Chapter 29 Wedding

Chapter 29: The Wedding

Lu Jiming stopped Wei Yan. After asking if Wei Yan could stay in his room, he felt he had overstepped and was about to beg pardon when he heard Wei Yan reply, "Sure."

Cui Chi immediately closed the door and slipped away, head bowed.

Wei Yan sat back down on the stool and said to Lu Jiming, "Since we're getting married soon anyway, sharing a bed for a night can count as getting to know each other ahead of time."

Lu Jiming had spoken on impulse, driven by the fear that if he couldn't see Wei Yan, he would fall back into the nightmares from his past life at night, unable to bear the pain of watching Wei Yan leave. That's why he had asked Wei Yan to stay.

He hadn't really expected Wei Yan to agree, so when Wei Yan nodded, Lu Jiming was left somewhat flustered.

He couldn't help but hope that Wei Yan might actually like him, but he immediately suppressed the thought, warning himself not to get ahead of himself and to proceed gradually.

The bed at the posthouse wasn't large, and two grown men lying on it were practically sleeping head-to-foot. Lu Jiming was very careful not to touch Wei Yan, but with the slightest movement, he would accidentally brush against him.

Seeing the man beside him fidgeting and tossing and turning, unable to sleep, Wei Yan felt resigned and simply reached out to pull him into his arms.

He deliberately pretended to be half-asleep, mumbling as if talking in his sleep, "Be still, don't move around..."

Hearing this, Lu Jiming didn't dare struggle and curled up in Wei Yan's arms, feeling his heart pounding wildly. He mustered all the self-control he'd honed over decades to keep his body from having any strange reactions. Perhaps exhausted from the journey, he soon fell into a drowsy sleep.

The next day, Lu Jiming woke up very early and found that their positions had switched—he was now sprawled out, clinging to Wei Yan.

Lu Jiming noticed Wei Yan's morning state, as well as his own reaction, and blushed. He quietly got up, splashed his face with cold water, and only then felt fully awake.

After washing up, Wei Yan finally woke. He was groggy and grumpy upon waking, and lay dazed in bed for a while before coming to his senses and starting to put on his clothes.

This was the first time Lu Jiming had seen Wei Yan like this. In his past life, when he was confined in the rear palace, Wei Yan would often exhaust him all night, leaving him unable to get out of bed the next day. He rarely woke earlier than Wei Yan and never had the spare energy to observe what Wei Yan was like in the morning.

Now, watching him, he found it somewhat endearing.

After breakfast, the group set off back to the capital, arriving smoothly before evening.

Wei Yan first went to Wei Xuan's estate to retrieve Yin Yuxie, align their stories, and then went to the Hall of Ancestral Worship to swap Wei Xuan back. Lu Jiming returned to the Lu residence first.

Unexpectedly, once Wei Yan entered the palace, he was detained and unable to leave. A palace decree was also handed down, relieving Lu Jiming of his teaching duties at the Eastern Palace and instructing him to focus on preparing for the wedding.

Just as Wei Yan had said, officials from the Ministry of Rites began visiting the Lu residence frequently, and after many trips back and forth, they simply moved in.

Lu Jiming didn't know how Wei Yan had explained the events in Mingzhou to the emperor, but in any case, the Ministry of Rites no longer mentioned the Lu family and only consulted Lu Jiming on all matters.

Since a large portion of the servants at the Lu residence in the capital, including Steward Yang, had been brought from Mingzhou, Lu Jiming let many of them go and sent them back to the Lu family estate, keeping only a few he had bought in the capital. With even fewer hands, he became much busier.

Wei Yan couldn't leave the palace, and Lu Jiming was too occupied dealing with the officials from the Ministry of Rites to visit the palace. As a result, the two didn't see each other again until the wedding.

Mid-Autumn Festival quietly arrived during this time, but Lu Jiming didn't even have the energy to celebrate. For dinner, he just made do with a meal with Ning Jia and Lu Guanguan.

Amidst the busyness, October 17th, the day of the royal wedding, finally arrived.

Early in the morning, before dawn, Wei Yan dressed neatly and went to the ancestral temple to offer sacrifices. At noon, he changed into another set of clothes and went to Zhaohé Hall to pay respects to the emperor and empress.

Wei Yan kowtowed to his parents in the hall, reciting the words prepared by the Ministry of Rites, informing them of his impending marriage.

The emperor stepped forward to help Wei Yan up and also recited a few words from the prepared script, then suddenly added, "Yan'er, I only hope that you and Minister Lu will be devoted and without suspicion. Remember, there is no turning back in this world. One wrong step leads to many more."

Upon hearing this, the empress's face turned ashen, and he remained silent.

Wei Yan looked at the empress, hoping he would say something.

The emperor and empress were not on good terms. Wei Yan had been raised under Consort Xie's care since childhood and was even more distant from the empress. But the empress was still his biological father, and Wei Yan still held some expectations for him.

Unfortunately, the empress only said dryly, "May Your Highness and your spouse live in harmony and bear descendants for the imperial family." There was no affection; the father and son were little better than strangers.

Wei Yan was long accustomed to this and showed no emotional change. He kowtowed again to thank his parents for their kindness, then returned to the Eastern Palace to change into his wedding attire, preparing to go to the Lu residence.

From the Eastern Palace to the Lu residence was actually only a little over half an hour's journey, but to Wei Yan, it felt like an eternity—as if he had walked this road for a lifetime.

He hadn't even dared to dream of marrying Lu Jiming. Now, he was cautious, afraid it might be an illusion in a dream, waking to find only Huan Zixiao beside him with false affection.

So when he saw Lu Jiming, he tightly grasped his hand, not daring to let go for a moment.

Lu Jiming also felt it was unreal. Was he really marrying Wei Yan like this? It didn't seem as terrifying as he had imagined.

Holding Wei Yan's hand, he felt completely content, as if nothing else mattered and everything could be let go.

But why had it felt like a nightmare before?

The two entered the palace together, first paying respects to the emperor and empress, then proceeding to Qiméi Hall, where they bowed to heaven and earth, exchanged locks of hair, shared the nuptial wine, and after the palace servants left, only the newlyweds remained in the bedchamber.

Qiméi Hall was specially renovated by Emperor Xuan when he was still the Crown Prince for his wedding. Since then, it had been used for the grand weddings of successive Crown Princes, emperors, and empresses.

In his past life, on the day Wei Yan ascended the throne, Lu Jiming had been confined here.

In that past life, they had no wedding ceremony; they had quietly become husband and wife in the deep silence of this palace hall.

With the sun and moon hidden, heaven and earth obscured, parents unaware, and friends unseen, their relationship had taken root and sprouted in an unknown corner, like the dim bedchamber that night, only to wither completely in the end.

Wei Yan looked at the dragon-and-phoenix wedding candles burning by the bedside and said to Lu Jiming, "This is the only wedding night of my life."

Lu Jiming smiled. "Your Highness, that goes for me too."

Wei Yan bit his lower lip and said no more. He wasn't referring to these mere seventeen years but to the decades before. Lu Jiming wouldn't understand his feelings now, and Wei Yan wouldn't let him know.

"Let's rest," Wei Yan said.

The wedding candles would burn all night. Wei Yan let down the bed curtains, but the flickering candlelight was still visible.

Lu Jiming untied his wedding robes and looked at Wei Yan. "On our wedding night, does Your Highness intend to sleep fully clothed with me?"

Wei Yan seemed somewhat dazed and asked, "Are you willing?"

Wei Yan hadn't originally planned to touch Lu Jiming tonight because Qiméi Hall was the starting point of their divergent paths in their past life. If their first time in this life was also in Qiméi Hall, would they end up on that wrong path again?

But Lu Jiming didn't think that way. He hoped everything could begin and end at Qiméi Hall. After today, everything would be a new beginning.

"Your Highness, whether real or not, tonight is our wedding night," Lu Jiming said, lowering his gaze. This was the most proactive statement he could make, putting aside his pride. If Wei Yan was unwilling, he wouldn't force it.

Looking at the expression on Lu Jiming's face, Wei Yan's lips trembled uncontrollably. "If we do it tonight, our marriage won't be fake. If you want to leave, I won't let you go."

Seeing Wei Yan's reaction, Lu Jiming suddenly felt amused. All this time, why had he been so certain that Wei Yan didn't love him?

Saying one thing while meaning another, playing hard to get—these childish tricks had actually fooled him.

"Your Highness," Lu Jiming said, his eyes curving into a smile. "When I agreed to marry you, I never thought of leaving."

Wei Yan's heart raced wildly as he kissed Lu Jiming.

He remembered that night in Qiméi Hall in his past life.

In his previous life, after Wei Yan ascended the throne, he knew Lu Jiming would return to the Hanlin Academy and might later be appointed as an official outside the capital. The distance between them would only widen. So he chose to gamble everything and confined Lu Jiming in the Qimei Hall.

That night, Lu Jiming resisted, accused, and questioned, before finally breaking down in tears. Wei Yan hardened his heart and ignored it all. He threw Lu Jiming down in the bedchamber and covered him with fervent kisses.

Lu Jiming's tears wet Wei Yan's lips and teeth. Wei Yan felt he had gone mad, acting so recklessly and disregarding Lu Jiming's wishes, yet he felt no regret.

No, Wei Yan did regret—regretting not having done this earlier, regretting not treating Lu Jiming this way the very day he realized his love for him.

Lu Jiming was beautiful, and when he cried, it was like pear blossoms in the rain, almost enchanting Wei Yan. He drew closer, wishing he could devour him whole.

Wei Yan had always prided himself on being a noble and upright gentleman, but at that moment, he realized how dark and despicable he was, harboring wicked thoughts for Lu Jiming and feeling smug about it.

Their garments were torn open messily. Wei Yan and Lu Jiming were so close, feeling each other's body heat without any barriers, engaging in the most intimate and secret act in the world.

Soon, Lu Jiming's tears dried up, and he began to respond.

He was shy yet passionate, accepting all of Wei Yan.

Wei Yan felt as if he were floating on clouds, drifting unmoored, wishing the moment would never end. Even if he drowned in Lu Jiming's embrace, he would be willing.

That night, Lu Jiming did not call him "Your Majesty," but instead repeatedly called him "Shi Xia," the courtesy name Wei Yan had given him.

Moonlight spilled into the Qimei Hall, and Wei Yan could faintly see the faint blush on Lu Jiming's skin, like rosy clouds. He gently kissed every inch of Lu Jiming's flushed skin, finally landing on the corner of his eye.

He thought Lu Jiming was smiling, but he wondered if it was just an illusion.

That night was a stolen wedding night, but alas, dawn would eventually break, and dreams would eventually end.

After a forty-year dream, he returned to this palace. The person who had long turned to dust in his dream was now by his side, still intimately connected to him.

There were no tears, no arguments. They drank the nuptial wine, bound their hair together, never to part again.

Thinking of this, Wei Yan felt inexplicably frightened, fearing it was all just a dream. In a panic, he held the person in his arms even tighter.

The body was warm, the chest rising and falling with each breath. Wei Yan pressed closer to Lu Jiming, and only after a long while did he feel at ease.

Lu Jiming trembled, burying his head forcefully into Wei Yan's embrace.

He was also afraid, terrified that if he opened his eyes, he would return to that opulent Lu residence. Having returned to this era for nearly half a year, Lu Jiming often wondered why he was the one given a second chance at life.

He had no divine encounters, nor did he understand supernatural forces, yet he had inexplicably returned here.

He had been lost, melancholy, and tormented, but with Wei Yan by his side now, he felt only contentment. Lu Jiming could be certain that in both his past and present lives, he had never been as happy as he was now.

After today, his name would forever be linked with Wei Yan in the obscure corners of history books. His feelings for Wei Yan would no longer be hidden in the shadows. For Lu Jiming, this was already enough.

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Author's Note: Let us bless this old couple, may they be forever happy!! The ending from before will never happen again. Let us all move toward a different, beautiful future together.