Chapter 1209: The Wu Family

"Meiniang, I heard you're getting married?"

The next day, Wu Meiniang's best friend Xu Yingying came to visit.

"Mm." Wu Meiniang nodded lightly. "I really am getting married. After this, I probably won't be able to play with you anymore."

"Is it the Emperor?" Xu Yingying asked.

Wu Meiniang shook her head: "No. You'll know soon enough. Right now, you wouldn't believe me even if I told you."

"How do you know I won't believe you if you don't tell me?"

Xu Yingying fell silent, realizing Wu Meiniang felt strangely distant.

"Young Lady, it's time to try on your wedding dress!"

Suddenly, a maid outside called out.

Wu Meiniang replied, "Yingying, I'll go try on the dress first."

"I want to see too!"

Xu Yingying's eyes lit up and she stood up.

Wu Meiniang sighed helplessly but agreed.

After all, Xu Yingying was a woman.

&Skirt%⑧"②-②/6; ⑨@8{⑤! 1}Six (slice "Eight Two Three" carved.

When Wu Meiniang reappeared before Xu Yingying, she was utterly stunned.

The young girl before her was radiant and alluring, her figure graceful, every movement brimming with seduction—she looked like a spirit incarnate.

Against the crimson wedding dress, her brilliance blazed, outshining all under heaven.

Even as a woman, Xu Yingying could not tear her eyes away.

"Meiniang, you're so beautiful today!"

"I wonder who's lucky enough to marry you!"

Wu Meiniang laughed softly: "Yingying, you're exaggerating!"

"Young Lady, there are more dresses to try. Shall we try them?"

"Let's try them."

Wu Meiniang did not refuse; instead, she was eager.

In "The Ultimate Beauty," they portrayed her as a spotless white lotus, shifting all the evil deeds Wu Zetian committed in history onto Xu Yingying.

That fit most people's tastes.

Otherwise, if the female lead were utterly cruel and did disgusting things every day, how could the drama keep its ratings?

But in truth, Wu Meiniang was not without cunning.

Living in a great clan, how could she truly be a white lotus?

She naturally possessed the same scheming as any ordinary person.

Otherwise, she would never have become Empress.

Leveraging her beauty was one of her subtle strategies.

It was also the only thing she could do at this stage.

After all, her future was uncertain; this was all she could control.

It must be said, a beautiful person looks good in any dress.

The several wedding dresses she changed into afterward fully showcased her figure, leaving Xu Yingying and Wu Lady beside her thoroughly satisfied.

"Good! Your appearance, Meiniang, I have no complaints. But women, above all, must be gentle as water. When you go there, don't throw tantrums, or else they won't 【39】 tolerate you."

Will certainly tolerate you.

Wu Meiniang nodded lightly: "Mother, I understand."

Xu Yingying helped her with her hair and makeup, saying: "Lady, Meiniang is so gentle—she'll surely be adored by her in-laws."

Three days passed in a flash.

The news of the Wu family's affair had spread throughout Changancheng.

Due to the short time, the Wu family's preparations were not fully complete; they had only gathered fine silks, pearls, and jade artifacts.

As for cutting the silk into garments, it was utterly impossible.

Three days—how many dresses could possibly be made?

Even so, Changancheng was stunned by the Wu family's extravagance.

The bridal procession stretched for miles, utterly opulent.

"The Wu family is so rich!"

"Not just rich—they've got the Thousand Ox Guards escorting it! Who's lucky enough to marry a Wu daughter? Just this dowry alone could make him a regional magnate."

"Isn't it the Emperor?"

"No."

As the bridal procession passed, the people of Changancheng buzzed with speculation.

Suddenly, the sky brightened—though it was morning, it shone brighter than noon.

Everyone looked up and saw a white light in the heavens.

Within the white radiance, giant blue birds soared into the sky.

On one blue bird sat a woman with flowing robes, gazing downward, her voice clear and carrying across all of Changancheng.

"The Wu family's daughter Meiniang has been summoned by the Great Luo Heaven of the Taixuan Realm—will you go?"

Wu Meiniang lifted the sedan curtain, gazing upward, her expression alight with excitement: "I will go!"

Lingxi nodded gently, thought flickering—the blue bird descended, took over the bridal procession, loaded the dowry onto its back, and rose again.

A blue bird flew before Wu Gong, lifting her with immortal power and settling her upon its back.

The blue bird was enormous, its back flat and spanning over ten square paces—more than enough to stand on.

Though not colossal beasts, these birds were divine avians, and in the ordinary world, they commanded great prestige.

"So Wu Gong is to marry a immortal?"

In the wedding procession, Xu Yingying stood frozen in shock...

"No wonder you refused to say anything. Even if you had, I could never have believed it!"

At this moment, she finally felt the sheer surrealism of it all—far beyond anything she had imagined.

"Wu Shiye and Lady Wu have rendered great service in raising a daughter; in return, two Elixirs of Longevity, the first four scrolls of the Yin-Yang Creation Scripture, and permission to travel between the mortal realm and the Earth Immortal Realm."

Lingxi waved again, and immediately several beams of light shot forth, landing before Wu Shiye and Lady Wu.

The cultivation technique and travel permissions had no physical form—they were directly implanted into their minds.

Only the two Elixirs of Longevity remained suspended before them.

Wu Shiye and Lady Wu exchanged a glance, then simultaneously looked upward, clasping their hands in gratitude: "Thank you, Dao Jun."

Saying this, they swallowed the elixirs.

The next instant, their appearances changed rapidly.

From middle-aged adults, they instantly reverted to the forms of a boy and a girl.

Those present were stunned.

Elixirs of Longevity—such extraordinary things had truly appeared in the world.

"Li Shimin has rendered meritorious service to the state; grant him an Elixir of Longevity and the first four scrolls of the Dragon God Art."

Lingxi waved once more, and two more beams of light shot forth, appearing before Li Shimin—one dissolved into his body, the other took form as an elixir.

"Thank you, Dao Jun, for this bounty!"

Lingxi did not respond to Li Shimin.

No matter how high his status or how exalted his position, it meant nothing.

She was a follower of Zhang Taixuan; others naturally need not give him any heed.

"Return to the Taixuan Realm!"