The Second Master of the Red Chamber

The entrance to the Rongguo Duke's Mansion was already bustling with activity.

There were four kings and eight dukes, more than ten marquisates, and dozens of viscounts and barons.

More than 80% of the noble families in the entire capital were present.

In addition, there were no fewer than two hundred civil and military officials, ranging from the first rank to the ninth rank, who were present in person.

Even members of the imperial family, a few of whom were of noble birth, were invited to attend the ceremony.

Other literary figures and celebrities are too numerous to list.

Because there were too many guests and servants, the front courtyard of the Rongguo Mansion was not enough to accommodate them. Jia Zheng had already ordered that all the gates on both sides be opened wide and that the guests be divided into groups and settled in the two courtyards.

Four stages were set up in the two courtyards, one inside and one outside, and four opera troupes were invited to take turns performing.

Within the numerous courtyards, people moved about busily, creating a lively and extraordinary atmosphere.

"The Earl of Linzi has arrived!"

Upon hearing the sound, Jia Zheng quickly apologized to the guests who were chatting, and hurried over a dozen steps to the group:

"I was unaware of your arrival, sir. I have failed to greet you properly. I hope you will forgive me."

Zhang Changling looked at Jia Zheng, who was bowing respectfully in front of him, and snorted, "What? My own grandson is getting married, and I, an old man, can't come to the wedding feast?"

"Sir, you misunderstand. It is an honor for us juniors that you have come in person. Please!"

Jia Zheng felt a little embarrassed, thinking to himself that after all these years, not only did the old man still look healthy, but he was still as sharp-tongued as ever.

Speaking of which, it had been ten years since the old man had set foot on the Jia family estate since Jia Lian's mother passed away.

I thought he would never come again in his life, but in the end, he made an exception because of his own grandson.

However, this disrupted the previous arrangements.

When a couple gets married, they must pay respects to heaven and earth, and someone must sit in the elders' hall.

Of course, Daiyu is accompanied by Grandmother Jia in her high hall.

Baochai is Aunt Xue.

As for Jia Lian, it was confirmed that it was Madam Xing.

In this way, the hall would be filled with women, which would not only create an imbalance of yin and yang but also be unbalanced.

Therefore, at Jia Lian's sincere invitation, Jia Zheng "reluctantly" agreed to act as the groom's elder and sit in the main hall.

Jia Zheng had already planned how to make an appearance and what words of encouragement to the newcomers.

Now that this old man has arrived, he seems to be more qualified than him to sit in the last seat, regardless of seniority, status, or blood relation.

Old Master Zhang didn't mean to cause trouble; he just got angry when he saw Jia Daishan's son.

Seeing that Jia Zheng wouldn't give in to his gentle refusal, he managed to control the situation.

After thinking for a moment, he instructed his second son, who had returned with the congratulatory gifts, "Have your wife and Su'er's wife go and pay their respects to the old lady on our behalf."

"Yes."

Zhang Song responded and turned to give some instructions to the women. Immediately, a servant from the Jia family stepped forward and led the women to Grandmother Jia and the others.

Having just escorted three generations of the Zhang family into the house and taken only a few steps, they heard a particularly loud announcement coming from outside:

"Prince Bei Jing, Princess Bei Jing has arrived."

Seeing the look of surprise on Jia Zheng's face, Zhang Changling sneered inwardly and said, "Alright, I'll find a place myself. You can continue greeting guests."

"Yes."

Jia Zheng disregarded formalities and had Jia Qiong, Jia Guang, and the others continue to lead the way, while he quickly withdrew.

……

The wedding procession marched westward from the Lin family's villa, following a long red carpet.

It attracted countless onlookers along the way.

At the very back of the wedding procession, there were five or six horse-drawn carriages.

They lifted the back door, and the servants of the Jia family, who were squatting inside, took out countless brand-new copper coins, candies, and even small red envelopes from their baskets and threw them onto both sides of the street, attracting countless children to scramble for them.

Daiyu sat in the sedan chair in front, and through the curtains on both sides of the chair, she could vaguely see the countless heads on the streets on both sides.

And there was that cacophony that seemed capable of shattering the dome.

Daiyu didn't know if such a wedding procession was considered grand or large, but she knew that Jia Lian had kept his word.

He had promised his father that he would marry her with the respect due to a principal wife.

Jia Lian kept his word.

As the procession entered the territory of the two prefectures, the noise of the crowd gradually subsided, while the sounds of gongs, drums, and suonas became clearer.

The sedan chair slowly came to a stop.

Daiyu was puzzled, so she leaned closer to the sedan curtain and looked outside.

Although it was very blurry, she could still tell that they had arrived at the Xue family's doorstep.

I wonder what Baochai is feeling right now.

Baochai's emotions were naturally fluctuating.

However, Aunt Xue and Xue Pan were even happier than her.

Since his release from prison, Xue Pan has surprisingly refrained from going out and fooling around. Instead, he stays at home every day, helping his mother prepare for his younger sister's wedding.

The most important thing was to increase the dowry for my younger sister!

That's right, he felt that the dowry his mother provided for his sister was not substantial enough.

In particular, when he secretly sent someone to inquire and learned that Daiyu's dowry would start at least at the level of 100,000, he became determined.

Even if he himself couldn't make it, he had to prove himself and not let his sister lose face in front of the Lin family girls.

Even his younger sister advised him that there was no need to compete in this.

After all, Daiyu inherited almost the entire Lin family's estate and was under Jia Lian's all-round protection, so it wouldn't be surprising if she had a dowry of hundreds of thousands.

However, Xue Pan was stubborn and inflexible.

Even if we can't beat them, we have to at least get 100,000, so that people won't look down on us.

Seeing his sincerity, Aunt Xue naturally had no reason to object.

So Xue Pan spent his days buying and buying, until he felt that the total value of the dowry definitely exceeded 100,000 taels of silver, and then he gradually stopped.

At this moment, Xue Pan was in the outer courtyard, beaming with pride as he led people to prepare his sister's dowry, which filled the courtyard, just like a victorious general returning home.

Hearing that the wedding procession had arrived, he hurriedly ran into the inner courtyard and called out to his sister's boudoir, "My brother-in-law has already arrived. Are you all ready?"

"coming."

As Aunt Xue's voice rang out, Xue Pan saw his younger sister, wearing a bright red veil and shrouded in a bright red phoenix robe, being helped out by his mother and Ying'er.

Xue Pan was stunned by his sister's extremely noble and luxurious appearance.

Then, smiling, she leaned closer and said, "They say that when a sister gets married, her brother carries her on his back. You must be quite heavy in this outfit, do you want me to carry you out?"

Before Baochai could reply, Aunt Xue scolded, "Stop fooling around."

Your sister's outfit was specially made by the best embroidery workshop and the best embroiderers, commissioned by your second brother Lian. It's very exquisite.

"You're so clumsy; if your sister hurts you even a little bit, you'll be in for a beating."

"Ah, okay."

Xue Pan felt quite bittersweet knowing that his beautiful younger sister, his only biological sister, was about to get married.

However, upon further reflection, he realized that with his sister's marriage, his own good days would begin, and his joyful mood once again took over.

He led the way like a lackey and called to his cousin Xue Ke to tell the people carrying the dowry to get ready.

Upon exiting the gate, he saw Jia Lian, adorned with a large red flower and riding a tall horse, waiting for him. He jumped out first. "Brother-in-law, my sister is in your care today. You must treat her well and not bully her."

Xue Pan originally intended to say a few harsh words, just like other families do when their younger sisters get married.

However, faced with Jia Lian's condescending gaze, he dared not utter the "otherwise" and the subsequent threatening remarks.

Fortunately, Jia Lian was very polite today.

He clasped his hands in a fist and said from his horse, "Brother-in-law, rest assured, now that I have brought Sister Baochai home in a grand sedan chair, I will treat her well for the rest of my life."

Otherwise, without my brother-in-law's permission, I will personally go before you to apologize.

"That's pretty much it."

The two calls of "brother-in-law" and the self-reference as "little brother" made Xue Pan feel somewhat smug.

Feeling incredibly proud, he naturally had no intention of making things difficult for him further.

Looking back, he saw that his mother and sister had come out. He immediately went forward to take over the task of helping his sister from his mother and personally escorted her to the sedan chair that was parked at the door.

At the same time, his gaze also secretly drifted to another flower-adorned sedan chair next to him, which was exactly the same.

I've heard people say that this Lin family girl is just as beautiful as my own sister, but unfortunately I've never seen her.

She must have been an absolute beauty.

He quickly dismissed these thoughts, for he saw the long procession of dowry following behind Daiyu's bridal sedan chair.

So he disregarded everything else and hurriedly ordered the servants to bring out all the dowry he had prepared for his sister.

After Jia Lian invited Aunt Xue into the carriage, he glanced back at the two quiet bridal sedan chairs.

It seemed that through the large bridal sedan chair, one could see the figures of two stunningly beautiful women sitting inside.

A genuine smile appeared on his face.

He mounted his horse and shouted, "Let's set off and return to the manor."

Accompanied by the sound of drums and music, the wedding procession continued forward, detouring from Ningrong Back Street to West Street, and then turning back to the mansion.

Upon hearing that the bride was entering the house, the guests, who loved to join in the excitement, all flocked to the front courtyard of the Rongguo Mansion.

When they saw Jia Lian, who was seven feet tall and exceptionally handsome, walking down the red carpet.

He held a red ribbon in his hand, at the two ends of which were two graceful, upright figures.

Both figures wore bright red veils, obscuring their faces.

However, their bright red wedding gowns, with a train that stretched for over ten feet, were extremely luxurious and beautiful, and immediately stunned the eyes of all the guests in the hall.

Among those present were high-ranking officials, dignitaries, and ladies from prominent families.

But they still couldn't quite believe that such a beautiful and luxurious wedding dress really existed in the world.

Many people even rubbed their eyes subconsciously, afraid that they had misread it.

But reality proved them right.

There are such beautiful and luxurious wedding dresses in the world, and there are two of them.

She appeared right there above two stunningly beautiful women, whose figures alone revealed them to be exceptionally gorgeous.

They stood on either side, each led by four beautiful maids, and were connected to the tall and handsome Jia Lian in front of them by red silk.

Such handsome young men and beautiful young women, walking slowly on the red carpet, looked like a celestial emperor welcoming his celestial concubine.

This scene was as beautiful as a poem or a painting.

Many people couldn't help but express their praise immediately.

Some scholars and literati even decided to write articles and poems about what they had seen today.

Zijuan, Ying'er, and the others had never seen such a scene before.

Therefore, all the guests who came today, regardless of their rank or status, were dressed in ordinary clothes, and their identities could not be seen at a glance.

Otherwise, even if they have been repeatedly instructed and trained, they would inevitably feel intimidated in the face of so many distinguished people.

The most anxious were naturally Baochai and Daiyu, whose vision was mostly obscured by their veils.

They couldn't see the road clearly.

To see clearly, you have to look down from under the veil.

However, the matrons who taught them etiquette had instructed them that they should not bow their heads casually at this time, as it would affect their demeanor.

Therefore, they could only keep their eyes fixed on Jia Lian's figure ahead, and walk slowly with the help of their maids and the red ribbons in their hands.

So much so that they didn't know how long it took them to walk from getting out of the sedan chair to entering the gate.

Finally, Jia Lian in front seemed to stop, and they quickly stopped as well.

Jia Lian led his two brides into the main hall, his face beaming with joy.

When Jia Lian suddenly realized that the only man sitting in front of him was not Jia Zheng, but his maternal grandfather, he was taken aback.

He had considered asking the old man to help him in his old age, but when he went to ask, the old man impatiently said that he would see if he had time later.

If it were his first wedding, to marry his first wife, Jia Lian would naturally make sure to invite the old man over no matter what.

But he wasn't.

To be honest, he himself knew that marrying a second wife as his principal wife was against etiquette and violated the established rules.

Thinking that the old man didn't like it, I didn't force him.

Unexpectedly, the old man still came in person, which naturally pleased Jia Lian.

Seeing him raise an eyebrow at him again, Jia Lian smiled even more.

"Please have the bride and groom pay their respects to heaven and earth."

The protocol officer's voice rang out at the opportune moment.

Jia Lian turned around, but before he could even prepare to bow, he saw a commotion outside the courtyard.

Jia Lian frowned, thinking to himself, "Could there be some blind fool who would dare to steal my bride?"
Just then, Jia Yun rushed over and whispered, "Father, Eunuch Dai from the palace has arrived."

Everyone was startled by this, but Jia Lian frowned and asked, "What is he doing here?"

There was no need to ask anymore; Jia Lian had already seen the old man stroll leisurely into the main courtyard.

Jia Lian hesitated for a moment, then temporarily untied the red ribbons in his hands and handed them back to Baochai and Daiyu. He then went to greet them and asked, "Eunuch Dai, what brings you here? Is there an imperial edict?"

As Dai Quan surveyed the lively scene in the hall, he approached and said with a smile, "Congratulations, Lord Rong! Congratulations, Lord Rong!"

Jia Lian smiled, unsure whether he was referring to his own wedding or something else, so after exchanging pleasantries, he asked about the preface.

Dai Quan's expression turned solemn: "His Majesty and the Empress have already left the palace, saying they will personally preside over the grand ceremony for Duke Rong."

Fearing that the time would be too late, he sent his old servant to inform them in advance.

When this old servant left, His Majesty and the Empress's imperial carriage had already entered Xuanwu Street.

"Lord Rong, why don't you come out to greet him?"

The entire hall, including the host and guests, was astonished.

His Majesty and the Empress have both left the palace; they are going to personally preside over the grand ceremony for Jia Lian?

That sounds so fantastical!

Jia Lian himself was stunned. After staring at Dai Quan for two seconds and confirming that he was not joking, he realized that Dai Quan was not joking.

He turned around, took Baochai and Daiyu's hands, and led them outside.

With the Emperor and Empress arriving, the scene would surely be chaotic. He couldn't bear to see his two delicate brides being pushed and shoved in the crowd; he would only feel at ease if they were by his side.

Seeing Jia Lian's actions, even those who still had some doubts realized that the Emperor and Empress might really be coming in person.

Everyone jumped to their feet and surged out to welcome the emperor. (End of Chapter)