Lanzhi's elder-like tolerance gave the child a place to vent and find refuge from the storm, while her strict teaching taught him the hope of survival. His words just now made her look at him with new respect.
Yes, what they need to do is not just stay in Tianjing and maintain their own little territory, but also expand outwards to conquer.
Si Xitong raised her hand and handed him a handkerchief.
Si Xinian picked up a handkerchief to wipe his eyes, which were still red. But the next moment, he gripped the handkerchief tightly, his eyes becoming even more determined.
"Sister, I will not let you down this time."
Si Xitong felt that these were words she should have said herself. She wouldn't let Lanzhi or her younger brother down either.
After a long period of commotion outside, the master of ceremonies and Xie's eight-bearer sedan chair were finally carried by Xie Xia and seven other Xie generals.
Eight generals carried the sedan chair. Each of them was the leader of ten thousand men in the army. These eight generals, who held the power of life and death, all bowed and respectfully invited Si Xitong: "General Xie, Left."
"Lieutenant General!"
"General Protector-General!"
"The General Who Protects the Capital!"
"Lieutenant General of the Left Capital Guard!"
"Right Capital Guard Lieutenant General!"
"General of the Valiant Cavalry!"
"Sima Zhongqianwei!"
"Welcome—the Grand Princess of the Great Jin Dynasty, Madam Xie, to your wedding sedan chair!"
Hearing a deafening roar of drums and gongs outside, Si Xitong immediately bent down, put his hands behind his back, and carried his sister in a grand manner to the bridal sedan chair on this joyous day. His face beamed with smiles: "Royal Sister! Your subject wishes you and your husband a long and happy life together, and a lifelong bond of love."
Si Xitong rose from behind the dressing mirror. Supported by two old women, she leaned against her younger brother's not-so-broad back, but he easily lifted her up. As he took a step, the master of ceremonies sang a wedding song to congratulate the newlyweds.
Every step Si Xinian took out of Lanzhang Palace, every step he descended, was the focus of everyone's attention. The wedding party's eyes were all on the Tian family siblings.
Regardless of differing opinions, today everyone is committed to upholding the intermarriage between the two clans. This is a milestone symbolizing the prosperity of both the Xie and Si clans.
Once the Xie clan and the Si clan form a marriage alliance, the barriers between the two clans will be broken down, and the Xie and Si clans, as the two major clans of Tianjing, will inevitably merge.
This wedding banquet was not only a joyous occasion for Princess Xie and Prince Fengning, but also for the Xie and Si families.
Everyone waited with joy for the bride to get into the sedan chair.
Si Xitong felt her younger brother's shoulders trembling, and she was afraid he was about to become sentimental again. How come she had never noticed that her brother was so melancholy before?
She whispered to stop her brother's tears: "Shangguang is in the wedding procession. If he sees you like this, what will happen?"
Si Xinian's shoulders immediately stopped trembling, and he held back his tears. For him, being mocked by an idiot was worse than death. Knowing Xie Shangguang's personality, he might bring this up for the rest of his life. He couldn't let his guard down even on his sister's wedding day.
Because he was not only his sister's brother, but also a representative of the younger generation of the Si family, while Xie Shangguang represented the younger generation of the Xie family. Their victory or defeat represented their respective surnames. Moreover, their mutual animosity was already destined.
As Si Xinian walked to the magnificent and festive sedan chair, he stopped. General Xie Xia immediately lowered the front of the sedan chair and lowered the poles, allowing Si Xinian to carry the bride inside. Then, Xie's wife and her maids helped the bride down from the sedan chair. During this process, the bride's feet could not touch the ground at all.
"Lift the sedan chair!"
People kept reporting to Xie Lanzhi from the Golden Palace where the eight-bearer wedding sedan chair was.
As the eldest daughter of the emperor was marrying, and being the ruler herself, she had to pass through the Emperor's Gate. The Xie and Si families had discussed the matter and reached a high degree of consensus to facilitate the marriage. Most of the officials in the capital were aligned with Feng Ning, though they didn't outwardly show it, they secretly regarded His Highness as the ruler representing the Great Jin Dynasty.
The fourth prince is useless and too reckless; he is completely unsuitable to be a ruler. They can only rely on this new ruler to save the last vestiges of the Great Jin Dynasty.
Everyone has different thoughts and purposes, but they all highly agree on the formal marriage.
The people of Tianjing set up feasts in the streets and alleys. The grain and meat were provided by the government and the Xie family. For seven days and seven nights, many people had not tasted meat all year round. Now that they were about to eat meat and rice for seven days and seven nights, many people, driven by their appetites, would say a few good words about the rulers.
Moreover, Princess Fengning and Marshal Xie are deeply in love; they are a match made in heaven. Perhaps the Marshal was born into the wrong family when he descended to earth, but fate has decreed it, and it cannot be wrong. Surprisingly, the common people reacted harmoniously to the marriage of a woman from a ruling family. The old-fashioned scholars only wrote poems to congratulate them, seemingly offering exceptional praise to Lord Xie and Princess Fengning.
In this chaotic world, we must consider hard work regardless of merit. The situation is already turbulent. If it weren't for Marshal Xie's army stationed in Tianjing and Marshal Xie's pacification of Tianjing and the various Jin states, how could the south have developed so quickly and peacefully?
With the south stabilized, much of the chaos of the past era had been quelled. However, the northern Xiongnu should not be underestimated. To everyone, the Xiongnu were foreigners; they had wreaked havoc on the Central Plains a century ago, and this hatred between the people and the nation continues to this day.
Yet, no country could contend with the Xiongnu. In the south, only one Lord Xie emerged every hundred years! And only Lord Xie was able to contend with the Xiongnu.
Scholars always have a strong sense of righteousness. If it means sacrificing their own families for the greater good, even at the cost of their lives, anyone would choose to support their current master! The people of the Central Plains would rather be without a master than serve a brutal barbarian. Now that the Central Plains has a master, the people of the Central Plains will naturally serve their new master and lead everyone to drive out the foreign tribes.
For example, in the recent Chun Yuan case, Xie Zhu not only did not show favoritism, but also dealt with the culprit in a timely manner, and established the Western Guard with the cooperation of Prince Feng Ning.
The Emperor Xie and Prince Fengning even set a precedent for the imperial examinations, a feat rarely seen in a millennium, and widely encouraged scholars throughout the land to study for the country and make contributions.
Nowadays, all people in the Central Plains enthusiastically support the restoration of power by the Xie and Si clans, the recovery of northern territories, and the unification of the world!
The people of Tianjing were enjoying good food and drink, and the people of Jiujin were also preparing sweet potatoes in every household. Although there wasn't much grain, there was still meat sent by the Xie family and the officials.
Even when people eat sweet potato rice with meat, it tastes delicious.
Eight generals carried the bridal sedan chair through the Emperor's Gate and finally ascended the cloud ladder. The carpet of the Golden Palace was in front of them. Xie Lanzhi stood on the first step of the cloud ladder, her hands behind her back, watching the wedding procession.
The bridal sedan chair landed on the red carpet, and Granny Xie and the palace maids helped Si Xitong out, guiding her step by step up the steps, where Xie Lanzhi was waiting for her at the highest point.
Xie Lanzhi gazed at her bride, who wore a red veil embroidered with gold mandarin ducks. The silver radiance of the phoenix crown could not be concealed by the thin red veil, making her look stunningly beautiful, but the bride herself was even more beautiful.
At this moment, she calmly waited for her bride, and solemnly extended her palm towards the bride who was gradually approaching her.
"I'm right here! Go ahead and grab me."
"Lanzhi, now that we've held hands, you can't let me go."
"No, I will never let go."
With the help of Granny Xie and the palace maids, she stepped onto the last step and finally sat on equal footing with her, standing before each other. Si Xitong placed her hand under the veil of her beloved, the one she would spend her life with.
As their hands clasped, the sky, which had been drizzling, cleared away the dark clouds, and golden light shone down from the clouds, piercing through the darkness to illuminate the earth and the palace. It also made their clasped hands appear as if pearls were shining together.
The ministers all looked up at the sky, which had cleared up, seemingly dispelling all the gloom and bringing a bright and refreshing feeling.
Soon, a crescent-shaped rainbow appeared above the palace, meeting the sky like a bridge to heaven.
The ministers couldn't help but marvel at this auspicious celestial phenomenon, exclaiming, "On the day of the Marshal and His Highness's wedding, the heavens are protecting them. The Great Jin Dynasty will surely dominate the world and its national fortune will flourish."
The Xie family members exclaimed in amazement, "A dragon coiled and a tiger crouched, purple aura coming from the east, auspicious stars in conjunction. Indeed, the marriage between the Marshal and the Mistress is predestined by heaven. They are inseparable. Even the heavens are very gracious."
Everyone was amazed by the celestial phenomenon.
For Xie Lanzhi, the scenery of the world was more important than her life partner; her eyes could only hold her bride, her wife.
She led her into the Golden Palace.
With no parents in the ancestral hall, they bowed to Heaven: "First bow to Heaven and Earth!"
"Bowing to the parents twice!"
"Husband and wife bow to each other!" Since there were no relatives or friends around in the central hall, they bowed to each other, for they were each other's family.
Xie Lanzhi cupped her hands and bowed to Si Xitong, who nodded back, and the two formally completed the ritual of husband and wife exchanging vows.
"Send him to Lanzhang Palace!"
Xie Lanzhi let go of her hand, reluctant to let her go. Si Xitong also lingered in the warmth of her hand and had to return to their bridal chamber first.
The old woman Xie, along with the palace maids and Wang, led Si Xitong back to Lanzhang Palace from the rear hall. Fortunately, Lanzhang Palace was nearby, and they soon escorted the bride back to Lanzhang Palace.
Xie Lanzhi married her with the proper rites for a husband, and she still had to stay at the banquet to be toasted by the officials. Xie Guang volunteered to shield her from the toasts, and Si Xinian also shielded her from the toasts.
When she ascended to the throne, she faced toasts from her ministers who introduced themselves. Without hesitation, she picked up the wine cup and drank it all in one gulp. One cup, two cups, countless cups—she didn't know how many she drank. She didn't get drunk, but she did get quite tipsy.
Xie Guang and Si Xinian were already lying on the table, and people kept offering them cups of wine. After drinking a hundred cups, they could no longer resist the alcohol.
Upon seeing this, Xie sent someone to block the way.
As dusk settled on the horizon, a grey and gloomy darkness descended. Xie Lanzhi finally rose and eagerly returned to Lanzhang Palace.
The journey back to Lanzhang Palace seemed endless. Xie Lanzhi had never been so impatient, wishing she could move faster, wishing she could fly into Lanzhang Palace like a swallow. She wished... she could kiss her beloved right now.
When Xie's mother and the palace maids saw Xie Lanzhi rushing over, not as composed as usual, they chuckled to themselves, then ordered that the news not be spread and quietly withdrew.
Now, only Xie Lanzhi and Si Xitong remain in Lanzhang Palace.
The moment Xie Lanzhi pushed open the door, she picked up the wedding pole on the red table and lifted the bride's veil by the bed. Si Xitong stared intently at her, and their breathing became extremely heavy without any further flirting.
"Madam, daughter-in-law, wife, wife," she called out happily several times.
Si Xitong made a guess about the word "wife" in the following text. Although "wife" in Da Jin refers to an older woman, in Lan Zhi's world it should mean a beloved wife.
"Then how should I respond to Lanzhi? Should I call her Madam or Darling?" Si Xitong smiled playfully. She was the most beautiful woman tonight, and her smile made Xie Lanzhi sit down on the edge of the bed without her consent. She took off the phoenix crown that was pressing down on her head and placed it on the dressing mirror. Then she took out a paper package from her bosom and took out the thin meat and rolled pancakes inside.
"It's fine with me, anyway, you're already my wife, you can't run away anymore." Changing her tone, she cupped her hands and held the warm meat roll to her lips: "Are you hungry?"
Si Xitong stared at her face and the heavy armor she wore. Her crimson lips pursed slightly, and she said with longing in her eyes, "Lanzhi, can you please not be so insensitive?"
"A person cannot simply be hungry."
"Me too, and I've been putting up with it until now. I can't take it anymore."
"This time you won't have anywhere to run away!"
Si Xitong chuckled to herself, "Why would I run, my wife?"
After one night.
The newlyweds slept until sunrise, not waking up until noon. Finally, in the afternoon, Xie Lanzhi awoke, refreshed and invigorated. She was now a married woman in the truest sense, and had gained two more relatives in the world: her brother-in-law and wife, Si Xitong. Thinking of the sweetness of the previous night, she stretched and asked the palace maid to prepare hot water.
Hot water was brought in, and she personally cleaned up the traces left by her beloved wife yesterday. She hoped her wife wouldn't feel uncomfortable when she woke up.
His wife didn't feel unwell at all; she woke up too, though still sleepy and not quite rested enough. But when they opened their eyes, their gazes met, filled with sweet love.
Last night's events had left the two of them blushing with rage. Now that they had experienced such things, they no longer avoided each other's gazes but stared intently at one another.
Did you sleep well last night?
"Hmm, that's good, but we've already slept all day."
"We have seven days of honeymoon leave anyway, so we have plenty of time."
"You... really are something else."
Si Xitong's small, white, bare feet kicked Xie Lanzhi's knee, then she beckoned to her with her fingertips: "Then I'll tentatively acknowledge your efforts last night. But you're only barely passing."
Xie Lanzhi's eyes blazed with fury: "You only passed? Looks like you didn't learn your lesson last night!"
The two had been together for almost two years and knew each other very well. Their married life was even more lively.
A note from the author:
Thank you to all the little angels who voted for me or watered my plants with nutrient solution between 19:19:43 on December 22, 2021 and 18:53:43 on December 23, 2021!
Thank you to the little angels who watered the nutrient solution: I already said I'm not arrogant 51 bottles; Unknown Bald Mage 4 bottles; Xinxin 2 bottles; slowly 1 bottle;