Court MarriageCh5 - Qiao Yingze

[Edited: 1/14/23]

Translator: LishaChan
Editor: Dom fdeP7j

Most of the people welcoming the bride buzzed and made a loud commotion all over the city. Although the palanquin chairman who received red envelopes lifted the palanquin very steadily, it still frequently rocked, making Gong Zhuoliang doze off from time to time. He had to keep holding his crown and try to stay awake so he could focus his mind and think of some ways to deal with tonight’s event.

As the sound of the firecrackers crackled, finally the palanquin reached its destination and was now carefully placed on the ground. Gong Zhuoliang quickly dropped the veil in front of his face and properly sat down. After a while, the palanquin door was suddenly pushed open which suddenly caused a roar of laughter outside, then the people outside were heard gently explaining something to a man named Qiao Yingxuan, saying it was inappropriate to kick open the door like that and so on and so on. Then another voice was heard, coming from a man, clear and bright with a hint of embarrassment, who in return told the people outside to keep quiet so as not to scare the bride.

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Gong Zhuoliang’s sight was completely covered with the red veil so he could only imagine and guess the spectacle of the cheerful festivity outside the palanquin, but then this suddenly made him feel complicated.

When everybody finds out that the so-called ‘daughter-in-law’ sitting inside the big red palanquin right now and the one who will be crossing through their threshold was actually a man, he couldn’t help worrying just how they would vent their anger later on…… wpK AW

Suddenly, he felt a pull on his sleeves. When Gong Zhuoliang lowered his eyes and looked from under the veil, he saw the small hand of a child grabbing to his sleeves. He immediately recognized it was Ruo Lan’s right after hearing her voice say: ‘Young Lady, please come out of the palanquin‘

Gong Zhuoliang let his sleeves be pulled out three times before finally deciding to step out of the palanquin door.

As soon as Gong Zhuoliang stepped out of the palanquin, he was supported by the chaperone and was told to walk over the fire brazier and jump over the horse saddle, before he finally stood on the red carpet. After that, he saw the back of a figure clad in red squatting in front of him. The chaperon started chanting beside him, while the man in red placed Gong Zhuoliang’s hand on his shoulders.

When Gong Zhuoliang instinctively laid down on Qiao Yingxuan’s back, he saw from under his red veil that he was also wearing a wedding dress, only, he was not holding a red ribbon. Gong Zhuoliang was suddenly a little curious about the appearance of this younger Qiao. He had actually already imagined this pair of brothers as the male version of the Qiao sisters. CYgKH5

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Thinking that Gong Zhuoliang’s actions were due to shyness, he whispered words to him in a way that only the two of them could hear using a kind and gentle tone.

“Don’t be afraid, my big brother is a good person. He will certainly not wrong you in the future, so I hope you will treat him well too.”

“Mn……” eIs3bl

Qiao Yingxuan’s kind attitude suddenly made Gong Zhuoliang feel a little guilty for no apparent reason, that’s why he could only reply in a vague manner without uttering any word. He welcomed him into their family, but it’s impossible for him(GZL) to expect something good from the Qiao Family.

The better they treat him well, the harder they will be hit once they know about the truth.

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Gong Zhuoliang only hoped that his father-in-law and mother-in-law would have a similar attitude as the Gong family. At least they will not have any good feelings for him and will not be good to him, in that way, it’ll be easier for him to deceive them***…… Why does it feel like he’s being such a masochist? BXCr8m

Qiao Yingxuan carried Gong Zhuoliang until they finally reached the wedding hall. Then he helped him land on the right position before he retreated backwards, handing over the bridegroom’s position to his elder brother—— Qiao Yingze

Hearing laughter and urging from the crowd below the audience seat, Gong Zhuoliang knew that it was at this moment when the groom had to hand the red ribbon tied with a flower ball to himself. This was the first time the groom and the bride met each other, and he could notice that the other party was a bit shy. Gong Zhuoliang’s attention was fully concentrated on him, and he didn’t know what he was so nervous about.

Finally, the figure approaching in red attire arrived. Gong Zhuoliang looked down and stared at his own sleeves under his red veil, and then saw a pair of beautiful hands holding and reaching out a ribbon to him.

It was thin and slender however he couldn’t see the rest since it’s barely exposed in his sleeves. But he could see that the fingers looked meticulously cared, and the complexion of his skin was very fair and clear. He could only guess the character of the person itself by looking at the owner’s hand, that’s why Gong Zhuoliang couldn’t help but be more curious about the appearance of his ‘Husband’…. Beauty is always loved by everyone, and Gong Zhuoliang who’s very open-minded to this is not an exception. For him, in beauty, there should be no difference between men and women. lzZrgb

Suddenly, the hand that reached out to him halted. Gong Zhuoliang heard an awkward cough from the other party, and then the audiences who’d been watching the two cheered even more loudly for them. Gong Zhuoliang became quite worried for the person in front of him.

As he internally and repeatedly reminded himself to be calm and reserved, Gong Zhuoliang planned to reach out for the ribbon and get it by himself.

But then Qiao Yingze’s hand finally grabbed the small hand under Gong Zhuoliang’s sleeve and placed one hand on the silk ribbon to hold it, and then the connected red silk ball is now hanging down between the two of them.

The hand….. felt so good, ah rYum6I

Gong Zhuoliang had a bit of a hand fetish, but not too severe. The reason for it is kind of due to his pretentiousness, since it was because of how elegant some idol had been when playing the piano. Later on, it got to the point when he started to like stroking and squeezing his little editor’s hands, but anyway, Qiao Yingze’s hands were to Gong Zhuoliang’s liking.

After the time passed similarly on how it took an incense to burn it was finally time to worship the heaven and the earth.. yUW OT

Gong Zhuoliang walked towards the main halls of heaven and earth after hearing the oral command of the celebrant. Once the two couples finished worshiping each other, the audience below instantly cheered and clapped their hands.

There’s this known custom called ‘robbing’ in this era, and that is, whomever bowed to worship first will be the one managing the household in the future. There was a rumor ― which is more like a joke ― that one day, during a certain wedding, the newlywed husband and wife just suddenly fought over this matter, which then caused the groom to be so furious at the end and left the hall with a swirl of his sleeves.

Gong Zhuoliang doesn’t care about these things, and so he only knelt down right after the celebrant finished declaring the couple’s worship, but unexpectedly, the person beside him also bowed together with him, yet his face was still wearing an undisturbed expression after that. Jiytrs

Although he couldn’t see the other person’s face through the red veil covering his face, Gong Zhuoliang felt as if he could hear the other person’s voice saying: I’ll yield to everything you say in the future….

For some reason, Gong Zhuoliang’s heart tightened. Although this was such a little detail for him to notice, Gong Zhuoliang could still sense the genuine gentleness of the person kneeling in front of him. If he were to actually marry a real woman, it would’ve been really good. What a pity.

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Gong Zhuoliang wasn’t given a long time to fall into a deep trance because just as soon as the choir finished singing, the audiences’ blessings instantly exploded within the hall. Don’t even think about rushing to your bridal chambers and getting a good night’s sleep, in fact, Gong Zhuoliang’s headache was only about to begin.

The next thing the newlyweds will have to do is to bow down to one elder and to another according to the list provided by the celebrant… OT5UQ0

Although the Qiao Family’s relatives did not stay over in the city for long, the relatives that the old Master Qiao called over had already moved in for the past few years as a palace official while only a few defected. And so they kept kneeling all the way to the end until Gong Zhuoliang started getting a little dizzy.

Subconsciously, Gong Zhuoliang looked over at Qiao Yingze from under the red veil and noticed that his figure was somehow a little shaky. Out of reflex, Gong Zhuoliang hurriedly supported the other’s arm. Because he didn’t want any trouble to happen today, even after they knelt down and already stood up, he kept supporting him to give him some more power to hold on.

Observing Gong Zhuoliang’s small actions from the eyes of the audiences, it naturally caused a burst of laughter to them. But it was unknown whether the laughter was out of provocation or jealousy. In a deprecatory way, the Groom today is somehow more ‘delicate‘ than the Bride.

Gong Zhuoliang is not the type of person who took seriously what cheap people say, but when he noticed that Qiao Yingze’s body suddenly froze upon hearing those words, he subconsciously patted the hand holding his arm. And then he sensed that the other party seemed to take a look at him, then he suddenly grasped his hands and then pulled him to continue kneeling down in front of another elder. HhDAVi

“…”

Guessing that the other seemed unwilling to let go of his hand, Gong Zhuoliang felt quite awkward, but he couldn’t free himself from the other so he had no choice but to let the other keep holding him. They kept this posture the whole time right until the worshiping ended and then they’re finally approaching the bridal chamber.

During this, there was another particular ritual that they must act out.

Five sacks were laid on the ground, and the groom would have to lead the bride to walk over it with the silk fabric, then they would take turns to use those five sacks to pave their way. This ritual actually meant ‘Inheriting the Ancestral Lineage‘ and ‘To Encounter the Five Generations‘, or something…. fFehLx

Right when Gong Zhuoliang saw those five stacks, his face made a: 囧…. After all, he really couldn’t fulfill this task at all!

Finally, they safely arrived at their bridal chamber. Gong Zhuoliang sat firmly beside the bed and the chaperone immediately came over with a weighing pole and asked the Groom to lift his red veil. Gong Zhuoliang instantly adjusted his expression, relaxed his brows and made a genuine gaze to put on an honest expression.

After a moment, the top of his crown was lightly tapped, and what immediately appeared in front of Gong Zhuoliang was a face that was as elegant and handsome as a crown jade.

….What a beautiful young man ah… TBWd4H

The person in front of him could be around sixteen or seventeen years old. Although his face looked already quite mature, his facial features still had the kind of childishness of a teenager. It was unknown whether it was due to his recovery from a serious illness or his nurturing height, but Qiao Yingze’s figure looked very thin. His face is pale and a bit haggard, but it’s this weak temperament that shone his delicateness, giving people an urge to protect and take care of this pale beauty from the bottom of their hearts.

At least for Gong Zhuoliang ― who is a grown man to some extent ― towards Qiao Yingze who he met for the first time, a sudden small fleeting desire to protect the person in front of him has started to grow in his heart.

Under the gaze of the other’s eyes, Gong Zhuoliang noticed that the young handsome man on the opposite side of him was blushing. While those eyes were originally gazing at him, they already moved away. Gong Zhuoliang blinked, realizing that he must’ve been staring too brazenly and quickly lowered his eyes then sighed in his heart. This person was more pleasing to the eye than he’d expected, and his nature seems to be good, so he must be easier to decei- Communication! It’s good to start off with communication, ah!

After taking off the red veil and going through the process of sprinkling lotus seeds and longans, a bunch of relatives and friends immediately rushed into the bridal chamber. Seeing Gong Zhuoliang’s appearance, they were full of admiration and praise and lamented how enviable Qiao Yingze is for marrying such a beautiful girl which made him a little embarrassed. The groom’s face also turned even redder than his.

But even so, Qiao Yingze still didn’t forget to protect his little wife, and did his best to stop everyone’s teasing and blocked those who created trouble for Gong Zhuoliang. At first, Gong Zhuoliang only responded to them with an awkward polite smile, but as they became more of a nuisance, he really couldn’t care less anymore and started acting flirty and touchy with Qiao Yingze, but in secret, Gong Zhuoliang was frowning.

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Although he was told before that during the wedding night would be the most chaotic time, as a bride, he was repeatedly warned that he shouldn’t be angered easily, otherwise he would lose his image of generosity and be mocked at and so on and so on.

However Gong Zhuoliang never shrank back whenever people started speaking obscene words at him, especially when some of them would pull wicked tricks on him and when their claws tried to touch Qiao Yingze. Y5Rdhj

As Gong Zhuoliang rolled his eyes, he embraced Qiao Yingze’s waist and started snuggling into his arms. He was using his body to block those hovering claws that were about to touch them, and then gave them a bright smile, causing those guests who hadn’t yet laid a finger to the bride to leave with regret.

When everyone finally dispersed and had now crowded at the front hall for the drinks and feasts, the room finally had some more space and everything quieted down. Qiao Yingze instantly sat by the bed when he finally couldn’t endure it anymore and huffed softly as a string of sweat flowed down his forehead.

Originally, after the wedding was over, the bride and the groom had to go out of the chamber to toast with the guests, keeping each other company throughout the whole banquet, then they could come back again for a drink, finally finishing the ceremony. But Qiao Yingze’s body couldn’t hold it anymore, so the only choice left for them to make is to ask for the younger brother to be the one to entertain the guest to take their place. Qiao Yingze has been able to hold on until now, and this is already much better than everyone had expected.

“Are you okay?” xdFwsE

Qiao Yingze’s pale face made Gong Zhuoliang a little worried. He was hesitating whether to help him to lean over the bed or not but the next moment, he was awakened by the two words that the other man said and almost twitched.

It was a voice that is so gentle and filled with indulgence: “My wife…”