Nineteen: Aftermath (FINALE)
Part 1: Wedding Ceremony
Because of the pregnancy, the marriage ceremony had been arranged to be as simple as possible to avoid making the new bride too weary. At times, she would get check-ups from Zhe Yan to ensure that the baby was doing well. Three years was indeed a very long time.
They mimicked the western style of weddings that was prevalent in the modern mortal times since their love had started from their time in the mortal world. However, Dong Hua had underestimated his wife. He had forgotten about his wife's taste for beautiful dresses. They had headed to another heaven, not one in the Nine Heavens but that of the lower, more traditional realms of the older heavens where a goddess named the 'Weaving Maiden' resided. As expected, with Dong Hua's glib tongue, persuading and convincing the Weaving Maiden to conduct a fitting for his wife was a small task for Dong Hua. But to his surprise, it was Fengjiu who was unable to decide between two hundred dresses, and in the end, Dong Hua had to ask for courier delivery to have all the dresses transported to the Nine Heavens.
Fengjiu praised the Weaving Maiden's workmanship and how she had managed to, in just a few months, completed all the wedding gowns, ranging from all of the distinct colours of the rainbow to different designs unique to one another. The other headache was, Dong Hua had to have different coloured tuxedos instead of just going with black, as part of Fengjiu's orders. So it had been as the Chinese saying goes, that a married couple would 'share all the joys and sorrows', you ku yǒu fú tóng xiǎng , yǒu nàn tóng dāng. In the end, the wedding proceeded for forty days and nights, since they were exhausted with just changing five gowns a day. Of course, Fengjiu would have kept all the gowns in their wardrobe for a rainy day, and just used one. It was all the credit of Dong Hua who had fooled her with the fact that in the times that he was from, it was the norm that a god would marry with an agenda of having a change of two hundred dresses. Dong Hua was not the only god from that era, Zhe Yan being the other. Perhaps it was Zhe Yan's intention to hide the truth from Fengjiu in the hopes that her uncle Bai Zhen would have the same with them for their wedding in the near future.
On each day of their wedding ceremony, Dong Hua had presented Fengjiu with 1001 roses of different colours to commemorate their love and also, even personally sang her a romantic mortal love song he had found to be suitable to express his feelings for her.
On the final day, the song had been:
Heart beats fast
Colors and promises
How to be brave
How can I love when I'm afraid to fall
But watching you stand alone
All of my doubt, suddenly goes away somehowOne step closerI have died everyday, waiting for you
Darling, don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand moreTime stands still
Beauty in all she is
I will be brave
I will not let anything, take away
What's standing in front of me
Every breath, every hour has come to thisOne step closerI have died everyday, waiting for you
Darling, don't be afraid, I have loved you for a thousand years
I'll love you for a thousand moreAnd all along I believed, I would find you
Time has brought your heart to me, I have loved you for a thousand years
Although Fengjiu was emotional and tears of joy were streaming from her cheeks, it ended up with Liansong, Cheng Yu, Si Ming, and even her paternal grandfather in tears. It was the happiest and most memorable day of her life, and also for her to be able to to be share her special day with her loved ones.
Liansong and Cheng Yu were dancing and glued together in an embrace. "No more quarrels," they had agreed some time back. They would still be prone to squabbling over trivial matters, though. Watching them as Cheng Yu disagreed on the food choices that Liansong had picked out for her while Liansong debated with her why his choices were best for her, Fengjiu smiled and wished for the best for her friend. Soon, in a few years, little Gun Gun, whom she had named so because of his tendency to roll in her tummy, would be born, and her favourite couple would have their chance to be his godparents. How had Liansong, in just a matter of months, pursued Cheng Yu and made them an item while she and Dong Hua were away in the mortal realm on their mission? She imagined all the things, especially the naughty couple moments between them, and laughed at her own indecent thoughts. She couldn't wait until they had their special day. On the other hand, Si Ming had won the bet between them, and was loaded with riches, all for his own. He would be the richest tycoon in the Nine Heavens, should he choose to rent out his estates.
Bai Qian looked into the distance and saw Yehua approach while pushing a baby stroller. Finally, the day she had anticipated had finally come, and she had been hiding from this moment for months.
"Why did you leave without a word?" he asked.
"I don't remember." She continued to watch as the newlyweds toasted the crowd.
"Would you take a look at our son?" he continued to ask. It was at this moment that A-Li started to cry, invoking Bai Qian to take a look. She peered into those innocent eyes and it was that time, when Yehua said,
"If you didn't remember, you wouldn't be the one sneaking into the palace at night to take a look at A-Li."
Bai Qian looked unsure. There had been no third party in their relationship when she was the mortal Susu while on her trial to become a High Goddess, contrary to what rumours had been going on outside. It was merely Yehua's mother Lady Lexu who had tormented Susu and blamed it all on the upcoming marriage between Yehua and Bai Qian that had compelled her to leave and when she had jumped from the platform, her trial had ended.
A love trial was confound. It served to uncover what an immortal was made of and how they would fare in a test of love and emotions. When she had completed her trial, she had seen through it all.
"I would walk through a thousand fires for you, Qian-Qian," Yehua stated. "What can I do to regain your love and trust?"
"You could turn into a black snake for her again," a cold voice said. Bai Qian and Yehua turned around to realise it was Fengjiu and Dong Hua standing behind them with a pair of glasses, presumably to give them a personal toast.
"Or you could go to Qingqiu and live with my aunt for one hundred days," Fengjiu said. "Your decision is for the two of you to make. But Aunt, I implore you to not leave him alone. I'm a mother too. He needs his mother's tender love and care. For his sake, don't abandon him."
She looked towards the stroller and touched the baby's hands gently. He was only a number of months old, and yet he had to go through so much. "Jiejie will see you soon."
"I promise you, Little Jiu," Bai Qian finally said after some thought. "But I'm doing it for the baby, not you."
Dong Hua stared towards Yehua as they left, and as he disappeared, a note materialised on Yehua's palm.
"Walk in the rain."
Yehua scratched his head, and frowned.
.......................................
Part 2: Aftermath (At The Holy Blue Sea)
From time to time, Dong Hua would take time off from his duties and take Fengjiu, now the crowned queen of Qingqiu, around the realms to visit. As a retired former emperor and furthermore, having the revamped heaven with technology in place, most menial tasks had been replaced with machines, and there was nothing urgent that couldn't be worked on remotely while they were traveling. Fengjiu on the other hand, had long passed her BingCang ceremony prior to meeting Dong Hua, but was reluctant to become a queen. When the day came for her coronation, she accepted her role readily with open arms, finally matured and unafraid of what would came next, especially since she now had Dong Hua accompanying her.
Gun Gun was born in the Holy Blue Sea where Dong Hua was born. As opposed to the dramas, it had been nothing like complicated mortal births. Gun Gun was born fairly easy, and in a flash.
"I'm glad you were a part in his life," Fengjiu smiled as they lay on the soft green grass under one of the purple-blossomed Fuling trees.
"Thank you for accepting me again and again in your life," Dong Hua said. "If not for you, I was living a life of lies, believing myself to have everything, and yet, nothing. Because if not for having you, I would just be a cold old rock."
"I wouldn't have known love if not for my debt to you," Fengjiu stated. "Thank you for letting me owe you again and again."
"Again?" he tickled her chin. "Is there a new debt I don't know of?"
Fengjiu felt a little embarrassed, and looked away instantaneously. He teased her, "If you're not telling the truth, you're going to get punished."
She still looked away, with a guilty face.
Dong Hua said nothing, but smiled coldly. With a mere flash of his fingers, Fengjiu realised her clothes had simply vanished into thin air. She quickly scrambled up to run, but he was faster, and had her pinned down on the grass.
"You're not going to escape," he said, and tickled her mercilessly with one hand, while another snaked across her sensitive spots.
"I splurged," she finally admitted. "With all your credit cards."
Dong Hua laughed. "You're going to have to earn it then."
"Earn?" she feigned ignorance.
"It's going to take more than one night."
She pouted, but before she could say anything more, a shrill cry upset the silence between them. "I think the baby is crying," she said, and quickly transformed into a fox, running towards the little cottage to check up on Gun Gun.
Dong Hua shrugged. It must have been feeding time, just when he was about to have some fun. He just hoped that he wouldn't have to be jealous over the baby boy taking attention from his wife someday. Who would know?
Welcome to parenthood.
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