Chapter 67: The Grand Wedding

More than ten days of preparation time had exhausted Duan Fengyun.

He had handled the wedding for himself and Youruo single-handedly.

From the inside out, from the macro to the tiniest details, he had not let a single thing pass through another's hands.

He wanted to give Youruo a grand, incomparable wedding; he wanted to make Youruo the happiest woman in this world.

The couple Bu Jingyun and Chuchu, along with Nie Feng and Qin Shuang, had also arrived at the Under Heaven Society very early.

For the first time, the three of them—Bu Jingyun and the others—had not returned to the place where they had stayed for ten years with the goal of seeking revenge.

The three were familiar with the place, and the members of the Under Heaven Society also respected the former three Hall Masters, so Duan Fengyun felt at ease handing some matters over to them.

Bu Jingyun and Chuchu were responsible for inspecting the hygiene throughout the Under Heaven Society; according to Duan Fengyun's vision, the cleanliness needed to be meticulous, to let the heroes of the world see the working style of their new leader.

Nie Feng was responsible for supervising the hanging of lanterns and decorations, ensuring the Under Heaven Society was vibrant and festive inside and out, filled with sounds of celebration.

Meanwhile, Qin Shuang scoured the markets for fireworks; Duan Fengyun did not use the Under Heaven Society's funds, instead taking from his own private treasury to have Qin Shuang buy up all the fireworks in the market.

In an instant, all the fireworks in the market were sold out; merchants would put them on the shelves only for them to be bought up by the Under Heaven Society.

Time passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was the thirtieth of June.

On this day, Duan Lang arrived once again at the Mountain Gate of the Under Heaven Society.

Looking at the Under Heaven Society, where things remained but people had changed, Duan Lang felt a wave of emotion.

Eleven years ago, because my brother became a Hall Master, he sent me out of the Under Heaven Society to avoid letting me get involved in the strife of the Jianghu.

Eleven years later, because my brother became the leader of the Under Heaven Society, I returned to the Under Heaven Society once again to attend my brother's wedding.

In eleven years, my brother had achieved such results.

He felt proud of his brother, but he was also very worried for him, because one should not interfere in matters outside their position; now that his brother was in such a position, there must be quite a lot of bitterness.

Just as Duan Lang was lost in thought, a voice interrupted him.

"Leader, why have you come out?"

Duan Lang knew that the guards of the Under Heaven Society must have mistaken him for his brother, so he explained:

"Everyone, you have mistaken me for someone else. I am not your leader; I am your leader's younger brother."

Upon hearing this, the guards observed him and discovered that they had indeed made a mistake.

Although Leader Duan also liked to smile, there was more of a wicked charm in his smile.

Yet the smile of the leader's brother before them was full of kindness; although their appearances were not much different, their temperaments were worlds apart.

"Young Master Duan, please forgive this one for being blind. The leader has been missing you for a long time; please follow me, Young Master Duan."

This guard had been hearing Duan Fengyun talk about Duan Lang for the past few days, so he did not dare to delay.

Led by the guard, Duan Lang arrived at the Lianwu Tang, and at this moment, Duan Fengyun was still fooling around with Qin Shuang and the others inside; there was no sign that he was to be a groom the next day.

Seeing someone approach, the group hurriedly stopped their fooling around.

And Duan Lang also walked out from the guard's side to offer his greetings:

"Brother, long time no see."

"Little brother!"

Duan Fengyun said with pleasant surprise, rushing forward to give Duan Lang a big hug.

Seeing that his task was complete, the guard knew this was not an occasion for him to stay, so he wisely took his leave.

Qin Shuang, Nie Feng, and Bu Jingyun also greeted Duan Lang one by one.

Duan Lang also responded politely to each of them.

Duan Fengyun also introduced Youruo and Chuchu to Duan Lang one by one.

Seeing his future sister-in-law, Duan Lang respectfully called out "Sister-in-law."

"Junior Brother Duan, look at how gentle and refined Duan Lang is; then look at yourself, like a hedgehog."

Qin Shuang teased.

Duan Fengyun rolled his eyes.

"Brother, it wasn't easy for you to make this trip; tonight we shall get thoroughly drunk, I want to properly spend one last night at a bachelor party."

Duan Fengyun did not think of Youruo beside him and laughed cheekily.

Youruo walked to his side, pinched his ear, and said:

"Speak, what is a bachelor party, what do you want to do?"

Duan Fengyun begged for mercy in pain:

"Ouch, a bachelor party just refers to the single night before getting married where one drinks well with their brothers."

He did not dare to say the next part—celebrating his entry into the grave of marriage—otherwise, he feared he would lose his life on the spot.

"Fine, then we will have a bachelor party together tonight."

Youruo shouted.

At dusk, in front of the Lianwu Tang, Duan Fengyun was sweating profusely by the fire rack, turning the roasted lamb.

Meanwhile, Youruo and the others on the other side were happily fooling around.

The dignified leader of the Under Heaven Society, the protagonist of tomorrow's grand ceremony, was now still acting as a laborer roasting lamb for everyone.

An hour later, the roasted lamb was almost ready, and everyone came over.

Duan Fengyun had long arranged for servants to place jars of wine next to the roasted lamb; he wanted to drink to his heart's content with everyone tonight.

Except for Chuchu and Youruo, the five of them picked up the wine jars and drank deeply.

As for Duan Fengyun's skills, there was nothing to be said; Duan Fengyun had become the first choice for a cook in their hearts—regardless of his status, he was just a cook right now.

The night grew deep, and the group was still drinking wine and eating meat in large mouthfuls, recounting childhood stories, occasionally letting out terrifying wolf-like howls and laughter.

Seeing that it was getting late, Duan Fengyun and Bu Jingyun let Youruo and Chuchu go back to rest first, while the remaining five continued to revel there.

Seeing Chuchu leave, Duan Fengyun opened a jar of wine and said seriously:

"I want to drink this jar of wine with Kong Ci; I hope that if she has awareness in the afterlife, she can bless me and Youruo."

Hearing this, Qin Shuang, Nie Feng, and Bu Jingyun each picked up a jar of wine and opened it, saying:

"Right, we toast this jar of wine to Kong Ci; we hope she blesses us with a lifetime of happiness from below."

After the four of them poured the wine from their jars onto the ground, they downed the remaining wine in one gulp.

"Brother, it's getting late, let's go rest. There will be many guests tomorrow; to prevent any villains from making trouble, you all should rest early."

Duan Lang suggested.

"Right, Junior Brother Duan, we should rest early."

Qin Shuang also agreed and said.

Duan Fengyun, who had wanted to drink all night with everyone, saw this and had no choice but to give up the idea; everyone returned to their respective rooms to sleep.

On the first day of the seventh lunar month, following the sound of firecrackers in the early morning, everyone had already finished dressing and grooming.

Chuchu and a group of maidservants were inside Huxin Xiaozhu, meticulously applying makeup for Youruo.

Youruo's hair, thick and dark as ink, was all combed to the top of her head and coiled into a phoenix-raising bun like a dark cloud piled with snow, with long, six-bead phoenix dangling hairpins inserted on both sides.

Red gemstones were densely inlaid on the gold threads, swaying gently; when they touched the girl's delicate cheeks, they seemed to move away quickly as if unable to bear the contact.

It was not her usual look without powder or paint; her dark brows were lightly dyed, her vermilion lips were lightly touched, and the rouge on her cheeks was swept on faintly. Her white-as-snow skin, showing a hint of red, gained an extra layer of enchanting crimson, and golden flower-shaped decals were applied to the corners of her eyes, turning her usual delicate beauty into a soul-stirring charm.

On her bright red wedding robe, the intricate styles were layered upon one another, yet there was no sense of cumbersomeness; it was as if blooming peony petals had fallen by the woman's feet, holding her up like a fairy standing in the center of a flower.

With half an hour left until the auspicious time, everyone stayed here to chat with Youruo to ease her nervousness.

At this moment, outside the Underworld Sect, it was incredibly lively; long-established forces like Shaolin, Wudang, and Kongtong had all come to offer their congratulations.

There were also many newly emerged forces that came to present gifts and curry favor.

However, the focus of the entire venue was not them; Wuming arrived at the Underworld Sect with Jian Chen and instantly became the center of attention.

"Senior Wuming, Senior Wuming."

Those who recognized him all cupped their hands and bowed.

Everyone was now as if struck by lightning; they had not expected that Wuming, who had disappeared from the pugilistic world for so long, would actually come to attend Duan Fengyun's wedding.

It seemed the relationship between Wuming and Duan Fengyun was not ordinary; the strength of this Sect Leader Duan required them to re-evaluate it.

Nie Feng and Qin Shuang, who were responsible for greeting guests outside the Mountain Gate, saw Wuming and hurriedly went up to say:

"Senior Wuming, you have come. Please, come in quickly; we have already arranged a seat of honor for you. That you could come to the Underworld Sect to attend Junior Brother Duan's wedding truly makes the Underworld Sect shine with glory."

Wuming nodded and replied:

"I did not expect that Duan Fengyun could actually reconcile with Xiongba before Xiongba died.

Xiongba specifically named him to succeed the Underworld Sect to avoid further disasters in the martial arts world; for this point alone, I must come to support Duan Fengyun. This guy is truly excellent."

All the guests were led by Qin Shuang and Nie Feng to the banquet hall that had already been arranged.

The current banquet hall was red and festive from top to bottom, with 'double happiness' characters and wedding invitations everywhere, presenting a joyous scene.

And Duan Fengyun, wearing a red python robe, sat at the very top of the banquet hall.

People rely on clothes as horses rely on saddles; coupled with today being a joyous occasion, Duan Fengyun, who was in high spirits, attracted quite a few young fangirls in the audience.

"Wow, this Sect Leader of the Underworld Sect is actually so young and handsome; it's a pity he's getting married so early."

Many fangirls below murmured.

Duan Fengyun stood up and said:

"Everyone, today is the wedding ceremony for myself and Youruo. I thank all the martial arts heroes for coming to congratulate us. If our sect has been lacking in hospitality, I ask for your indulgence."

Members of the Underworld Sect chimed in:

"The Sect Leader is tall, the Sect Leader is rich, the Sect Leader is handsome; the Sect Leader is simply a tall, rich, and handsome man."

Hearing this shocking slogan, everyone was left between laughter and tears.

Bang, bang, bang—the auspicious time had arrived.

Duan Fengyun walked down from the stage and took Bu Jingyun, Nie Feng, Qin Shuang, and Duan Lang to the Back Mountain to fetch Youruo.

Duan Fengyun took Youruo's hand and slowly walked toward the banquet hall.

Amidst the sound of ceremonial cannons and applause, Duan Fengyun led Youruo, who was dressed in a phoenix coronet and ceremonial robes, slowly walking along the sacred path.

And the master of ceremonies, Duan Lang, was already prepared on the stage.

Duan Fengyun would not let someone like Wen Chou Chou be his master of ceremonies, so he had long since arranged for Duan Lang to do it.

"First bow to Heaven and Earth."

"Second bow to the high hall."

Regarding the choice of the high hall, the three senior and junior brothers all had the same thought: Qin Shuang had sacrificed so much for them, and as the eldest brother acting as a father, Qin Shuang was the one to sit in the high hall position.

"Bow to each other."

"The ceremony is complete!"

As soon as Qin Shuang finished speaking, deafening ceremonial cannon fire rang out outside the hall.

Considering the situation with so many people, Bu Jingyun and Chuchu gave up on their revenge against Duan Fengyun.

All the guests took their seats, and Duan Fengyun took Youruo to toast them one by one.

Even though Duan Fengyun had a high tolerance for alcohol, he could not withstand everyone taking turns to toast him.

Our great Sect Leader Duan ended up dead drunk on his wedding night.

Youruo dragged the dead-drunk Duan Fengyun back to their room.

Sect Leader Duan thus spent his wedding night in a drunken stupor.

And outside the room, the sound of ceremonial cannons that swept through the entire market continued to ring without stopping.