After my father was sent to marry into the princess's household, I became the darling of the en

Time flies, and in the blink of an eye, it's February, and the wedding is just around the corner.

Early that morning, a small sedan chair with a blue curtain was parked outside the side gate of the Princess's residence.

Inside the main hall, Zhou Lianhai's expression was obsequious, but his tone was rather sarcastic.

"By imperial decree, His Majesty, the Northern Barbarians are in turmoil, and supplies for the rear are urgently needed. The Princess should be mindful of the nation's difficulties and share the people's burdens. Therefore, all ceremonial regalia for the wedding should be simplified, and the savings should be used for military funds to ensure the well-being of the people."

Xiao Mingyue sat upright in the main seat, her teacup untouched, her eyelashes lowered, her expression unreadable. "I understand, thank you for making this trip, Eunuch. Uncle Xu, see Eunuch Zhou out."

Seeing that Xiao Mingyue did not object, Zhou Lianhai left satisfied.

Shen Jingque overheard this from outside the door and cursed the emperor in her heart.

Suddenly he remembered that he wanted to simplify things. Why didn't he cherish the national treasury's money so much when he was holding lavish banquets and building the imperial mausoleum?

It's just that His Majesty can't stand seeing her father and the eldest princess living in harmony, so he has to kick them while they're down at this critical juncture.

In the main hall, Uncle Xu was also indignant about this.

Xu Bo: "Your Highness, this is clearly His Majesty's deliberate humiliation! Your marriage to Young Master Shen should have been..."

"Shouldn't it have been a grand spectacle of eight bearers carrying a large drum, and thirty-six bearers carrying a dowry stretching for miles?"

Xiao Mingyue remained calm and composed: "If His Majesty desires simplicity, then your subject will obey."

Uncle Xu choked up, wanting to persuade her further, but Xiao Mingyue had already put down her teacup.

There was no anger in his eyes, but rather a sense of worldly wisdom and detachment.

"Uncle Xu, my marriage to Shen Yan is based on mutual affection."

She stood up, walked to the window, and pushed open half of the window.

The morning breeze, carrying the chill of early spring, blew in, causing her clothes to flutter slightly.

"Besides, who says that it has to be a grand procession of red bridal attire to be enough to announce it to the world?"

-

February 6th is an auspicious day for marriage.

As dawn broke, the main gate of the Princess's residence slowly opened.

Without the clamor of gongs and drums, without any extravagant procession, two figures emerged side by side in the morning light.

Today, Xiao Mingyue wore a fiery red wedding dress, embroidered with seven lifelike pheasants in gold thread, exuding extraordinary elegance.

A phoenix crown towers high, and a beaded curtain covers her face.

The dashing and heroic spirit between her brows was made even more radiant and captivating by the red of her wedding dress.

Beside her, Shen Yan, dressed in a bright red wedding gown, made his gentle features appear even more refined and otherworldly.

Her scholarly air blended strangely with the striking red, revealing a captivating beauty.

The couple rode white horses side by side, followed by a troop of cavalrymen in armor, their horses' heads adorned with red ribbons, arranged in two columns, as they slowly entered the long street.

As the morning sun rose, golden-red halos flowed over their clothes, illuminating the faces of the people who were gradually gathering along the way.

At first, I just looked around curiously, and then I was filled with quiet amazement.

Someone shouted first, and the crowd instantly stirred.

"My God, is this Her Highness the Eldest Princess?"

"Is that the prince consort next to him? He's...he's so handsome!"

"They're a match made in heaven!"

Shen Jingque was currently squeezed into a private room on the second floor of a teahouse facing the street, with half of her body leaning out of the window, and couldn't help but tug at Xiao Changqi's sleeve.

"Second brother, look! Mother looks so beautiful today."

Xiao Changqi nodded, his expression unusually moved.

"I'm happy for my godmother too."

The chatter along the street rose like a tide, and many young women were pushed to the front, covering their mouths with handkerchiefs, their eyes practically glued to Shen Yan.

"I heard this young master Shen is getting married for the second time after his divorce. With his character and looks, why didn't I meet him first!"

"Absolutely! She's so beautiful, I'd be willing to be her stepmother."

Shen Jingque laughed so hard she almost fell over. Sure enough, good looks are an advantage in any era.

Just as the excitement was at its peak, a sound, like a pebble thrown into water, came abruptly and jarringly.

"What's so great about a talentless and immoral nobody who marries into a woman's family and lives off her?"

Shen Jingque looked down.

He was a pale-faced scholar, standing by a pillar on the first floor, his expression gloomy, his face full of resentment and jealousy.

Seeing that no one around him responded, he raised his voice even higher in mockery.

"What use is this physical appearance? It's nothing more than a parasitic vine clinging to a skirt, destined to be discarded like worn-out shoes sooner or later."

Finally, several people nearby heard him and turned to look at him.

Xiao Changqi narrowed his eyes and recognized the person.

"Wang Changhe." He tapped his palm with his folding fan, his tone turning cold, "You were rejected by the arranged marriage and lost face, yet you come barking on your wedding day."

Shen Jingque leaned on the windowsill and lazily spoke, "My lord."

Her voice was clear and bright, with a touch of girlish naiveté, "Who says beauty and talent can't coexist? I think you're just jealous!"

Wang Changhe suddenly looked up and met a pair of smiling almond-shaped eyes on the second floor, his face immediately turning red.

"You ignorant brat, stop talking nonsense!"

"I'm talking nonsense?" Shen Jingque blinked, her tone innocent. "Then let me ask you, after all these years of studying the classics, have you ever risen to the rank of first-grade official? Have you ever made any outstanding contributions? Have you ever raised a single penny for the soldiers on the border?"

Wang Changhe was speechless after her barrage of questions, and his face turned from red to green.

Several women nearby had long been disgusted. One of them, an older woman carrying a vegetable basket, spat and tossed a wilted radish from her basket at him.

"Exactly! Her Highness the Princess protects the country, and her husband is a man of great learning. Who gives you, a pedantic scholar, the right to gossip like this?"

Ugly people often cause trouble!

"You're incompetent yourself, yet you can't stand to see others succeed!"

No one knows who started it, but as if they had planned it together, sunflower seed shells and rotten vegetable leaves flew from all directions toward Wang Changhe under the corridor pillars.

He dodged left and right, his blue robe instantly stained with spots, looking utterly disheveled.

"Insolence! You uncivilized commoners, you have disgraced civilization!"

Wang Changhe shielded himself with his sleeve while angrily shouting and cursing.

But he didn't notice and stepped on a slippery vegetable leaf.

"Eh! Ahhh—"

He leaned back and tumbled down the wooden steps outside the teahouse, landing hard on the ground. He lay there groaning for a long time, unable to get up.

A burst of laughter erupted from the crowd.

Xiao Changqi snapped his folding fan shut and sneered, "Serves you right."

On the long street over there, someone started spontaneously scattering flower petals.

Xiao Mingyue and Shen Yan rode side by side, receiving the blessings of the people amidst the fluttering petals.

The horses' hooves clattered, creating a crisp and steady rhythm.

The entire journey around the city cost not a single penny of the national treasury.

But this wedding was etched in everyone's heart, announcing to the world that the princess who guarded her home and country had once again found someone to spend her life with.

As the sun rose higher, its golden rays grew ever more intense.

The couple dismounted nimbly in front of the main gate of the palace.

The palace gates were already wide open, and Zhou Lianhai waited for them with a stiff smile, ready to pay their respects to His Majesty the Emperor.

Xiao Mingyue raised her hand to adjust the beaded curtain hanging from the phoenix crown, and exchanged a glance with Shen Yan.

The two smiled at each other and stepped side by side into the deep and majestic palace gate.