548 Grand Wedding
With the information provided by the old man, Song Jingchen found out from the records that only the Mingxiang Residence had a convoy leaving the city to transport tea leaves that day. That was why he locked his suspicion on that place.
Speaking of Mingxiang Residence, it hadn’t been established in recent years. It had been established in the capital for dozens of years, but the kidnapping case had started five to six years ago. This was also why Song Jingchen didn’t notice it at first.
In addition, it was not an ordinary teahouse.
It was backed by the old aristocrats, and the words “Fragrant Teahouse” were personally written by the late emperor.
It could be said that without concrete evidence, even the emperor would not touch it easily.
This way, Song Jingchen would inevitably be restrained. He couldn’t alert the enemy, so he could only send someone to keep an eye on the things sent out of Fragrant Teahouse.
He didn’t care about small fries.
Shen Yijia thought about how Thirty Thousand and Rooster disguised themselves as beggars to rummage through those things and felt a chill down her spine.
She decided that after this matter was over, she would definitely get Mo Yuan to add drumsticks for the two of them.
In the blink of an eye, it was Yuan Yuwan’s wedding day. With Mo Yuan guarding her, Shen Yijia was actually not worried about her safety.
However, just in case, she got up before dawn and decided to take a look at the Yuan Family’s old residence.
There happened to be a break in the court today. Earl Rong’s residence and the general’s residence held a wedding on the same day. More than half of the officials received two wedding invitations.
It was easy to offend either family. Apart from the fact that Lord Jing went straight to Earl Rong’s residence on the surface, most of the other officials had the idea of not offending anyone. The couples separated and went to one family each.
The Song family had a noble title now, so they naturally received two invitations.
However, Song Jingchen and Shen Yijia had no intention of going to Earl Rong’s residence.
After Shen Yijia packed up, she saw Song Jingchen staring at her without blinking through the bronze mirror. She leaned over and cupped Song Jingchen’s face. “Hubby, go to the Xiao family’s house yourself later. I’ll go over after Yuwan gets into the bridal sedan.”
Song Jingchen pursed his lips and lowered his eyes to continue reading. “Yes.”
Shen Yijia walked away, but she didn’t notice Song Jingchen’s dark expression.
When she arrived at the Yuan Family’s old residence, Yuan Yuwan was already dressed. She usually wore plain clothes, giving off a quiet and gentle feeling.
Now that she was wearing a phoenix coronet and robes, her lips were red, making her look bright and lively.
“Wow, Sister Yuwan, you’re really good-looking today.” Shen Yijia was stunned.
Yuan Yuwan pursed her lips and smiled. She didn’t look shy like a newlywed. Instead, she looked very calm.
Only then did Shen Yijia realize that the atmosphere was a little off. An unfamiliar woman stood awkwardly in the room, while Mo Yuan was still expressionless. On the other hand, You Bai’s eyes were red. It was obvious that she had cried.
“What’s wrong?” Shen Yijia looked at Mo Yuan.
Without waiting for Mo Yuan to speak, You Bai choked and said, “Madam Song, persuade my Miss. She insisted on arranging for Feng Manman to enter the Xiao family today. No matter how I persuade her, it’s useless.”
Moreover, she would become a noble concubine!
Shen Yijia paused.
She had heard Madam Li say that even if her husband wanted to take in a concubine, it would usually be three months after the wedding. This was to stabilize her position as the main wife.
“Sister Yuwan, you…”
“Eldest Young Master Xiao gave me a place to stay. I naturally have to return the favor,” Yuan Yuwan said indifferently.
Seeing that she was still smiling, Shen Yijia’s heart skipped a beat. She went forward and held her hand, only to realize that it was cold to the touch. She frowned and said, “Sister Yuwan, why don’t you stop marrying? Anyway, Earl Rong’s residence…”
Halfway through, Shen Yijia knew that this was unrealistic. Not to mention that she would offend the Xiao family because of this.
As long as Yuan Yuwan’s surname was still Yuan, her marriage was not something she could decide on her own. Without Earl Rong’s residence, there was still a second and third person.
Who knew who the Yuan family would sell Yuan Yuwan to in order to get some small benefits?
Yuan Yuwan knew that Shen Yijia had figured this out, so she did not say anything else. She only patted Shen Yijia with her free hand. “You haven’t eaten breakfast yet, right? I haven’t eaten yet. Eat with me.”
She pointed at the food box beside her.
The newly married woman should have eaten good food before putting on her makeup and wedding dress. Moreover, in order to prevent herself from embarrassing herself later, she could not eat too much.
Yuan Yuwan didn’t have much of an appetite before, so she didn’t eat it.
With that, she instructed You Bai, “Bring Mrs. Yan to eat something first.”
“Mrs. Yan is the Madam I invited.”
She introduced Mrs. Yan to Shen Yijia.
Madam Xiao knew about the Yuan family’s situation and sent someone over to ask if they could help. Yuan Yuwan refused. How could her in-laws help her future daughter-in-law manage these things?
Madam Yan and her husband were well known. She was famous for being blessed among the commoners. The commoners would invite her to marry off their daughters. This was the first time she had accepted a job from an official’s daughter.
The corners of her mouth twitched as she nodded at Shen Yijia with a dry smile. She put the veil aside and bowed. “Then I’ll come back later to touch up Eldest Miss’s makeup.”
Mo Yuan set out the food in the food box. Shen Yijia knew that there were some things that she could not interfere with, so she could only ask if the Yuan family had caused any trouble.
Yuan Yuwan picked up a crystal dumpling for her and nodded mockingly. “It’s all thanks to you lending me Mo Yuan.”
Reality proved that they did not think too much about it. Last night, a group of men in black wanted to break into the old residence and abduct people. Unfortunately, they were captured by Xiao Qirui’s men before they could enter.
Of course, Yuan Yuwan didn’t know about this.
Apart from the men in black, the stepmother also bribed an old woman in the kitchen of the old residence to drug Yuan Yuwan. In the end, Mo Yuan saw through her.
When Shen Yijia heard this, she was angry and glad. Seeing that Yuan Yuwan was unwilling to say anything else, she sighed and stopped talking.
After the two of them finished eating, the sound of gongs and drums came from outside the residence.
Shen Yijia clearly saw Yuan Yuwan’s body stiffen.
Coincidentally, You Bai returned with Mrs. Yan. Mrs. Yan said something auspicious as she touched up Yuan Yuwan’s makeup. She was about to pick up the veil and cover her up.
Yuan Yuwan said, “I’ll do it myself.”
...
Lady Yan paused. Thinking about how she had not seen a relative of her new mother’s after coming for so long and hearing that this girl was even in charge of the marriage, she sighed.
She smiled and said a few more good words before handing over the veil.
According to the custom, there should be brothers blocking the bride’s door. After the groom cleared the level, he would bid farewell to his parents with the bride, and the bride would be carried onto the bridal sedan by the brothers.
However, Yuan Yuwan had nothing here.
Outside the residence, Xiao Qirui was sitting on a horse in a red groom’s suit. Accompanying him were his brothers in the military camp and the Xiao family’s best man, who was about his age.
The majestic group of people stood at the entrance of the residence. The lineup to pick up the bride was huge. Looking at the cold and cheerless Yuan family, the people behind them had strange expressions for a moment before quickly heckling, “Brother Xiao, you’re the best. You can easily marry a beautiful lady without anyone blocking the door.”
“That’s right…”
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