HLnovel Chapter 538 Extra Thank You Banquet (5)
Chapter 538 Extra Thank You Banquet (5)
Soon, a group of people approached.
Zhao Yi was behind the crowd, waving at Xie Zhiyan.
Steward Wang's forehead still had a light sweat from the journey, but his shrill voice had already cut through the stagnant air:
"The Imperial Edict Arrives"
As soon as these words were spoken, the crowd in front of the Pingyang Marquis Mansion all knelt down.
Chief Steward Wang took the imperial edict from the young eunuch and read it aloud: "By the Will of Heaven and the Mandate of Heaven, the Emperor proclaims: I believe that the rule of the royal family begins with the inner chambers of the boudoir, and marriage is the foundation of human relations. Xie Zhiyan, the crown prince of the Yong'an Marquisate, is handsome, talented, and a pillar of state; Jiang Wantang, the legitimate daughter of the Jiang family, is virtuous and elegant, with both virtue and beauty. They are of equal age, and their talents and appearance are well-matched. They are truly a match made in heaven."
"I hereby grant you a marriage, to unite the two families and establish a long-lasting alliance. The Ministry of Rites is instructed to select an auspicious date for the wedding."
"I bestow upon you a Luanfengxiapei, a pair of jade ruyi (likely a Chinese character for "Yuanfengxiapei"), and one hundred pieces of imperial brocade, to demonstrate the grace of the imperial court."
"Announce it to the whole world, and let everyone know."
"Appreciate this."
As the imperial edict ended, the air became completely silent.
Everyone's pupils widened, their eyes filled with shock and confusion.
Especially Xie Chong who was present was completely shocked.
What's going on when a daughter-in-law suddenly falls from the sky?!
Xie Chong had thought his son would never get married, but who knew it would come so suddenly?!
It happened so suddenly that he, as a father, was not mentally prepared at all.
Everyone looked up and looked at each other in confusion.
What the hell is going on? What Jiang family's legitimate daughter?!
Isn’t the Jiang family’s legitimate daughter Jiang Wanfu the one in the wedding sedan?
Today is clearly the wedding of Young Marquis Xiao from Pingyang Marquisate and the eldest daughter of the Jiang family. Why did the imperial edict granting the marriage to Xie Zhiyan, the Chief Justice of the Dali Temple, suddenly appear?
Besides, didn't Xie Zhiyan come here to grab the bride? Why did he grant her a marriage?
Jiang Wantang's pupils trembled inside the wedding sedan.
Arranged marriage?!
She was about to get married today, but was suddenly married to another man, someone she had never met.
Amidst the crowd's looks of uncertainty, Wang Fuhai slowly walked up to Xie Zhiyan, holding the bright yellow imperial edict, flicked his whisk, and said with a smile, "Master Xie, please accept the edict..."
Xie Zhiyan stood up, his deep pupils trembled slightly, and even his fingertips were shaking when he took the imperial edict.
Although I knew I was back, when the imperial edict fell into my hands, I still felt that everything was too good to be true.
Finally...
He finally waited for the day he never dared to dream of.
Xie Zhiyan's heart was beating wildly, "boom boom boom..."
At this moment, a cold sneer was heard in the silent air, which was extremely sarcastic.
The sound was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for everyone present to hear clearly.
The source of the voice was Xiao Jingheng.
He sneered repeatedly and said, "Xie Zhiyan, did you hear clearly? The one His Majesty has arranged for you to marry is Jiang Wantang, the second daughter of the Jiang family. Why are you running here to snatch my bride?"
Hearing this, Xie Zhiyan also sneered, looking at him coldly with a tone full of sarcasm: "What are you doing?!"
"Of course it's because you stole my fiancée!"
His words were sharp and powerful.
For a moment, everyone's eyes widened and they gasped.
What's the meaning? !
Young Marquis Xiao said that Lord Xie stole the bride?
Lord Xie also said that Young Marquis Xiao stole his fiancée?
What's the matter? !
Who is robbing whose?!
Xiao Jingheng's pupils suddenly shrank, and he shouted sternly: "Xie Zhiyan, what do you mean by this?!"
"Literally." Xie Zhiyan said coldly.
Jamel Xiao gritted his teeth and said angrily: “Explain it clearly!”
Xie Zhiyan raised the corners of his lips and smiled coldly: "I said that the person in your wedding sedan chair is my fiancée!"
"You... stole my man!"
"Impossible!" Xiao Jingheng immediately retorted, "Are you kidding me?"
"I personally brought the bride to the bridal sedan chair, how could I be wrong?"
"Ridiculous! If that's your fiancée in there, then where is my new wife?"
At this moment, a loud voice rang out from behind the crowd...
"Young Marquis Xiao, is your new wife here?"
Everyone looked back at the sound...
I saw the dandy young man Zhao Yi waving his hands, and behind him, a carriage was slowly approaching.
As the carriage slowly approached, some sharp-eyed people recognized that it was clearly the carriage from the imperial palace.
what happened?
Could it be that Jiang Wanfu, the eldest daughter of the Jiang family, has really entered the palace for the selection?!
On the day of her wedding, she abandoned her fiancé to enter the palace for the imperial selection?!
So, the bride in this wedding sedan is really someone else!
Just as everyone was in shock, the carriage stopped in front of the Marquis's mansion.
"Miss Jiang, please get out of the car..." Wang Fuhai said in a shrill voice.
After saying this, Wang Fuhai loudly addressed the crowd, "Your Majesty has heard that Jiang Wanfu, the eldest daughter of the Jiang family, and Jing Heng, the son of the Marquis of Pingyang, have known each other since childhood and have long been engaged. Considering their mutual affection, I hereby order that the Jiang family's daughter's eligibility to enter the palace for selection be revoked, thus preserving their marriage."
Such a light sentence was like a muffled thunder, exploding in the dead silence, shaking people to the core.
Someone in the crowd suddenly said, "Young Marquis Xiao really got the wrong bride and stole Master Xie's woman!!!"
The others also came back to their senses: "It really is! It was actually Young Marquis Xiao who robbed Master Xie's people on the day of his wedding. No wonder Master Xie rushed here in such a hurry..."
"Isn't it said that Lord Xie, the Minister of Justice, is aloof from women and a pure-hearted person? How dare he snatch a woman right in front of the Marquis of Pingyang's mansion?"
"This Shura scene is too exciting..."
Then, amidst the excited and astonished gazes of the crowd, the carriage curtain opened, and Jiang Wanfu, with a panicked look on her face, trembling, stepped out of the carriage...
Her eyes were red, and she looked so pitiful.
However, when everyone saw her at this moment, they all looked at her with scrutiny, their eyes were complicated, with surprise, contempt, and even ridicule...
Jiang Wanfu was known as the most beautiful woman in the capital and had always been admired by others. She had never encountered such an embarrassing situation and was panicked for a moment.
Countless gazes wandered over her, mostly with contempt and mockery, like countless knives stabbing her body, making it difficult for her to breathe.
However, Xiao Jingheng's pupils suddenly shrank, and his eyes turned red. He looked at her in disbelief, and his low voice was filled with unbearable pain: "Fu'er, you..."
With just one sound, Jiang Wanfu suddenly woke up from her panic.
Not long ago, after going through round after round of selection in the imperial palace, everything was going well until His Majesty suddenly summoned her. Believing her exceptional beauty had won the emperor's favor, she was overjoyed. Unexpectedly, she...
Not only was he despised, but his father was also punished and demoted three levels!
Although the decree has not yet been issued and spread, it has become an established fact.
Soon, she was no longer the proud eldest daughter of the Prime Minister's Mansion. Xiao Jingheng was her only and best choice now.
Besides, they were childhood sweethearts, and he loved her so much, always doting on her and loving her...
Therefore, she must not lose Xiao Jingheng as her support again.