Chapter 6: The Auspicious Hour Has Arrived

Early the next morning, the entrance to the Prince Qin Mansion was already overcrowded. Han Yunxi certainly didn't know that, whether inside or outside the palace, at least thirty major bookmakers had opened gambling pools regarding whether she could enter the gates of the Prince Qin Mansion today, with as many as thousands of people placing bets.

There was no celebratory music, but the roaring clamor of the surrounding crowd was enough to make things lively.

Han Yunxi didn't even have to worry about oversleeping; she was woken up directly by the noise. She stole a glance at the sky; there was still some time before the auspicious hour, just enough for her to clear her head and deal with the medicine on her face.

A tiny tumor encountering a gold-medal detoxification expert like her—a single night was enough to destroy the evidence.

Han Yunxi tore off the gauze and cleared away the herbal medicine. As her fingertips lightly brushed over the area, the place where the tumor had originally been was already smooth, flat, delicate, and warm.

It was a pity there was no mirror, otherwise Han Yunxi could have seen what she looked like now. However, she thought that even if she wasn't beautiful, at least without the tumor, she wouldn't be an ugly woman anymore, right?

She took some gold needles from her detoxification system and hid them in her sleeve, then took some poison powder for self-defense. She tidied up the waste and temporarily placed it into the detoxification system, cleaning everything up thoroughly. Even if someone caught the scent of herbs, they wouldn't find anything unusual.

Covering her head with the wedding veil, she sat upright in the sedan chair, closing her eyes to rest as she waited for the auspicious hour to arrive.

As time passed bit by bit, the number of onlookers grew. Even though it was the second day of the wedding period, it still drew tens of thousands of people to the capital, emptying the streets. Even the people from the Han family disguised themselves and mingled in the crowd, hoping to see the truth of the matter.

Finally, the auspicious hour arrived!

"Eee-ya..."

With the sound of the Prince Qin Mansion's main gates opening, the noisy entrance immediately fell silent; no one dared to make a sound.

The Prince Qin Mansion was not reneging on its word; they had opened the main gates quite openly. However, no groom appeared, nor was there even a single person to welcome the bride. Only the gatekeeper slave, Old Liu, walked out and stood by the door.

What... was the meaning of this?

The groom should at least come to kick the sedan door so the bride can descend, shouldn't he?

This situation plunged the originally silent entrance into a deathly stillness. Everyone stared at the wedding sedan in unison. Whether they were those betting the bride could enter or those betting she couldn't, everyone was incredibly nervous, not knowing what would happen next.

Several Han family members mingling in the crowd couldn't help but curse Han Yunxi in their hearts. Although marrying into the Prince Qin Mansion was an attempt to climb higher, she shouldn't go so far as to seek humiliation like this!

A cold sneer was hidden in the eyes of Matchmaker Wang, who simply refused to speak, letting the scene fall into an awkward silence while waiting for the auspicious hour to pass.

But unexpectedly, with a sudden "Bang!", the sedan door was kicked open from the inside. Han Yunxi, adorned in her phoenix crown and red wedding robes with the red veil over her head, walked down from the sedan chair with grace and poise.

She was not tall, and due to long-term malnutrition, she was rather thin. The wedding attire did not fit her perfectly, but she held her back straight and her head high. Standing like this, she possessed a natural elegance that made it impossible for people to look away.

"The auspicious hour has arrived. Why hasn't the celebratory music started playing?" she asked loudly.

As soon as these words were uttered, the crowd regained their senses and understood what had just happened.

Heavens, the bride actually kicked the door open and descended from the sedan herself! How could she do such a thing? This was against the rules!

"This woman is truly shameless, actually coming down by herself! You couldn't marry out, so you're forcing your way in? How desperate!"

Suddenly, someone in the crowd burst out in a loud curse.

Accompanying voices rose from all around—desperate, shameless, and even words like "prostitute" were hurled at her.

Han Yunxi was also human, and a woman at that. She also felt that she was being quite shameless. But besides doing this, what else could she do? Stay trapped in the sedan chair waiting for the next auspicious hour? Could she even wait that long?

The Emperor was merely acting out of spite against Prince Qin when he ordered him to marry. If things truly escalated, what could the Emperor actually do to Prince Qin? In the end, all the blame for various mistakes would fall on her. If she died, the marriage contract would naturally vanish.

A trace of bitterness flashed through her heart, but Han Yunxi pulled herself together; survival was the only priority.

Amidst the verbal abuse, Han Yunxi questioned loudly, "This was originally something Prince Qin should have done, but since Prince Qin is too busy to come, I can only do it on his behalf. Are you implying that my 'desperation' was caused by Prince Qin?"

As soon as these words came out, the entire scene immediately exploded.

"Han Yunxi, you are distorting the truth and slandering people! Prince Qin doesn't even want to marry you!"

"Exactly! Do you really think Prince Qin is willing to marry you? Have you never looked in a mirror since you were a child? Don't you know what kind of creature you look like?"

Han Yunxi stopped in her tracks and turned to face the source of the voices. Her frame was frail, but her voice was full of confidence. "The Empress Dowager designated the marriage, and the Emperor ordered the wedding to be completed this month. You say Prince Qin doesn't want to marry me—then wouldn't Prince Qin be defying the Imperial command and acting in opposition to it? Which of you said that? All of you, step forward!"

As soon as she finished speaking, the entire area fell into instant silence. The people who had just spoken turned pale with fear, agape and unable to say another word. No one else in the surrounding crowd dared to discuss it further; who would dare to slander Prince Qin?

As everyone fell silent, Han Yunxi took a deep breath to embolden herself. She raised her voice proudly and shouted, "Music! Let it ring out!"