Chapter 327: Grand Wedding
From the middle of the night, Xingnong had been subjected to face-shaping, bathing, and dressing, and by the time she put on the heavy, complicated, and gorgeous wedding dress, nearly three hours had passed!
The sky was already slightly bright!
Xingnong was tortured by the numerous ritual officials to the point where she had no temper left! Except for her makeup, where she firmly refused to let them paint her face like a red apple, everything else was done according to their instructions!
During the bath, she felt like a layer of skin had been scrubbed off her body!
When getting dressed, she had to put on layer after layer, it felt thicker than wrapping herself in a quilt!
Also, with the dazzling phoenix crown on her head, plus the heavy ceremonial robes and various jewelry, her entire weight had definitely increased by nearly fifty jin!
Fifty jin was no exaggeration.
Xingnong heard that the phoenix crown on her head alone was made of ten jin of pure gold, and then the pearls hanging down on both sides weighed four or five jin. Adding the gemstones inlaid on the phoenix wings, which weighed about five jin, the phoenix crown alone was already twenty jin.
Then the gold lock on her neck, the dragon and phoenix gemstone bracelets on her arms, and so on, added up to more than ten jin.
And then this wedding dress had a very long train, a full three meters, and the sleeves were also long. Because it was already autumn and the weather would be cooler in the mornings and evenings, the fabric used for the wedding dress was not as light and thin as the summer fabrics, but rather thicker and of good quality. The entire wedding dress weighed more than ten jin, for the intricately embroidered auspicious patterns on the waistband alone weighed more than a jin.
Only the silk veil draped around her arms was made of light gauze and had no weight.
Even though Xingnong was as strong as an ox, with all this on her body, she still felt heavy!
“Wearing this phoenix crown on my head feels like Mount Tai pressing down! Take it off first and put it on later.” Xingnong said as she reached to remove the phoenix crown from her head.
She didn’t want to suffer this.
Nanny Fu was so frightened that she quickly stopped her: “Princess, once the phoenix crown is put on, it cannot be taken off, this is not auspicious! Moreover, the auspicious time is approaching, please bear with it a little longer, Princess!”
Shen Ruoxi, supported by the Jin Kingdom Emperor, walked in. She happened to hear Xingnong’s words and hurriedly said: “Nanny is right, Tiankuo has already entered the palace gate, please bear with it a little longer.”
The wedding procession had already arrived at the palace gate. Although Shen Ruoxi was pregnant and should not overexert herself, it was impossible for her not to attend her own daughter’s wedding. And the Jin Kingdom Emperor should not have been in his daughter’s courtyard at this time, but Shen Ruoxi wanted to come and see if Xingnong was ready. Because it was dark, he was not at ease with the palace maids escorting Shen Ruoxi over, so he personally accompanied her and would escort Xingnong to the main hall for the Heaven Worship Ceremony.
At this moment, he saw the phoenix crown on Xingnong’s head and also felt it was heavy. He regretted having it made so extravagant. He had only thought of his princess, the phoenix crown should naturally be the most dignified and luxurious in the world, so he ordered the Bureau of Imperial Clothing to make the phoenix crown, wedding dress, and all the accessories Xingnong would wear for her wedding the most precious! It had to be the most magnificent in the world, unparalleled!
But he had overlooked how tiring it would be to have something so heavy pressing down on her head!
The journey to Chu Kingdom was long and arduous, and with this phoenix crown, the Jin Kingdom Emperor felt a little distressed for Xingnong: “You don’t have to wear this all the time on the road, just do what’s comfortable. If the ritual officials in Chu Kingdom say it’s not in accordance with etiquette, you just say it’s my imperial decree!”
Although it was not in accordance with etiquette, compared to following etiquette, Xingnong’s neck was naturally more important!
The etiquette momo in the palace couldn’t help but think: His Majesty truly dotes on the Princess! Generally speaking, princesses who go to marry into other countries must strictly abide by the rules and not make any mistakes along the way, lest they lose face for Jin Kingdom. But he is allowing the Princess to do whatever is comfortable.
But then again, this is also because their Jin Kingdom has the confidence to do so!
Since the Princess is marrying into Chu Kingdom, she can naturally do whatever is comfortable!
Xingnong had never intended to wear this all the way! Nor had she thought about wearing this cumbersome wedding dress throughout the journey.
It wasn’t worth it to exhaust herself for the sake of some empty formalities!
She nodded: “I know. Why are Father Emperor and Mother Empress here?”
The Jin Kingdom Emperor smiled: “The auspicious time is approaching, Father Emperor and Mother Empress are here to accompany you to the main hall for the Heaven Worship Ceremony. Let’s go! Your imperial brother and the others are already waiting outside.”
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Upon hearing this, the maids immediately sprang into action!
Some rushed to help Xingnong, others lifted her dress train,
~
As dawn broke, the vast square was packed with people. Chu Tiankuo, dressed in a bright red groom’s attire, stood tall and handsome at one end of the red carpet, gazing at the woman who was slowly walking towards him, her lotus steps like blooming flowers, escorted and surrounded by her brother.
Today, she wore a large red wedding dress embroidered with gold thread depicting dragons and phoenixes presenting auspiciousness. The phoenix crown on her head, with its pearls, kingfisher feathers, flowers, and gemstones, swayed gracefully, sparkling brilliantly, making her beautiful and refined face even more dignified and noble.
Chu Tiankuo gazed at her, the corners of his mouth slightly raised, his eyes gentle. He slowly extended a hand…
The Jin Kingdom Crown Prince personally placed Xingnong’s hand into Chu Tiankuo’s, giving him a deep look.
Chu Tiankuo didn’t look at him. He looked at Xingnong with a tender expression, tightly holding her hand. The two gazed at each other: “We swear to be together in life and death, to hold each other’s hands, and to grow old together.”
The two looked at each other, then simultaneously averted their gazes, turning around, their fingers intertwined, slowly walking into the main hall.
A princess getting married, and marrying into another country, was naturally different from an ordinary commoner’s wedding.
Furthermore, because Chu Tiankuo knew that Shen Ruoxi was pregnant and could not return to Chu Kingdom, he proposed to the Jin Kingdom Emperor to hold a wedding ceremony in Jin Kingdom. After the three-day return visit, they would depart for Chu Kingdom and hold another ceremony upon their arrival.
The Jin Kingdom Emperor was very pleased to see him so thoughtful and naturally agreed!
Therefore, this wedding was extremely grand and magnificent!
Every step had several or even a dozen rituals.
The two paid respects to their parents, worshipped their ancestors, and also had to worship Heaven and Earth, accept the congratulations of the court officials, and according to custom, a princess marrying into another country should also be seen off by the people.
Except for the farewell by the people, after completing the above rituals, it was already dusk.
As the sun set, a rosewood carriage carved with hundreds of birds paying homage to the phoenix, escorted by thousands of Imperial Guards and Imperial Bodyguards, drove out of the palace gate. Countless people knelt on Luming Street, chanting in unison: “Farewell, Princess! Congratulations on your wedding! May you have a happy marriage and grow old together!”
“Farewell, Princess! Congratulations on your wedding, may you have a harmonious union, grow old together, and have many children!”
The congratulatory voices, one louder than the next, reached Xingnong through the lifted curtain. She saw the vast crowd of people kneeling on the street and thought of the countless wedding gifts they had sent. At this moment, she couldn’t help but feel a surge of emotion. It was a pity that her time in Jin Kingdom was too short, and there was not much she could do! In the future, she would try her best to cultivate more grain varieties to repay their sincerity.
