and a peasant woman might not have to face the soil all her life. After all, she married Xiao She, and now the couple lived separately in the Prince of Wu Commandery's residence. Whether Madam He was easy to get along with or not, Lu Qiu didn't really care.

Xiao Yan: "Come on, let's guess which family will arrive first today and which will be last."

Xiao Yuchan: "It must be our aunt first; she lives closest to us. Second brother's wife will probably be last. I wonder if second brother will come."

Madam He: "He should. Officials haven't started their duties yet. Your second brother only has you as his sister; how could he miss your big day?"

Xiao Yan: "Not necessarily. Second brother has always been quite annoyed with Yuchan."

Xiao Shouyi: "Don't talk nonsense. Your second brother is just like that. He's not particularly close to anyone, but he never fails to show his concern for you all as a brother."

Xiao She: "Exactly, second brother is the best to us, followed by fourth brother."

Xiao Yan scoffed, "So I'm third, huh?"

Xiao She: "You've never been good to us; you don't even rank third."

Xiao Yan: "You're so ungrateful. Didn't I patch you up when you got hurt? Didn't I take the knife for you when there was danger? I didn't even mind the smell when you complained about your butt hurting and wanted me to check if it was a mosquito bite."

Xiao She: "...Your butt stinks."

Lu Qiu grimaced and covered her ears in disgust.

Lin Ningfang didn't cover her own mouth but instead covered Huai Zu's.

Xiao Shouyi, seeing this, pointed outside and said, "Take your argument outside."

Qi Yao chuckled, enjoying the scene like it was a play.

Xiao Yuchan: "What are you laughing at? See, even your third uncle and youngest uncle aren't favored by their wives. If you want to be liked by girls in the future, learn more from your second uncle."

Madam He: "It's not that easy for him to see his second uncle. He should just learn from his new father."

Qi Yao: "Uncle Qi is much better than third uncle and youngest uncle."

Xiao Yan, Xiao She: "..."

After breakfast, the family waited calmly to receive relatives and friends.

The Qiao Family arrived first, including Aunt Xiao, Uncle Xiao, Qiao Changshun, Qiao Changan, along with their wives and children.

The second to arrive were Liu Chu, Mianmian, and Sun Dian, who also lived in Luonan and were close relatives.

Following them were Sun Wei and Zhang Wengong's families, who lived relatively nearby.

From the north of Luo, the earliest arrivals were the Tong and Zhou families. Therefore, when Xiao Ye and Yan Mingxiu brought Chun Ning, who was four or five months old, Madam He teased, "What, did you two oversleep?"

Xiao Ye: "When have I ever slept in? I woke up early, but Chun Ning woke up too late. We waited an extra hour for her."

He couldn't bear to wake his peacefully sleeping baby daughter just to go out.

Xiao Yuchan took her little niece, kissed her, and said, "Looks like Chun Ning takes after her aunt. Lazy folks have lazy blessings."

Xiao Ye: "...Considering you're about to get married, I'll let you have this one."

Yan Mingxiu smiled, "Your sister's not wrong. If Chun Ning really takes after her aunt, she'll be blessed indeed."

As everyone teased Xiao Yuchan, the gatekeeper came to report that the emperor's carriage had turned into the alley.

At this, all the relatives and friends, young and old, hurried to the front of the princess's residence to welcome the guests.

When the carriage stopped, Xiao Zhen appeared first. Xiao Shouyi led everyone to kneel, but Xiao Zhen promptly said, "No need for formalities. Today, no one should stand on ceremony."

The emperor's words were as good as law, so everyone complied and set aside their formalities.

Xiao Zhen then turned, took Chengzu from Tong Sui, holding him with one arm while trying to help Tong Sui with the other. Tong Sui gave him a reproachful look and stepped down from the carriage herself using the footstool.

Chengzu, one year and two months old, dressed in a silk jacket, leaned comfortably against his father's chest. Looking at the familiar and not-so-familiar relatives in front of him, he pointed at Huai Zu, who was being held by Lin Ningfang, and said, "Brother," then pointed at Chun Ning in Xiao Ye's arms and said, "Sister."

Mianmian stepped up and asked, "And who am I?"

Chengzu smiled and said, "Sister."

Qi Yao puffed out his chest and demanded, "And who am I?"

Chengzu didn't say anything.

Qi Yao muttered softly, "It's all my mother's fault. On her days off, she only knows how to meet friends. If she had taken me to the palace a few more times, my little brother would definitely recognize me."

Xiao Yuchan, who was supposedly "meeting friends," felt a pang of panic and glanced at her second brother and sister-in-law. Seeing that the couple didn't seem to know anything, she breathed a sigh of relief.

Xiao Zhen was swamped with political affairs and had little energy to spare for his cousin, who hadn’t caused any trouble. Though Tong Sui had a team of undercover agents, she would never use them to monitor her own relatives and friends, so how could she know that a "Seventh Miss" often met with Xiao Yuchan?

With so many relatives and friends around, they took over the east side room, the main hall, and the west side room of the main courtyard.

As for the children, Chun Ning couldn’t crawl yet and had to lie obediently on the warm kang, listening to her mother, aunts, and cousins talk. Chengzu, who was becoming more adept at walking, was too active to stay quietly in the room. He took Huai Zu to the courtyard, where Mianmian, Qi Yao, the eldest son, and other young cousins were playing alongside them, each followed by their own wet nurses for care.

Xiao Shouyi, Zhou Jingchun and his son, Tong Youyu, along with other relatives, stayed in the main hall, while Tong Sui and the other female relatives sat in the east side room. Xiao Zhen and his brothers occupied the west side room.

Xiao Ye: "Let’s discuss what challenges we should set for Qi Yun when he comes to fetch the bride tomorrow."

Xiao Yan: "He must do a lion dance."

Zhang Wengong: "That’s not appropriate. We can joke around with Qi Yun in private, but with so many guests tomorrow, we should still consider the dignity of the Qi family."

Xiao Zhen nodded.

Sun Dian: "He can jump. Set up a plum blossom stake for him and hang the embroidered ball up high. If he can get the ball while stepping on the plum blossom stakes, that would be one challenge."

Qiao Changan: "That sounds good. Let’s make it the third challenge, the most thrilling one."

Tong Gui: "What about the other two challenges? One literary and one martial?"

Xiao She: "I’ll handle the martial one. If he can beat me, he passes."

Xiao Ye and others: "..."

Xiao Shouyi, who was eavesdropping in the main hall, said: "For the martial challenge, let’s set it as archery. Sparring can easily lead to hurt feelings."

Xiao Yan: "You’re really biased towards your son-in-law."

Xiao Shouyi: "If you were even half as good as Qi Yun, I’d treat you like a living Buddha."

Laughter erupted from the east side room, led by Xiao Yuchan.

Xiao Ye teased: "Uncle, is it true that Third Brother and Fifth Younger Brother combined are not even half as good as Qi Yun?"

Xiao Zhen: "The three of you combined barely make up half of Qi Yun."

The three brothers: "..."

Qiao Changshun: "Alright, we have the martial challenge. Shall we leave the literary challenge to the most knowledgeable and learned among us, His Majesty the Emperor?"

Xiao Zhen called Tong Shan over: "When I married your second sister-in-law, it was Xiao Shan who set the questions."

Nineteen-year-old Tong Shan: "..."

His brother-in-law must be putting his knowledge to the test!

——

The next day at the auspicious hour, Qi Yun arrived with four carefully selected groomsmen to fetch the bride. He could handle the martial and literary challenges himself, but the four groomsmen’s greatest skill was drinking.

Because of the plum blossom stake challenge, Tong Sui and the other female relatives came to watch the fun. Madam He also wanted to come, but unfortunately, she was marrying off her daughter today and had to stay dignified with Xiao Shouyi in the main hall.

There were nine rows of plum blossom stakes wrapped in red silk ribbons, varying in height, extending all the way to the bamboo pole where the red embroidered ball hung high.

Qi Yun first tucked the hem of his bright red wedding robe into his waist. His inner pants were also bright red, still loose when standing, but one could see how long and straight his legs were, ready to spring into action.

As he dashingly lifted his robe, Xiao Ye and his brothers, including Xiao Zhen, all glanced at the female relatives across the way.

Tong Sui, Liu Chu, and Lin Ningfang were quick to avert their eyes, while Yan Mingxiu lingered a bit longer. Lu Qiu, on the other hand, was staring openly, as were Tong Sui's cousin Zhou Gui, Sun Wei's wife, Tong Gui's wife, and the wives of the Qiao brothers, all watching unabashedly.

When Qi Yun jumped onto the plum blossom stakes, all the women's eyes turned at once.

The men, however, weren't watching. What’s so special about a smelly lion? They were all focused on their own wives.

Amid the cheers, Qi Yun grabbed the red embroidered ball hanging in mid-air and landed steadily back on the ground.

Xiao Ye suddenly pushed Xiao She forward: "Too easy! Another challenge—defeat the Prince of Wu Commandery to pass!"

Qi Yun: "..."

He looked hopefully at Zhang Wengong and Qiao Changan, both of whom were reasonable and considerate of the bigger picture. Surely they would intervene?

Zhang Wengong looked up at the pole holding the embroidered ball, while Qiao Changan turned to examine the plum blossom stakes.

Left with no choice, Qi Yun turned to the esteemed Emperor, whom he was reluctant to trouble.

Xiao Zhen then said to Xiao She, "Keep it friendly—no need to go all out."

Qi Yun: "..."

He glanced subtly at Her Majesty the Empress. He had once fought side by side with her in Jinzhou, traversing the Dragon Path, sharing life and death.

Though Tong Sui thought the brothers were being too hard on Qi Yun, since Xiao Zhen had already spoken, she couldn't undermine her husband in front of all the guests. So, she gave Qi Yun an encouraging look.

Qi Yun: "..."

At that moment, Qi Yao suddenly pointed at Lu Qiu and said, "Auntie, you look pale. Are you feeling unwell?"

Xiao She, who had just rolled up his sleeves to spar with Qi Yun, immediately turned to look.

Without missing a beat, Lu Qiu furrowed her brows, placed a hand on her forehead, and said, "I might be catching a chill."

Seeing and hearing this, Xiao She rushed to his wife's side, supporting her while scanning the crowd. He then fixed his gaze on Zhou Jingchun and said, "Sir, please check on Qiu'er right away!"

Zhou Jingchun: "..."

Among the male guests, Lu Gong: "..."

As the guests' attention shifted to Xiao She and Lu Qiu, Qi Yun smiled, lifted the eleven-year-old Qi Yao high into his arms, and strode inside, saying, "Good boy, show your dad the way!"

Xiao Yan tried to stop them, but Xiao Ye, Zhang Wengong, and Qiao Changan blocked his path.

However, when the brothers, except for Xiao Zhen, escorted the bride to Qi Yun's marquis's residence for the evening toast, Qi Yun didn't have it so easy.

Qi Ling, Jiang Tiankuo, and the four groomsmen combined couldn't outdrink the bride's brothers, cousins, or stepbrothers!

Qi Ling, his face flushed, pointed at Zhao Jin and Luo Xiao, saying, "We fought together at Jiange Pass. Why are you taking their side?"

Zhao Jin pointed at Xiao She: "The Prince of Wu Commandery warned us that if we helped you, he’d challenge us to a spar."

Luo Xiao nodded.

Qi Ling: "..."

Jiang Tiankuo: "Can I still switch sides now?"

Xiao Ye shouted, pointing towards the hall entrance: "The groom is trying to slip away!"

Qiao Changshun chased after him, saying: "Alright, trying to distract us with a diversion!"

Xiao Yan, Sun Dian, and others had already gone after him. Since the bride was their own sister, they felt bold enough to chase him all the way to the bridal chamber.

Zhao Jin didn’t feel like joining in the fun, while Luo Xiao watched the scene with an amused smile. Qi Ling and the others could only watch helplessly.

In the bridal chamber, Xiao Yuchan waited calmly for her handsome lion. Suddenly, she heard a commotion and curiously walked to the entrance of the main hall, just in time to see Qi Yun sprinting towards her like the wind, with his brothers hot on his heels, only a few steps behind.

"Help me block them!" Qi Yun quickly ducked behind her.

Couldn’t Xiao Yuchan handle these brothers?

She stood with her hands on her hips, blocking the doorway, glaring at the approaching men: "I'll count to five. If anyone's still in this courtyard by then, I'll spill all their childhood secrets to their wives!"

At her shout, Xiao Yan was the first to turn tail and run, followed closely by Xiao Ye, Qiao Changshun, Qiao Changan, Sun Dian, and Sun Wei. Xiao She hesitated for a moment, thinking he had no embarrassing stories, but Zhang Wengong had already pulled him away. Tong Gui, though sure Xiao Yuchan knew nothing about him, felt out of place staying alone as everyone else ran, so he had no choice but to leave too.

In the blink of an eye, the pack of wolves had scattered like leaves in the wind.

Qi Yun was still panting.

Xiao Yuchan turned around, puzzled, and asked: "When Fourth Brother, Fifth Younger Brother, and Wen Gong got married, it wasn’t this wild. Why is it so chaotic with you?"

Qi Yun: "Maybe they're all just jealous I got the best catch."

Xiao Yuchan: "..."

Among those sisters-in-law and younger sisters-in-law, each beautiful and talented in their own way, wasn’t she just the fat, lazy, gluttonous, and lucky one, with nothing else to show for herself?

Of course, what Qi Yun had just said was a joke, but seeing her expression, the groom took the bride's hand and said seriously: "To me, you are the best."

Xiao Yuchan snorted and opened her arms.

Qi Yun then effortlessly scooped up his lioness and carried her off to the inner chamber for their wedding night.