Chapter 146

As the end of July arrived, rain began to fall. The drizzle continued relentlessly until the fourth day of the eighth month.

The full-happiness woman who came to help at Bensi Hutong was Lady Shi, the eldest daughter-in-law of Chen Yunsheng, Commander of the Gold Feather Guard's Forward Division. She was only twenty-seven or twenty-eight years old, with dignified features and a brisk, efficient manner—a remarkably capable woman.

She walked in from outside with a smile: "I've been worried the rain would never stop, but now it's cleared up just in time for the dowry procession tomorrow." She added, "Who chose this date? It's as if it was calculated perfectly!" Clicking her tongue in amazement.

It was Mother who chose it.

She had simply flipped to the nearest auspicious date without much thought, never expecting the long rain to stop just in time.

Fu Tingjun had heard the older generation say that wind and rain before the dowry procession, followed by clear skies after the wedding, was the best of omens—wind and rain symbolized past hardships and disappointments, while clear skies and sunshine symbolized future smoothness and fulfillment. It meant that all the trials and tribulations of the past would dissipate like smoke with her marriage, and only happiness and completeness lay ahead. The worst omen was clear weather before the dowry procession and rain after the wedding, which meant that past happiness and laughter would vanish like good weather, never to return, and that the future would be filled with difficulties and storms.

Could it be that she and Zhao Ling were finally about to see the end of their suffering?

She couldn't help but purse her lips in a smile.

Since the conversation concerned her own marriage, she didn't feel comfortable saying much, so she personally offered a cup of tea to Lady Chen Shi.

Having spent several days together, Lady Chen Shi had grown somewhat familiar with Fu Tingjun and the others. She smiled and said, "You're too kind," rising to accept the teacup.

The man Fu Tingjun was to marry was a colleague of her father-in-law, of equivalent rank, while her own husband was merely a captain. Moreover, her father-in-law had repeatedly instructed her before she came that the one who had requested her services as full-happiness woman was Teacher Yao, the strategist from the Emperor's Former Residence, and that she must devote herself wholeheartedly to managing this wedding at Bensi Hutong. Perhaps in the future, both her husband and even she herself would need to rely on Teacher Yao.

With this thought, she hesitated briefly, then tried to send Yuwei away—the maid who had just entered carrying a box of refreshments. "I've finished inventorying everything, and we're only waiting for the Shi family lane to send the dowry-urging gifts." She took out the dowry list and handed it to Yuwei. "You'll be accompanying the bride as part of her dowry, and you're meticulous by nature. Why don't you take this opportunity to check it against the items? First, to see if I've missed anything, and second, once the young lady is married, you'll be better able to help store everything in the storeroom."

Fu Tingjun's dowry was not extensive—some antiques, paintings, and calligraphy, all brought over from Zhao Ling's residence, quite valuable.

Yuwei felt Lady Chen Shi's suggestion was reasonable, so she smiled in agreement and went to the adjacent room where the dowry was stored.

Lady Chen Shi then pulled a thin illustrated booklet from her bosom and handed it to Fu Tingjun, speaking in a low voice: "Take a look—you'll need this on your wedding night!"

Fu Tingjun's face flushed red immediately.

Aunt Six had also pressed such a booklet into her hands once, explaining it to her in detail for a long time...

Fu Tingjun mumbled a response and tucked the booklet away.

Lady Chen Shi noticed that she seemed to know what it was and felt a private curiosity, but reminded her: "Aren't you going to look at what it is?" She added, "Since I'm here, there are some things I might as well discuss with you."

"No, no need." Matters of this sort—she hadn't even had the courage to discuss them with Aunt Six, let alone with Lady Chen Shi, whom she had only just met. "There's something I'd like to ask you, sister-in-law," she said, grasping for conversation. "I've heard that when the dowry arrives, it's displayed in the courtyard in front of the main hall for everyone to view. And on the main day, I hear they even set up a stage for opera performances. With so many people coming and going, what if something from the dowry gets stolen?"

Just a few days after she left the palace, the imperial edict had arrived. Zhao Ling had received a pair of table screens as a reward—she hadn't seen them—while she herself had been granted the Three Stars of Fortune, Prosperity, and Longevity, which would be the very first items carried in her dowry procession. She could imagine how lively and magnificent such a dowry would look being carried all the way to Shi family lane.

Lady Chen Shi felt she understood Fu Tingjun's feelings well.

Not to mention anything else, just the jewelry in Fu Tingjun's cases—pearls the size of lotus seeds, rubies so red they seemed to drip blood, cat's-eye stones that flashed with a brilliant gleam in the light—was worth no less than two thousand taels of silver. To say nothing of the Song dynasty paintings and Duan inkstones.

She hurriedly smiled and said, "I'll be going along to make the bridal bed, and when I get there, I'll hand the dowry list to the full-happiness woman on that side. She'll assign people to stand guard, so no one will be able to help themselves." She added, "Besides, the young lady will send a personal maid along with me. She'll stay overnight at Shi family lane to familiarize herself with the surroundings, so that when you arrive, she can help with serving tea and water." Speaking of these matters, she couldn't help asking, "May I ask who you plan to send with me?"

"Zhenzhu," Fu Tingjun said with a smile. "After I'm married, Yuwei will need to stay here to help with the aftermath. She's older and knows how to make decisions when situations arise."

By the time everything was moved over, she would only need to sit properly in the sedan chair and be carried over in marriage. But the firecracker debris scattered on the ground, and the tables, chairs, and benches borrowed from the Sun family—all of these would need to be counted and returned to the Sun family.

"That's fine too!" Lady Chen Shi said with a smile. "I think Zhenzhu, though young, is clever and quick-witted..."

Their conversation finally turned to the matters of the wedding arrangements, and Fu Tingjun secretly breathed a sigh of relief.

Early the next morning, the Shi family from Shijia Hutong sent someone to urge the bride to come—and the leader turned out to be Mo Yi.

He stood in the courtyard, grinning. "I put in a lot of effort, you know! When the new bride enters the house, don't forget to personally cook us a nice meal to reward us!"

Fu Tingjun, inside the room, blushed and spat a "pfft" at him.

Because the auspicious hour was at hai shi (9–11 PM) in the evening, Fu Tingjun's side only distributed some wedding candies to the neighbors and prepared two tables of wine. She slept until mao shi (5–7 AM) before getting up. Lady Chen Shi personally helped her with facial threading and combed her hair. Kou'er brought in lotus seed and lily bulb soup, and after Fu Tingjun had eaten it, she changed into her wedding dress—by then it was already you shi (5–7 PM) in the afternoon.

Perhaps because she harbored a knot in her heart, feeling deeply guilty, Yuwei only helped with the outside tasks during Fu Tingjun's wedding and did not involve herself in matters inside her room.

Lady Chen Shi instructed Kou'er to make Fu Tingjun a bowl of noodles: "It's not far—we'll be there in no time. Better to fill your stomach first. There's still plenty of commotion ahead for you."

Fu Tingjun did not refuse.

She still remembered when Third Cousin had married out. Because Third Uncle's family was over fifty li from the Fu family, requiring a full day's travel, she had risen in the middle of the night to dress, and the bridal procession had set off just as dawn broke. And because the distance was so great, Third Cousin had been afraid of needing to relieve herself on the road, so she hadn't even dared to drink a sip of water. After the wedding ceremony, the groom's grand-aunts, aunts, sisters-in-law, and younger female relatives had all come to observe, and she hadn't even had a chance to sneak a bite of pastry. When she returned to her natal home three days later, she had complained bitterly, saying, "I nearly fainted from hunger!"

After eating the noodles, Lady Chen Shi applied her makeup.

After evening out her face with white lead powder, Lady Chen Shi stood there looking left and right, but for a long while, she did not move to paint her eyebrows.

Fu Tingjun quickly asked, "Is it because my face is too dry?"

"No, no," Lady Chen Shi said with a laugh. "I just think the white lead powder on your face doesn't look as fair and radiant as your bare face..." For a moment, she hesitated over whether to continue.

"Then, then let's just leave my face bare," Fu Tingjun said. "Just apply a little lip balm."

Lady Chen Shi thought it over and said, "Alright, just a little lip balm then."

She sent Kou'er to bring in water, helped Fu Tingjun wash her face again, and applied only some fragrant cream and lip balm.

The sky darkened.

Fu Tingjun sat on the bed, quietly waiting for the people from Shijia Hutong to come and fetch the bride.

She didn't know how long it had been—it felt like a single instant, and yet also like several days and nights—when the crackling sound of firecrackers came from outside.

Kou'er, being lively by nature, immediately jumped up. "It must be the bridal party coming! Let me go take a look." Before Fu Tingjun could speak, she had already dashed out in a flash, and in no time, she came running back: "It's the bridal party! It's the bridal party!" Her little face was flushed with excitement.

Even louder firecrackers sounded from outside the door.

Lady Chen Shi went out.

Kou'er whispered something in her ear, but Fu Tingjun could no longer hear anything.

Soon, Lady Chen Shi came back in, beaming, with a bundle draped over her arm containing the red veil that Zhao Ling had sent over.

She helped Fu Tingjun put on the veil and supported her out the door.

A wave of laughter and lively chatter rushed to meet her.

Fu Tingjun, dazed, was supported by Lady Chen Shi as she knelt and kowtowed before the temporarily set-up ancestral tablets of the Fu family.

She sensed that someone seemed to kneel and kowtow alongside her.

It must be Zhao Ling, right?

She very much wanted to take a look, but she didn't dare move recklessly.

Lady Chen Shi helped her up and led her outside.

She heard someone shout loudly, "The bride is coming out!" and the firecrackers burst forth densely, the explosions making her ears ring.

She left the Sun family residence and boarded the bridal sedan chair.

Someone called out loudly, "Lift the sedan!"

Amid the unending crackle of firecrackers, the sedan chair was lifted and swayed as it rose.

Fu Tingjun clutched tightly at her sleeve.

The sound of firecrackers filled her ears, one after another, as if there were no end.

Yet her heart was steady.

She was about to return to her own home.

From now on, she would never again have to drift from place to place, tossing and turning in anxiety.

She could openly hold Zhao Ling's hand, lean on his shoulder, and order him to do this and that.

Who knew what mischief Zhao Ling would get up to then?

The thought flashed through her mind, and she couldn't help but let out a giggle. Then, realizing she was in the middle of her wedding procession, she quickly sat up straight. Just as she had settled herself, she remembered that she was sitting alone in the bridal sedan, and no one could see her... For a moment, she found it both ridiculous and amusing.

Lost in her thoughts, the bridal sedan came to a stop. Someone shouted, "The bride has arrived!" The curtain was lifted, and she was helped out by Lady Chen Shi and another unfamiliar woman. She stepped over the money-and-grain basin, performed the bowing ceremony, and amid the clamor of voices, she entered the bridal chamber.

The noise was shut out by the inner door, and the surroundings suddenly fell quiet, as if she had entered another world.

She was helped to sit on the new bridal bed.

"Please, groom, lift the bride's veil!" the unfamiliar woman said cheerfully.

A sudden brightness met her eyes, and Fu Tingjun saw Zhao Ling standing before her, his eyes as bright as the morning stars.

He wore the groom's grand red ceremonial robes, with a rich smile brimming at the corners of his eyes and brows, yet his gaze was fixed unwaveringly upon her—so focused, so earnest. She was stunned, staring back at him blankly, as if her very soul had been seized.

Giggling sounds reached her ears.

Fu Tingjun quickly composed herself and sat upright, but her face could not help burning hot.

"Now the couple drinks the cross-cupped wine!" the unfamiliar woman said with a laugh, and a goblet wrapped with colorful threads was handed over.

Fu Tingjun took the goblet and drank the cross-cupped wine with Zhao Ling.