Chapter 69

On the afternoon of January 19th in the fourth year of the Yingli era, the lively atmosphere of Wang Feng's wedding had not yet dissipated when Liu Wendong and Hong Yan found Wang Xiaojun. They expressed their intention to hold a grand banquet the next noon to celebrate their own wedding, inviting all team members to attend. Of course, all expenses for the wedding would be covered by the two of them.

Wang Xiaojun and the others present, including Zhang Weixin and Xu Shaoran, were somewhat surprised by their invitation. After all, since Liu Wendong had heroically saved Hong Yan, their relationship as a couple had been established. After moving to "Qingyuan," the committee had even arranged for them to live together, and everyone already regarded them as a married couple. Therefore, their sudden decision to hold a wedding seemed a bit strange, and no one understood why they felt the need to do so. In response, Liu Wendong explained that although they had been living as a couple, neither of them had been married in their previous lives, which left them feeling a bit regretful. They wanted to hold a wedding to make up for this regret. Additionally, Liu Wendong hoped that a grand wedding would give Hong Yan a proper ceremony and a formal status.

Wang Xiaojun and the other committee members naturally gave their full support. They instructed the servants to keep all the wedding decorations from the previous event and invited the head chef from Tianfoulou to prepare the banquet for Liu and Hong's wedding.

Although the number of attendees was smaller than the previous wedding, the atmosphere was even more lively and harmonious. Besides the time travelers, only Yuxuzi, Qingchen, Liu Xiaoliu, and a few young Taoist boys from Yuxugong were present. Today, all the attendees were close friends. Therefore, the wedding ceremony followed the modern wedding procedures from their previous lives, with You Yuan, who was familiar with the process and had previously served as a wedding master of ceremonies, acting as the host. The bride and groom were dressed in modern attire, with the groom in a crisp suit and the bride in a white wedding dress, which left a lasting impression on the time travelers.

These two modern outfits were made by Hong Yan, who had secretly bought the fabric from a designer and tailor, Zhu Xiaoyuan. The secrecy was so well-maintained that even Zhu Xiaoyuan's husband, Zhao Dawei, was unaware. Therefore, when the newlyweds entered the banquet hall, they immediately drew gasps of surprise from everyone. Yuxuzi and the others, who were seeing such attire for the first time, were amazed and commented on the significant differences between the overseas country and the mainland.

Zhong Jiaxia, the little sister, was particularly captivated by the beautiful wedding dress, her eyes shining with admiration. However, this admiration quickly turned into dissatisfaction with Wang Feng, as she pinched his waist and complained that he was heartless for not providing her with such unique clothing, implying that he thought she wasn't pretty enough.

At this moment, Wang Feng felt more wronged than Dou'e, thinking to himself that he was merely considering the customs of this era. In this time, a suit might be acceptable, but a wedding dress would not be. The white color alone would not be accepted, let alone the exposed shoulders and arms, which would challenge the moral boundaries. Moreover, in the cold winter, such a thin dress would surely cause a chill. He noticed that Hong Yan was shivering as she walked to the altar, not from excitement but from the cold. Fortunately, You Yuan had the foresight to place two large charcoal braziers on the stage, or Hong Yan might have caught a cold.

Unfortunately, these explanations could not be given to Zhong Jiaxia at the moment. Wang Feng could only endure the pain in his waist and pretend nothing was wrong, waiting to reclaim his dignity in the bedroom later.

The surprises did not end there. To enhance the wedding atmosphere, the long-unused laptop and DV camera were brought out. When the wedding march played on the laptop and Zhao Dawei held the camera to record the ceremony, all the time travelers had a momentary illusion that they had returned to their familiar era, and the past few months had been a dream. Now, in the sound of the wedding march, everyone finally woke up.

Of course, this feeling was fleeting. As Yuxuzi and the others exclaimed in surprise, everyone was pulled back to reality. They were not dreaming; everything was real. In modern times, no one would be surprised by the appearance of a laptop and a DV camera. While the other time travelers explained the functions of these devices to Yuxuzi and the others, Wang Feng was once again subjected to Zhong Jiaxia's "cruel hands." Rubbing his bruised waist, Wang Feng silently vowed to make Zhong Jiaxia beg for mercy in bed that night.

After the newlyweds reached the altar, under You Yuan's direction, the ceremony proceeded according to modern wedding procedures. Li Junwu and Wang Xiaojun served as the officiant and witness, respectively, offering congratulations and blessings to the bride and groom and declaring them officially married. Amidst the enthusiastic cheers of the crowd, Liu Wendong placed a ring from Fangji on Hong Yan's finger, and the two kissed, bringing the wedding to its climax.

Then, holding a bouquet of flowers, Hong Yan smiled and said, "All those who are not yet married, pay attention. I'm about to toss the bouquet. If you want to be the next bride or groom, come and catch it."

Before Hong Yan finished speaking, a group of time travelers, all bachelors, had already gathered around. This was inevitable, given the severe gender imbalance in the team, with the four women already taken, leaving the bachelors unsure where to find wives. As the bachelors jostled for position, Liang Ziyue, who already had a partner and had decided not to have another wedding, nudged Xu Shaoran, who was still sitting beside him, and teased, "Xu, why don't you go catch the bouquet? You and Dr. Lin are the most likely to be the next couple. Besides, you and Dr. Lin have been together for a while. It's time to consider a ceremony; it's a sign of responsibility."

Xu Shaoran did not directly answer Liang Ziyue's question but instead said, "You and Hu Xueying didn't have a formal wedding before you came here, and you haven't had one yet."

Liang Ziyue explained, "I'm different from you. Hu Xueying and I announced our marriage when we first arrived. Everyone, including the Grandmaster, Yuxuzi, the Taoist priests at Yuxugong, and Zhong Yuwai, knows about it. If I suddenly decided to have a wedding now, it might cause misunderstandings. So, Hu Xueying and I have decided not to have a wedding. But you and Dr. Lin are different. You came together after the time travel, so you should have a wedding. Actually, when Liu and the others talked to Wang about the wedding yesterday, you should have joined them. It would have been more lively and cost-effective. Why not?"

Although Xu Shaoran understood Liang Ziyue's explanation, he seemed reluctant to talk about marriage, with a strange expression on his face, as if there was something he couldn't say. He only vaguely replied, "This... this isn't so urgent. We'll take it slowly, take it slowly."

Liu Xiaoyu, sitting beside him, neither expressed dissatisfaction nor agreement, maintaining a calm expression as she watched the bachelors jostle for position.

Liang Ziyue found their behavior somewhat perplexing. He couldn't understand what was going on. Had they had a falling out recently? It didn't seem so; he hadn't heard of any conflicts or disagreements between them. After much thought, he gave up, thinking that family matters were hard to understand and it was best not to get involved.

While Liang Ziyue was puzzled, the result of the bouquet toss was unexpected. The bachelors who had pushed their way to the front didn't even touch the bouquet. Instead, it hit Wang Xiaojun, who was walking at the back, distracted by a conversation with Zhang Weixin about signing a contract with Tianfoulou the next day. Holding the bouquet he had caught instinctively, Wang Xiaojun shook his head and handed it to Zhang Weixin, saying, "I don't even have a girlfriend yet, so I can't be the next groom. Here, give it to Zhang; he's at least halfway there."

Wang Xiaojun's generosity drew laughter from the crowd. Some people even teased, "Wang, don't say that. Fate is unpredictable. You might find your other half in a few days."

The more gossipy ones began discussing the news about Zhang Weixin and Yang Xiaoyun, urging Zhang Weixin to reveal how far his relationship with Yang had progressed. Zhang Weixin, of course, refused to divulge any information. However, he didn't expect a traitor. Wu Peng, who had been a third wheel in their dates, began to recount the details of Zhang Weixin and Yang Xiaoyun's dates in vivid detail. This embarrassed Zhang Weixin, who tried to cover Wu Peng's mouth but was stopped by the bachelors, who only laughed at his "regret" over his poor choice of friends.

After the lively dating stories, the wedding banquet became even more relaxed. As the newlyweds went to change their clothes, the others began to drink freely, toasting and playing drinking games, enjoying themselves more than they had the previous days. Some of the time travelers who were close to Liu and Hong began to plot some "entertainment" to liven up the atmosphere.

When the newlyweds returned to the banquet, they had to outsmart the "mischievous" guests, making the scene even more lively. Zhong Jiaxia, who had been focused on Hong Yan's high heels, saw her being teased and finally began to appreciate her husband's kindness. She quietly reached out and gently massaged the spot on Wang Feng's waist where she had pinched him. Wang Feng, caught off guard by this sudden tenderness, looked nervously at his little wife, unsure why she was being so nice. Before he could ask, Zhong Jiaxia whispered in his ear, "Fengge, I was wrong to blame you just now. Don't take it to heart, okay?"

Hearing the soft words of the beautiful girl, Wang Feng almost melted. Just as he was about to take the opportunity to educate her not to be so violent next time, she cooed, "Fengge, I won't hold it against you about the wedding dress and music. But the shoes on Hong Jiejie's feet are very unique, and I want to try them on. Will you borrow them from Hong Jiejie or buy a new pair for me?"

Wang Feng looked at Zhong Jiaxia's smiling face and then at the high heels on Hong Yan's feet, feeling a bit helpless. The high heels were part of Hong Yan's travel luggage, and he had no idea where to find them. However, he couldn't refuse a beauty's request, so he nodded, promising to fulfill Zhong Jiaxia's wish. Zhong Jiaxia was naturally delighted, snuggling up to her husband and continuing to massage his waist as a sign of appreciation.

The wedding lasted from noon until night. In the end, everyone except Yuxuzi and Qingchen was drunk, and they were all carried or supported back to their rooms by the servants. The next day, they all slept until late morning, causing Zhong Jiaxia's three-day return visit to be delayed. The couple rushed to get everything done and didn't return to "Qingyuan" until around 8 or 9 PM, as it was customary for newlyweds not to stay outside during the first month of marriage.