Milady's Fine Gentleman 244 THE CEREMONY 2

On the wee hours of the morning of the big day, Xue Jinxu got up and bathed herself in a bathtub with filled with water saturated with pomelo, a Chinese tradition which meant as a cleanser of any evil influence, and a known routine for softening the skin.
Still groggy with sleep, tiredness invading her system even after some unwinding the day prior, Xue Jinxu obediently submerged herself into the tub.
Upon finishing her bath, she donned a red qipao – it's the Chinese traditional wedding dress.
Afterward, the ritual of hairdressing commenced. Her hair was arranged in the style of a married Chinese woman as per custom. It was arranged in an up-do and adorned with a golden phoenix headdress. The contrast of the gold with specks of red from the ruby against her jet-black hair and fair jadeite skin was eye-catching and was such a spectacular sight in itself. Truly, she looked like a princess of noble descent.
Xue Jinxu was staying at the topmost Suite room of the Four Seasons Hotel, while Chen Linyun stayed at their dream house, and would be going to where she was in a few minutes.
Xue Jinxu was accompanied by her lady friends. Teng Man Rui was there, together with Hwang Meilin and Kang Sola. Miss Yan also joined their small group. Sadly, Xue Jinxu had not had many lady friends due to her hectic work.
At the topmost suite of the Four Seasons Hotel, knocks after knocks were heard from the door.
With such mirth, Teng Man Rui playfully interjected. "Who are you? And what are you here for?"
"We're here to take the bride." Chen Linyun calmly answered, his voice reflected the same mirth. He donned a red groomswear that was on a matching pair with the bride's qipao. It had gold thread embedded onto the top piece in a Chinese embroidered design.
In Chinese tradition, the groom's squad would go the where the bride stays, their march accompanied by gongs, drums, firecrackers, and a dancing lion. The groom's squad would also carry the red bridal sedan where the bride will ride from her accommodation to the venue, with her head covered with a red veil. The red veil serves as a cover so that the bride will not see any inauspicious signs such as a cat. Those were superstitions anyway, but Xue Jinxu was so absorbed with how detailed and meticulous the traditional Chinese wedding is so she decided to incorporate it into her own, except the bridal sedan. Nonetheless, her wedding was a fusion of traditional and modern times.
The groom's squad consisted of Chen Linyun, the groom, Mo Wenbin, Si Yazu, Zhou Xin, Zhu Li Qiang, and Xue Guangxi. Si Yazu and Zhou Xin who were Chen Linyun's business partners and former roommates traveled far from Canada just to make it to the wedding.
Teng Man Rui still did not open the door. "Why would I surrender my dearest friend?"
From the inside of the room, girly giggles were heard.
"The groom will prove himself." Chen Linyun answered patiently.
"Alright, Mister Groom." Teng Man Rui's voice came out muffled from the suite's inside. "Prove that you really know your bride well, and she'll join you."

"Bring it on." Chen Linyun was enthusiastically challenged. His eyes burnt with such zeal.
"Just answer three questions. First, what is Xue Jinxu's favorite food?"
Mo Wenbin who was on the side whispered to him. "Do you know? Even I don't know. You should know it. Do you? Hey Guangxi, what's your sister's favorite food?"
"Ahh, ehhh, hehe. I'm not so sure!" Guangxi embarrassedly admitted.
Chen Linyun glanced at the men behind him, his eyes laughing at them, mocking them. "Mapo Tofu."
There was silence from the other end. He knocked three times.
"Final answer? We are giving you another try."
Chen Linyun stood his ground. "No, it's Mapo Tofu."
For the first time, Xue Jinxu spoke. "That's correct."
Kang Sola's voice came in next. "Second question, what is Xu-jie's greatest fear?"
"Failure." Chen Linyun stoically answered.
Xue Jinxu's voice was heard again, this time it was a little bit softer. Perhaps she's getting embarrassed? After all, its' was all about her. "Correct."
Xue Jinxu's most loyal secretary, Miss Yan, asked the third question. "Sir, if you get the third question right, the bride will join you. If not, sorry." She explained, then continued. "Who is Xue Jinxu's favorite person?"
The men from the groom's squad murmured. "What kind of question is that?"
"Does she even have one?"
"Is it you, Linyun?"
"What if it's me?" Xue Guangxi pondered while rubbing his head thoughtfully.
Chen Linyun answered with conviction.
"Me."
"I'm her favorite person." Chen Linyun's voice was neutral as if reciting the answer to a homework in class.
There was coughing inside the ladies' room. It was Xue Jinxu.
Chen Linyun's lips curved into a smile, which grew even wider into a grin. He knew he was correct.
"Jinxu, will you still not come out, dear?" He called out.
"Is my answer wrong? We both know it's correct."
The men behind them were forced to eat dog food this early. The formal ceremony had not even started yet.
"Correct." It was barely audible.
"What was that? Louder, Jinxu. We cannot hear you." His eyes glistened from teasing his lovely wife.
"C-Correct!" Xue Jinxu repeated a little bit louder.
"Come again?" Chen Linyun was really pushing his luck. He wanted to laugh too hard, but he managed not to.
There was silence inside the room and then came the barkings. "CHEN LINYUN, YOU!!"
The door was flung wide open and revealed a huge bulky lady in red. She was majestically and beautifully adorned with exquisite accessories in red. Only, her face was too red too. She was blushing hard.
"YES, YOU ARE CORRECT." She exclaimed while her eyes were kept closed. "Is that loud enough?" The second part came out softly again, almost bashfully. She reopened her eyes slowly. Her eyelashes worked its wonders. Chen Linyun's heart skipped a beat. It never failed to extract the same effect from him.
"Yes. You look lovely, gorgeous." Chen Linyun instantly wrapped both of his arms around his bride's waist. Xue Jinxu placed one hand on his chest comfortably. Her face was still bowed down from the previous embarrassment.
"Oh, these two lovebirds! Off to your wedding ceremony already! Too much dog food!" Mo Wenbin complained.
They all laughed.
"Are the answers really correct, Jinxu?" Zhou Xin asked for confirmation. Although they had not met in person, they had seen each other almost frequently through Videocon when Chen Linyun had group chats with his friends from abroad.
"Yeah, is it? I think whatever Chen Linyun answered would be correct." Si Yazu observed.
"No, no! He answered correctly because…" Zhu Li Qiang was cut short by how sharp Chen Linyun's stare was at him.
"Because what?" Xue Guangxi probed.
"Oh, because he's her husband. He should know!" Zhu Li Qiang casually completed his sentence. It wasn't what he was supposed to say. He intended to tell the story of the survey Chen Linyun and himself made the ladies Teng Man Rui and Xue Jinxu answer a few months back.
The bride and groom's squads both proceeded to the function hall on the fifth floor for the ceremony.
Walking hand-in-hand, Chen Linyun asked his lovely bride, "Ready, Misis Chen?"
Xue Jinxu fluttered her eyelashes, and with such luscious lips curled into the most radiant smile, she nodded her head while staring into the abyss of gentleness of his eyes.
She pinched his hand that she was holding with hers and took in a deep breath..
With a voice full of conviction, she answered.
"Ready."

Chapter end

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