Yao Youqing murmured, "But..."
"No buts," Sun Lao Er interrupted, "Unless you are the princess herself, I will not give this dog away no matter what!"
Yao Youqing: "...That's me."
Chapter 12 Disturbance
Sun Lao Er was always quick to speak, and he was about to say something like "Stop talking nonsense" when he opened his mouth, but he managed to swallow the words back before they came out.
This is Hu City, the residence of the Prince of Qin. Who would dare impersonate the Princess of Qin here? Are they crazy?
If it's not an imposter, then it's real!
Sun Lao Er stammered, finally managing to speak in a low voice, "You...you are Miss Yao?"
Her demeanor was completely different from her previous gruff and loud manner; she spoke softly and cautiously, as if afraid of frightening the person in front of her.
Yao Youqing nodded and hummed in agreement: "Yes, that's me."
Sun Lao Er was silent for a brief moment, and the crowd behind him also fell silent for a moment. Then someone suddenly shouted, "Your Highness! Your Highness is here!"
"Your Highness! It's Your Highness!"
More and more people joined in the chant, drawing even more people together.
Sun Lao Er was the first to come to his senses and knelt down: "This humble subject greets Your Highness!"
The surrounding people, like reeds swaying in the wind, knelt down in unison, kowtowing and shouting, "This humble subject greets Your Highness."
Yao Youqing had seen such scenes before in the capital, but those were only when the emperor traveled.
Ordinary nobles, even those of royal relatives, would at most be subconsciously avoided by the common people when walking on the street; they would never witness such a scene of thousands of people kneeling in worship.
She was a young lady from a respectable family; she had knelt before emperors and empresses, and even before her parents, but she had never been worshipped by others like this before.
Yao Youqing was so frightened that she kept backing away. Even Zhou's mother and the others were quite frightened and protected her, taking several steps back.
Yao Youqing felt it was inappropriate to make people kneel like that, and told them to get up several times, but no one heard her.
The servants kept saying, "Get up quickly," but no one paid any attention until Qiongyu shouted, "The Princess Consort wants you to get up," and the large crowd finally stood up.
After getting up, Sun Lao Er squinted and smiled, "Your Highness, I have prepared some clothes and food for this dog. I will go and get them for you right away. Please wait a moment!"
After saying that, he turned and left without waiting for Yao Youqing to speak.
As soon as he left, others immediately gathered around.
"Your Highness, this glass cup is a wedding gift I prepared for you and the Prince!"
"Your Highness, please accept this piece of cured meat!"
"Your Highness, I have a luminous pearl here."
"Your Highness, would you like some roasted rabbit...?"
"What are you roasting rabbit meat for? Wang Gousheng, get out of my way!"
"princess……"
"princess!"
The crowd almost completely engulfed Yao Youqing, making it even harder for anyone to hear her.
Qiongyu was jostled and pushed around, and shouted at the top of her lungs, "The princess has something to say!"
The crowd fell silent.
Yao Youqing stood firm, her face pale.
"Thank you all for your kindness, but as wedding gifts, how can I accept them without permission? These things need to be reviewed and approved by the Prince before I can accept them; otherwise, I would never dare to take them back."
After this, the crowd began to whisper among themselves, and someone muttered, "We knew that the Prince would definitely not accept it, so we wanted to give it to Your Highness."
“Yes,” someone immediately chimed in, “The Jingyuan Army is very strict and won’t help us carry things, otherwise we’ll be punished by military law. After thinking about it, only Your Highness can accept them!”
Upon hearing this, Yao Youqing frowned slightly and shook her head vigorously, saying, "If that's the case, then I absolutely cannot accept it!"
Seeing this, everyone hesitated. Some people in the corner secretly put their things down and turned to leave.
Yao Youqing saw this and hurriedly tried to stop them, but it was unclear whether these people heard her or not; they just kept their heads down and walked even faster.
Yao Youqing was extremely anxious and asked someone to send the items back to them, but there were too many things and too few servants, so how could they possibly send them all back?
Seeing this, Qiongyu took a deep breath and cupped her hands to her mouth: "The Princess Consort told you to stop!"
The sound was deafening, yet it also had a high-pitched quality characteristic of girls, making one's eardrums ache.
The person who had already turned around shrank back in shock, afraid that Yao Youqing would really be angry, and could no longer pretend that he hadn't heard, so he turned back awkwardly.
Yao Youqing then said, "Although I have not yet married the Prince, since His Majesty has already bestowed the marriage upon us, the Prince and I are now one. I absolutely cannot accept anything that the Prince forbids, otherwise wouldn't that be breaking the Prince's rules? So please take your things back."
“You don’t need to follow the rules,” someone said with a grin. “You’re the princess!”
Yao Youqing shook her head again, her slightly childish face showing a solemn expression.
"Precisely because I am the future Queen Consort of Qin, I cannot do this. There is no reason for me to lead the way in breaking what others can abide by. What kind of queen consort would I be then?"
This surprised everyone. They looked at each other, unsure of what to do, but still no one was willing to take the things back.
Seeing this, Madam Zhou stepped forward and said, "Please be understanding of our young lady. She has come all the way from the capital to marry into the family. She is new to Shangchuan. If she breaks the prince's rules before even entering the household, wouldn't she be disliked by the prince?"
"She's just a young girl, already far from her parents and relatives. From now on, the only person she can rely on here is the prince. If the prince abandons her, how will she survive?"
After saying this, he curtsied and said, "I hope my fellow villagers will understand."
Qiongyu and the others immediately knelt down and followed, saying, "We hope our fellow villagers will understand."
Everyone quickly moved aside to avoid them, glancing at them and then at Yao Youqing.
Yao Youqing was petite with delicate features. Although she stood there with a straight posture, she still looked somewhat immature.
It would indeed be unreasonable for such a seemingly pitiful girl to marry far away and lose her husband's favor because of them.
When they hesitated, Zhou's mother gave Qiongyu a wink.
Qiongyu understood and immediately picked up the nearest gift and returned it to the person who had just left it there.
Seeing this, the others understood and returned the other gifts as well.
This time, no one refused to accept the gifts, and no one secretly put them down when they weren't looking. But even though the gifts were returned, the crowd still refused to disperse.
Someone murmured, "But we really wanted to do our part..."
The others nodded in agreement, indicating that they simply wanted to offer their congratulations on the prince's wedding.
As Zhou's mother was pondering how to persuade everyone to leave, Yao Youqing stepped forward and said softly, "I appreciate everyone's kindness, but the prince and I receive salaries from the court and lack nothing. Your lives are not easy, so instead of giving these things to us, you should keep them for yourselves. There is really no need to scrimp and save just to send a congratulatory gift."
"If there are indeed wealthy children who wish to do their part for the Prince, then it would be better to send them to the orphanage in the south of the city. This would be considered doing good deeds on behalf of the Prince."
She hadn't just been wandering around the city aimlessly these past few days; she had also gotten a general understanding of the local environment and customs. She knew there was an orphanage in the south of the city, and even had Zhou Mama deliver some things there.
A wealthy businessman standing in front immediately chimed in, "Great! Then I'll send it to the sales office!"
Anyway, he just wanted to send the things away. Since the princess said to send them to the sales office, then he would send them to the sales office!
The orphanage on both sides was also established by the prince, so this gift can also be considered a present to the prince!
Everyone thought it was a good idea and turned to walk towards the orphanage. Before leaving, they praised the princess for her kindness, calling her a living bodhisattva, and so on.
The crowd finally dispersed, and Zhou's mother breathed a sigh of relief. Only then did she see that the Jingyuan Army had actually arrived not far away, led by Feng Mu, who had helped them on the way.
Feng Mu nodded to them from a distance, and seeing that there was no disturbance, he led his men away again.
Sun Lao Er originally wanted to bring the puppy's clothes and food, but seeing that Yao Youqing had sent away all the other gift-givers, he was afraid his dog would be returned. So he quietly turned to leave, but was spotted by the sharp-eyed Yao Youqing, who called out, "Uncle Sun!"
In the end, although the dog was not returned, Sun Lao Er was forced to give thirty taels of silver, which meant that he didn't give any gifts and even made some money.
Sun Lao Er clicked his tongue twice, then turned around and donated all thirty taels of silver to the orphanage.
Yao Youqing was naturally unaware of these things. Accompanied by Zhou's mother, she walked back, saying as she went, "I was wondering why there were so many people on the street lately. It turns out they all wanted to bring congratulatory gifts to the Prince."
When the King of Qin got married, people from all over Shangchuan who wanted to give gifts flocked to Hu City. However, they found no way to give gifts, so they stayed there, and the streets became crowded.
Madam Zhou nodded and sighed, "I had heard in the capital that the Prince was a man of great military achievements and effective governance, and was deeply loved by the border people. Now that I'm here, I know that these words are indeed true."
It was more than just a claim; she was even more beloved than they had imagined. They extended their affection to the princess, whom they had never met before, showering her with gifts upon their first meeting.
Yao Youqing didn't reply. Looking at the people on the street who knew her identity and were still nearby, smiling at her from afar but not coming up to bother her, she murmured, "Aunt Zhou, I think I understand why the court can't tolerate the prince."
Mrs. Zhou's smile froze; she didn't know how to respond.
But Yao Youqing continued, "But is it wrong to let people live in peace and prosperity and have enough to eat and wear?"
Is it wrong to be loved and respected for enabling people to live a good life?
This time, Zhou's mother realized that she wasn't asking for an answer; she was just talking to herself.
Another passerby, after being pointed out by someone, learned Yao Youqing's identity, nodded from afar, and gave her a bright smile.
Yao Youqing smiled too, the doubt and confusion in her eyes dissipating, replaced by a bright light. She whispered to Zhou Mama, "I think the Prince is quite amazing!"
Seeing that she had reverted to her childlike self, Zhou's mother couldn't help but chuckle. The master and servants gradually walked away in a joyful atmosphere.
Just where they had passed, Wei Hong, who had been hiding in the shadows, slowly revealed half of his body, watching their departing figures with a deep gaze, seemingly lost in thought.
He had just been discussing matters with someone nearby when he heard that Yao Youqing had caused a commotion by revealing her identity on the street, so he rushed over immediately.
But the chaos she imagined didn't happen, and she didn't accept any of the gifts; she only spent money to buy a dog.
Seeing that he hadn't moved for a while, Cui Hao whispered, "Your Highness, Lord Wu is still waiting for you."
Wei Hong snapped out of his reverie and nodded: "Let's go."
Chapter 13 The Grand Wedding
On the tenth day of the fourth lunar month, the sky was clear and the air was fresh, and the streets of Hucheng were bustling with activity.
Wei Hong rode a tall horse to welcome Yao Youqing back to the palace. People lined the streets and cheered, as if it were their own family getting married.
The master of ceremonies chanted and arranged the wedding in an orderly manner. After the bride and groom kowtowed to heaven and earth, they were sent to the bridal chamber.