At the first sign ofmao, before the morning mist had lifted from the Capital, Vermilion Bird Street was already draped in crimson silk like ribbons of flowing sunset clouds. The bronze lions before the Lu Mansion were tied with festive ribbons as thick as a bowl, and the hundred-grandsons lanterns along the eaves lit up one by one, making the glazed tiles of Taiye Pavilion blaze with dazzling brilliance. People tiptoed along the street to watch as an eight-bearer sedan chair approached slowly from the direction of the Marquis's Mansion, the golden-threaded phoenixes on its curtains appearing ready to take flight amid the morning dew.
"It's here! The eldest daughter of the Marquis's Mansion is getting married!" Uncle Wang, the candied-haw vendor, shouted at the top of his lungs, the red fruits in his bamboo basket trembling and shaking in unison. "That phoenix coronet and embroidered robes were personally bestowed by the Emperor himself—I hear they're sewn with ninety-nine eastern pearls!"
Inside the sedan chair, Jiang Wan gently touched the brocade pouch at her waist, which held the Peace Talisman Lu Jingyuan had slipped to her last night. Beneath the red bridal veil embroidered with twin lotuses, she caught sight of Lüluo clutching the Poison-Detecting Hairpin, her knuckles turning white from the force of her grip. The fake wedding attire discovered in the camphor-wood chest three days ago was still hidden at the bottom, while the genuine phoenix coronet and ceremonial rob…
Chapter 253