Chapter 19
Chapter 19: Wedding Night
"Qin Junyue!" Qi Chuyao finally snapped back to her senses and quickly grabbed her arm. "That's enough, that's enough!"
A wave of warmth rushed through her heart.
Sure enough, when it really mattered, her best sister came through. If this wasn't what a best friend was, then what was?
Pulled back by Qi Chuyao's grip, Qin Junyue finally loosened her hold.
She sheathed the Short Blade and swept Wei Ning with a cold glance before turning away.
Wei Ning slumped against the wall, legs gone weak, unable to speak for a long moment.
The commotion ended on that sour note.
But from that day on, not a single person dared say another word.
Qi Chuyao shamelessly draped her arm over Qin Junyue's shoulder and swayed along with her, every bit the picture of lifelong best friends.
The auspicious hour had arrived.
The gongs and drums grew louder and louder, and the firecrackers crackled and popped in a deafening burst.
Song Ning rose to his feet. Xia Ling and Xia Shuang flanked him on either side and guided him forward.
Through the covered walkway, through the courtyard, through the Moon-gates draped in red silk.
All along the way, festive noise filled every corner, and congratulations rang out from every direction.
He could not tell how many of those voices were sincere. He did not care.
Reaching the main entrance, he felt an unfamiliar pair of hands take hold of him.
Slender hands—yet faintly stiff, carrying a trace of reluctance.
Qi Chuyao.
"Let's go." Her voice was muffled, deeply unwilling.
Song Ning smiled faintly, let her lead him, and stepped out through the gates of the Song Family Estate.
He was already thinking: perhaps after the wedding, there was no need to stay in the Capital. He could bring Qi Chuyao to the frontier and slowly build his strength from there.
When a new emperor ascended the throne, he would inevitably purge the Eunuch Party, and purging the Eunuch Party would inevitably drag down countless officials. Staying in the Capital at such a time would be far more dangerous than not.
Especially with that young new emperor—if he turned out to be anything like the Chongzhen Emperor, then he had better take Qi Chuyao and put as much distance between them as possible.
As long as Shanhai Pass was held, everything else could be worked out.
Song Ning was still turning over his plans for the future in his mind when Qi Chuyao, looking deeply reluctant, glanced sideways at him.
She studied the face before her—those pale white eyes cast slightly downward, a faint, elusive smile resting at the corners of his mouth.
Clearly blind. Clearly unable to see a thing. And yet utterly composed and unhurried.
An inexplicable irritation suddenly surged up inside her.
He wasn't even a little nervous? He wasn't even a little afraid? He seemed completely indifferent to whom he was marrying?
Did he even like her at all? What did this betrothal even mean to him?
Why was he always like this every single time she saw him?
Outside the gates, the elders of both families had already taken their positions.
Song Ning's mother wore a dark red ceremonial robe today, a smile across her face.
She watched her only son—dressed in his Wedding Robes, supported by others—walk toward her step by step.
Qi's mother stood on the other side, beaming with satisfaction.
Between them, an incense altar had been set up in the center, bearing the tablets of Heaven and Earth, with thin threads of incense smoke curling upward.
"First bow—to Heaven and Earth."
The Ceremonial Official drew out the call in a long, drawn tone.
Qi Chuyao supported Song Ning as they bowed together toward the incense altar.
Song Ning sensed the stiffness of the person beside him but said nothing. He simply followed her rhythm—one bow, then another.
"Second bow—to the Elders."
The two turned and bowed to the elders of both families.
Song Ning's mother watched her son kneel upon the ground. She opened her mouth as though to say something, but no words came.
Qi's mother, on the other hand, laughed with open delight, nodding repeatedly.
"Husband and wife—bow to each other."
Qi Chuyao and Song Ning stood facing one another.
She clenched her jaw, bent at the waist, and bowed to him.
Song Ning bent as well and returned a gentle bow.
"Escort them to the Bridal Chamber!"
The rite was complete.
All around, a wave of cheers, applause, and congratulations erupted.
Firecrackers exploded, gongs and drums thundered, and everyone was laughing, celebrating, offering their blessings.
Somewhere within the crowd, Song Youyi stood in a corner in complete silence.
She wore a plain white dress and skirt today, draped in a thin cape, standing amid that sea of deep red like something that did not belong.
Everyone around her laughed and carried on. She did not move. She only watched quietly.
She watched her brother, dressed in that deep red Bridal Gown, standing beside another woman.
She watched him bend toward that woman in a gentle bow.
She watched them be surrounded by a crowd and slowly led away.
The pounding gongs and drums made her ears ache. The acrid smell of gunpowder smoke made her cough.
She pulled out a Handkerchief and pressed it lightly to her mouth, coughing twice, then dabbed at the corners of her eyes.
Then she lost all control. A sob tore out of her, tears flooding forward beyond all restraint, her cries raw and wrenching.
A woman nearby noticed and leaned in with a laugh:
"The Second Miss must be weeping for joy! Truly, what a bond between siblings."
Song Youyi raised her head, eyes red and brimming, and gave a nod.
Yes. Weeping for joy.
What a beautiful phrase.
The motion of dabbing her eyes paused. She turned her head to the side and met another pair of eyes directly.
Qin Junyue stood not far away, also looking at her.
The two of them faced each other across the festive crowd, across that sea of red, as though something unspeakable passed between their gazes.
Then both looked away.
As if nothing had happened at all.
****
Night deepened.
The noise of the Song Family Estate gradually faded. The guests dispersed one by one, leaving only the great red lanterns beneath the covered walkways still glowing, swaying gently in the night breeze.
After the revelry, a strange and eerie silence settled in.
In a secluded corner of the rear courtyard, Wei Ning leaned against a wall, one hand pressed to her slashed mouth, her expression dark enough to draw blood.
"That woman with the Qin name…" She ground out the words through clenched teeth, her voice thick with hatred. "One day, I'll make her regret it."
Several figures in black stood around her. At her words, they laughed.
That laughter was full of mockery.
"Make her regret it?" One of the women in black sneered. "Miss Wei, you'd do better to mind yourself. You're a Second Rank Martial Artist. What exactly are you going to do to her?"
Wei Ning's face flushed crimson, and she had nothing to say.
Another figure in black stepped forward, holding a rolled-up map, which she unfolded in the moonlight.
It was a layout of the Song Family Estate. The Bridal Chamber's location had been circled in red ink, with the surrounding paths, corridors, and guard positions all clearly annotated.
"Never mind her." The figure spoke, voice low and measured. "The plan stays the same. The blue-robed sword-carrier isn't here."
"That's Song Ning's personal guard?" someone asked.
"Yes. Her strength is unclear, but she's formidable—possibly Third Rank or Second Rank." The figure in black rolled up the map. "The key is the Bridal Chamber—Qi Chuyao and the blind young master."
"Qi Chuyao hasn't even reached Ranked Expert status. She's not a concern. The blind one even less so."
"What about the person our superior sent?"
"Already here."
The words had barely fallen when a shadow swept across the rooftop, dropping soundlessly to the ground before them.
It was a middle-aged woman—lean of frame, plain of face, dressed in a deep grey night-stalking outfit. Standing in the moonlight, she nearly melted into the darkness itself.
Her presence was drawn in to an extraordinary degree. Standing there, she was like a stone with no life in it.
But those eyes of hers were startlingly bright.
A Second Rank Martial Artist.
In this world, Ranked Experts were divided from Fourth Rank to First Rank. Anyone who had not yet reached Ranked status was not considered a true expert.
First Rank experts were exceedingly rare across the entire Great Qian Dynasty. The strongest Martial Artists known openly were Second Rank—both Qi's mother and Qin Junyue were Second Rank Martial Artists.
This was also the reason Qin Junyue had always been held in high regard. A Second Rank expert at her age—it was hard to say whether she might one day reach First Rank.
But reaching First Rank required the right convergence of circumstances as well. It could not be said that reaching Second Rank earlier necessarily meant reaching First Rank earlier.
Wei Ning saw her and instinctively took a step back.
The woman swept a glance over her, said nothing, and gave only a faint nod.
"Everything arranged?" she asked, her voice hoarse and low.
"Yes," the figure holding the map answered. "The Bridal Chamber is in the eastern wing of the Song Family Estate. Qi Chuyao will be going in shortly."
"Per the plan, you move after they douse the lights. The target is the blind young master—ideally in a manner that looks like Qi Chuyao's doing."
"And that sword-carrying woman?"
"It's the couple's wedding night. Would she really stay the whole time?"
The expression of the woman in black relaxed slightly, as though a weight had lifted from her.
The last time she had come to scout the grounds, she had nearly been detected by that woman. Surely it wasn't possible that beyond Qin Junyue, the Song Family Estate had another young Second Rank Martial Artist?
She gave a nod, said nothing more, glanced up to check the position of the moon, and in a single flash of movement, vanished into the night.
The several figures in black exchanged glances, then scattered as well, each slipping back into the darkness.