[2] Transmigrating into a Short-lived White Moonlight, had a HE with the Villain

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Chapter 58.5 Winding Stream Party Banquet

In the morning, there is no need for others to attend the ceremony, but those who are interested can go to the altar to observe the ceremony. Sang Yuanyuan’s group was naturally not interested. Listening to the lively voice outside, it was so dazzling until noon.

The banquet officially began, and the servants respectfully led the distinguished guests from all states to the hall where the banquet was held.

Han Shaoling returns to the Royal City from the altar. He is surrounded by a group of beautiful women, just like a pile of colorful clouds.

The Bai Clan’s sisters, Princess of Qin state, and one or two people from each of the three states of Zhao, Zhou and Qi——These several princesses are the people who are most interested in the position of Han Shaoling’s legal wife or concubines. They got up in the middle of the night and followed Han Shaoling to the altar to observe the ceremony.

Sang Yuanyuan’s eyes swept across and her heart could not help but slightly startled.

According to the plot in the original book, after Han Shaoling took back the runaway wife, he tied her tightly to his side and made her stand in the position of the legal wife while worshipping the heaven and slapped a group of noble ladies’ faces.

But today, Han Shaoling stood with You Yingyue on the left and Qin Wushuang on the right, and Meng Wuyou’s figure could not be seen at all. It seems that the runaway wife was put into a small dark room again.

Sang Yuanyuan somewhat understands it.

The power of the white moonlight really can’t be underestimated.

What Han Shaoling fell in love with was actually the feeling of seeing this face for the first time in the mulberry field. That moment was the simplest and most sincere heartbeat he has had. What he fell in love with was his own feeling at that moment, and it didn’t matter what kind of soul was under the skin he fell in love with.

Therefore, if there’s Sang Yuanyuan, she’s naturally his first choice. If there is no more her in this world, he is going to want Meng Wuyou.

It is precisely because he loves the innocence of that moment, so the more ‘work’ that Meng Wuyou done, the more he can extract the feeling he needs from it. Only then will he spoil her, indulge her and encourage her to carefreely stir up trouble like a little girl.

In fact, what he was looking for was just the feeling when his original heart was sprouting at the beginning. Just a short moment of pure beauty, no benefit and no care. That beam of light which has been infinitely beautified in memory.

It’s just a child who lacks love.

Sang Yuanyuan shook her head and went with the others to the hall where the banquet was held.

The Thirty Betrothal banquet is a banquet with the setup of serving the food separately as the guests arrive in succession.

It is still in the main hall, but a bamboo water channel is specially laid, and various dishes are packed in jade lotus petals, coming slowly, and going around the hall. The wine is held in a thin lotus leaf-shaped jade cup, swirling and colliding lightly from time to time, and the ding-dong sound of the flowing jade elegantly echoes in the hall.

What a wonderful Winding Stream Party[1].

Between the jade cups, a pair of acacia flowers made of gauze could be seen swirling with the waves.

Each pair of acacia flowers has a different color from the other pair.

This is another interesting custom——The princesses will take one Acacia flower and wear it on their heads, while the other one of the pair continues to float in the channel. If any prince picks it up and wears it, it means he is interested in her.

If both of them liked each other, then they would each take the acacia flower back home and attach it to the gift when they propose the marriage. If it was successful, then it is a beautiful predestined fate. If the woman is not interested in the man, she would throw the acacia on her head back into the channel, and the man can only return the flower to flowing water bitterly, waiting for the next fated one.

A betrothal banquet can often produce several wonderful couples.

Because of this, this custom has been spread for thousands of years, and every time it is always held very lively.

Han Shaoling first picked up a big red acacia flower and threw its other half back into the channel. His eyes were burning as he looked at Sang Yuanyuan.

As today’s host, he naturally enjoys the highest priority.

Usually, the host’s big red acacia flower will be kept until the end. In this process, the women will secretly play games to decide the winner. In the end, the woman who finally picked up the red acacia is the decided female lead of that day——The royal woman has a noble status. If she rashly picked up the host’s red acacia but was abandoned by the host afterwards, it would really become the laughing stock of the whole world. Therefore, no one will take this risk.

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[1] Winding Stream Party: an old Chinese custom in which the participants wait by a winding stream and compose poems before their cups full of rice wine float down to reach them, so as to wash away ominousness.

TN : I found images for this style of banquets, mainly from the ‘Legend of Concubine’s Daughter Minglan’ drama. The third one is the one from Japan (or Korea, not sure).