OFTLHFRO C47

Chapter 47: A Wedding That Didn’t Feel Like One

Luo Mingchen wasn’t sure how things worked elsewhere and hadn’t looked into it.

But in this world, the custom here was to calculate the elders’ birth data and, at dusk, invite their spirit tablets back to the main hall.

Some very wealthy clans had dedicated ancestral halls to house the tablets of forebears.

At the appointed time, a ritual master would deliver the tablets.

After they arrived, Huo Yan set off firecrackers—said to welcome the ancestors home—then burned incense and knelt in worship.

When the master finished chanting phrases Luo couldn’t make sense of, Huo Yan paid him. The man spoke a few blessings and left with his two acolytes.

Huo Yuhui, leading his younger siblings, looked happily at the tablets just brought home. In both emotion and everything else, he hoped Luo Mingchen would stay for good.

After seeing the ritual master out, Luo returned and, seeing the three siblings, suddenly remembered he and Huo Yan were to hold their bowing ceremony that night. Feeling a bit embarrassed, he glanced at Huo Yan. “Want to tell them?”

Yuhui asked, puzzled, “Little Daddy, what’s wrong?”

Huo Yan said plainly, “We’ll bow in ceremony tonight.”

Luo: “…”

That was certainly direct and blunt.

Both Yuhui and Xiang froze.

Xiang was mostly confused. “But for bowing at a wedding, don’t you invite guests to a feast and ride in a flower sedan?”

Yuhui had been about to speak, but hearing Xiang, said helplessly, “Everyone already knows Little Daddy is Daddy’s spouse. If they don’t want a banquet, just bowing is fine.”

What mattered was the couple’s wishes—no need to throw a feast.

“Xiaohui is right. Banquets are a hassle. It’s hard to host a crowd. Then there’s elder etiquette, and we’d have to trouble Second Uncle’s family again. Do you really want to see that whole clan?”

Luo said the last part to spook them on purpose. Yuhui hesitated—ritual propriety said not to go too far with elders, but reason said that whole family were no good.

Xiang, though, had no such scruples. “Little Daddy, I don’t want to see them!”

Little Yueyue nodded hard in agreement.

“Alright then, we won’t. We’ll just have a nice dinner tonight.”

Then Luo recalled something. “If we’re getting married, we should have a master of ceremonies, right? Otherwise we’ll be bowing at random?”

Reminded by Luo, first-time groom Huo Yan also thought of it. “Should we find someone now?”

They exchanged a look—then both turned to Yuhui. That seemed a decent option…

Yuhui, realizing what they had in mind: “…”

Was it really that casual?!

Still, if both fathers thought it workable, he had nothing to protest and accepted with a polite smile.

Asked what to say, Luo answered breezily, “Just ‘First bow to Heaven and Earth, second to the ancestral tablets, husband and husband bow to each other, and then straight to the bridal chamber.’”

Even Xiang felt that wasn’t right. “Huh?!”

Luo blinked. “Not okay?”

That was how the dramas did it.

Seeing Yuhui’s stiff expression, Huo said, “After the mutual bow, end with ‘ceremony complete.’”

“Oh…”

None of them had ever married or attended another’s feast, so nothing seemed particularly amiss.

Luo figured the rest wasn’t important anyway. The point was the feeling of a ritual. No matter how complex, after marriage life was still rice, oil, salt.

Having the surprise of wedding robes was already lovely. He didn’t care for extra romance—simple was best.

Like how he’d casually said he didn’t want a banquet, and Huo remembered. That moved Luo more than anything else.

Xiang said, “We still need the Double Happiness characters and red ribbons, right?”

Huo had thought of that days ago. “I bought some two days back. They’re in the storeroom. We can post them later.”

“Really? Daddy! Let’s go paste them!”

Xiang was thrilled—it was a joyous day.

“Mm.”

Luo paused, tugging Huo’s sleeve. “So you were sneaking out to buy these?”

Huo looked at him. “And red candles.”

For some reason, Luo wanted to laugh. “Alright, you all paste. I’ll cook.”

The elders they cared about had passed on, so the offerings had to be done right first.

Peanuts, melon seeds, and pastries were set out already—only chicken and duck were missing.

They split the work. Even little Yueyue helped stir the paste in a bowl.

The wedding looked like neither this nor that, but everyone had a role and felt involved.

During the ceremony, Xiang held Yueyue’s hand, eyes shining with excitement.

When Yuhui announced, “Ceremony complete—”

Xiang tossed a few red paper confetti bits with Yueyue.

Afraid of the cleanup, they truly only sprinkled a little.

Luo beamed. “Time to eat!”

Xiang, already starving, cheered, “Yay!”

Yuhui tried to stay calm, but his grumbling stomach betrayed him.

The family ate by red candlelight.

With no elders present, and the couple unsure how to drink cross-cup wine, they simply used fruit juice instead—sweet and syrupy.

Only later would Luo learn that other people’s cross-cup wine was served in a halved calabash gourd and bitter, symbolizing sharing hardship and sweetness alike…

After the meal, the whole family sat in a row in the courtyard to rest. The autumn night wind was a bit cool, with mosquito-repelling herbs smoldering to the side.

In his wedding robes, Luo slumped into a chair. Yueyue and Xiang followed suit, hands rubbing their bellies.

Yuhui glanced at Daddy, saw his gaze resting on Little Daddy, and tried loosening his posture too—much more comfortable.

Yueyue reached out to gently touch the fabric of Luo’s wedding robes.

He turned, smiling. “Pretty?”

She nodded, delighted. “Pretty.”

“When you marry in the future, I’ll buy you something even prettier.”

Luo stroked her little head, then suddenly remembered: if Yueyue married, she might not be able to come back often, and she’d risk her life having children.

Even in his world of advanced medicine, childbirth was frightening—how much more so here? Their mother had died in childbirth…

So he thought a moment and added, “Later, Daddy will buy you dresses even prettier than wedding robes. How about that?”

Yueyue didn’t understand his thoughts—only that Daddy would buy her pretty dresses—so she answered happily, “Okay~”

Hearing this, Yuhui vaguely sensed Little Daddy didn’t want little sister to marry out.

Xiang didn’t catch it at all and said dumbly, “Little Daddy, I don’t want new clothes. When I grow up, can I keep eating at home?”

Luo burst out laughing and teased, “Then I’ll charge you.”

Xiang grinned. “I’ll give all the money I earn to Little Daddy.”

Uh…

Luo laughed and sighed—such a silly child.

After the rest, Luo stood. “Come, Yueyue—bath time.”

At once, she lifted her arms for a hug out of reflex.

Yuhui scooped her up and smiled. “Little Daddy, you’ve worked hard today. I’ll take care of Xiang and Yueyue. You and Daddy go rest.”

Xiang remembered Yuhui’s earlier words. “Little Daddy, we can take care of ourselves—and of little sister.”

Luo was about to say something when Huo said, “Xiaohui, then we’ll trouble you to keep an extra eye on them.”

Yuhui smiled. “Alright.”

He led his siblings to their room.

The new home had many rooms, but sister was small and brother afraid of ghosts, so Yuhui always slept with them. They’d even bought the largest bed on purpose.

There was a private washroom in the room, and water was not far to fetch—best to bring them back first for convenience.

Footnotes:

• Bowing ceremony: In traditional Chinese weddings, the core sequence is “bow to Heaven and Earth, bow to the ancestors/parents, mutual bow between spouses,” often guided by a master of ceremonies. 
• Double Happiness and red: Red décor and the 囍 (double happiness) character are standard auspicious symbols for weddings. 
• Cross-cup wine: Traditionally drunk from two halves of a gourd; bitterness symbolizes sharing both hardship and sweetness in married life.