Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

Princess Ruyu, who was clearly the least familiar with the situation, showed no signs of being a stranger at all. She treated her baby like a baby, cheering, clapping, and smiling broadly, completely absorbed in the moment!

When they arrived at Qingning's side, she served tea to her mother Li Lu, Aunt Gu, and Chu Mingkong's two mothers.

These are all very close elders, especially Aunt Gu, who took care of her for a long time when she was a child.

However, after bowing to Chu Mingkong's parents, the girl couldn't help but have tears welling up in her eyes, wiping away tears of joy.

Forced to leave her hometown, the place where she grew up, and her brother, she went to the unfamiliar capital city and supported her family all by herself. Now, she has come a long way with many hardships and never thought that this day would come!

Gu Jungui stood up and hugged the girl. The elders who were sitting down also came over to hug and comfort her.

"It's such a joyous day, don't cry! People who don't know better will think you were kidnapped to be a bandit's wife!"

"Yes, I'll have to ask him properly later, whether Mingkong has mistreated Qingning!"

"No, my brother treats Qingning very well. Qingning is just happy..."

The girl hugged each of the elders one by one before being led by Chu Mingkong to her seat.

At this moment, only Feng Ying and Yun Han remain.

The reason they were separated was that if their master were also among them, it would be a bit strange for him to stand with Qingning and Jinyu.

Chu Mingkong's master could actually sit in the hall.

Now that she's with Nongyu and Donglu, that leaves only Fengying and Yunhan. It wouldn't be right to treat them differently.

Anyone who didn't know better would think they didn't even have the basic respect to bow to heaven and earth or their parents.

After a brief hesitation, Chu Mingkong still chose to pull them together to complete the wedding ceremony.

Fengying's journey went very smoothly. She was served tea, received blessings from her elders, and then, under Qingse's guidance, bowed to her parents and took her seat.

But the situation was a bit different for Yunhan.

The Wenqing Pavilion is very particular about rules, so Master Shen Xuejun's status is quite extraordinary. Since we have already paid homage to Mother Consort, shouldn't we also offer a toast to Master Shen Xuejun?

When Chu Mingkong and Xiao Yunhan served tea to Xiao Zhi, they sensed something was amiss.

But Xiao Zhi was oblivious to anything amiss, still basking in the joy of keeping the wealth within the family.

"You two, may you live happily together in the future, just like before~"

"Yes, I will." Xiao Yunhan nodded seriously, her calm attitude revealing no hint of perfunctoriness.

It's probably rare for anything to concern her so much these days; this matter is not only Mingkong's, but also a major event in her own life.

Chu Mingkong took a deep breath, met Yun Han's eyes in her beautiful wedding dress, and silently asked if he should pour tea for his master's wife.

Yunhan didn't hesitate and nodded to indicate that it was necessary to do so.

Holding Chu Mingkong's hand, she walked forward, and the two eye-catching figures in red stood in front of Shen Xuejun.

Jiao'er and Xiao Gugu didn't understand anything about atmosphere, and stretched out their little paws to touch Chu Mingkong.

The cat's paws were busy eating, but its round eyes were still fixed on him.

Xiao Yunhan, seemingly without any reservations, said:

"Master, please come up to the hall and sit down. Today is my wedding day with Mingkong. I am very happy that you could come. I will offer you a cup of tea."

Shen Xuejun's icy blue eyes gazed at her two disciples.

The pressure seemed to permeate the air invisibly...

"Master's wife," Chu Mingkong called softly.

Shen Xuejun ultimately said nothing; her unchanging expression made it difficult to discern any change in her emotions.

She rose and walked towards the hall, sitting down with her hands supporting her elegant white dress. Her round, full buttocks pressed the dress into an unusually sexy curve.

After gently sipping the tea offered by her disciple, Shen Xuejun remained expressionless.

The clear, melodious sound of a zither leading the chant reached my ears once more:

"Husband and wife bow to each other—"

--------

The long wedding ceremony was finally over. Chu Mingkong had originally planned to hold a wedding ceremony for his elders later, just as a game.

Now that there are a few more guests, he's a little unsure what to do, but these people aren't exactly outsiders...

In any case, he couldn't show any signs of spoiling the mood; he had to try to be happy.

Now it should be time for the wedding banquet, with all the eating and drinking.

Whether that girl Ruyu had been warned by Shen Xuejun beforehand about causing trouble, or was simply curious, she suddenly asked a rather pointed question:

"Senior Sister Yunhan is my senior sister, Mingkong, why did you put her last? Is it because you don't value her enough, or do you value her more than anyone else, so you saved her for last?"

Chapter Twenty-Four: Before the Wedding Night

That little vixen's words are quite insidious; she's trying to make him feel caught in the middle.

The question sounded like it was aimed at Yunhan, either implying that Yunhan wasn't important and was ranked last, or that Yunhan was too important and far surpassed the other girls.

For girls like Jin Yu and Yong Zhen, who had been fighting for a long time, Chu Mingkong had to work very hard to make them not care about who came first or who came last today.

You little princess Ruyu, you think you can trick me?

I wonder if this was at the behest of my master's wife. Surely she wouldn't go to such lengths...

But Chu Mingkong thought of the "shackles" his master's wife had put on him before they parted, and it seemed that there was some suspicion about it!

Faced with the current questions, Chu Mingkong was able to remain calm and answer truthfully:

"Ahem, Ruyu, you've misunderstood. There's no order of precedence. It's just that we can't do so many wedding ceremonies at the same time, which is why there's this apparent order."

In reality, the importance of each of them in my heart doesn't change because of the order in which they're mentioned!

After saying that, he immediately glanced at Jin Yu and Yong Zhen, but they didn't react and weren't swayed by Ru Yu's words.

This is perhaps why there are "few guests" everywhere; looking around, you see only your own people, making it difficult to cause a ruckus!

Ruyu wore a dashing high ponytail and had a healthy tan that was quite rare among princesses, but it did not detract from her beauty.

She nodded, and hummed in a somewhat childish tone:

"That's alright, then I'm relieved. Although you and Senior Sister Yunhan have a special relationship, you can't let Senior Sister Yunhan suffer because of your familiarity!"

You girl... I haven't even treated you badly, how could I possibly treat Yunhan badly?

Do you know how much effort went into making those two jars?

Ruyu was completely at ease, standing up to greet everyone and introduce herself. Perhaps she had been cooped up in her hometown for too long, because she showed no signs of awkwardness at all at this wedding banquet, and even seemed a little excited.

"It's been so long since I've met so many relatives! When I heard that you, Mingkong, brought everyone back to Xiling, I wanted to go there, but it's such a long way!"

"Hey, hey, let me toast you. Tell me, who did you date first?"

Once you start talking, you just never stop, do you?

For issues like this, Chu Mingkong couldn't simply say "treat everyone equally," as saying it too often would seem deliberate.

Fortunately, his elders were willing to help him out of the predicament.

Sister-in-law Keqing nudged Zhong Feihuang's arm: "Feihuang, why don't you think of something to say to Mingkong? This is a difficult question to answer..."

After a period of comfortable living, Zhong Feihuang's rough edges had been somewhat worn down. She searched for inspiration in her memories, then cleared her throat:

"Oh dear! Princess Ruyu, what's the point of asking this? There are so many elders here. Why not ask Mingkong which elder he's closer to and who he listens to the most?"

Is this calculation a way to shift the blame? But it has to be said that it's not bad.

After all, it was the young woman who had just completed the wedding ceremony, so the elders didn't care much about it for the time being, at most they would just glance at Mingkong secretly.

Chu Mingkong glanced gratefully at Zhong Feihuang, then quickly followed her lead and stepped off the stage, saying:

"I'm known for my filial piety, and I treat everyone equally. But often, it's whoever orders me around the most that makes me seem more obedient. I guess it's Sister-in-law Feihuang who orders me around more?"

Zhong Feihuang retorted, "Get lost! Keqing and I are both self-reliant. We don't need you to order us around. You're just making fun of me!"

The trouble that Ruyu stirred up is over, and the wedding banquet is now on track.

Everyone offered their blessings and toasts in a relaxed manner. Although there was no grand ceremony and everything was kept simple, no one felt any regret.

Meanwhile, among the girls, Jinyu was getting restless and wanted to cause some trouble.

She took Chu Mingkong's arm and stood up, together toasting Yongzhen, Rong'er, Qingning, and Pei Mi at the elders' table, making it seem as if she were the only one in charge.

"Ahem, today is my big day, Jin Yu's big day! Let me raise a toast to Yong Zhen and the others~ Don't say I didn't take good care of you!"

Yongzhen, expressionless, pulled Chu Mingkong along, and the two of them went at it together, retaliating against Jinyu twice, and casually said:

"Jinyu, today is my big day. Say a few words of blessing for me and Mingkong. I and the puppet each need one. You can think of two for me, no need for too many."

Jin Yu puffed out her cheeks in frustration. She really hadn't expected that the disadvantage of having one less body would be so great!

Qingning and Rong'er were both well-behaved. They soon sat down at the elders' table, chatting with rosy cheeks, looking bright and charming.

Ruyu seemed to genuinely enjoy the lively atmosphere, glancing at Jinyu and Yongzhen bickering from time to time. Before she knew it, she had left Shen Xuejun's side and sat down with them.

Several former royal children chatted about the various events that had occurred over the years.

Zuo Qiuchi felt a little regretful. The wedding banquet was simple, but no one took it lightly; this first time was still important...

She chatted with Fengying and Yunhan, who sat down next to her, and also brought Donglu into the conversation:

"Donglu, what do you think of this wedding banquet?"

The woman with gray hair in a bun looked around. Perhaps because she was sitting relatively close, she felt that this was the first time since leaving her family that she had been so closely immersed in the lively atmosphere.

Loneliness was dispelled by laughter and joy, leaving no trace of loneliness and a feeling of great warmth.

"It's lively...very nice, everyone is happy..."

Zuo Qiuchi, with her back to the cat, secretly took a sip of wine to avoid being noticed by the little girl. She said:

"Stay here in the future and live together. Anyway, it's hard for you to go back, and I'm worried about you... Let me make this clear first, today is a joyous day, so you can't say anything that would spoil the mood!"

If she couldn't say anything discouraging, wouldn't that mean Zuo Donglu couldn't say anything to refuse, like that she would bring misfortune upon herself?

Zuo Donglu was cut off by Zuo Qiuchi before she could finish speaking. She stared blankly at her sister, not knowing what to say.

Zuo Qiuchi laughed heartily: "If you don't say anything, I'll take that as a yes. It's settled then, let's drink!"