Seeking Truth with a Sword-Chapter 388 - 339: The Canopy Curtain

Chapter 388: Chapter 339: The Canopy Curtain
What’s all this about?!
Chai Chai unleashed her telekinesis, doing her best to hold the door shut, her expression uglier than if she were crying.
WHOOSH—
A late breeze blew through the courtyard, causing ripples to form on the surface of the swimming pool. Galuo, who was pushing the door, shuddered. Feeling a bit cold, she somewhat dazedly lowered her arm.
Once she let go, she forgot what she was doing. She stood in a daze for a few seconds, then suddenly returned to the lounge chair to lie down. She picked up a blanket, wrapped herself tightly, and, like a caterpillar, fell into a heavy sleep.
"..."
Chai Chai, peeking through the door crack, was dumbfounded. She smacked her lips, also lowered her arm, and stepped back half a stride.
Perhaps deep down, Galuo was also in pain. Having seen the prosperity and riches of Chang’an, she now had to return to the barbaric and desolate grasslands. She might never see the friends she made in Chang’an again in this lifetime. Perhaps the next time they met, it would be on the battlefield, weapons clashing, with one side bound to fall.
Chai Chai sighed softly in her heart but then heard the sound of footsteps outside the study.
Qiu Feng brought in the hangover soup with telekinesis and used the Liliang Talisman to cool it slightly before feeding it to Galuo.
Once the medicine took effect and Galuo became somewhat sober, Qiu Feng said to the study door, his face flushed, "Then... shall we head back to Furong Garden now? Keep an eye on the time, and bring Cui Qiao over when it’s appropriate. There are many Imperial Palace painters at the wedding, capturing the people and scenery. It would be a shame to miss it."
"MHM MHM."
Chai Chai nodded her head, then remembered something and added, "Oh, and when you leave, could you please tell the coachman at the door to go back to Furong Garden first? I’ll take a different carriage there with Chai Chai later."
"MHM."
Qiu Feng helped Galuo up, crossed the courtyard, and left the residence.
Chai Chai leaned against the wooden door, carefully listening to the sounds outside. When she was sure there was no noise, she breathed a sigh of relief. She pushed the door open a crack and stretched out a finger to bring Qiu Feng’s gift, which was hanging on the door, inside.
"What’s this..."
Chai Chai opened her mouth wide, looking at the exquisite sachet in her hand.
She had some understanding of Yu Country’s textile craftsmanship. This Peacock Luo fabric was stunning and vibrant. Weaving it required an extraordinary amount of time and effort, making it the ultimate luxury item.
And sachets, since ancient times, have been objects to convey friendship and affection, the implications of which go without saying.
Even for the open-minded Academic Palace Disciples, giving such a gift requires a great deal of courage and resolve.
Young Master, are you really, um... so incredibly wicked?
Chai Chai pondered in her mind for the right idiom, unconsciously clutching the sachet even tighter.
Where are you exactly?
In Furong Garden, flowers bloomed in profusion, and the lights shone brightly.
A majestic, towering lantern pavilion was the center of all the light.
It stood two hundred feet tall, narrower at the top and wider at the base, primarily constructed from lightweight wood and steel.
It was adorned with an array of lampstands of various shapes, entwined with colorful silk, and inlaid with gold and silver decorations.
Windproof Talismans, shaped like flowers and affixed around the lampstands, served to block the high wind and protect the flames from being extinguished.
At the top of the lantern pavilion, the steel axle slowly turned the wheel, making the surrounding lamps oscillate and revolve, illuminating Furong Garden.
Beneath the lantern pavilion stood tents made of light, flimsy curtains. Their tops were shaped like ridged roofs, some adorned with embroidered valances.
Inside the tents, long tables were placed with guests seated on both sides, and wine and food were set out on the tables.
This was the traditional form of a Yu Country banquet. Since wedding feasts are usually large-scale events and houses often cannot accommodate everyone, spacious courtyards are turned into dining areas with curtains and tents to entertain guests and relatives.
So they say, "Silken tents shimmer against the falling snow; crimson marquees rise in the front courtyard. Azure curtains stretch beside the steps, displaying the towering elegance of the purple extremity."
But ordinary folk can manage to host their wedding feasts in a courtyard or flower garden at most.
The wedding of Prince Yue, however, had taken over the entire Furong Garden.
The tent canopies merged into one, leaving nearly no open space beneath.
Looking around, all one could see were nobles in their fine, colorful garments, toasting and laughing merrily.
"Colorful clothes glisten in the fading spring light, like embroidered peacocks and silver Qilins."
Beneath one of the tents in the Academic Palace area,
Yang Yu was struck with inspiration and couldn’t help tapping his rhinoceros horn gold-inlaid chopsticks on the jade bowl filled with Purple Camel Peak, reciting, "What adorns the head? Cascading green leaves hang at the cheeks and lips..."
"Miss Ren Yu Yan has gone to sit with her parents in the officials’ tent. Stop reciting your twisted poetry," Li Wei said, his words muffled as his mouth was full of snowflake-shaped beef cubes coated with betel sauce from South Vietnam. "Besides, no one’s listening."
"That’s Du Gongbu’s ’Beautiful People,’" Yang Yu said with a scornful glance at his friend, sighing. "They always say that once you’re in the Academic Palace, your past status doesn’t matter. It’s all lies. On occasions like these, you still sit according to your place."
At the moment, in the Academic Palace tent in the third year of Zaiqian, not many were seated.
Li Leqing, naturally, was not among them; as a Princess and a friend of the bride, she was at the highest point in Furong Garden, the Purple Cloud Pavilion—the official venue for the wedding.
The Emperor and Empress, the Crown Prince and Crown Princess Consort, the Princes and Princesses, the court ministers, foreign diplomats, the Faith Cultivation cardinals, and the leaders of the Academic Palace were all up in the Purple Cloud Pavilion as well.
Below the Purple Cloud Pavilion, many tents were arranged according to the closeness of relationships and importance.
Yong Hongzhong’s maternal grandfather was the Right Martial Guard General, his father was the Governor of Xiangzhou, and his maternal aunt was a Princess Consort, so he naturally went to the tented area reserved for officials.
Ji Linglang’s father was the Governor of Yizhou, so she was also the daughter of an official. He Fanshuang’s brother was a Crown Prince’s Left Spring Palace Left Spring Palace Junior Officer.
After counting, among their group of friends,
Only Yang Yu and Li Wei were not from official families and therefore had no right to go to the other tents.
Li Wei casually mentioned, "Isn’t Risheng coming later? He’s supposed to be here too, right?"
"..."
Yang Yu looked at him with even greater disdain. "Risheng can come and go in the Great Ming Palace as he pleases, can you? Even the newly born Princes and Princesses each year have to be held by Risheng to get a touch of his luck. Of course, he has to go up to the Purple Cloud Pavilion on such an occasion. Besides," he added with a smirk, "the Princess has taken a liking to him. Maybe tonight His Majesty will take advantage of this joyous event to settle the matter. Afterward, we’ll have to address him as Prince Consort."
"Princess?"
Li Wei chewed on his beef, rolling his eyes in thought. "Which Princess is it? How about a hint?"
Yang Yu was completely befuddled. "Have you even been hanging out with us these past two years? It’s got to be Princess Guanghua, who else could it be?"
"You said Risheng could easily enter and exit the Great Ming Palace, right? There are so many Princesses in the palace; who knows if there are others who fancy Risheng?" Li Wei defended himself vigorously. "I don’t have the Thousand-mile Eye."
"You—I give up on you!"
Yang Yu facepalmed, deeply concerned whether his own intelligence might be assimilated by his friend’s.