Peach Blossom.

"Empress Shu..." Zhang Xiaowan smiled, as if kindly reminding her: "Today is different from the past, you should call her "Empress". Calling her by her name is "insubordination"! "

Si Yao was stunned. Thinking of all the things Chen Ji had done to protect Tao Ye, she shuddered and her attitude became much more humble: "Queen...Queen, please forgive me..."

"It's okay. The ceremony of enthronement has not been performed yet, so Concubine Shu is not considered to be committing an insubordination." Tao Ye still smiled gently, as if she was virtuous and generous.

Zhang Xiaowan hurriedly urged: "Madam Shufei, you should help the Empress put on her shoes as soon as possible, so as not to miss the auspicious time."

Tao Ye smiled faintly. It turned out that this noble man was still as sensible as before.

Put on shoes... Put on shoes... A ball of fire was burning in Si Yao's chest.

Si Yao had lived for more than thirty years, and she had never put on shoes for others, let alone her own shoes!

But, at this moment, does she have a second choice?

Under the watchful eyes of everyone, Si Yao finally bent down, picked up the phoenix-head shoes on the ground, half-knelt, and slowly put them on Tao Ye's feet.

She didn't know if it was because she was not good at putting on shoes, or because the sleeves were too long, which made her hands very clumsy. She had just put the shoe upper over her foot and before she could lift the heel, the phoenix-toe shoes slipped off Tao Ye's feet again.

Si Yao had no choice but to pick up the phoenix-head shoes again and put them on Tao Ye for the second time, but the shoes slipped off even faster.

At this moment, Si Yao suddenly realized that the socks on Tao Ye's feet were woven with gold thread and were extremely silky and smooth. How could they be comfortable to wear?

"I think... if Concubine Shu kneels down to put it on, it might be much easier to put on." Tao Ye still smiled and spoke softly.

Si Yao was a little confused, she didn't quite understand.

Suppressing his inner resentment, Si Yao knelt on his knees and put on Tao Ye's shoes again. This time, the phoenix-head shoes really did not slip off.

Zhang Xiaowan watched intently from the side and saw that the moment Si Yao knelt down, Tao Ye changed from pointing on tiptoe to pointing on tiptoe.

"After all, Concubine Shu is clever and skillful." Tao Ye smiled faintly, then held Caiwei's hand, stepped over the skirt that was lying on the ground in front of Si Yao's knees, and walked slowly.

What a big show of force.

Si Yao had to wait for Tao Ye's feet to leave before he could stand up, but he had to quickly follow Tao Ye in the same row with Zhang Xiaowan.

The rest of the ladies followed in order of their rank, gradually forming six rows and slowly walking into the square of the Taiji Hall.

Walking in the queue, Si Yao kept putting her hands on her dress. She felt that after putting shoes on Tao Ye, her fingers seemed to be stuck with some extremely special dust, which could not be wiped off no matter how hard she tried.

Zhang Xiaowan gazed at the golden phoenix crown on Taoye's hair in front of her, and she was in a different mood. The magnificent scene that had appeared in her dreams countless times would only belong to someone else, and Taoye today was no longer the same person as her former close friend.

The sky was filled with rays of sunlight, the walls were towering, the palace was majestic and imposing, and beside the golden incense burner on the altar in the square, the Left Minister of Rites Chen Wei had been waiting for a long time.

"Please ask the Queen to worship the gods of heaven and earth and all directions."

Tao Ye took the three incense sticks presented by Chen Wei and bowed three times towards the altar. Chen Wei then took the incense and inserted it into the incense burner.

After the worship was over, music started playing in the side halls on the left and right of Taiji Hall, and Chen Ji, wearing a red dragon robe, walked out of the main hall.

Amidst the curling smoke and melodious music, Tao Ye walked steadily up the jade steps in front of the main hall under the gaze of the civil and military ministers on both sides. Six palace maids lifted the back of her bridal gown from behind her, which looked like the long tail of a peacock spreading out, fluttering in the wind as Tao Ye walked.

Ma Da, who was standing not far from Chen Ji, unfolded the edict written by Chen Ji himself and read aloud word by word:

"An ancient book says that if one wants to govern a country, one must first put his family in order. Now that I have inherited the mandate of heaven and rule the world, I should rectify human relations and carry on the will of my ancestors.

I advise you, Ms. Tao, who comes from a family of loyalty and righteousness. You are gentle and intelligent, kind and graceful, filial and virtuous, elegant and dignified. You are appointed as the empress by the imperial decree and reported to the government.

The emperor has an empress, just as Qian has Kun. The dignity of the empress should be equal to that of the emperor. The empress's virtue will assist the king, so that she can shine on the four directions, continue the throne for hundreds of generations, and receive the blessing of heaven forever. "

After the imperial edict was read, Tao Ye walked up to the main hall of Taiji Palace. The palace maids holding her skirt stepped back. Ma Da placed the golden book and phoenix seal on the lacquered table and presented them to the new queen with both hands.

Tao Ye took the lacquered tray, bowed slightly to Ma Da, turned around and handed the lacquered tray to Cai Wei who was following her.

Chen Ji reached out and held Tao Ye, and together they faced the concubines, ladies of honor, and officials below.

"Long live the emperor! Long live the emperor! A thousand years and a thousand years for the empress!" The cheers echoed inside and outside the palace walls.

This day was naturally a day of singing and dancing, and universal celebration. However, within the palace walls, everyone had their own thoughts.

But Ding Wang Chen Chong, at first, followed the etiquette with all the ministers. Although it was just to fit the occasion, his mood was not too bad. Later, he took his seat and had a few drinks.

However, when the banquet was halfway through, Chen Chong felt too hot and left the table to walk around for a few steps to cool down. Unexpectedly, she caught a glimpse of a golden sedan chair, which was so dazzling with jewels and precious stones.

He had never seen such a sedan before, so out of curiosity he walked over.

When the palace maids who were guarding the golden sedan saw that it was Chen Chong, they all bowed.

Chen Chong asked, "Is this the sedan chair that Queen Tao is riding in today?"

The palace maid replied, "That's right, Prince Ding."

Looking at the pearl curtains on all four sides of the sedan chair and the jade ornaments inlaid on the roof, Chen Chong felt dissatisfied. When she reached out to touch it, she was even more surprised. The texture of the sedan chair did not seem to be wood plated with gold, but rather pure gold.

Chen Chong was immediately filled with doubts. She turned around and walked quickly inside, wanting to find out what was going on.

It happened that Ma Da came out to use the toilet and met Chen Chong.

Chen Chong was impatient and was sure that the person in front of her must be someone who knew the truth. Without even addressing him, she asked, "Is that sedan chair made of gold?"

Ma Da was stunned for a moment, then quickly realized that Chen Chong was talking about the golden sedan chair that Tao Ye rode in. He was very surprised. Everyone in the city knew about this unprecedented and unparalleled pure gold sedan chair, so how come Chen Chong didn't know about it?

After looking at each other for a moment, Chen Chong figured out the matter. His wife, Zou, could hide from him the news that her niece was taken hostage, so how could she let him hear about such an absurd act?

At the same time, Chen Chong also thought of Tao Ye's words to persuade him. How could he believe it and allow such luxurious things to be flaunted in the market?

Filled with anger, Chen Chong just wanted to find Chen Ji to argue with him and run away.

"Prince Ding, please stay!" Ma Da guessed Chen Chong's thoughts and hurriedly dissuaded him: "The envoy from Qiu Chi is here today, are you going to make a fool of yourself in foreign lands?"

This remark hit the nail on the head, and Chen Chong had no choice but to move forward. For the newly established State of Chen, it was extremely important to make friends with Qiu Chi and fight against the State of Wei.

Chen Chong sneered, but couldn't help but rebuke Ma Da: "You are so loyal, how could you watch this evil queen empty the national treasury?"

Ma Da had nothing to say. He agreed with Chen Chong's idea, but he understood even more how eager Chen Ji was to marry Tao Ye.

"In that case, I'll leave now!" Chen Chong gave Ma Da a disdainful look and left.

Ma Da could only watch Chen Chong leave.

Then, Ma Da noticed that the eunuch Zhuo Jin, who was walking around, was nearby, and Zhuo Jin seemed to have been looking at him and Chen Chong for a long time.

Ma Da was a little worried and thought that it would be better to solve the hidden danger on the spot, so he called out directly: "Manager Zhuo."

Zhuo Jin hurried over, squinted his eyes and asked politely, "What do you want, Prime Minister Ma?"

"Please don't tell the emperor what Prince Ding just said and did."

"This..." Zhuo Jin seemed a little embarrassed. You know, since the previous dynasty, telling tales has been his strong point, otherwise he would not have been able to get to his current position. "Even if I don't want to say it, I'm afraid the emperor will ask if he finds out that Prince Ding is missing."

"The emperor's mind is on the queen. There are so many people here today, like ants. How can he keep track of them all? Besides, the imperial edict only says that no one can be absent, but it doesn't say that no one can leave early. Is there any need for you to report?" Mada's tone became a bit like an interrogation.

Zhuo Jin couldn't disobey, so he had to agree: "What Prime Minister Ma said is absolutely right."

Ma Da was still worried, afraid that the farce outside the Shen family ancestral hall that day would happen again, so his tone became a little heavier, with a sense of command: "If the emperor finds out from somewhere else in the future and blames you for it, I will bear the responsibility for you. But if the emperor says that he heard it from you, then I will have to have a good talk with you."

Zhuo Jin had never heard Ma Da speak like this before, which actually made him a little panicked. He smiled unconsciously and said, "Prime Minister Ma has said it himself, how dare I say anything?"

Ma Da smiled and nodded, then went back inside. Just as he thought, Chen Ji didn't care about the number of people at the table at all, and was completely immersed in his own happiness.

Finally, when the sun set, Chen Ji came to Zhaoyang Palace to see the bride he had been thinking about day and night.

The layout of Zhaoyang Hall is festive and luxurious. The walls inside and outside are newly painted red. A pair of colorful palace lanterns are hung in front of the main entrance, and the lanterns are affixed with gold foil-cut happiness characters. Each room has a rosewood carved museum shelf, on which porcelain, vases and other toys are displayed.

In Tao Ye's bedroom, every corner was decorated with gold, jade and jewels, and the whole room was covered with soft red carpets. Opposite the door was a painting of peony flowers on vermilion satin, and the dragon and phoenix wedding bed was placed in the northwest corner.

There were multiple curtains hung around the wedding bed, one layer upon another. Each layer was as thin as a cicada's wing and extremely soft, yet it covered the entire embroidered bed tightly.

Inside the curtain, next to the embroidered bed, there is a pair of treasure cabinets, inside which are placed symbols such as the fertility-giving Guanyin and the jade ruyi. On top of them is a pair of red candles, with the candlelight flickering and red tears dripping, making the entire bed hazy and mysterious.

The wedding ceremony finally reached the step that Chen Ji had been looking forward to the most.

A group of palace maids lifted the veils layer by layer from both sides. Chen Ji saw Tao Ye sitting quietly beside the wedding bed, her beautiful face hidden by the red gauze. She was so beautiful that nothing could describe it.

Chen Ji walked over quietly, sat down next to Tao Ye, and gently lifted the thin red gauze covering Tao Ye's head with both hands.

Under the red veil, she had eyebrows like the crescent moon on a distant mountain, eyes like autumn water in a cold pond, a willow-like waist, and a graceful look. She was delicate but not coquettish, pretty like a peach in spring and pure like a chrysanthemum in autumn. Chen Ji was intoxicated by her.

A palace lady took a pair of split gourds, poured wine into each, and then put the two gourds together to mix the wine inside. She then presented them to Chen Ji and Tao Ye and said, "Your Majesty, please drink the wedding wine."

Chen Ji and Tao Ye both took it, turned sideways towards each other, and handed the gourd to each other's lips.

Tao Ye was not good at drinking, so she only took a sip to show courtesy. However, Chen Ji drank up the wine in the gourd in Tao Ye's hand.

Another female official brought a copper basin of dumplings and presented it to Tao Ye.

Tao Ye had no choice but to pick up the chopsticks, picked up a dumpling, took a bite, and quickly spit it out. It turned out that the dumpling was not cooked.

She couldn't help but feel a little annoyed. Even in the palace, there was no way to avoid such a cliché? I was afraid it was deliberately arranged by someone with ulterior motives.

The female official asked, "Will you give birth?"

Tao Ye reluctantly answered, "Raw."

Chen Ji looked at Tao Ye and smiled.

Afterwards, two bowls of longevity noodles were brought over and served to the emperor and empress by the palace ladies-in-waiting, and they both ate.

Caiwei and Xueyi stepped forward, took off Taoye's phoenix crown, let her hair down, and brought her casual clothes to replace her heavy robe.

Tao Ye suddenly held Cai Wei's hand and said, "I don't like others to undress, you all go down."

Caiwei and others had no choice but to bow and leave.

Chen Ji then turned around and said to the ladies, "The Queen is too tired, so let's skip the rest of the formalities!"

The female officials obeyed the order and left, lowering the curtains layer by layer as they left, and finally left the bedroom and closed the door.

Chen Ji looked at Tao Ye again and felt that she had a graceful figure and hair like a black waterfall. The light of the red candle flickered, disturbing Chen Ji's heart so much that it pounded wildly.

"You're right. I don't like outsiders undressing me either. I like to do it myself." Chen Ji's face was full of joy. While he was speaking, his hand had already reached out to Tao Ye's collar.

"Your Majesty..." Tao Ye pushed Chen Ji's hand away like a frightened rabbit and blurted out: "It's not convenient for me today..."