Lucy Gordon - And the Bride Wore Red

Leafing through the album, Olivia had to agree with her. Both bride and groom wore long satin robes of deep red, the symbol of joy. She was suddenly seized by the desire to see how handsome Lang would look in this wedding garb, which had an air of stately magnificence.

‘Now, we have lots of shopping to do,’ Biyu declared.

‘You mean, you’re actually going to let me out of the house?’ Olivia joked. ‘I thought you promised Lang that you wouldn’t risk my running away.’

Biyu’s eyes twinkled. ‘Oh, but four of us will be with you at all times.’

‘Why didn’t I think of that?’

One of the little girls named Ting, who was about twelve years old, confided, ‘If you escape we have to give Uncle Mitch his money back.’

‘He’s paid you to guard me?’

‘Of course,’ Ting declared. ‘Twenty yuan a day. Each.’

‘That’s about two pounds. You’re definitely being underpaid.’

‘Also some sweet buns,’ Ting admitted. ‘If you escape we have to give them back-but we’ve eaten them, so please don’t escape.’

Olivia doubled up with laughter. After her recent misery everything that was happening felt like a happy dream, one from which she prayed never to awaken.

In the end eight of them went out, since nobody was going to pass up a shopping expedition. There were gifts and favours to be bought for all the guests, most of whom would be family members making a special trip in from the country.

‘Will there be many?’ Olivia asked when they paused for tea.

‘About a hundred,’ Biyu said casually.

‘There were only eighty for me,’ Suyin said with a giggle. ‘You’re much more interesting, ever since the day he brought you home.’

‘One thing I’ve always wanted to know,’ Olivia said. ‘When I was there with him that night, you were all so wonderful to me. I know you were being courteous to a guest-’

‘But you sensed something more?’ Biyu helped her out. ‘It’s true. Not every guest would have been shown the temple and told the things that you were. But we knew you were his future bride.’

‘He told you that?’

‘Not exactly. It was the way he spoke of you-with a note in his voice that had never been there before. He’d only known you a few days, but something was very different. He sounded a little shy, tentative-for the first time in his life, I’ll swear. I don’t think even he knew what he was giving away.

‘We honoured you as his future wife so that you would know you were welcome in the family. These last few weeks, we’ve been holding our breath, hoping that things would come right.’

She became suddenly serious. ‘You were able to walk away from him, but he wasn’t able to walk away from you. That makes you the strong one.’ She added quietly, ‘Dragon Lady.’

‘He told you about that?’

‘Of course. If you only knew how proud of you he is! He is a strong man in every way but one-you are his weakness. Never forget that his need is greater than yours. It gives you power, but we all know you will never misuse that power, and we can give him into your hands with easy hearts and minds.’

‘Thank you,’ Olivia said softly, so deeply moved that she could hardly speak. ‘I promise that I won’t betray that trust.’

Biyu smiled. ‘You didn’t need to tell us that,’ she said.

Arriving home, they plunged into a discussion of details. Biyu insisted that everything must be done properly.

‘So we must first seek and obtain your parents’ consent.’

‘At my age?’ Olivia said, scandalised. ‘Besides, they’re on their honeymoon in the Bahamas. They won’t be back for ages.’

‘But there is your great-aunt Norah, whom Mitchell says is like a mother to you. He tells me that she likes him.’

‘She certainly does.’

‘Then she’ll say yes when we talk tonight. You must show me how to work this video link he talks about.’

Biyu was fascinated by the reality of it later. Norah was up and waiting, and she crowed with delight at the news. Olivia introduced her to the family members who were at home, and Biyu explained about the ceremony of consent that would take place that evening.

‘Then I’ll catch up on my sleep and be ready,’ Norah said.

By eight o’clock that evening they were all gathered around the screen for her appearance. The first thing she did on seeing Lang was to raise her thumb triumphantly in the air. He responded with the same gesture, which made everyone else do the same.

Lang introduced Grandfather Tao, who greeted her solemnly, and embarked on a formal speech in which he praised the bride and groom-but especially the bride-finishing with, ‘Do you give your consent to this marriage?’

Norah smiled and inclined her head, saying, ‘I do give my consent, with all my heart. And I want to say how proud I am to be connected with such an honourable family.’

Everyone bowed to her. She was one of them now.

As Lang had said, Olivia was installed in his room. He hadn’t thought much further ahead than that, and it came as a shock to him when the young women of the house, determined to protect the bride’s virtue, gathered outside her door, barring his entry.

‘Very funny,’ he said wryly to Olivia, who was doubled up with laughter.

‘Well, we must do everything in the proper way,’ she reminded him.

‘And where am I supposed to sleep until the wedding? I have to move out of my own apartment in two days.’

‘We can find you a couch somewhere in the north house,’ Biyu promised him. ‘It won’t be for long. Now, you may kiss your bride a chaste goodnight and leave.’

Conscious of his family’s eyes on him, he kissed her and departed hurriedly.

Had they been planning to remain in China, there would have been the ceremony of the bed, when a newly purchased matrimonial bed was installed. This had happened at the wedding of Wei and Suyin a few weeks earlier, and they were making their own bed available for the bridal couple on their wedding night.

The result was a modified version of the ceremony in which the bed was moved a few inches to symbolise installation, after which it was covered with various fruits, and the children of the family, symbols of fertility, scrambled to seize them.

These days Hai was in his element, conjuring fish from all directions, while Biyu took care of the rest of the banquet. Because the words for eight and good luck were similar it was customary to have eight dishes, not including dessert. Shark’s fin soup, crab claws and as many fish as he could find formed the basis of the feast.

On the last night before the wedding Lang came to bid Olivia goodnight, and they strolled in the dark garden.

‘When we next see each other it’ll be at the wedding,’ he said. ‘No regrets?’

‘Not if you have none.’

‘None at all. Are you still worrying about the job?’

‘How can I help it? You may have lost the chance of a lifetime.’

‘There’ll be other jobs,’ Lang said.

‘As good as the one you’ve given up?’

He frowned a little, troubled that she couldn’t understand what was so simple to him.

‘It doesn’t matter,’ he said. ‘I made my choice, and it was the right one. While I have you, I have everything. Without you I have nothing. There was never really a choice at all.’

‘That’s what he said,’ came a voice from the darkness.

They hadn’t seen Biyu there. Now she came closer.

‘He?’ Olivia asked.

‘Renshu,’ Biyu replied. ‘Those must have been his very words.’

‘“While I have you, I have everything”,’ Lang repeated slowly. ‘“Without you, I have nothing”. Yes, that’s what he said to Jaio when he went to rescue her. And she understood that he meant every word and she could trust him never to have any regrets.’