Qiu Ling immediately raised his brows. He had a rough idea of what this was for and he couldn’t help but admit that it was a great idea for a wedding gift.

Yu Gan walked up to their table and handed the instrument to Qiu Ling. “I remember that a few years ago, Your Majesty asked for help to … advance his musical skills further as a surprise for his lover. I thought it was very sweet and I hope that my advice was able to make a difference.

“Now, being able to witness this wedding ceremony, I wanted to acknowledge the effort that went into deepening this skill and also express my encouragement to make use of it in the future. This huqin was made by Fu Ying, a famous instrument maker from the south, so Your Majesty can be assured of its quality. I hope that it will give the two of you many enjoyable hours in the millennia to come.”

Qiu Ling smiled brightly and inclined his head. “Thank you, Yu Gan. Also, Shou Quan.” He nodded at her wife as well before turning back to Yu Gan. He hadn’t expected this but, actually, it wasn’t that surprising of a gift. Yu Gan was a musician and this was also why she had been in more contact with him and also how she met Jing He for the first time. It suggested itself if you thought about it that way.

Jing He also felt positively surprised. He didn’t know many people from the dragon realm. Apart from a few of Qiu Ling’s advisers and Jinde whom he had met just in the past week, there was only Yu Gan whom Qiu Ling had once invited to the Nine Heavens to play for him.

He still remembered that day fondly. At that time, he hadn’t been doing well and for Qiu Ling to do such a thoughtful thing … it had certainly moved him. Later, he had indeed told him about how he learned to play an instrument and had gotten her advice to strengthen his skills. When he finally heard him play, his proficiency had certainly also been due to that. And yes, he was incredibly grateful that Qiu Ling put in so much time and effort just for him. It meant a lot to him.

He smiled at Yu Gan and her wife as well but waited for Qiu Ling to finish saying his thanks. Only then did he take the opportunity to speak up as well. “Thank you very much. Also, I am very happy that I have the chance to meet your wife today.” The last time, while Shou Quan had accompanied Yu Gan to the Nine Heavens, she actually ran off halfway through and wasn’t there when Yu Gan played for him so he was only familiar with the musician but not her wife.

Yu Gan naturally remembered that her wife had stayed outside back then and inclined her head. “We are both very happy that it is under such happy circumstances to see each other. Having been married ourselves for many years, we know how much joy a successful marriage brings so we wish the two of you all the best going forward.”

Shou Quan nodded, silently expressing her approval of this message. Then, the two already bid farewell, letting the other generals of the dragon realm step forward.

Soon enough, each of them had taken a turn to congratulate the couple and hand over their gifts. In the meantime, the rest of the gods that hadn’t had a chance to go up yet or simply waited because they were unsure what to say had also made up their minds and now used the opportunity to slip in before the rest of the dragons could step forward. After all, apart from the generals and advisers, there were also a few important scholars, the half-bloods who had still been stationed in the Nine Heavens or were in charge of the new project over in the dragon realm, as well as a small group from the spirit beast tribe.

The latter actually felt the most awkward. They were counted as part of the dragon race and while the relationship had eased a little recently, that had only been in the past few years. It certainly couldn’t be called a close relationship. The one inviting them for today had even been the Heavenly Emperor, despite the fact that the king of the dragon race was getting married. It seemed a bit wrong.

Had it been the same for the dragons in attendance? Probably not. But they also couldn’t ask. For one, it would be rather impolite because the accusation behind the question would be obvious. And two, they couldn’t be sure that they could trust the answer they’d get. It really wasn’t a good situation.

Zheng Yin had come with Qiu Ling’s advisers in the morning but was naturally sitting with his people. Seeing his king’s somewhat tense expression, he faintly shook his head. “Don’t worry about it, Your Majesty. I’ve spent a bit of time with Adviser Xiang Yong and it seems that there is a little more to the story. It’s definitely not because of us and our relationship with them. On the contrary, it seems Longjun is putting more emphasis on strengthening the relationship between our people again.”

He had already reported as much when Xiang Yong originally spoke with him but … well, after all those years, his own king didn’t trust the news yet. It just seemed impossible for the dragon king to change his mind so suddenly. When it came to the half-bloods, it made sense because his own child would be one. But the spirit beasts? They had no such advantage so he didn’t dare to believe it.

Zheng Yin could see his doubts but right now wasn’t the right moment to explain. “I suppose everyone will stay until tomorrow. I will follow Your Majesty and tell you more later.” Anyway, he could do nothing but that for the time being.