You were supposed to have a fake marriage with the diva, so how did you become her father?

Lu Ran woke up at 6:30 a.m. on the wedding day.

He woke up earlier than the alarm clock. It was already bright outside the window, and sunlight was filtering through the edge of the curtains, casting a small patch of light at the foot of the bed.

He tiptoed off the bed without waking Shen Yuege.

After brushing his teeth, washing his face, and changing his clothes, he stood at the bedroom door and glanced back. Shen Yuege turned over, pulled the blanket over her shoulder, and then stopped moving.

He ate a slice of toast and drank a glass of milk in the kitchen, then took out his phone to check the time: 7:10.

He sent a message to the planning company saying he would arrive in about half an hour, and they replied with "Received" and an OK gesture.

As he was leaving, Priscilla Chan came out of the room and was taken aback to see that he had already changed his clothes. "You're leaving already? Where's Yuege?"

"She's still sleeping. Let her sleep a little longer; I'll go check the scene first."

"Then take that bag with you." Chen Huixian pointed to a dark blue canvas bag on the entryway cabinet. "It contains water, sunscreen, a power bank, and a pack of wet wipes. Put it in the lounge when you get there; Yuege will need it later."

Lu Ran picked up the bag and said, "Mom, I'm leaving now." Chen Huixian waved to him from the doorway, called out, "Drive carefully on the road," and then closed the door.

It was not yet eight o'clock when the car arrived at the resort. The dew on the lawn had not completely dried and was shimmering in the sunlight.

The event planning company had been there for a while and was adjusting the position of the flower vines in front of the flower stand. A young woman in a white T-shirt was squatting on the ground fiddling with a string of LED strips, while a man carrying a camera was adjusting a tripod next to her.

Lu Ran walked over and greeted them. The other person, seeing he was the "groom," smiled warmly and professionally, saying, "Mr. Lu, you're here very early. The sound system and microphones have already been tested. Would you like to listen again?"

"Listen to it."

A set of speakers was placed in each of the four corners of the lawn. They were not large in size but had considerable power, and their surfaces were covered with waterproof covers.

The staff connected the phone to the mixing console and played the intro of a piece of music. The sound came from four directions at the same time, spreading evenly over the lawn. It was not harsh, and there was no obvious delay or echo.

Lu Ran stood in the middle of the lawn and listened for about ten seconds, then nodded and said, "The sound is acceptable. Lower the mid-range frequencies slightly during vocals."

The staff member tweaked the mixing console a few times, played a short vocal clip to test it, and asked, "How's this?" Lu Ran listened and said, "Okay, this is good. Where's the microphone?"

The staff handed over two wireless microphones, one black and one silver, both with wrist straps for protection.

Lu Ran took them and tried them out. Both could pick up sound normally without any obvious background noise, and the weight in his hand was just right.

He put the microphone back and asked a few more detailed questions about the backup battery and signal interference before he felt relieved.

Next, he walked around the positions in front of the flower stand.

The trellis, made of wood and painted white, was placed at the end of the lawn. It was adorned with a ring of light green hydrangeas and white roses, and a string of warm-colored light bulbs was tied between the vines.

A light gray carpet was laid under the flower stand, with metal strips pressed along the edges, making it very stable to walk on.

He walked from under the flower stand to the entrance of the lawn, measured the distance, and mentally calculated how many steps it would take to walk there.

After he finished walking, he stood at the entrance and looked back at the direction of the flower stand. The sunlight shone from behind the flower stand, making the outlines of the white flowers and green leaves clear yet soft.

He stood there for about ten seconds, then turned and walked back towards the lounge.

The lounge is in a small, detached house next to the lawn. It's not big, but it's very clean.

One wall is a floor-to-ceiling window, facing the lawn and the lake. The curtains are half-drawn, and the light that shines in is soft but not glaring.

Inside the room was a sofa, a vanity mirror with a ring of light bulbs, and a small round table with tea and snacks.

Lu Ran placed Chen Huixian's dark blue canvas bag next to the dressing table, then hung the spare shirt he had brought on the hanger in the corner, and sat on the sofa for about twenty minutes.

The head of the planning company knocked on the door and said, "Teacher Shen has already left and will be there in about twenty minutes." Lu Ran nodded, stood up, walked to the window, and glanced at the lawn. The staff were still making final adjustments, but everything was ready.

Shen Yuege went straight into the lounge after she arrived.

She was wearing a white casual jacket, her hair was loose and not styled, and she was carrying a makeup bag.

Upon entering, she first saw Lu Ran sitting on the sofa and asked, "What time did you arrive?" Lu Ran said 7:30. She said, "Then you've been sitting for almost two hours." Lu Ran replied, "I haven't been sitting. I've been checking the equipment a few times." She put her makeup bag on the table, looked at her face in the mirror, and then sat down to begin preparing her makeup.

The makeup artist arrived a little later than Shen Yuege. After entering, she repeatedly praised Shen Yuege for her good skin condition and complexion before starting to apply makeup.

Lu Ran sat there for a while, but feeling he couldn't be of much help, he stood by the window and looked out at the lawn.

People were already setting up chairs on the lawn, with rows of white chair covers neatly arranged.

A gentle breeze blew across the lake, causing the vines hanging from the flower trellis to sway slightly.

When the makeup was almost finished, Priscilla Chan and Shen Zhiwei arrived.

Priscilla Chan went into the lounge, glanced at Shen Yuege's condition, said "She looks good," and then went out, saying she was going to check if there were any mosquitoes by the lake and asked the staff to spray more mosquito repellent.

Shen Zhiwei stood at the door for a while, but didn't go in. He nodded to Lu Ran from a distance, then turned around to greet some of the relatives who had arrived earlier.

Guests began arriving after 10 a.m.

About 70-80% of the white chairs on the lawn were occupied. Some people were chatting by the lake with juice cups in hand, some were squatting in front of the flower stand taking pictures, and some had pushed strollers under the shade of the trees.

Lu Ran stood at the entrance of the lounge, watching familiar faces walk around on the lawn. He noticed Zhou Mingzhe and Zhao Yiming sitting in the last row, discussing something on their phones. Chen Mo sat in the next row, surrounded by several colleagues from other branches.

After the host arrived, he briefly went over the process with Lu Ran, confirming the order of the speech, the exchange of rings, and the exit. He also confirmed that Lu Ran's singing segment would be placed after the oath and before the exchange of rings.

Lu Ran said "okay," and then stood in front of the mirror in the lounge to tidy up his dark gray suit jacket and Shen Yuege's ironed tie one last time.

The person in the mirror looks alright; his hair isn't messy, his shirt collar is neat, and his suit shoulder line is straight.

At 10:20, the event planning company informed us that we could prepare to enter.

The guests were all seated, and staff stood on both sides of the lawn, ready to play music and adjust the lighting.

Lu Ran first walked onto the lawn, following the carpet towards the flower stand. After stopping under the flower stand, he turned around, facing the entrance to the lawn.

A gust of wind lifted the end of his tie slightly, and he reached out and pressed it down.

Shen Yuege stood at the entrance to the lawn.

She wore a white off-the-shoulder wedding dress, the hem of which just covered her feet, and the veil hung down from behind her hair and draped over her shoulders, the silver threads at the edges shimmering in the sunlight.

She held a small bouquet of white roses with green hydrangeas in her hand; the petals were fresh, the leaves were emerald green, and they shimmered softly in the sunlight.

She began to walk forward. Her pace was slower than usual, but each step was steady, and the hem of her skirt swept lightly across the ground, making a soft rustling sound.

As she passed by, guests on both sides stood up one after another. Some were taking pictures with their phones, some were laughing, and some in the front row were already wiping their eyes.

Lu Ran stood under the flower stand watching her walk over step by step. He felt that this road was much longer than the distance he had measured yesterday. It wasn't that it was actually longer, but the person walking this road made time seem to slow down.

He watched as her skirt swept across the gray carpet, as the veil on her shoulders was lifted by the wind and then fell back down, and as the bouquet in her hand barely swayed as she walked, each step steady.

She stopped in front of the flower stand, standing a step away from him. The lights at the top of the flower stand came on, casting a warm yellow glow between them, giving the edges of her white wedding dress a soft halo.

The emcee stood to the side, adjusted the microphone, and began softly, "Distinguished guests, we gather here today to witness the wedding of Lu Ran and Shen Yuege."

...