As the sun gradually moved west, Xu Qi’an wore the official robes of an imperial son-in-law and waited at the mansion gates with his second uncle and several family servants to receive the guests attending the banquet.
Very soon, he spotted a group of familiar faces, Magistrate Zhu of Changle County Office, Clerk Li, Constable Wang, and the others.
In an instant, memories of his first days in the Great Feng flashed through Xu Qi’an’s mind. Constable Wang and Clerk Li had been the ones who first introduced him to the songs and performances of the goulan. During that period, Old Wang and Old Li had lost a cash of silver every day…
“This humble official Zhu Ming greets Silver Gong Xu.”
Magistrate Zhu hurried forwards and bowed deeply with cupped hands.
Constable Wang and the others saluted stiffly.
Xu Qi’an went up to them with a broad smile.
“Why are you still at Changle County Office? Old Zhu, the court has nurtured its officials for a hundred years so that you may devote yourselves utterly to the state. You mustn’t slack off.”
Magistrate Zhu was overjoyed. Suppressing the delight in his heart, he bowed and said,
“Silver Gong Xu’s lesson is well taken.”
After chatting for a few moments, Magistrate Zhu led Constable Wang and the others into the mansion behind the Xu family’s servants.
Old Zhu’s steps were almost floating. He had toiled conscientiously in Changle County for many years, never seeing any hope of promotion. What Silver Gong Xu had just said was clearly meant to give him a helping hand.
After seeing off the Changle County group, it wasn’t long before Xu Qi’an welcomed the second batch of guests. A grand and luxurious carriage stopped by the street. The coachman brought over a small stool, and three people alighted one after another, Wang Simu and the two young masters of the Wang household.
“Our father is unwell and unable to travel, so the three of us have come to offer congratulations on Silver Gong Xu’s wedding,” Wang Simu said, giving a bow to uncle and nephew.
“We’re family now, just call me big brother, no need to be formal. This way, please.” Xu Qi’an warmly led Wang Simu inside, smiles all over his face. “Later, I’ll arrange a special seat for you. Don’t refuse.”
Wang Simu wore a smile, but her heart sank for no reason at all. She felt that Silver Gong Xu’s smile carried a hint of unsettling strangeness.
He had just asked a servant to lead Wang Simu and her two elder brothers into the manor when he turned and saw his second uncle going up to greet the third batch of guests.
They were the sect masters and gang leaders of the Wulin Alliance. Among them, Xiao Yuenu, with her gauze veil and fluttering skirts, was the most eye-catching. Even without seeing her face, her bearing and figure alone were already exceptional.
After receiving the invitation, they had arrived in the capital several days early and had been staying at the official courier station.
These sect masters and gang leaders all now held official titles. Though they were empty posts without real power, having an official position on the surface made things much more convenient wherever they went, and allowed them to stay in the courier station.
“Senior Kou didn’t come?”
Though Xu Qi’an had expected it, he still put on a displeased expression.
“Senior Kou has gone into secluded cultivation and entrusted us to come and offer congratulations to Silver Gong Xu,” Xiao Yuenu said softly.
Xu Qi’an glanced at her, then nodded.
“This way, everyone.”
He said no more and let the servants lead the people of the Wulin Alliance inside, because he had already seen Song Qing and Chu Caiwei of the Sitianjian, along with Yang Qianhuan, who had his back to the Xu residence and was using short-range teleportation instead of walking.
After all, facing away from all living beings looked imposing, but if he actually walked backwards, it would only be ridiculous and utterly ruin the image.
“Senior Brother Song, Senior Brother Yang, Caiwei, you’ve come!”
Xu Qi’an’s face was full of smiles as he greeted them enthusiastically.
Chu Caiwei kept peering inside and said in a sweet voice,
“Has the banquet started yet?”
Song Qing smiled.
“Junior Sister Caiwei has been hungry since last night.”
Unbelievable, exactly the same as Lina and Lingyin. Did the three of you plan this together? Xu Qi’an smiled and said,
“Wait till sunset, wait till sunset.”
Song Qing said in a deep voice,
“Why won’t Young Master Xu let me give a present for your wedding?”
Would I dare accept anything you give? It’ll either be some bizarre alchemical creation or a life-sized doll… Xu Qi’an was full of inward complaints, but he said with a smile,
“With the friendship between us, Senior Brother Song needn’t stand on ceremony.”
At last it was Yang Qianhuan’s turn. He cleared his throat and began to recite,
“Clutching the moon with stars in hand, there are…”
Before he finished, Xu Qi’an cut him off.
“Senior Brother Song, Junior Sister Caiwei, come on in, come on in. Senior Sister Zhong is waiting for you inside. Eh? Isn’t this Senior Brother Yang? Why are you still standing there?”
You bastard, old grudges and new, I’ll settle them all with you today. Just you wait… Yang Qianhuan swore silently. A flicker of clear light flashed around him as he followed Song Qing and Chu Caiwei into the residence.
After sending off the disciples of the Jianzheng, Xu Qi’an looked towards the far end of the long street. His expression stiffened for a moment, then he slowly let out a breath and went up to meet them.
“Miaozhen, Holy Son, welcome, welcome.”
Li Miaozhen carried a sword on her back and wore Daoist robes, her face expressionless.
The Holy Son went up to him all smiles, first offering congratulations in rapid succession, then turning to rebuke Li Miaozhen.
“Junior Sister, who are you pulling that sour face for? Isn’t Silver Gong Xu’s wedding a joyous occasion beyond compare? Aren’t Silver Gong Xu and Her Highness Lin’an a match made in heaven? Silver Gong Xu just saved your life, and you’re still pulling a long face. You’re really too inconsiderate.”
Li Miaozhen glanced at Xu Qi’an and said with a smile,
“Congratulations to Silver Gong Xu on winning a princess’s hand!”
She rarely smiled without warmth.
Li Lingsu said solemnly,
“When we make a racket in the bridal chamber later, Junior Sister had better show some restraint.”
Just as I thought, Li Lingsu and Yang Qianhuan really are harbouring wicked ideas… Xu Qi’an sneered inwardly and sent the senior brother and junior sister into the residence.
Batch after batch of guests arrived, and night slowly spread its curtain.
When the lanterns first came alight, he finally saw Wei Yuan’s carriage slowly approaching. The one driving it was the refined and feminine Nangong. Gold Gongs Jiang Lyuzhong and Zhang Kaitai rode on horseback at either side, and behind them came the Silver Gongs and Bronze Gongs.
Xu Qi’an drew a breath and went forward of his own accord.
Nangong Qianrou stopped the carriage by the roadside, and when he saw Xu Qi’an approaching, he instinctively moved aside.
He could no longer afford to offend this man.
Xu Qi’an set down the stool, opened the carriage door, and helped Wei Yuan down, smiling as he said,
“Duke Wei, this subordinate has been waiting for you for a long time.”
Wei Yuan seldom attended weddings or funerals, but he was certain to come for Xu Qi’an’s wedding.
After getting down from the carriage, Wei Yuan turned and glanced at the compartment behind him.
From inside, a face as cool and beautiful as a painting emerged. She was dressed in men’s clothing and wore no powder or paint, but that did nothing to diminish her beauty. If anything, it added a touch of androgynous charm.
Since ancient times, beautiful women in men’s clothes had always carried a captivating allure.
Xu Qi’an’s face slowly stiffened. “Your Majesty?”
He thought to himself, you’re the Son of Heaven, why aren’t you staying in the palace? What wedding are you here to attend?
This simply isn’t proper!
Huaiqing said coolly,
“Lin’an is a younger sister dearly cherished by us. On the day of her wedding, we came for a cup of celebratory wine. Silver Gong Xu, you don’t seem willing?”
So she came in the end. No escaping this… Xu Qi’an forced a smile.
“Most welcome!”
Wei Yuan patted him on the shoulder and said slowly,
“At the banquet, I want to sit near Her Majesty.”
Xu Qi’an first nodded, then asked,
“Why is that?”
With a warm smile, Wei Yuan silently mouthed three words before sweeping his sleeves and walking into the residence.
Watch the show!
…
Xu Qi’an suddenly no longer wanted to escort him in, so he let his second uncle do it instead.
A little later, Daoist Jinlian arrived belatedly with the members of the Heaven and Earth Society.
The first thing Chu Yuanzhen said on seeing Xu Qi’an was,
“I want to sit with Number One and Number Two.”
You’re here to watch the show too, aren’t you… Xu Qi’an cursed him out inwardly, while keeping an elegant and courteous smile on his face as he ushered the members of the Heaven and Earth Society inside.
Next came Zhao Shou with the four great scholars of Cloud Deer Academy.
Xu Qi’an looked Yang Gong over and smiled knowingly.
“Congratulations, teacher, on advancing to beyond-mortal.”
…
Xu Manor had four courtyards and three halls. Seats were arranged in different places according to status, office, and so forth.
The Xu clan, for example, were arranged in the hall between the inner and outer courtyards, while the people from Changle County, along with officials of lower rank, were arranged in the outer courtyard.
Those of sixth rank and above were arranged in the east courtyard of the inner residence, while the Bronze Gongs and Silver Gongs of the Nightwatchers were arranged in the west courtyard next to the people of the Wulin Alliance.
As for Xu Qi’an’s close friends and family, they sat in the central inner hall.
There were five tables in the inner hall.
At one table sat Wei Yuan, Nangong Qianrou, Jiang Lyuzhong, and the other Gold Gongs. Song Tingfeng and Zhu Guangxiao, because of their close friendship with Xu Qi’an, were exceptionally allowed to sit with the Gold Gongs.
As for Li Yuchun, for the sake of his physical and mental wellbeing, Xu Qi’an had sent him off to sit in the west courtyard with the other Silver Gongs and Bronze Gongs.
At one table sat the Xu family, Second Uncle, Auntie, Ji Baiqing, Xu Yuanshuang and her brother, and the sisters Xu Lingyue and Lingyin.
At one table sat the four great scholars of Cloud Deer Academy, Zhao Shou, Xu Erlang, and also Song Qing and Yang Qianhuan.
At one table sat Daoist Jinlian, al-Asura, Master Hengyuan, Chu Yuanzhen, Miao Youfang, Li Lingsu, and Lina’s elder brother, Mosang.
It was worth mentioning that after the war, Mosang had been granted an official post by the court. He did not wish to return to the Southern Marches and was currently serving in the Imperial Guard.
The last table was the remarkable one, Huaiqing, Zhong Li, Li Miaozhen, Mu Nanzhi, Lina, Chu Caiwei, and Wang Simu.
Wang Simu looked left and right, feeling utterly out of place among these women.
Li Lingsu was laughing himself mad inside. He thought to himself: that bastard Xu Ningyan has actually seated me together with these women. Does he think his life isn’t dangerous enough already?
He had originally thought Xu Ningyan would banish him and Brother Yang to some secluded corner. He had even prepared himself to shamelessly worm his way into the “main venue”.
How could the Holy Son miss such a fine opportunity? One of life’s greatest pleasures was to sit together with your enemy’s confidantes at his wedding, then fan the flames.
The atmosphere in the hall was somewhat strange.
Xu Erlang sent a voice transmission in questioning tones:
“Big Brother, why have you seated Simu beside my sisters-in-law?”
“You always need someone clever nearby to smooth things over,” Xu Qi’an replied.
“Father, why do I feel the atmosphere is a bit off?”
Nangong Qianrou swept a glance over the women at that table, then over the other tables. He noticed that Li Lingsu, Chu Yuanzhen, Xu Erlang, Miao Youfang, and the others would occasionally steal glances at that table, with furtive anticipation hidden in their eyes.
Wei Yuan just smiled.
“Second Brother, what’s going on with those girls?”
Ji Baiqing had sharp eyes. Just from seeing the blank expressions on the faces of the women at that table, she knew something was wrong.
Well, not all of them were expressionless. The little girl from the Southern Marches and the girl in yellow were both eating in great sweeping mouthfuls, their mouths full of oil.
Besides, she was puzzled as to why Mu Nanzhi was sitting over there too.
Shouldn’t that sworn elder sister of Xiaoru be sitting at their table?
Second Uncle Xu thought for a while, then sent back a voice transmission:
“Well, this, well…
“Several of them are quite close to Ningyan. Mm, including Her Majesty.”
Ji Baiqing understood at once.
The great scholars of Cloud Deer Academy were the most normal. They drank and ate as they pleased.
“Eh, there are still two empty seats.”
Li Lingsu looked at the two empty places beside Li Miaozhen and said with a smile, “Ningyan, whose seats are these two?”
As the groom, Xu Qi’an was at that moment sitting beside Wei Yuan. Hearing this, he replied,
“Oh, they’re for the National Teacher. She ought to be here soon enough.”
As he spoke, a streak of golden light descended from the sky and drifted into the inner hall, transforming into Luo Yuheng.
Pure and stunning, like a heavenly immortal.
Huaiqing, Li Miaozhen, Xu Lingyue, Zhong Li, and the others merely cast a glance at the Earthly Immortal and said nothing.
The smile on Li Lingsu’s face widened uncontrollably. More enthusiastic than the groom himself, he hurried to his feet, his grin stretching to his ears.
“National Teacher, come, come and sit!”
After Luo Yuheng took her seat, she glanced at Xu Qi’an and said nothing.
Seeing that everyone had arrived, Li Lingsu cleared his throat.
At another table, Yang Qianhuan received the signal to charge into battle and exclaimed loudly,
“Ningyan was a dashing youth, handsome and graceful. Now that he’s married Lin’an, who knows how many bitter women will secretly shed tears in heartbreak. Pitiful, pitiful!”
After Yang Qianhuan, who opened the attack, finished speaking, Li Lingsu, who followed with the killing blow, set down his wine cup and retorted,
“Brother Yang, what are you saying?
“Ningyan is utterly devoted to Her Highness Lin’an, constant and faithful in his love. If other women cry, then let them cry. What has that to do with Ningyan? They’re just common tarts dreaming of marrying above themselves.”
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