The drums quieted, replaced by the soft sound of flutes. The hall doors opened, and everyone rose.
Princess Moyin's breath trembled. Each step toward the altar felt heavier than the last. She barely noticed the whispers and praises. All she could think was, where was Rong Yuan?
Then the groom entered. His robes shimmered with golden thread, the crest of Yunhai embroidered across his chest. The ceremonial veil covered his face, hiding the man she was about to marry.
Her heart pounded painfully. A total stranger. She murmured. "After everything. Can't him just understand that I don't want him"
When the veil was finally lifted, the world stopped.
Rong Yuan stood before her calmly, a small smile tugging at his lips.
Moyin's eyes widened in disbelief. "R...Rong Yuan…?" she whispered.
He leaned closer, his voice low enough for only her to hear. "Tell me, princess Moyin," he said softly, amusement glinting in his eyes, "would you really marry a fool?"
Her lips parted, a breath catching in her throat. The words, "the prince is a fool, who beat people. He talks with saliva coming out from his mouth" echoed in her memory, the same words she'd once describe him with when they first met.
Tears welled up in her eyes. "You... you knew?" she stammered. "You knew I was the princess."
He smiled faintly. "I wanted to see if the princess of Hengling could love me, form her heart."
Her chest tightened. Shame, joy, and disbelief crashed together inside her. "You're the prince of Yunhai…" she whispered.
He nodded gently. "And the same fool who walked recklessly with you. The fool you once scolded by the roadside and in the woods."
Her tears finally spilled over. "Then why didn't you tell me?"
He reached for her trembling hands. "Because I wanted you to find me, Moyin, not the prince they told you to marry, but the man you fell in love with." She kept staring at him as tear flow down her cheeks.
The hall burst into applause as the ceremony began, but Moyin could barely hear it. Her heart was too full. All she could see was the man smiling softly before her.
"Rong Yuan…" she whispered, her voice trembling as fresh tears slid down her cheeks. "You scared me… so much."
He stepped closer, his expression softening at the sight of her shaking shoulders. She tried to wipe her tears but they kept falling, spilling faster the moment her eyes met his.
"I thought I lost you," she breathed, her voice cracking. "I thought they… took you away. I..." Her words dissolved into a choked sob as she lowered her head. "I love you so much, Rong Yuan."
The hall seemed to fade around them, the music and the guests. All she could see was him. All she could feel was the relief crashing into her chest, the fear melting into something overwhelming and painfully tender.
Rong Yuan exhaled slowly, as if her confession reached somewhere deep inside him. He lifted her chin with a gentle hand, his thumb brushing away a tear.
"Moyin," he said softly, "do you really think I would let anything separate me from you?"
He slipped his hand into hers with quiet certainty, his thumb resting gently against her trembling fingers. He leaned a little closer.
"Come, my lady," he murmured, warm and steady. "let not delay any longer. Let us take our vows."
Her breath caught.
His eyes held hers calmly.
"From this day forward," he continued, his voice dropping into something deeper, "you are mine… and I am yours."
The simple way he said it, made her heart flutter wildly. It felt as if the world had shifted beneath her feet, as though every step she had taken until now had been leading her to this single moment.
After the ceremony, the palace remain filled with laughter and music of every guest that celebrated the union of Yunhai and Hengling.
But behind the closed doors of the bridal chamber, silence settled softly.
Moyin sat on the edge of the bed, still dressed in her red wedding gown, her veil lying beside her. Her heart was racing again, not from fear this time, but from everything that had happened and what is to come.
When the door opened, Rong Yuan stepped in quietly. The flickering candles lit up his face, the same face she had trusted during their journey, the same smile that had comforted her when she was afraid. Only now, she saw the prince in him too, the grace, the quiet authority.
He came closer, stopping a few steps away.
"You're angry with me," he said softly.
She looked down at her hands, her voice low. "You made me feel like a fool."
Rong Yuan smiled faintly. "A fool? I thought I was the fool in this story."
Moyin shot him a glare, though her eyes were still wet. "You are! You lied to me, hid who you were, you followed me right from our engagement night"
He interrupted gently, " A night to our engagement, Would you have treated me the same if I had come to you as Prince Rong Yuan of Yunhai?"
She hesitated, her lips parting. "I… I don't know."
"That's why I didn't tell you," he said. "I wanted you to see me, not the title, not the palace, not the crown."
He took a slow step forward, his voice growing softer. "And you did, Moyin. You saw me when I was nobody."
Her chest tightened as tears slipped down again. "But I was scared," she whispered. "When you disappeared, I thought they hurt you… I thought I'd lost you forever."
He reached out, gently wiping the tears from her cheeks. "You'll never lose me."
For a moment, neither of them spoke. The sound of the night wind brushed against the window curtains. Then Moyin sniffed and looked up, forcing a small smile.
"So," she said teasingly, "you're not the poor traveler I fell in love with, but a prince with a whole palace… Should I start bowing now?"
Rong Yuan laughed softly. "No," he said, leaning close enough that their foreheads nearly touched. "But if you must, you can bow just once, when you agree to be mine."
Her heart fluttered. "I already am," she whispered.
Then, in that quiet candlelight, he kissed her, a kiss deeply, letting her know that she belongs to him now.