Chapter 1 The Beginning

It was already late at night when he returned to his own room in the inner courtyard.

Zheng Fan sat at his desk for a while, his mind involuntarily replaying the "duel" between the Regent and the Fifth Prince.

Indeed, their confrontation didn't have the magnificent spectacle of an army inspection on the training ground, but it was a tacit understanding under shared knowledge.

The fate of a country being decided in this almost playful, martial-arts-contest-like manner seemed frivolous, yet was actually quite normal. In his previous life, when Zheng Fan traveled to Mount Li, he even visited the cave where Chiang Kai-shek had hidden.

He sighed deeply, casting aside all the miscellaneous thoughts in his mind. Zheng Fan stood up, walked to the washbasin, and splashed water on his face.

Because his previous life had been so tiring and bitter, Zheng Fan had always wanted to live a more relaxed life in this one, as long as conditions allowed.

After washing his face, Zheng Fan walked to the doorway and sat down.

In the sky, a bright moon hung high, its light scattering across the courtyard, creating a tranquil atmosphere.

He closed his eyes,

took a deep breath,

then stretched out his arms, yawning lazily,

imagining that he was absorbing the essence of the sun and moon.

After a long while,

Zheng Fan opened his eyes.

Tomorrow was his wedding day.

He stood up and headed towards the Princess's palace.

Outside the palace, Zhao Gonggong stood dutifully on guard.

Seeing Zheng Boye arrive, Zhao Gonggong's face immediately broke into a fawning smile.

Zheng Fan knew he could actually be more subtle. This young man, who had clawed his way up from the bottom ranks of common society, possessed a sense of the world and a sense of propriety that ordinary eunuchs lacked. But he still lowered his posture as much as possible. In front of Zheng Fan, he was like a dog exposing its belly to you.

A dog usually only exposes its most vulnerable belly to those it trusts and submits to.

Zhao Gonggong didn't announce his arrival, nor did he even greet Zheng Fan; he merely bowed silently and stepped back a few paces, clearing the way.

But Zheng Fan stopped.

"Zhao Cheng."

"This servant is here."

A long silence ensued.

Zheng Boye didn't speak, and Zhao Cheng didn't dare to either.

Finally,

Zheng Boye reached out and placed his hand on Zhao Cheng's shoulder.

Zhao Cheng's body trembled slightly.

Zheng Boye patted Zhao Cheng's shoulder and said,

"Good evening."

"Good evening, Master."

Precisely because Zhao Cheng was a clever man, Zheng Boye didn't need to say too much. For Zhao Cheng, he only had the power to drift with the tide, not the right to sit at the table.

This kind of servant wasn't really suitable to have around as a personal attendant; perhaps he'd be better suited for something else.

But for now, having Zhao Cheng around was indeed very convenient.

Zheng Boye pushed open the door to the palace and walked inside.

As soon as he stepped inside, a snake's head fell from the beam, hanging directly in front of Zheng Fan.

Zheng Boye's face was only about two decimeters away from the snake's head. The green serpent's flickering tongue even brushed slightly against Zheng Boye's face.

From the green serpent's eyes, Zheng Boye saw a look of disdain. It held itself in high regard.

However, restrained by the princess's control, it couldn't choose to devour him directly.

Zheng Boye figured it was probably because the qi around his body was concealed too well by the magic pearl, which was why this beast was being so presumptuous in front of him.

However, Zheng Boye wasn't about to get angry with this beast right now. When Pixiu had first arrived, it had also been arrogant and conceited. In the end, hadn't it been tamed into a quail by the demon kings?

This green serpent's fate wouldn't be any different.

Zheng Boye bent down and walked past the green serpent.

The princess was sitting on the bed. She had probably been lying down earlier and sat up when she heard the palace door open.

She wasn't wearing shoes. Her lower body was covered by a skirt, and her casual attire had a light and alluring feel.

"Aren't you afraid of catching a cold?"

Zheng Boye walked over and sat down next to the princess.

The princess leaned in and hugged Zheng Boye's shoulder.

The two of them remained in that position for a long time.

Finally,

Zheng Boye felt his shoulder growing numb.

He spoke up,

"Why aren't you saying anything?"

The princess said, "I don't know what to say."

"We're not even married yet, and you've already run out of things to say?"

"It's not that, it's just that what can I say now? Should I talk about the kind of life I want to live with you in Yan? Wouldn't that be like negotiating terms with you?

Should I say how complex, hesitant, and conflicted I feel right now? Wouldn't that make you think I'm not fully committed to you?

So, no matter what I say, it'll make you uncomfortable and ultimately affect my son's name on the imperial edict."

"Heh heh heh."

Zheng Boye laughed,

pulled his hand away, and changed his posture to embrace the princess.

"Actually, I haven't thought that much about it," the princess continued. "Yao Shizeng wrote a poem comparing a person's life to a mayfly. You may have tried your best, but in reality, you still can't change your fate of drifting along with the tide.

Right now, for me, I really can't marry Qu Peiluo anymore. Whether I eat meat or chaff following you is my choice.

Oh, by the way, where did you and my imperial brother go during the day?"

Zheng Fan told her about what happened during the day, without hiding anything.

Because letting the princess know that her brother came to see her only as a side trip would actually be more beneficial to Zheng Boye.

Afterward,

Zheng Fan also briefly told the princess about some of the arrangements for tomorrow.

The sky wasn't really bright yet. By modern standards, it was only a little after one in the morning.

But Zhao Gonggong had already arrived at the palace door to report:

"Your Highness, the hour is approaching."

Outside the inner courtyard, dozens of makeup artists and women with imperial titles were already waiting.

The princess's wedding, especially to the heir of the Qu clan, was naturally a grand occasion in this region, and preparations for the wedding had to begin long in advance.

The quietness of the inner courtyard earlier was simply the princess's own wish. She wanted some peace and quiet because she had been missing before and needed to calm her mind. So, everyone from the Qu clan and the palace had agreed to it.

Then, Zheng Fan had come, and after that, the Regent had also arrived. The quietness of the inner courtyard naturally had to be maintained.

But today, it was impossible to continue like this.

"It's about to begin," Zheng Fan said.

The princess tugged at Zheng Fan's sleeve.

The decision had actually been made long ago, but as the moment approached, it was still difficult to completely calm her mind.

She was, after all, just a girl.

But this man in front of her was, in some ways, very self-centered and chauvinistic; to be precise, he was very sensitive, and she couldn't confide in him.

However, despite this, she couldn't bring herself to blame, let alone hate, this man. She even had expectations for the future, because she knew that following him, her days would at least not be dull and uninteresting.

Until Zheng Boye walked out of the palace,

the princess didn't ask: Are you not afraid that I'll regret it?

Zheng Boye didn't say: You must not regret it.

The princess knew that asking such a question would be pointless. If she was going to regret it, there was no need to ask. If she wasn't going to regret it, what was the point of asking?

Zheng Boye had always been very clear about one principle:

If you want to act like a badass, you have to be prepared to take a big risk.

He also wanted to live a normal life, farming, raising soldiers, and then farming to raise more soldiers, but on the one hand, reality wouldn't allow him to lie low forever, and on the other hand, he would find it too dull.

People are like that.

After being stirred up for a long time, they want peace and quiet.

After being at peace for a long time, their hearts start to itch again.

Walking out of the palace and back to his own room, Zheng Fan found Chen Daxia sitting at his desk.

Chen Daxia looked up at Zheng Fan and said,

"Today will be very lively."

"Yeah."

"Congratulations."

"Congratulations on what?"

Chen Daxia said matter-of-factly, "Happy wedding."

"That works too?"

"Isn't it like that?"

"I guess it is. Oh, right, what about that Silver Armor Guard girl from last time?"

Last time, when they were searching for the Helian family treasure, besides Chen Daxia, there was also a Silver Armor Guard girl accompanying Yao Shi.

Zheng Fan remembered that Yao Shi seemed to want to match them up.

The Qian Kingdom's Silver Armor Guard had a tradition of finding wives, and besides, Yao Zizhan's reputation definitely had some sway.

But Chen Daxia just shook his head and said, "She wanted me to join the Silver Armor Guard, but I didn't want to. Later, Yao Shi asked for my opinion, and after he knew, the matter was dropped."

"There are plenty of fish in the sea. It's okay," Zheng Boye comforted.

Chen Daxia said, "I want to dedicate my life to this sword. I hope that one day, I can be on par with the Sword Saint.

The Sword Saint cleaved through thousands of riders in front of Xuehai Pass with one sword. I hope that I can do the same one day. Yao Shi says life is like a play. I think that if I can have that one scene, my life would be worth it."

"When you're blocking, check the enemy's insignia; don't run into me."

Chen Daxia looked at Zheng Fan and said, "If we're in the Qian territory, even if I run into you, I won't retreat."

"I will."

Chen Daxia opened his mouth, momentarily speechless.

Zheng Boye leaned against the desk, took a piece of mint candy from the iron box, and popped it into his mouth, chewing slowly.

"Are you lying to me?" Chen Daxia asked.

Zheng Boye smiled.

Chen Daxia added, "Even if you're lying to me, I'm still very touched."

"I'm not lying to you, Old Chen. I consider you a true friend. If there really is such a day, if you see the Yan army and it's my insignia,

just take your sword, leave the city, and come find me in my camp. You dare to do that, right?"

Chen Daxia nodded and said, "I dare."

"We can discuss it. If conditions permit, if it's not a city that absolutely has to be taken, I'll just go around it. If it's a city that absolutely has to be taken, I can guarantee that my soldiers won't commit atrocities, or I can leave a path open so that the people inside the city can leave safely.

If,

I'm saying if,

if it's the kind of place where you absolutely have to fight to the death, a place you definitely won't retreat from, we can have a couple of dishes and a pot of wine, eat and drink well, and then, the next day, I'll send you off on your way."

"Okay," Chen Daxia agreed.

"Also, there's one more thing I think I should tell you. You just said you're aiming to be the Sword Saint?"

"Yes."

"But the Sword Saint already has a wife, kids, and a warm bed."

"........." Chen Daxia.

...

The sky was still dark.

Three drum rolls suddenly sounded, and red lanterns were all hung up at this moment.

The gate of the inner courtyard was opened, and a group of makeup artists and titled women walked into the inner courtyard in neat rows.

The makeup artists were holding various kinds of makeup products. In reality, not many of them would be used, but there couldn't be any omissions. Everything had to be complete and varied.

The titled women were holding teacups, cushions, chopsticks, jade pendants, and other utensils.

These titled women were all ones whose husbands were still alive and had given birth to sons. They were considered lucky people, and only such people could be chosen to help the princess with her makeup.

Accompanying them were two rows of armored soldiers wearing red.

One row was the Imperial Guard, and the other was the Azure Luan Army.

The weapons they were holding were not bladed weapons, but ceremonial objects such as maces and golden pennants, highlighting the solemnity of the royal family and the Qu clan.

A red carpet was laid out from the inner courtyard gate all the way to the outside. At the same time, a group of servants placed long benches on the red carpet at regular intervals.

The door of the palace was pushed open, and the makeup artists and titled women filed in. The princess, dressed in white inner garments, sat properly on the edge of the bed.

"Greetings, Princess!"

"Greetings, Princess!"

The princess's gaze slowly swept across the group of women in front of her.

Finally,

she raised her hand

and said,

"Rise."

...

Zheng Boye was still in the inner courtyard, not having left.

The people of the Qu family wouldn't ask him to leave because they knew he was someone brought by the Regent.

Moreover, having a disciple of Yao Shi here to observe the entire wedding was also something that could add luster to the Qu family's face.

Although, that luster might be a little green.

Amidst an orderly bustle,

the sky

brightened.

On this side, the princess began her makeup preparations at dawn. On the other side, the Qu family's wedding procession had also set out before dawn.

Qu Peiluo rode a creature that looked like a rhinoceros. It was probably a demon beast, with a red silk cloth draped over its horns. He himself was dressed in festive bridal attire.

It had to be said that Qu Peiluo's face was really good-looking, and on this day, he really gave off a sense of a jade-like man and an unparalleled gentleman.

Around Qu Peiluo, a hundred and eight white horse riders followed, surrounding him.

The Chu region was also lacking in horses. The reason why the Azure Luan Army had been trapped to death in Jade Plate City was because it was an army mainly composed of infantry. Once they lost the support and response of the wild barbarian cavalry, they simply had no way to deal with the encirclement of the Yan cavalry legions.

So, gathering these hundred and eight white horses of superior coat color was indeed not easy, because these white horses had no other colors on them. The Qu clan must have prepared for this for a long time.

But all of this seemed to be worth it. The visual effect was indeed astonishing.

But now was not the time for the groom to enter the courtyard.

The decree-announcing eunuch took out the imperial edict and began to read it.

This imperial edict had actually arrived long ago. Even if the Regent hadn't come, the imperial edict would still be read at this time.

The edict first affirmed the Qu clan's outstanding contributions to the Great Chu as a pillar of the country's lineage. Then, it looked forward to the future. Finally, it stated the main point, offering blessings for the marriage in the Emperor's voice.

"Son-in-law, accept the decree."

"Your subject, Qu Peiluo, accepts the decree!"

After Qu Peiluo accepted the decree, the white horse riders around him all let out a low roar.

Immediately afterward,

a loud and melodious sound of horns rang out,

and a huge number of musicians began to play Chu melodies.

Among the four major countries, the one that preserved the customs of Great Xia the best was not the Qian Kingdom, which was built on the original territory of Great Xia, but the Chu Kingdom.

The Chu people were romantic by nature, pursuing freedom and unrestrainedness. Every year in the spring and summer, one could often see Chu men and women running barefoot by the small rivers, acting like heroic scholars.

But in terms of cultural customs, the Chu people were extremely retro, respecting ancient rituals as inviolable.

These two seemingly extreme and opposing elements appeared in the Chu people in an extremely harmonious way, coexisting and coexisting.

The music was very pleasant to the ear, with a sense of history and vicissitudes hidden within its grandeur.

Zheng Boye held a charcoal pencil, facing the drawing board, closed his eyes, and for a moment, he was immersed in the music.

It wasn't until the sound of firecrackers exploded outside that Zheng Fan was awakened and opened his eyes.

Chen Daxia stood beside Zheng Fan and said, "I feel like you're very intoxicated."

Zheng Fan nodded and said, "After I go back, I have to get Blind Zheng to organize a band too."

Actually, Blind Zheng already had this idea, because he liked to play the erhu in his free time. So whenever he finished his official duties, he liked to call a few people to play a joint performance.

Whenever he gave ideological education classes to the soldiers at night, there would also be artistic performances. Blind Zheng had already created the "Pingye Boye Battle Song."

"I don't understand poetry or music, but I know that they are beautiful," Chen Daxia said.

"Yeah, they are."

"May the son-in-law be blessed with happiness and prosperity!"

"May the son-in-law be blessed with happiness and prosperity!"

Qu Peiluo had entered. In the inner courtyard, all the armored soldiers knelt down, and the male and female servants also knelt down to pay their respects.

Following behind Qu Peiluo was a group of Qu clan members carrying baskets, starting to give out red envelopes, which were essentially change-of-address fees. Almost everyone got one.

Zheng Boye remembered that Xiao Liuzi had said in a letter last time that the wedding was like decorating a house.

If you want to make it more stylish, that's no problem, but if you spend enough money, then the style, no matter how low it is, can't be too low.

Even Zheng Fan received a red envelope.

However, Zheng Fan's red envelope was personally delivered by Qu Peiluo.

Zheng Boye reached out and took a small box, which was very heavy. If it was silver, it would be a little shabby, so it should be gold ingots.

Funny, wasn't it?

Qu Peiluo actually gave him gold.

But Zheng Boye still accepted it and congratulated him at the same time:

"May the son-in-law be blessed with happiness and prosperity."

"Thank you, Mr. Su."

Qu Peiluo should still be thinking about "Su Mingzhe" writing a poem for his wedding, so he gave a writing fee. But what he didn't know was that Zheng Boye was also thinking about something.

The door of the palace was closed.

A group of eunuchs stood on both sides, led by Grand Eunuch Sun, with Zhao Gonggong following behind Grand Eunuch Sun.

Grand Eunuch Sun was, after all, a eunuch who had come out of the palace, who had seen the world. Seeing Qu Peiluo approaching, he immediately shouted:

"Kneel!"

Qu Peiluo knelt on one knee.

Grand Eunuch Sun continued to shout loudly: "Pay respects."

Qu Peiluo responded: "Your subject pays respects to Princess Ming Ci. May the Princess be blessed with happiness and prosperity!"

Ming Ci was the Fourth Princess's title, meaning understanding and compassionate.

The boundaries between ruler and subject were the biggest gap.

Grand Eunuch Sun was trying to put on a show. Even if he was the son-in-law, before his wedding with the princess, he was still a subject of the imperial family, so he had to kneel and pay his respects.

There was no way there could be anything like a wedding night party or blocking the door at the wedding of an imperial family. But what Grand Eunuch Sun was doing now was actually the same as what many fathers-in-law did when sending their daughters to get married, to knock their sons-in-law into shape.

Grand Eunuch Sun turned his head and looked at Zhao Cheng.

Zhao Cheng immediately turned around, ran to the palace door, and reported: "Your Highness, General Huli is here."

"Crack..."

The palace door was slowly opened.

Princess Xiong Liqing, in full dress, was slowly walking out, supported and accompanied by people on both sides.

Without a red veil, she was wearing a phoenix crown, with pearls hanging down. Her beautiful eyes swept down, and a sense of imperial majesty poured out.

Huff...

Zheng Boye gently exhaled.

People depended on clothing, and horses depended on saddles. It was really true.

Today, the princess's attire

not only stunned the soon-to-be-son-in-law kneeling below,

but even Zheng Boye, the real son-in-law, was amazed.

When it came to beauties, some people liked Tofu Xishi, and others liked the lotus-picking girl in the lotus pond. Indeed, this kind of beauty emerging from the mud without being tainted could make people yearn for her, but coming from the common people, even if they were naturally beautiful, they couldn't support this kind of grand dress. Forcing them to wear it would seem a little awkward.

Xiong Liqing was the true princess of Great Chu, with the blood of the imperial family. She had been cherished as a treasure by the Chu Emperor since she was a child. After the Chu Emperor's death, her imperial brother, the Regent, had not allowed her to suffer any grievances.

She was always the noble one.

At this time, Zheng Boye truly realized that princess didn't just refer to a title, but also to her whole being.

When he went back, he had to make a few more sets of this kind of clothing.

After Grand Eunuch Sun saluted the princess, he turned around and looked at Qu Peiluo, who was still kneeling there. With a wave of his horsetail whisk, Zhao Gonggong personally carried a bowl of mugwort wine, walked over, and handed the wine bowl to Qu Peiluo.

Grand Eunuch Sun raised his voice and shouted:

"One bowl, to dispel disease and pain!"

This was a Chu custom, because the Chu sons had often needed to follow the emperor's call to enter the great marsh and fight with the Yue people, fighting for territory.

The ancestors of the Chu people believed that mugwort wine could drive away evil spirits and protect the body from miasma.

Qu Peiluo, kneeling on the ground, took the wine bowl and drank it all.

"One bowl, to bring happiness and health."

Zhao Gonggong brought the second bowl of wine, with red dates soaked in it, symbolizing happiness and health.

Qu Peiluo drank it again.

"One bowl, never to be separated!"

Zhao Gonggong brought the third bowl of wine, with a stone wrapped in a strand of hair soaked in it. When the ancestors of the Chu people went on expeditions, their wives would cut off a strand of their hair and tie it to a stone for their husbands to carry with them. The Chu people, who believed in witch culture, believed that if a person died in battle abroad, they could rely on this strand of hair to return their souls to their hometown.

Qu Peiluo drank it without hesitation.

After three bowls of wine, the process was completed. Grand Eunuch Sun shouted loudly:

"Qu's son, open your eyes wide and take a good look at who you are going to marry!"

Qu Peiluo straightened his body and looked at the princess standing in front of him, and said:

"Princess."

"The imperial daughter is marrying, Qu's son, how should you respond?"

As he spoke,

Zhao Gonggong brought out a statue of a wizard god and placed it in front of Qu Peiluo. This was to make Qu Peiluo swear an oath. The statue was not large, and Zhao Gonggong carried it without much effort.

"I will protect, respect, and treat her with courtesy. In this life, I only hope to grow old together!"

Grand Eunuch Sun nodded, his expression still stern. He turned around and faced the princess

and said:

"Please, Your Highness, indicate. Inside the threshold is the royal family, and outside the threshold is the Qu family."

This was to let the princess choose herself.

This was the wedding etiquette. In fact, it had all been arranged long ago whether she would marry or not. After all, there couldn't be anything like a princess of the imperial family adding the bridal carriage fee or the bride price temporarily when getting on or off the carriage.

Zheng Boye watched the whole thing with great interest. Zheng Boye had not been able to make it to Xiao Liuzi's wedding, so he had not seen it. This time, it was the first time he had officially attended a wedding in this world.

It gave him the feeling of watching a local folk performance while traveling in his previous life.

However, you had to pay to watch it in your previous life, but you could receive a box of gold ingots this life.

This way of asking back and forth did not make people feel cumbersome, after all, even the weddings in the West in later generations still had to ask: Are you willing to not abandon, no matter poverty, sickness, or hardship?

The wedding was actually all about the sense of ritual. If it was like the barbarians, who would directly rush in with a group of people and grab the woman and take her back to the kang, how monotonous and boring would that be?

Um,

wait a minute,

Zheng Boye frowned slightly,

why did he have the feeling that he was scolding himself?

The princess raised her foot and stepped out of the palace threshold.

Grand Eunuch Sun's face immediately showed a flattering smile. He ran down in a hurry, took the initiative to help Qu Peiluo up, and said:

"Congratulations, son-in-law."

Qu Peiluo immediately took out a jade pendant from his arms and handed it to Grand Eunuch Sun at the same time as he stood up. The smile on Grand Eunuch Sun's face became even brighter.

The princess stepped out of the door. Next, she was immediately protected by a group of noble ladies. Just like when Qu Peiluo had led a group of white horse attendants over earlier, the princess would also be surrounded and walked out.

At this time, Qu Peiluo could not walk in front, he still had to follow behind.

This was the rule, because he was marrying the daughter of the imperial family.

The princess had left the inner courtyard. Zheng Boye was also putting away his drawing board at this time, preparing to follow.

When Qu Peiluo saw Zheng Boye coming over with the drawing board, he leaned over curiously and found that what Zheng Boye had drawn on the drawing board was actually himself, but it was not drawn with a brush, but it was particularly realistic and lifelike.

"Mr. Su's method of painting is from the West?"

As the direct descendant of the Qu family, his knowledge would naturally not be bad.

Zheng Boye nodded and said: "Yes."

"It is really excellent."

"Please allow the son-in-law to allow me to follow on the left and right. Su is planning to draw a few more pictures and finally put together a picture of the son-in-law's wedding."

"Thank you, Mr. Su."

How could Qu Peiluo not want to? He hurriedly gestured to the people around him to help with the drawing board and arranged for Zheng Fan to follow the team.

After the princess walked out of the inner courtyard,

rows and rows of people were kneeling on the ground, representing the various families in the Qu family's fiefdom. They had all sent representatives to congratulate the main family on this wedding.

Even people from the Nian Yao Mansion were sent to celebrate. The originally extremely wide outer courtyard was crowded with people. Every time the princess advanced, the people on both sides would kneel down, and Grand Eunuch Sun would start to announce their families.

Moreover, not all families were qualified to announce their families. Even the Fan family, who had contributed a lot to this wedding, was named Fan family, Tian family, etc. when the registration was finally made.

The princess stepped on the long bench, and under the long bench was the red carpet, walking from a high position in front of the people kneeling on both sides.

The strict hierarchy of Great Chu could be clearly felt here. In comparison, the atmosphere in the Yan country was more open, and more emphasis was placed on "rejoicing with the people." Regardless of whether they agreed with it in their hearts, everyone was willing to do so on the surface.

Zheng Boye followed behind, adding a few strokes to the drawing board from time to time, but his eyes were mostly on the princess's back.

People all had such a personality, that is, they would feel that the food they had fought for would taste more delicious. In the atmosphere of this wedding, Zheng Boye suddenly felt that his mentality had also changed.

This was not a moral flaw, it could only be said that human nature was like this. Zheng Boye knew that he could not avoid being worldly, and he never wanted to be a saint.

One thing that Zheng Boye felt very fortunate about was that the princess's shoes were not flowerpot bottoms, so she was still very stable when walking on the long bench.

Continuing forward,

out of the yard, but not out of the royal villa, because the scope of the villa was very large, it could only be regarded as leaving the building area.

A magnificent and exquisite huge carriage decorated in a festive manner was parked there.

The long bench for the last section of the road was carved from gold, silver, and jade. Zheng Boye did not pay attention to it at first, and only after he paid attention to it did he specially turn back to count how many there were.

He was thinking in his heart that if he did not rob the princess, he could steal these benches back and use them to support a lot more soldiers.

Zhao Gonggong walked to the front, bowed, raised his hand, and asked the princess to put her hand on the back of his hand, supporting her to come down from the last silver bench. Finally, the princess slowly walked onto the carriage.

The carriage was very large, more like the mobile palace used by the emperor on inspection tours. The front was very wide, and the back was a structure similar to a house.

In the Chu country, ordinary people, even nobles, were not allowed to build this kind of traveling station, but the princess was an exception. She could use this system.

The princess stood there, with two maids supporting her.

Sun Gonggong and Zhao Cheng led a dozen eunuchs into the back to check the arrangement, and at the same time, they needed to add new things. This was the princess's traveling station for her wedding. The interior and interior objects had to be prepared now and could not be prepared in advance, otherwise it would seem that the princess was eager to marry and lose the face of the royal family.

Earlier, inside, the families in the Qu family's fiefdom kowtowed to celebrate. At this time, here, the princess would accept those who were sent by the great nobles and the families of the important officials in the court to celebrate.

Earlier, those inside were family slaves. The princess even disdained to be on the same side as them. She needed to step over the long benches. The reason why the people sent by the Nian Yao family were also inside was because even if Nian Yao was now a general, he was originally a family slave from the Regent's former residence. Therefore, he was still the Regent's family slave, and the people sent by his family naturally had to kneel inside.

Now,

the princess stood at the front end of the traveling station,

and the people who were sent by each family to celebrate were coming over to sing the gifts, basically the younger generation of the family came as representatives;

the princess would slightly bless and call out "Ask Uncle and Uncle well" in response.

The process was very long, but there could be no slackness. This was etiquette;

at the same time, this was a political marriage in itself, and its process was the essence of this marriage, so how could it be omitted?

In fact, when the Chu people get married, the male relatives and friends usually wait in the man's house, and the female relatives and friends wait in the woman's house to pick up the relatives. This is called mutually suppressing the venue, and the two families mutually show their backgrounds.

But here in the Qu family, not only the families in the Qu family's fiefdom, but also other great noble representatives who had a good relationship with the Qu family, or the prominent officials who were in the same court as the Qu family, were gathered here in the royal villa.

This was also a matter of course. Who would dare to go against the imperial family? They must have all run here to help the princess suppress the venue. Even the Qu family themselves did not dare to have any different ideas.

Over there,

the princess was standing on the traveling station and still receiving the audience from one representative after another,

over here,

According to custom, the Qu family needed to arrange for "literati, military, wizard, and noble" to enter the traveling station first to suppress the carriage. In the folk, it was called pressing the sedan.

Of course, it was not the kind that let you enter and follow the traveling station together, but to let you go through the motions, go in and drink a cup of tea, and then come out.

Because in the Chu people's customs, on the day of great joy, it was easy to encounter evil spirits, and the wedding sedan was especially so. Those lonely ghosts could not stand to see the joy of the human world, and would inevitably come over to take revenge. Therefore, it was necessary to use the breath of "literati, military, wizard, and noble" to suppress it.

In the folk, for the literati and military, the literati might be the more literate people in the local area, and for the military, if they could not find a military officer, a butcher could also replace them. For the wizard, basically every village in the Chu country had a wizard, who would preside over sacrifices during festivals and usually help with seeing doctors. For the noble, it was the person in the village that everyone felt had the most noble status, or it could be the person with the best luck.

After Sun Gonggong and Zhao Cheng led a group of eunuchs to arrange things in the traveling station, Sun Gonggong came out and waved his horsetail whisk, without shouting, just gestured for people to come up to suppress the carriage.

The reason for not shouting was that it was not convenient to shout out about this kind of thing that suppressed evil spirits, because it was easy to encounter bad luck. Secondly, the princess was still receiving the audience from waves of great noble representatives.

At the same time, under Sun Gonggong's instructions, the process of suppressing the carriage began. First to come over was a group of wizards wearing black robes, with oil paint on their faces, holding long flags.

There were about two hundred people. They surrounded the traveling station and began to perform a prayer ceremony.

This kind of outfit actually originated from the Chu people's absorption of the sacrificial culture of the Shan Yue after they entered the Chu land. Of course, it was not to the point of jumping around and being ghostly. The praying wizards were just holding the long flags and moving very slowly. This was to warn the evil spirits on the road not to invade here, and at the same time, to send blessings to the newlyweds.

The first to go up was an old wizard leader. This wizard leader had actually retired. He had worked in Yingdu, but he was the kind who presided over sacrifices. If you subdivided the huge occupation of wizard leader, he would be a clerical one.

The old wizard leader, leaning on a cane, walked up the traveling station from behind with the support of two Qu family members, and walked in under the reception of Sun Gonggong.

After half a quarter of