The wedding ceremony went smoothly until the end. Once the procedure finished, the bride and groom were taken into the wedding room where the wedding attendant continued to speak auspicious words. Once the red veil was removed, and the newlyweds exchanged their toast, the wedding attendant and the servants left the room.Princess Lingchen exhaled as things around her started to get quiet. She looked at her new husband and said, "You can go out and greet the other first. I"ll change my outfit and came out later."
Lu Wei nodded. He walked towards the door and paused.
Sensing that Lu Wei was looking at her, Princess Lingchen raised a brow. "What"s wrong?"
Lu Wei turned back and walked over to her. "Did you not said that your headdress is heavy? Let me help you with them."
Before she could say a word of protest, Lu Wei has stepped forward to help her remove her headdress. To her surprise, it did not take him too long to figure out how to remove the headdress. Once the weight lifted off her head, Princess Lingchen ma.s.saged the back of her neck as she muttered, "Thank you."
"You"re welcome," Lu Wei frowned at the heavy headdress in his hand before he placed it on the side table. He turned to his wife again and said, "I"ll go out first and wait for you."
Princess Lingchen nodded. She watched as he walked out of the door and heaved a long breath with relief. It was the first time for her to spend her time with another man in close proximity, and it was making her anxious.
Soon, the servants walked in to help her change. After a while, Princess Lingchen walked out of the room donned in a simple red dress. Because of her status, it would not be right for her to stay in the room and let her husband greet their guests.
Once the Princess arrived at the hall, she could hear the lively conversation and heartily laugh from the outside. A eunuch announced her presence as she entered the hall. The room turned silent for a few seconds. When she looked up, Princess Lingchen saw that Lu Wei was walking towards her. He stopped and held out his hand.
"Come on," Lu Wei said.
Princess Lingchen blinked once before her head finally figured out what he was trying to do. She held on his hand, and the two walked together into the hall.
Seeing that the two walked together, someone initiated to congratulate for the wedding. "Crown Prince, Crown Princess, congratulations on your marriage."
The others began to follow suit and as they spoke of more auspicious words and toasted to the new couple. Just like that, eating, drinking, and partying resumed. Feeling a bit tired, Princess Lingchen went to the side with the help of her servants. Once she sat down, Mingyue came over to her side with a smile on her face.
"Congratulations, Your Highness," Mingyue said.
"Thank you," Princess Lingchen smiled. She gestured to the servant, and a tray of drinks was taken to them. Princess Lingchen held a cup to Mingyue and took another for herself.
Jiang Mingyue took the cup and frowned at the contents. "I"m sorry I cannot drink."
"Why not?"
Mingyue hesitated. She inched closer to the Princess and whispered, "I"m pregnant."
The Princess watched her cousin with her lips pursed and her eyes wide.
"I hope that you can keep this a secret for a few more weeks from everyone else," Mingyue said with a shy smile on her face. "Once this pregnancy stabilized, I will announce it to the others."
Princess Lingchen stared at her cousin for a few more seconds before she gestured towards the servant to bring some tea. She returned the cup of wine to the tray and took the drink for both of them.
"I supposed, I should congratulate you as well," Princess Lingchen said. "Congratulations."
"Thank you," Mingyue said before they drank their tea.
"Hearing your request, I guess that I"m the first person who knew about this?"
Mingyue chuckled. "Grandfather knows. He checked on my pulse once I arrived in Da Cheng."
"You"re going to be a mother soon," Princess Lingchen muttered. "If that thing did not happen six years ago, I guess you should now have a few kids around you."
"What happened has already happened. What I did back then was my choice. You shouldn"t continue to blame yourself for it," Mingyue said. "Just think of it as I took a trip to learn further about medicine."
Princess Lingchen let out a chuckle as she heard her words. She recalled how Mingyue had started to teach her grandfather about some knowledge she gained from the other world.
Once the Head of Imperial Physician heard of it, he had invited Mingyue to return to work at the Infirmary. However, Mingyue had declined and stated that she wanted to spend time with her family before she would consider reporting back to the Imperial Infirmary.
As someone close to Mingyue, Princess Lingchen knew how much Mingyue loved her work. When she heard that Mingyue had declined the Imperial Infirmary"s invitation, she had some doubts. Now that she thought of it, Mingyue probably rejected the request to focus on her pregnancy.
"You have got rid of that poison after years of suffering from it, and today, you"re married after a long delay," Mingyue said. A small smile curved on her lips. "Princess Lingchen, I want you to live happily."
The Princess turned away to stare at the cup in her hand. "Then, once you have give birth and settle down everything, will you think of returning to my side as my physician?"
"Don"t you have Ying Yi by your side? I heard that she had done a great job since I went away."
"You have taught her well. But Ying Yi is not the same as you."
Mingyue broke into a smile as she finally understood the Princess" meaning. "Don"t worry. I will always find my time to accompany you. But, in a few days, your status will not be the same. Won"t you be busy with the country"s matters? Will you have time to see me?"
"That"s even more reason for you to visit me," the Crown Princess said. "With those matters weighing on my shoulder, if I cannot find someone trustworthy to talk to, I"m afraid that I will go crazy."