Neither of them slept much that night but the anticipation of their wedding made them feel wide awake when they got up. At this time, it was still early in the morning but they had no time to lose nonetheless. After all, the process for the wedding day couldn’t be said to be simple and there were a mere three hours left to spare.

The guests had already arrived throughout the past few days, with the last of them making their way to the capital of the Nine Heavens the previous evening. Soon, they would all gather in the square in front of the Heavenly Emperor’s palace that had been set up by the people from the Court of Justice and the Palace of War.

When they did, the Heavenly Emperor and the Heavenly Empress would welcome them. Of course, the former didn’t know about their plan yet so he would only talk about the situation that had finally passed and how Jing He had returned to the Nine Heavens unharmed. If things went well, he might even thank the demon king for the role his people had played in this. Afterward, the Heavenly Empress would use the opportunity to add a few words to lead in the right direction and then, it would be time for the ceremony.

At that point, there was no chance for Jing He’s father not to catch on. No, when his mother did her speech, he might still be confused, simply because he wouldn’t imagine in his wildest dreams that they could dare to do this behind his back. But when the couple appeared in their wedding attire, there simply was no other way to interpret what was happening. They could only hope that he wouldn’t cause a scene in front of everyone.

The chance of everything going well seemed highest if they arrived together and proceeded swiftly. This way, his father couldn’t try to drag Jing He aside or try to throw out Qiu Ling before Jing He had time to appear. No, as long as they were together, they could simply make their way to the stage and take their position, starting before anything happened to disrupt the plan they had come up with.

Well, there was still some time until then, and right now, neither of them was thinking about that. They were still busy getting ready, completely focused on the customs of the day and their meaning.

The first step was to take a ritual bath meant to ward off bad luck and attract good fortune. A variety of plants could be added to the water as long as the meaning stayed the same. In their case, they had decided on peach, lotus, and chrysanthemum.

Peach was said to not only bring luck but also to ward off evil which seemed necessary with everything they had gone through. The petals were also thought to be tied to love so it seemed more than fitting to be used for this wedding custom. It was indeed a common ingredient, although some disliked the sweet scent it gave off. But neither Jing He nor Qiu Ling cared much about that. In a way, they even deemed it fitting. After all, what could be sweeter than finally getting married to the one you loved?

The lotus was much less commonly used and the crystal lotus from the Northern Heaven they decided on was even less so. But this was the flower Jing He had been named after so it held special meaning. As soon as Qiu Ling found out that this was an option, he insisted on the lotus being included, saying that it should be counted as a special wish for Jing He’s future.

After thinking about it, Jing He couldn’t deny that the thought was beautiful. Lotus did not just represent purity, enlightenment, and prosperity but also a connection to one’s origin. He who had not gained the blessing of his father and who was said to bring the reincarnation of Tian’s and Xing’s child into this world seemed tied to this sentiment more than anyone else. He truly hoped that he could right the wrong that his family had committed back then and achieve a better future for themselves and their future child.

Following the same idea, Jing He proposed to use the chrysanthemum as the final flower. While not as straightforward as the crystal lotus, it symbolized autumn, the season Qiu Ling had been named after. As for its meaning, it was said to cleanse and cure illnesses. While that might usually not be the most important for the dragons with their strong bodies, Jing He’s thoughts were still haunted by the image of Qiu Ling’s weakness before his death. Even though that had been due to the curse and not an actual sickness, he felt that it couldn’t hurt to hope for this. Not to mention that chrysanthemum also stood for longevity in general. It seemed to be the perfect flower to express what he meant: That he wished Qiu Ling would not meet an early demise as he had seen in that second vision but instead live a long, healthy, and happy life together with him.

Jing He was happy with this choice and Qiu Ling who knew what he had seen naturally had nothing to say against it either. Even if he had been unaware of the story behind it, he still would have accepted it immediately. In his mind, whatever his beloved wanted was what they should do, after all.

One of them was in the Nine Heavens and one was in the dragon realm. Despite the distance between them, this ritual connected the two of them as they quietly sprinkled their chosen ingredients into the water. This was what the rituals the gods followed on the day of their wedding ceremony were supposed to do: To join the two people in mind, body, and soul and set them up for their joint marital life, hoping that they would gain and retain the happiness they longed for.