Jing He blushed fiercely, the words of his uncle suddenly ringing in his ears again. Alone time on their wedding day … that seemed to have only one meaning. He hadn’t thought of this again after the dragons started approaching because his thoughts had been led elsewhere but now that Qiu Ling said this and even hugged him so tightly in front of everyone, he was reminded once again.

Yes, that time wasn’t far. He didn’t know how to feel about that. Of course, he looked forward to finishing the ceremony of the dragon race as well so he would be seen as Qiu Ling’s no matter where. At the same time, he hadn’t adapted to the way of the dragon realm yet and the thought of those things happening with Qiu Ling and being seen by others … it still made him feel flustered. He even felt faintly ashamed imagining it and hurriedly lowered his head, not daring to see how others were looking at him.

The dragons around them actually weren’t thinking about the remaining ceremony at all. Anyway, it wasn’t their own and while they had come to greet the king’s spouse and congratulate the two of them on their wedding and their upcoming marital life, the ceremony had nothing to do with them apart from that.

The ones who had already had the chance to go up to them were happy to retreat. Anyway, their words and gifts had been delivered so giving the two newlyweds the alone time they desired didn’t matter to them. The remaining people could only sigh deeply and mumble to themselves. They knew they couldn’t convince their king otherwise. Which dragon would want to give up their precious time with the spouse they just married to sit in a circle and receive gifts? Even though gifts were nice, nothing compared to the one you loved.

Qiu Ling looked at them complaining silently and huffed. These guys … they still dared to complain after he had been patient for so long. It had already been hours! Still, they were his people and it was also heartwarming to see them care so much. Thinking of how all of those people were hear to wish him and Jing He well, his stance softened a bit. “We’ll continue the day after tomorrow. If you really can’t wait, you can form lines and give everything to my advisers. They’ll carefully record who gave and said what.”

The dragons mumbled a little more but nobody stayed around. Instead, the crowd receded bit by bit, clearly not wanting to simply hand things to Qiu Ling’s advisers. No, the main point was to get the chance to speak to the king and his spouse directly. How often did they get such a chance? It had to be used when it presented itself! Thus, everyone conscientiously left, giving their king the alone time with his spouse he wanted, using the opportunity to speak about what had happened so far.

Jing He looked up at Qiu Ling, the flush on his cheeks only slowly receding now that people weren’t staring at them any longer. “Is it alright to end things so suddenly?” He felt that it hadn’t been long since Qiu Ling asked him whether he wanted to take a break. He still didn’t feel that it was necessary but this time, Qiu Ling had decided on his own without inquiring about his opinion. He couldn’t have stopped it.

Qiu Ling turned to look at his beloved who he was still holding in his arms and his heart settled down. “Of course, my love!” That was the benefit of being king: You could make this kind of decision and nobody would dare to complain. Anyway … “It’s not like they’ll never get the chance. They just have to wait a little. I feel it’s only right. Today is our wedding day, after all. How can we spend it only caring about others? It’s an important occasion for everyone, yes, but it’s the most important for us.” He leaned closer and kissed Jing He’s temple again, finally satisfied.

This was how things should be: Just him and his beloved, whispering sweet nothings to each other while embracing like this. Well, it would be even better when they were inside where nobody could disturb them. Out here, even though most of the crowd had left, there were still some people around.

Qiu Ling raised his head and looked at their family members, as well as his advisers, and some of the generals who hadn’t left yet. The latter definitely didn’t have to stay around but the former required a few words more. It seemed he couldn’t be completely alone with Jing He yet.

Sighing to himself, Qiu Ling took Jing He’s hand and tugged at it lightly. “Let’s go over and get rid of the remaining people before we retire for today.”

Jing He’s eyes widened when Qiu Ling called it ‘getting rid of’ but he didn’t mention it and simply followed his husband. He just hoped his uncle and mother hadn’t heard …

Qiu Ling actually walked over to the generals first. Seeing that they all stood together in a big gathering next to Fu Heng and Fu Min but looked at him as usual, he gave a faint smile. “I know there are many things you’d like to hear from me personally. As things stand though, today is my wedding day so you’ll understand that I am not quite in the mood for it right now. Let’s gather tomorrow to talk in detail. I’ll answer whatever questions you have.”

The generals all inclined their heads. Anyway, they had already made up their minds so there was no issue with this.

Fang Hua glanced at the palace and couldn’t help but mention the last person who was torn on this. “General Min Jun is still inside. Your Majesty might want to speak to him alone before the gathering.”

Qiu Ling nodded. “I’ll do that. Thank you for the reminder.” He was indeed a bit worried about that one but he could only see how things worked out. Anyway, looking at the people in front of him right now … “You should go and take the opportunity to relax. We don’t see each other that often so it’s a good thing to stay a few days longer.”

“Yes, Your Majesty.” The generals nodded again and then watched as Qiu Ling led his husband over to the other advisers who had gathered. Not wanting to disturb everyone else, they went and scattered, some returning to the palace while the others went and had some fun in the city, taking advantage of the remainder of the festivities.