Glory

"Oh, I love that tea. A while ago, the Ye family seemed to have introduced an exceptionally fine tea called Tieguanyin, which I tasted at a friend's house. Their Osmanthus Tea and Jasmine Tea are also my favorites."

"No wonder they're so wealthy, giving such a lavish dowry. With so many exquisite teas, how could they not have money?"

Nearby, someone who enjoyed belittling others to elevate themselves overheard this and sneered, "This dowry might look impressive, but how much is it really worth? Who knows where those manors are located? Manors outside the city aren't worth much. And tea mountains? Just wild, barren hills—you could probably buy an acre for a mere tael of silver."

A contrarian passerby instinctively retorted, "Do any of you know how much an acre of tea mountain outside Lin'an City costs? Dozens of taels per acre, and you can't even buy it with silver. It's incredibly valuable. I have a relative who knows how profitable tea is and wanted to acquire some tea gardens. But not only couldn't he buy any gardens, he couldn't even purchase tea leaves at a high price from existing ones. They're all booked a year in advance, and at steep prices."

"Really?"

"Absolutely!"My heavens, then how much is this heir's wife's dowry worth?"

"It might not be tea gardens outside Lin'an City. But her family is in the tea business; even if their tea mountains aren't as valuable as those near Lin'an, they certainly aren't worthless."

"..."

After the bold display of over a dozen large manors and numerous tea mountains, the subsequent twenty-six sets of gold and jade headpieces—though also quite valuable—hardly sparked any discussion.

Ye Yaming's dowry appeared to be only three li of red dowry procession, but no one had ever presented a dowry in this manner before. The discussion it ignited was even more fervent than that for a ten-li red dowry. If displayed conventionally, it would likely have exceeded twenty li.

In a teahouse by the roadside, some were also discussing the bridal procession below: "Why do you think she didn't arrange it the usual way? Presenting one manor per carrier and one tea mountain per carrier—if people don't look closely, wouldn't it seem like her dowry is very meager?"

"Exactly. Having several hundred carriers would be so much more imposing."

"The Ye family truly has great tact—no wonder their business has grown so large. Think about it: if they had paraded several hundred carriers of dowry, how would the noble daughters in the capital react?"

At this, many in the room nodded in agreement: "You've hit the nail on the head, my friend."

Those noble daughters from prominent families in the capital may come from wealthy backgrounds, but such families often have numerous descendants, both legitimate and illegitimate. Most of the family wealth naturally goes to the sons, and what little remains is divided among the many daughters, leaving each with very little.

If a mere merchant's daughter like Ye Yaming, of relatively low status, were to display a dowry of several hundred carriers—a ten-li red procession—outshining most noble daughters in the capital, wouldn't the Ye family incur widespread resentment and offend all the noble ladies?

By presenting the dowry truthfully yet adopting a humble posture, acknowledging their lower status and not competing with the noble ladies, they've acted very wisely.

In another private room of the same teahouse, three young ladies sat with a group of maids and elderly women.One of the young ladies gazed at the tall, straight-backed figure riding at the front of the wedding procession, watching as the gong-and-drum-accompanied bridal entourage gradually faded into the distance. Her ears were filled with the astonished discussions of the teahouse patrons, and she bit her lip so hard it nearly bled.

The girl beside her watched with concern and softly comforted, "Fourth Sister, please don't be upset. It just means you two weren't meant to be."

The woman addressed as "Fourth Sister" was named An Jingning, daughter of the Great General Who Guards the North. As both families were military clans, the An and Lu families had been longtime friends, and An Jingning had known Lu Guanyi since childhood. To secure more protection for his grandson, Old Master Ye had frequently taken Lu Guanyi to visit Great General An Ting during his lifetime. An Ting greatly admired Lu Guanyi.

Lu Guanyi still served under the Great General Who Guards the North.

After Lu Guanyi's fiancée passed away early, his marriage prospects repeatedly met with obstacles. Many in the capital joked that Lu Guanyi would likely have to become the son-in-law of the Great General Who Guards the North—only then would Duke Wei's household dare not target him, allowing him to smoothly become the heir and secure a promising future.

Hearing these words during her budding youth, and seeing how handsome, imposing, and praised by her father Lu Guanyi was, how could An Jingning not be moved? Gradually, her heart became tied to Lu Guanyi.

Just as Duke Wei's household collapsed and there seemed to be no more obstacles to Lu Guanyi's marriage, a thunderbolt struck from the blue—the Emperor suddenly bestowed a marriage, and shockingly, it was to a merchant's daughter.

Had Lu Guanyi married a daughter from another noble family, An Jingning might have accepted it. But a merchant's daughter? How could she ever be reconciled?

Thus, upon hearing that today was Lu Guanyi's wedding day, she came to this teahouse to see what kind of person Lu Guanyi was marrying.

Unexpectedly, she witnessed an extravagantly wealthy procession stretching three li.

"I just think it's unworthy of Brother Lu," An Jingning said indignantly. "What does 'wealth without benevolence' mean? That's exactly what merchants are. This woman comes from a merchant background—all she has is the stench of copper. We descendants of military families fight enemies on the battlefield, risking our lives—how could we care about such filthy money? She's simply insulting Brother Lu."

"Exactly," her two cousins chimed in. Seeing that the bridal procession had moved far away and An Jingning's expression had softened somewhat, they tentatively asked, "Shall we go back?"

"No," An Jingning suddenly stood up with determined energy. "Let's go to the Xuanwu Marquis Household. I want to see what this bride looks like."

As Lu Guanyi was a subordinate of the Great General Who Guards the North, even though the general wasn't in the capital, he had sent invitations to the relatives and female family members of the General Who Guards the North's household to attend the wedding.

At this moment, the wife of the General Who Guards the North was at the Xuanwu Marquis Household.

An Jingning had initially been resistant and didn't plan to go. Knowing her daughter's feelings, the wife of the General Who Guards the North had let her be.

Now that An Jingning had changed her mind and decided to go to the Xuanwu Marquis Household, there was naturally no problem.

...

Inside the bridal sedan, Ye Yaming was unaware that a "love rival" would soon come to see her. The sedan carried her through nearly half the capital before finally stopping at the entrance of the Xuanwu Marquis Household.

A large, well-defined hand reached into the sedan from outside, extending beneath the bridal veil into her line of sight.

She placed her hand in Lu Guanyi's large palm and, following his guidance, stepped over a vermilion-lacquered wooden "saddle." Before her foot could touch the ground, Lu Guanyi swept her up into his arms. Amid the cheers and teasing of the wedding guests, he carried her into the Xuanwu Marquis Household.Upon reaching the entrance of the wedding hall, she was finally set down. Guided by Lu Guanyi holding the red silk ribbon, and supported by the bridesmaid and Madame Zhou, she entered the wedding hall.

"First bow to heaven and earth... Second bow to the parents... Bow to each other as husband and wife..."

Just as Ye Yaming and Lu Guanyi were performing the wedding bows, An Jingning, who had arrived on horseback, also reached the Lu residence. He squeezed his way to the front of the wedding hall and watched as the couple completed their ceremonial bows.

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