Li Chengjing couldn’t help chuckling again. Cheng Yujin actually had a thin face, and she would explode after a light teasing. What’s even cuter was how she tried hard to feign calmness, which always made him want to tease her again and again.
At this moment, the two heard movements outside, followed by a call: “Crown Prince, Crown Princess, are you up?”
It was Du Ruo’s voice. Cheng Yujin sighed in relief and immediately raised her voice in response: “Yes. Come in.”
She responded too quickly, as if she was afraid of being stopped. Her reaction amused Li Chengjing, but he also knew that today’s schedule was very important and they couldn’t be late, so he stopped teasing her.
In fact, Li Chengjing didn’t plan to do anything to Cheng Yujin. He was very self-disciplined and wouldn’t delay important matters for private affairs. But Cheng Yujin’s reaction was so big that Li Chengjing felt that he had suffered a loss. But with palace servants beginning to pour into their bedroom, Li Chengjing decided to wait until evening to settle the account with Cheng Yujin. The two then went to bathe separately.
The newly-married husband and wife were going to meet the Empress Dowager and imperial couple today. When ordinary people get married, the first day starts with the wedding ceremony and closes with the liveliness in the bridal room. On the second day, the new bride would offer tea ceremoniously to her parents-in-law, which formalized her acceptance into her husband’s family. In the imperial family, a prince’s wedding didn’t differ too much from the folk customs, except that more attention was paid to each detail. However, a crown prince’s wedding was not a private affair, but a national ceremony, and one of the highest importance too. It was not until the second day that Cheng Yujin would see her new parents-in-law the Emperor and the Empress, and finally the offering ceremony on the third day, which was equivalent to offering tea in a normal wedding process.
Later, there would be the temple visit, worshipping the ancestors, celebration…in short, it was very cumbersome to marry a wife. This was also the difference between a wife and concubines. Because the protocol was especially cumbersome, it showed the importance of a wife.
As yesterday, Cheng Yujin also wore the Crown Princess’ most formal diyi dress today. The complete attire couldn’t be worn without the help of at least three to four experienced people. Cheng Yujin stood like a hanger while several palace maids worked together to put the dress on her, and it took them a long time to finish.
When Cheng Yujin was finally ready, Li Chengjing had already been waiting outside. He had also changed into a formal imperial dress with a tasseled crown. In this dynasty, a complete attire consisted of separate upper and lower garments, with black and red colors reserved for formal occasions. Li Chengjing’s attire was also in black and red, supplemented with bright embroideries.
Facts had proved that the combination of two powerful colors of black and red was truly splendid and majestic. The effect was breathtaking. After Cheng Yujin came out, her eyes were drawn towards a figure, standing sideway in the morning light and looking extremely majestic in his silence. Hearing the sound, Li Chengjing turned around, the colorful tassels on his crown swayed slightly, but they made no sound at all.
This was probably the original intention of the attire. Because the clothes were heavy and the crown was tasseled with long ropes and beads, the ruler was expected to move slowly and solemnly, without showing any emotions in his movements. Cheng Yujin didn’t know how others were, but Li Chengjing obviously nailed it perfectly.
Li Chengjing was tall, with broad and straight shoulders, long waist, and long legs. He was simply the embodiment of a perfect figure. After last night, Cheng Yujin knew that he wasn’t thin at all. His body lines, from his back to waist and from his abdomen to legs, were very smooth and tight. Even though he just stood there saying nothing, there was a tremendous majesty on his body. The young man was obviously a few sizes bigger than Cheng Yujin, but he looked thin and slender once he was fully clothed.
A face as refined as a jade crown, a tall and straight body, and a natural majestic aura. Li Chengjing in his imperial attire was precisely the standard image of a crown prince people would think of.
A tall and slender person looked good in almost anything, and this was an inherent advantage no one could argue. Cheng Yujin was very fortunate that she had been paying attention to her posture for many years, keeping her waist and limbs very slender. Otherwise, it would be very disheartening to walk side to side with Li Chengjing.
Cheng Yujin sighed for a moment. She then walked to Li Chengjing’s side and curtsied, “Your Highness.”
Li Chengjing held out his hand to help Cheng Yujin up. Neither of them was very talkative, so Li Chengjing just said calmly: “Let’s go.”
The palace maids and eunuchs standing nearby were stunned by the scenery before their eyes. What kind of immortal couple was this? Not only that both husband and wife have outstanding looks, but they also have an elegant demeanor and graceful bearing, which undoubtedly increased the lethality by several levels. The solemn and luxurious attires seemed to be designed exclusively for them.
This was, undoubtedly, how people imagined a Crown Prince and a Crown Princess to be. Just seeing the couple standing side by side made people feel optimistic about the future of the country.
Li Chengjing and Cheng Yujin took a sedan chair all the way to Cining Palace where Empress Dowager lived. The palace personnel who met them on the way also had similar reactions. After the Empress Dowager was ready, she summoned the couple in. Li Chengjing and Cheng Yujin stood side by side and bowed in greetings. The female officials who presided over the meeting ceremony sighed on the side, as they had never seen such a perfect bow before. Each of the Crown Prince and Crown Princess movements was perfect and beautiful, as if taken directly from an etiquette book.
Here was obviously Empress Dowager Yang’s territory, but Cining Palace’s personnels felt a sense of pressure.
Two people with high scores wouldn’t necessarily look better together. On the contrary, they might affect each other negatively, which greatly compromises their individual look. However, if two people had not only perfect scores in both look and deportment but also a faultless tacit understanding between them, then the lethality would definitely increase exponentially.
As Empress Dowager stared at the couple below, her mood worsened. They obviously had just gotten married yesterday; why did they seem to have such a tacit understanding?
Right. Empress Dowager remembered that these two were originally uncle and niece. Although they were just married, they had known each other for a long time.
The fact that an uncle married his niece was something to be denounced, and this stain would follow Li Chengjing’s life forever. However, it also proved that Li Chengjing was not of Cheng family’s blood, and the Emperor also took the initiative to recognize his identity. It seemed indisputable that Li Chengjing was the Emperor’s eldest son, the one who was originally designated as the Crown Prince. Like this, Li Chengjing transformed overnight from a nobody into the heir to the throne.
It had to be said that although Li Chengjing’s plan was dangerous and gave him a bad reputation, it was also extremely effective. Otherwise, people would begin to suspect if ‘Cheng Yuanjing’ was still the real missing crown prince or whether Cheng family had exchanged him with a substitute.
In Empress Dowager Yang’s heart, there was also indescribable anger. She had never seen Cheng Yujin, but she had known Li Chengjing for a long time.
Not only was he born under her eyelids, but he also grew up, fell ill, survived, and finally was named the crown prince.
Now, she had to watch him return alive and get married. Perhaps soon, Eastern Palace would welcome the birth of a new life. It was said that a child born in the fifth month wouldn’t live long. Li Chengjing was indeed as weak as a kitten when he was just born. As a young child, he had never stayed apart from medicine jars. Why did he still survive?
T/N:
Dum dum dum!! Finally we meet (one of) the boss! Our MC’s palace battle is truly started!
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