The wedding ceremony was grand and novel, and nothing was out of the ordinary. Everything was carried out according to the ancient traditions. Before the groom, Third Young Master Zhou, went to escort the bride to the wedding, he saw Xiaocao and her party and hastily came to greet them. After that, he would be very busy. Even after he completed all the procedures of the wedding, he still needed to come out to toast and entertain the guests.
Royal Prince Yang’s arrival had caught the Zhou Family by surprise. They had no connection with Royal Prince Yang, and thus there was no way that they could invite him. Why did the prince deign to come here? But the Zhou Family members instantly understood when they saw the young maiden beside him who he was carefully protecting.
In addition to Lady Fang’s status of a noble-titled madam, Xiaocao had a position as an official and was personally bestowed the title of ‘royal princess’ by the emperor. Thus, they were invited to sit at the main table, which was surrounded by the most respected members of the Zhou Family. The group of old men were afraid that Xiaocao, a young girl, had no one to talk to, so they specially got Third Young Master Zhou’s mother, Second Madam Zhou, who was originally unqualified to sit at the main table, to accompany and talk with Xiaocao. After all, when they were at Tanggu Town, Xiaocao often visited the second branch of the Zhou Family and the two had a decent relationship.
When the groom came over to toast the table, Xiacoao watched as he, who was dressed completely in red, drank several cups of wine and his handsome face flushed with a healthy glow. There seemed to be a strong sense of happiness in his smile. She joked, “As the saying goes: ‘People are in high spirits when involved in happy events.’ Third Young Master indeed looks radiant today ah!”
The elders of the family all knew about Yu Xiaocao’s relationship with the Zhou Family, or to be exact, Third Young Master Zhou. It could be said that if he hadn’t met Yu Xiaocao, the current young head of the household might still be the third young master of the second branch who had great ambition but lacked opportunities to display them.
People often said that Third Young Master Zhou was a business genius, but without Xiaocao’s recipes and methods of making vermicelli, seasonings, and century eggs, his Zhenxiu Restaurant would probably just be an inconspicuous restaurant in Tanggu Town. It would just struggle under the exclusion of the long-established Fulin Restaurant.
With his abilities, he might still be able to become successful. However, there would be a lot of hardships and obstacles in the process, making his road to success even longer. By that time, the position of the head of the Zhou Family might have already fallen into the hands of his ‘eldest uncle’. There wasn’t anyone who was amazingly talented among the legitimate descendants of the first branch, so, perhaps, the Zhou Family would have slowly disappeared in the business industry after struggling to stay afloat for several generations.
With the success of the young head of the household, the Zhou Family had a resurgence that was closely related to the delicate and weak-looking Royal Princess Jinan in front of them. Who would have thought that an inconspicuous girl from a fisherman’s family would become acquainted with the third young master of the Zhou Family because of selling seafood. Furthermore, she used her ability to help Zhou Zixu, who wasn’t successful at the beginning, to succeed step by step, allowing the Zhou Family to regain its glory.
This young girl looked unassuming, but no one would have thought that, with her own abilities, she first gained the trust of Royal Prince Yang and boldly attempted to grow high-yielding corn kernels brought back from the western hemisphere. The output had shocked the imperial court.
After that, she cultivated the high-yielding winter wheat, which caused the emperor to make an exception to promote her to become the first female official in history. She also repeatedly made great achievements, such as greenhouses for vegetables and fruits, delicious canned fruits, nourishing fruit wines, and amazingly effective medicinal pills…
Each and every one of them were achievements that caused people to feel envious. However, they could only be covetous because she was no longer a mere peasant girl without any support. She now had very strong backing ah!
It was said that the emperor emeritus was fond of her craftsmanship and character, and wanted to take her as an adopted granddaughter, but she rejected the offer. Not to mention that the emperor had attached great importance to her and bestowed her the title of ‘royal princess’, but he also gave her a dragon shaped jade pendant that symbolized the ‘golden token that saved one from the death penalty’. Most importantly, the cold-faced killer, Royal Prince Yang, who was feared by all of the children of noble families in the capital, had actually fallen in love with this young girl. He had pursued her for many years, yet their status was still unknown.
People in the capital had been speculating the relationship between the two for many years. At the beginning, they all said that the little peasant girl clung onto Royal Prince Yang in order to gain a firm foothold in the capital. Later, it was said that Royal Prince Yang liked the little peasant girl’s capability and wanted to take her as a concubine, but the little peasant girl wasn’t satisfied. Thus, Royal Prince Yang gave her the cold shoulder and refused to give her a formal status. Now, with the affirmation of the young girl’s abilities, the rumors had changed again. Royal Prince Yang had long been interested in the young girl, but her family didn’t easily agree because she was still too young. He was now waiting for the young maiden to reach the age of eighteen to marry her…
The members of the Zhou Family and guests who came to celebrate the happy occasion were lucky enough to see Royal Prince Yang personally accompanying Miss Yu to congratulate the young head of the household. In their hearts, they had all tacitly approved the third speculation. Royal Prince Yang showed a very meticulous attitude towards Miss Yu. When they entered the door, he personally held her cloak. He handed warm tea right into her hands. With the advantage of having long arms, he filled her bowl with the dishes that young girls liked to eat at the banquet. It seemed like this Miss Yu had remarkable means. She was able to train the fierce horse—Royal Prince Yang—to be so docile and obedient!!
Looking at the natural and harmonious interaction between Xiaocao and Royal Prince Yang, Lady Zhou maintained a polite smile but her heart wasn’t as calm as she seemed. As his mother, there was no way that she didn’t know her son’s feelings. At that time, when Xiaocao was still the daughter of an ordinary fisherman’s family and first revealed her talent in cooking, Lady Zhou had been silently observing her. She felt that, despite having an inferior background, if the young girl could help her son, it wasn’t impossible for her son to marry her.
However, others had noticed the young girl’s beauty and talents before she had even grown up. Moreover, this person was a royal prince with a prestigious status. Even if her son was the head of the Zhou Family, he still couldn’t compete with a member of the imperial family. What merchants feared the most was to get into a conflict with government officials.
She had originally thought that Royal Prince Yang only wanted to try something new. Perhaps, after two years, he would give up on this idea and listen to his elders’ advice to marry a noble maiden of equal status. However, she was surprised to find out that he was a devoted lover who silently waited on the side for the young girl to blossom into her most beautiful side.
Her son just had that thought in mind. On the one hand, in order to ensure a better future for the second branch, he was busy with family matters. With the expansion of Zhenxiu Restaurant, he seldom returned to Tanggu Town. When he had the rare chance to return, he still had to accompany her—his mother. The chance of the two interacting gradually decreased. On the other hand, her son had also shared similar thoughts as her. He felt that the girl was too young, and he wasn’t in a rush to express his feelings, lest he scared her.
However, he had never expected that someone with a strong presence appeared beside the young girl. With his patience and efforts, he won the lass’s approval and love.
“Miss Yu, this cup of wine is a toast for you! Thank you for helping me for so many years. Without you, there wouldn’t be today’s Zhenxiu Restaurant, and the current me! I shall finish my cup first to show my respect!” Zhou Zixu drank all the wine in the cup in his hands. The young girl in front of him, who was like a small bud, had slowly blossomed into her most beautiful times. However, the one who witnessed her growth wasn’t him. The wine in his mouth was clearly good wine from The Yu’s, yet the taste had instantly turned bitter!
Let this be the last time for him to be enamored by this young maiden who could never be his. After today, he would have his own life partner, so he must treat her wholeheartedly. Although he might not be the best husband, he could give his loyalty to her.
Didn’t the young girl in front of him admire ‘one partner for a lifetime’? He wanted to show her that he could do it. Unfortunately, that person wasn’t her!
“Third Young Master, you’re speaking as if I’m an outsider! Speaking of this, had you not generously helped us, how could the Yu Family develop so smoothly? In my heart, I regard you as my older brother and good friend, yet you act like a stranger and call me ‘Miss Yu’. Ay…I’m hurt. I can’t drink this cup of wine!” In the weddings in her previous life, there was a custom of teasing the newlyweds. Yu Xiaocao pretended to put down the fruit wine in her hands with a ‘this baby is unhappy’ expression on her face.
Xiaocao was still the Xiaocao in Tanggu who liked to tease, laugh at, and annoy him. Perhaps, it was only his state of mind that had changed. Third Young Master Zhou shook off the emotions in his heart and showed a joyful smile, “Since you regard me as your older brother, I’ll accept this honor and dare to call you ‘Younger Sister Xiaocao’. Alright, no need to say anymore. Everything goes without saying. Younger Sister Xiaocao, give Older Brother face and drink this cup of wedding wine.”
“That’s more like it! Third Brother Zhou, I wish you a lifetime of mutual, unchanging love. On the wide land and high sky, two pairs of wings fly side by side. May you two grow old together, live in conjugal bliss, and be blessed with a child soon!” Yu Xiaocao had no qualms at all as she presented the congratulatory phrases that she plagiarized from the weddings in her previous life.
“Thank you very much, Younger Sister Xiaocao! I still need to toast at other tables, so please excuse me. You should eat more. Mother, please help me take care of her.” After Third Young Master let go of the beautiful dream in his heart, his words and actions had become much more natural.
Lady Zhou looked at her son with relief and nodded, “Go, I’m here! Don’t drink too much…”
“Today is Third Brother Zhou’s good day. Even if he wants to drink less, it’s still unavoidable. However, in order to prevent him getting dead drunk and being disliked by Older Sister-in-law, I have a sobering pill here. I guarantee that he won’t get drunk after taking this!” Yu Xiaocao had wanted to say ‘be careful that Older Sister-in-law would punish him to kneel on a washboard for getting drunk’, but this was the ancient times when one had to respect their husband. Thus, it was better not to act too unconventional.
Third Young Master Zhou felt that he had a decent alcohol tolerance. However, with certain business partners and bad friends here, he wasn’t confident that he could leave the banquet sober! Since Xiaocao said that, then the sobering pill must be very effective. After he thanked her, he took the pill and directly swallowed it.
After toasting the elders’ tables, it became very lively when he came to the table with people of the same generation! Although several people were arranged to help him block the alcohol, Third Young Master Zhou was still forced to drink a lot of alcohol.
Looking at the bustling scene in the main hall, Xiaocao sighed, “These people really know how to look for trouble. Getting married is so tiring ah!”
While no one was watching them, Zhu Junyang quietly whispered in her ears, “Don’t worry, this prince will be there! You just need to rest in the bridal chamber. If you want to eat something, then just have someone go make it. This prince will take care of everything outside. You won’t be tired!”
“Go away! Did I say that I’ll marry you?” Yu Xiaocao made sure that no one was paying attention to them as she glared at him fiercely and pinched the flesh on his thigh with her hands under the table. ‘Damn! Is this guy’s flesh made of iron? My hands are sore, but he still looks fine.’
