After learning that there was a hidden agenda behind this wedding, the prime minister wasn't in a hurry to stop it. Instead, he wracked his brains to come up with other ways, aiming to get Su Wan'er into the palace.
Since both families were eager to finalize the wedding and wanted to do it before the draft in 15 days, they set the wedding on an auspicious day 8 days later.
It was a wedding of a female general getting married and a deputy commander taking a wife. Naturally, it was a grand event that caused quite a stir in the capital.
Originally, Gu Jingxuan was the object of reverie for countless women in the capital. As a top scholar with great literary talent and now having made military achievements on the battlefield, he was undoubtedly an outstanding figure among the young people of this generation.
Qingcao was restless during the preparations, fearing that her young lady might act impulsively and make a mistake. If this matter were exposed, it would be a crime of deceiving the emperor. She, a mere maid, didn't matter much, but she would feel guilty if it implicated General Gu.
"Miss... won't we have to pay respects during the wedding ceremony?" The wedding etiquette in the Great Jin Dynasty was extremely complicated. One would be busy all morning. The bride's veil would be lifted as soon as she got off the sedan chair to pay respects to the parents. Although there were no parents in the Gu Mansion, the grandmother had already said that she would sit in the Gu Mansion as an elder to welcome the new bride.
"Don't worry. I'll handle all the things in the front. You just go into the bridal chamber." Su Wan'er seemed to look down on these trivial matters. She could lead thousands of troops, not to mention these small etiquettes. Her friends in the capital had already introduced reliable wedding ladies and matchmakers to tell her about the wedding etiquette. Moreover, her mother had also told her one by one about the many etiquettes to be prepared during the wedding in the past few days.
The elders of the Su family thought that Su Wan'er had really calmed down and was carefully learning these things for her marriage. But Su Wan'er was actually thinking about when would be a good time to retreat and send Qingcao in.
"What if General Gu finds out, Miss?" Qingcao hesitated and voiced her greatest concern.
"So what if he finds out? By then, the deed will be done, and you'll be the wife of the general of the Gu family. Moreover, you saved his life when you were young and attended to him day and night when he was injured. Could he still think he's at a loss?" Su Wan'er was really anxious for these two people. "Besides, now you're the fourth young lady of the Su family. Such a status is more than enough for a bookworm like him."
If the young lady hadn't mentioned it, Qingcao would have buried these past events deep in her heart. When Gu Jingtian was a child, he lived in the Su Mansion. Because he lacked care when he was young, he showed signs of being weak and sickly when he first came to the Su Mansion. That's why he didn't learn martial arts and military strategies with General Su, but instead chose the path of studying and taking the imperial examinations.
That year, Gu Jingtian was very ambitious and insisted on practicing martial arts with Su Wan'er and Su Yu. But he fell ill after only three days. He didn't dare to tell the truth to his grandmother and General Su and could only recuperate on his own. It was Qingcao who attended to him day and night for more than three days, and he barely managed to regain half of his life.
But afterwards, because of Qingcao's status, she naturally couldn't tell him the truth. She just said that his younger sister Wan'er had taken care of him for a few days.
"But General Gu doesn't seem to have any feelings for me these years. Instead, he's deeply infatuated with you, Miss."
Su Wan'er gave her a sideways glance. "You two are just making things difficult for yourselves. You're really a perfect match. Do you want to watch me marry him? I don't want to be with that bookworm all day. I think only you can stand him."
Qingcao then remembered the conversation between her and Gu Jingtian in the inn that day. Sure enough, the young lady saw things most clearly. So she had no choice but to do so. No matter what might happen in the future, this had become the best solution for now.
Gu Jingtian had been extremely happy these days and went to the Su Mansion every day. Finally, he was scolded by his grandmother.
"Jingtian, the wedding is coming soon. It's not proper for you to come here every day. If you stay here any longer, Wan'er won't be able to go out." The grandmother seemed to see through his thoughts, but still thought that rules were important. How could a future wife eat at the same table with her husband every day before getting married?
"Yes." Gu Jingtian could only lower his head and admit his mistake.
"Ask this girl to see you out." The grandmother pointed at Qingcao.
Qingcao was instantly flustered. She looked at Su Wan'er and then at Gu Jingtian.
Su Wan'er couldn't help but smile. The grandmother really knew how to pick someone.
Qingcao followed Gu Jingtian in small steps. Nominally, she was seeing him out, but actually, she was just trying to hide her nervousness. When they reached the door, she was about to turn back.
"Qingcao."
Before Qingcao could turn around, she heard Gu Jingtian calling her. He was really calling her.
"What's your order, General Gu?" She had secretly made up her mind these days. This time, it wasn't just for herself but also for the young lady. Since the young lady couldn't marry, even if she married, it might not count in General Gu's heart. Even if General Gu divorced her the next day, at least it could save the young lady from trouble.
"How's your young lady these days?" Gu Jingtian didn't know why he stopped her. When she really turned around, he didn't know what to say.
"She's fine. My young lady is very happy." Qingcao twisted her handkerchief in her hand as if she was going to wring it out. After a while, she hid it in her sleeve embarrassedly.
"This handkerchief..." Gu Jingtian seemed to remember something. He looked at it several times and finally reached out and pulled the handkerchief out.
There were a few simple peonies or roses embroidered on the handkerchief, and there seemed to be a circle of green grass-like things around it.
"I haven't seen Wan'er embroider something like this for years. Could it be that she embroidered it at home these days?"
Qingcao was stunned and blurted out instinctively, "This was embroidered by this maid. The young lady can't embroider, and she hasn't had the leisure to do so these days."
But after she said it, she realized something was wrong. She had been a maid in the Su Mansion since she was a child and only served the young lady, so she naturally had a lot of free time. Moreover, the other maids in the mansion also embroidered handkerchiefs for their own use on weekdays. The pattern on her handkerchief had always been the same since she was a child. Why did General Gu think it was the young lady's?
"You embroidered this? How many have you embroidered?" Gu Jingtian felt as if a string in his mind had snapped.
Qingcao was even more confused. Handkerchiefs were usually changed every two or three days when one got tired of using them. Moreover, in a wealthy family like theirs, there was always a sufficient supply of silk handkerchiefs.