The most dissolute couple in the capital

Outside the Cui residence, gongs and drums resounded.

The people of Chang'an flocked to the streets early in the morning, blocking the road from the palace gate to the Cui residence.

The reason was simple—King Liang personally rode a horse to welcome the bride, with an extravagant display of power.

The procession stretched for miles, with eighty-eight bearers carrying the dowry alone, stretching from the intersection of Yongningfang all the way to the archway in front of the Cui residence.

The onlookers were abuzz with discussion.

"Tsk tsk, this spectacle... even a princess's wedding wouldn't be this grand!"

"His Highness Prince Liang came to greet us personally. Look at that bright red wedding robe! Oh my, His Highness is truly handsome."

"What use is Jun? I heard he's bad at having children..."

"Shh! Are you out of your mind? How dare you say that in the street?"

Li Chengjing rode a pure white steed, his bright red wedding robe making his face look like jade, his eyes filled with barely suppressed joy.

He is good-looking.

[At this point, I hope readers will remember our domain name: 202ᴋᴋs.ᴄᴏᴍ]

Cui Qingyi acknowledged this from their first meeting. Li Chengjing's features were exceptionally striking, with deep-set eyes, a high nose bridge, beautiful lips, and his eyes slightly upturned when he smiled, exuding a natural youthful spirit.

At this moment, he was riding on horseback, surrounded by a group of Cui family relatives and wedding attendants, with a very happy smile on his face.

He Li and Wang Chengyuan rode behind him on horseback, acting as his best men and women.

He Li was dressed in a respectable outfit today, which was rare for him, but his face was full of excitement. He had cried twice already. Once was when he left home, saying, "I am so moved that the eldest brother is finally getting married." The other time was when he saw the people cheering along the way, saying, "The people are also happy for the eldest brother, sob sob sob."

Wang Chengyuan remained calm, but his attention was completely elsewhere than on the wedding procession. He was frowning, scrutinizing a crease on his sleeve, utterly disgusted: "This material is wrong. I clearly said it had to be Shu brocade, who gave me this instead?"

He Li sniffed: "Third brother, can't you do something serious? The eldest brother is about to get married and you're still looking at clothes?"

Wang Chengyuan rolled his eyes: "Precisely because the eldest is going to have the wedding ceremony, I need to be even more presentable. If the bride's cousins ​​see me dressed like this, they might think that the Prince of Liang doesn't even have anyone dressed decently by his side."

He Li: "...You think that girl is looking at you?"

Wang Chengyuan flicked his sleeve: "We can't disgrace the King of Liang."

Li Chengjing didn't even turn his head: "Can you two be quiet for a moment? If you keep making noise, I'll make you dismount and walk."

The two of them shut up at the same time.

The wedding procession stopped in front of the Cui residence. Li Chengjing dismounted and straightened his clothes.

According to the customs of the Da Ning Dynasty, the groom must first compose a poem urging the bride to get ready and leave the house in front of her family's gate. This is an ancient tradition that emphasizes both talent and sincerity.

The poem urging the bride to get ready was so well-written that it received a round of applause and became a celebrated story in the future.

It's not well written...

Li Chengjing glanced at the desk and writing implements set up in front of the door, and took a deep breath.

The whole of Chang'an knew that he was bad at studying.

The members of the Cui family had been eagerly waiting inside the gate. Most were there to join in the fun, while others were waiting to see them make a fool of themselves.

Although the Cui family of Qinghe married their daughter to the royal family, Cui Qingyi's father was only a sixth-rank secretary from a collateral branch, not a core figure in the Cui clan. Among the distant relatives who came to see her off today, there were bound to be a few with impure intentions.

Li Chengjing walked to the desk, picked up his brush, and dipped it in ink.

He Li nervously wrung his hands behind him and whispered to Wang Chengyuan, "Boss, you're not going to be unable to write it, are you?"

Wang Chengyuan said expressionlessly, "No. He stayed up all night last night, wrote more than twenty drafts, and chose one himself."

He Li: "...More than twenty drafts?"

Wang Chengyuan: "Yeah. He tore up the first nineteen drafts himself. After he finished the twentieth draft, he asked me if it looked good. I said it didn't, and he almost threw the inkstone at my head."

Li Chengjing has already started writing.

His calligraphy wasn't particularly good, but it was taught to him personally by the emperor, so he still had a basic sense of style.

What he wrote was:

I rose early to prepare for my wedding day, before dawn, for this auspicious day was the perfect time to welcome you.

Adorned in phoenix coronet and embroidered robes, riding a phoenix away, from now on, we'll spend our lives together as a pair of lovebirds.

To be fair, this poem urging one to get married is rather mediocre in terms of literary style. It has a neat rhyme scheme and simple words, without piling up ornate allusions or elaborate imagery.

But after the Cui family's nun Quanfu took the poem and read it aloud, the wedding attendants inside the door still cheered as usual, "What a wonderful poem!"

After all, he is a prince of the royal family; we must give him face.

However, an untimely voice rang out from the crowd.

"Is this what you call a 'bridal poem'?"

The speaker was a distant cousin of the Cui family, named Cui Yanzuo. He failed the imperial examination last year and now lives in the capital relying on the Cui family's connections.

This person usually loves to show off his talent at literary gatherings, calling himself a romantic and talented man, but in reality, his knowledge is not up to scrutiny.

Today he wore a newly made blue robe and a scholar's cap, standing in the crowd, shaking his head with a disdainful expression.

"'Rising at dawn to urge you to get ready before daybreak'? That's too..." He paused deliberately, glancing around, waiting for someone to agree, "Too blunt. Poems urging you to get ready should be subtle and evocative, using imagery to convey emotion and allusions to express meaning. This kind of plain language has absolutely no air of refinement."

The other young members of the Cui family looked at each other, none of them daring to respond.

Cui Yanzuo didn't receive a response, but he wasn't embarrassed. He continued, "If I were writing it, I would at least use an allusion like 'Shen Yue's slender waist' or 'Mi Fei's smiling face' to make it seem..."

"My writing skills aren't great," Li Chengjing readily admitted, his tone so frank that it didn't sound like he was talking about his shortcomings. "But I wrote this myself."

He glanced at Cui Yanzuo and smiled: "I heard that three paragraphs of the policy essay you submitted in the spring examination last year were almost identical to Sun Wenjing's 'Policy on Governance' from the previous dynasty."

Cui Yanzuo's face turned from red to white, and he opened his mouth but couldn't say a word.

Li Chengjing didn't look at Cui Yanzuo again. He turned to face the Cui family's gate and said loudly, "The most important thing in urging someone to get ready for marriage is sincerity. My literary talent is mediocre, and this poem is something I came up with myself, word by word, just to win the favor of my beloved today. Even if it's ordinary..."

He paused, then said in a light tone, "It's better than copying someone else's work."

There was silence inside and outside the door, which was then broken by a burst of good-natured laughter.

Cui Yanzuo's expression worsened.

What could he say?

Arguing with the Prince of Liang? His brother is the emperor.

Is it true that the Prince of Liang framed him? The matter of that policy essay is true. If this gets out of hand, he won't even be able to save face for the Cui family.

Cui Yanzuo gritted his teeth and retreated back into the crowd, wishing he could disappear into a crack in the ground.

He Li was desperately trying to suppress his laughter, his face turning red from holding it in. Wang Chengyuan, on the other hand, remained calm, but the corners of his mouth curled up slightly.

Cui Zhiyuan let out a long breath and nodded to the steward beside him.

The steward understood and announced loudly, "The auspicious hour has arrived—open the gates to welcome the bride!"

The vermilion gates of the Cui residence slowly opened.

-

Inside the courtyard, Cui Qingyi heard the commotion outside.

Su Xin ran in and out several times, vividly recounting the whole story of the urging poem and Cui Yanzuo being rebuked.

Su Xin lowered her voice, extremely excited, "That person wanted to ghostwrite for His Highness, but His Highness exposed their true colors! He said their essay was plagiarized!"

Cui Qingyi raised her eyebrows slightly.

She did have some recollection of this. Cui Yanzuo was indeed a scoundrel; in her previous life, after marrying into the Zheng family, she had heard her husband mention him, saying that he was "lacking in talent and learning, and fond of empty fame." She never expected that Li Chengjing would deal with him today.

The corners of her mouth curved into a smile.

"Young lady, the groom has come to fetch you." Granny Quanfu walked in with a smile.

Cui Qingyi stood up and felt the weight of her wedding dress pressing down from her shoulders to her ankles.

She took a deep breath.

In her previous life, when she got married, she was full of courage, believing that she could make a good life for the Zheng family.

When she got married in this life, she had a heart full of naivety and only wanted to live her life well.

When your mindset changes, your steps become lighter.

Cui Qingyi walked out of her room with the help of Granny Quanfu and Suxin.

As he passed through the front hall, Cui Zhiyuan stood at the door, watching his daughter leave. He was dressed in a formal official robe today, his back ramrod straight, his face solemn.

But as Cui Qingyi passed by him, she heard a very soft cough.

There was a barely perceptible sob hidden in that cough.

Cui Qingyi slowed her pace slightly, gave a slight curtsy in her father's direction, and whispered, "Father, I'm leaving. Please take care of yourself."

Cui Zhiyuan's Adam's apple bobbed, he nodded, and said nothing.

Standing behind Cui Zhiyuan, Li's eyes were also red. No matter what, Cui Qingyi had been raised under her care for so many years. Although she wasn't her biological daughter, the bond they had formed was still there.

Cui Qinghui stood beside Li Shi, watching Cui Qingyi's bright red figure cross the threshold and walk into the midst of gongs, drums, and cheers.

The bridal sedan chair set off, and the grand wedding procession proceeded along Zhuque Avenue, the widest street in Chang'an, drawing crowds from all over the city.