Chapter 63

On the morning of August fourteenth, the household was noticeably busy.

In fact, for several days prior, there had been a tense atmosphere lingering in the household. Several days ago, the betrothal gifts from the Xie family had already been delivered to the Sang family mansion.

As Xie Yun’s marriage, as the successor of the Xie family, naturally attracted attention. Moreover, due to the grand intentions of the Xie family, the procession delivering the betrothal gifts stretched for several streets.

With a grandiose momentum, they headed towards the Sang family mansion. While Sang Yao quietly watched the servants of her household bustling back and forth, unlike the satisfaction on Sang Yin’s face, she only showed astonishment.

Then, she secretly asked Sang Yin, “Father, can we handle all this?”

Sang Yin replied, “Don’t worry, I had someone clean up the warehouse a few days ago.”

Sang Yao acknowledged. She didn’t have much feeling about these external things. To her, each box filled with invaluable items only weighed heavily when the servants carried them.

Sang Yin then leaned closer and whispered, “Yao Yao, all these things will be yours in the future. No one in this house will dare to touch them.”

The Sang family couldn’t be considered wealthy. Although with Sang Yin, Sang Yan, and Sang Yue, there were four men serving as officials, the family’s wealth had only accumulated over the past six or seven years.

After all, when Sang Yin hadn’t risen to power, Sang Yao had to watch people’s expressions even if she wanted to eat a piece of pastry.

Now, the betrothal gifts sent by the Xie family undoubtedly brought a windfall to the Sang family.

No one mentioned it now, but in the future, after Sang Yao entered the Xie family, whether these things would be coveted was still uncertain.

Sang Yao was indifferent, saying, “What do I need these for? Father, you can keep them.”

Frowning, Sang Yin said, “How can a father take his daughter’s betrothal gifts! Don’t say such things next time.”

He sighed again, his voice somewhat low, “But it’s all because I’m incompetent. Your dowry might not be comparable to the betrothal gifts from the Xie family when the time comes.”

In fact, Sang Yao thought Sang Yin was already quite impressive.

He didn’t come from an scholar background, but from being a humble bookkeeper to becoming the current Deputy Minister of Justice, he had shown considerable capability.

Initially, when her sister entered the palace and gained favor, she had sent her father the first favorable winds, allowing him to be dispatched to the remote northwest.

At that time, hardly anyone in the court was willing to take on that position.

It was both arduous and exhausting, with little profit and difficult prospects for promotion. No one wanted to go, but for Sang Yin, it was indeed an opportunity.

It was an opportunity to appear before the Emperor and prove himself.

The journey was undoubtedly difficult. It took Sang Yin two full years to achieve results and then return to the capital, where his career finally started to flourish.

He was indeed someone who could flatter those above him and show authority to those below.

But over these years, he had never engaged in the plundering of the people’s wealth.

Even though he liked to take advantage of others, he still had a bottom line.

Sang Yao always wondered why her father loved to show off. It wasn’t just because of his vanity, but because he had experienced too many days of being ignored and despised.

“But over these years, father has been saving your dowry. Even now, he has saved quite a bit. He won’t let you down.” These years—flashed before her eyes.

Sang Yao felt her eyes sting. She lowered her head and followed Sang Yin into the room, remaining silent.

Although Sang Yin had played both the role of a father and a mother over these years, many times, he still wasn’t as convenient as a mother.

He whispered, “Yao Yao, after you go to the Xie family, you must be cautious and not easily trust others.”

Sang Yao murmured in agreement.

Sang Yin advised again, “You’re still young. If they’re in a hurry for a child, find a way to delay it.”

In truth, Sang Yao wasn’t that young. At her age, many women already had children. But Sang Yin always saw Sang Yao as a child and thought it would be better for her to have children when she was a bit older.

Sang Yao murmured again, not wanting to cry in front of Sang Yin. She said softly, “I understand.”

With that said, there wasn’t much else Sang Yin could say. Marrying Xie Yun was already quite suitable for Sang Yao.

He didn’t have complicated relationships with other wives, could see through the schemes around him, respected Sang Yao, and could provide her with a worry-free life.

There wasn’t much else to say.

---

Late at night after the family banquet dispersed, Sang Yao returned to her small courtyard.

Soon after, someone knocked on her door. Sang Yao opened it to find her aunt, Su He.

“Aunt, is there something you need?”

Madam Sang usually didn’t handle things, and Su He was in charge of the household affairs.

This included Sang Yao’s marriage. As the mistress of the house, she had to oversee everything.

Moreover, since Sang Yao didn’t have a mother, and her sister was far away in the palace, some responsibilities naturally fell on Su He.

She said softly, “Yao Yao hasn’t slept yet.”

Su He was accompanied by an older maid carrying a small box. Sang Yao stepped aside to let them in. She asked, “Aunt, what is this?”

Su He smiled gently and gestured to the maid by her side. The maid opened the wooden box and took out a porcelain basin with a lid. Su He pushed the basin towards Sang Yao.

Sang Yao was very puzzled. After a moment, with Su He’s encouraging look, she naturally lifted the lid—

“…” Help!

The shock was too much. When Sang Yao saw what was inside the basin, she was so scared that she almost dropped the lid. Her face turned red, and she pointed at the bowl, stuttering, “Th-th-this…”

Inside the porcelain bowl was a vividly colored painting of a man and a woman in intimate embrace, with detailed depictions, even capturing their facial expressions vividly.

Su He spoke softly, “Yao Yao, tomorrow you will consummate your marriage with Lord Xie. You should also understand matters in the bedroom.”

She lowered her voice, “I’ve heard that although Lord Xie is in his twenties, he has no wives or concubines, nor has he had such experiences.” Sang Yao had never thought about this issue before.

She still had a bright red face, and she didn’t dare to look down, feeling like even one more glance would hurt her eyes.

This was the first time in her life she had directly encountered what it meant for a man and a woman to be intimate. It was nothing like she imagined. So much so that she felt a strong aversion just looking at it.

“Do you understand, Yao Yao?”

Sang Yao shook her head nervously, stuttering, “I… I don’t know.” How could she possibly know about this!

Su He continued, “If Lord Xie lacks experience, Yao Yao, you must be cautious.” Sang Yao asked with difficulty, “Cautious… about what?”

“Men can be impulsive when experiencing intimacy for the first time. Guide him, but don’t hurt yourself.”

Sang Yao’s face grew even redder.

She couldn’t imagine it at all.

She couldn’t accept someone else’s intrusion into her body.

Initially, Sang Yao thought that the manual was explicit enough. But upon careful consideration, while the booklet seemed lewd at first glance, it didn’t directly describe the process of intimacy between men and women.

At most, it mentioned some unpleasant words about kissing and other things, but these were glossed over with romantic phrases.

It wasn’t until tonight that Sang Yao finally had a concrete understanding of the matter.

“Did your sister mention this to you before you entered the palace a few days ago?”

Sang Yao shook her head quickly, resisting, “Why would my sister talk to me about this?”

Her sister only gave her a manual on how to handle men. Although she hadn’t opened the box yet, she didn’t know what the manual inside said.

Sang Yao asked with a pained expression, “Aunt, can I refuse to do this with him?”

Su He patted her arm and said, “There’s no reason not to consummate the marriage on the wedding night. Just relax, Yao Yao.” But Sang Yao couldn’t relax at all.

After Su He left, the room was left with Sang Yao alone.

She couldn’t feel any happiness at all.

After a long while, she absentmindedly got up, took a bath, and then lay alone on the bed in her single-layered clothing. This was her last night in the Sang family.

Her mind was in chaos, thinking about many things, but her thoughts finally settled on the clear and refined face of Xie Yun.

During this period, she had actually met Xie Yun a few times. He seemed busy with something, and they didn’t have many opportunities to talk. But she didn’t have much to say to Xie Yun anyway.

Although they were getting married, they were still somewhat strangers.

But that’s probably how marriages were. You share a house with someone you don’t know very well, and with time, you become familiar. As she thought about it, she remembered the porcelain bowl again.

Sang Yao turned over uncomfortably.

Originally, she was just nervous before getting married, but now she was starting to feel anxious.

In fact, Sang Yao had a very high acceptance threshold. In her eyes, no matter what happened, she could bear it. This matter was no exception, she was willing to go along with it.

Besides feeling resistant, she was also a little scared.

Even if she liked Xie Yun, she couldn’t accept him intruding into her body. And so far, the closest contact she had with Xie Yun was when she kissed him last time.

The more she thought about it, the more she felt like she couldn’t go through with this marriage.

But the day of the fifteenth of August arrived as scheduled.

From early in the morning when Sang Yao opened her eyes, the entire Sang Mansion was bustling.

After hastily finishing breakfast, Sang Yao didn’t have much time to spare. She needed to have a basic understanding of Xie’s family before entering it, and she also needed to inquire about Xie’s preferences for the jewelry she would bring.

Approaching noon, Sang Yao sat in front of the bronze mirror while several maids applied makeup and styled her hair.

She naturally had a beautiful face, exceptionally radiant when she didn’t wear any makeup. Now, with a thick layer of makeup, she looked even more stunning.

Finally, everything was ready by the time of the afternoon.

The welcoming procession from Xie’s family had arrived at the gate of the Sang Mansion.

Covered in red silk, Sang Yao’s sight was obscured. She was escorted by Sang Yan and carried out of the house she had lived in for more than a decade, then gently placed in the spacious carriage.

From dawn until now, she had been passively busy, and everything seemed to be squeezed together.

At this moment, she lowered her eyes and could only see her bright red wedding gown.

She faintly heard Sang Yin say something to the people around her, and the man responded with a cold, indifferent voice.

It was Xie Yun, standing by her side.

After a busy day, she felt like she was floating in space, not knowing what she was busy with.

Until this moment, she felt like she finally found some sense of reality. The headdress was heavy, but she still silently straightened her back.

Sang Yao actually couldn’t quite imagine what Xie Yun would look like in wedding attire.

His usual clothing was mostly in dark colors, such as black, and he rarely wore even white.

At this moment, the wedding official called out, “The auspicious time has come—” The carriage began to move, and the streets became noisy.

Silence prevailed throughout the journey.

It wasn’t until she stepped out of the carriage that, due to the weight of her wedding attire, Sang Yao found it difficult to move. At her side, a slender and fair hand reached out, firmly grasping her arm and helping her out of the carriage.

Because she was covered by the red veil and surrounded by noise, her perception of her surroundings weakened. After a complicated process, they finally arrived at the bridal chamber.

Xie Yun walked by her side, supporting her arm under the heavy layers of clothing.

After drinking the nuptial wine, the wedding attendants and others left. Sang Yao sat alone on the bed. After the noise had subsided, the surroundings became extremely quiet.

It was time to lift the veil. But the surroundings were too silent, and she didn’t know if Xie Yun was still here.

As she pondered, a corner of the red silk in front of her suddenly lifted, making Sang Yao nervous.

Then, the veil was lifted.

What met Xie Yun’s eyes was an exceptionally delicate and gorgeous face. She rarely wore such heavy makeup, adorned with floral hairpins, dark hair, and red lips, exuding extraordinary beauty. She was still herself but with a unique charm.

Kind of attractive.

Their eyes met. Xie Yun was the first to look away, placing the veil aside.

The last time Sang Yao saw him was half a month ago. By then, they were already engaged, and according to etiquette, they shouldn’t meet.

But Xie Yun obviously wasn’t someone who adhered strictly to etiquette.

Even in front of everyone’s eyes, he didn’t show any restraint and directly asked her about wedding matters.

His attitude remained unchanged, as non-tender as ever. Looking at him, Sang Yao spoke first, “Are you going out later?”

Xie Yun made a sound of affirmation.

Bringing up this matter, there was a hint of impatience in the man’s expression. Historically, Xie Yun never did the task of welcoming guests.

It seemed his decision not to marry before was a very wise one. Getting married was truly troublesome.

There wouldn’t be a second time in this lifetime.

Sang Yao responded with an “oh.” Because she hadn’t spoken for a long time, her throat felt a bit dry, and she said, “Should I wait for you?”

As soon as she asked, she regretted it.

Wasn’t that obvious?

Leaning against the edge of the table, Xie Yun said indifferently, “As you wish.”

With that said, he casually poured a cup of tea and handed it to Sang Yao. As she reached out to take it, her sleeve slipped a bit, revealing her delicate wrist.

She politely said, “Thank you.”

Xie Yun glanced at the girl’s wrist and furrowed his brow, “Why are you so thin?”

Sang Yao stiffened all over, feeling inexplicably guilty.

In fact, she hadn’t lost much weight. Her face still had some flesh, her chest was still ample, and her body was just as soft as before, not much firmer.

Only her sister and Xie Yun had noticed that she had lost weight. She lowered her head, sipping her tea, intending to brush it off, “Not really.”

Xie Yun acted as if he hadn’t heard and his gaze fell on the beautiful girl in front of him. Naturally, he said, “Are you nervous because of our marriage?”

Sang Yao thought, “He’s really good at self-deception.” Their engagement was just a transaction for mutual benefit, so what was there to be nervous about? She put down the porcelain cup and said, “I’m not nervous.”

At this moment, Xie Yun stood in front of Sang Yao.

Sang Yao sat, and her eyes met the man’s waist. Beneath the leather belt, the man’s waist was lean and powerful, hiding strength. Her gaze lowered, and she saw his long legs.

As they sat and stood, Sang Yao stared at the sachet hanging from the man’s belt. It was the one she embroidered.

Among the dozens of sachets, she had carefully selected this one.

On it was a white crane, proudly standing, somewhat resembling him.

After a while, a voice came from above, “What are you looking at?”

Sang Yao looked up, about to answer.

But she saw Xie Yun frowning slightly, looking a bit displeased as he stared at her, “Miss Sang, it’s still about an hour and a half before evening. Please behave yourself.”

What was he saying?

Sang Yao glanced at the sachet again.

Only then did she notice that the sachet hung from the belt was level with his hips.

She was still sitting, and from Xie Yun’s perspective, he could only see her staring at that spot without moving her gaze, unaware that her eyes had actually shifted to his legs.