Work Text:
Three bows.
First, to the heavens and the earth. Qi Zhuyin glanced at Hua Xiangyi. Her soon-to-be wife looked beautiful, dressed in red. Qi Zhuyin had seen her in red before, when Hua Xiangyi married Qi Shiyu, but back then, Qi Zhuyin hadn’t fallen in love with her yet. Now, she looked even more beautiful than before.
Second, to the parents. Qi Shiyu was dead, and the same applied to Hua Xiangyi’s parents. Instead, they bowed to the Qi family’s headstones. That would have to be enough.
Third, to each other. Qi Zhuyin saw Hua Xiangyi smile, and she could not help but smile as well.
Finally, Hua Xiangyi was Qi Zhuyin’s wife.
They spent the night together, then woke up the next morning. As they ate breakfast, Qi Zhuyin wished that this wedding could be public. But there would be a scandal, in that case. Qi Zhuyin was not only a woman but also the daughter of Hua Xiangyi’s late husband. And sure, people of the same gender could marry—Shen Zechuan and Xiao Chiye, for example—but Shen Zechuan was the emperor, not to be questioned. Qi Zhuyin was the Prince of Donglie, but she had always been questioned every step of the way, mainly because of the fact that she was a woman.
So therefore, Qi Zhuyin and Hua Xiangyi’s wedding ended up being private, with only a few trusted people knowing about it.
In the end, though, Qi Zhuyin didn’t mind. The world may not know about it, but she and Hua Xiangyi did, and that was what mattered.
“I love you,” Qi Zhuyin told Hua Xiangyi later that day.
Hua Xiangyi smiled. She had the most beautiful smile in the world. “I love you too.”
And that was enough.