Friend's Wedding

In the beautiful Yungong Palace, silver stars shimmer on the walls. The golden screen mountain leans against the emerald green.

My friend (Jingtao) had his wedding on October 2nd. We had planned half a year in advance for me to be his groomsman, which was my first time.

On the morning of October 1st, I took a train from Beijing South to Dezhou East Station. After getting off the train, I took a shuttle bus with a friend of the bride to their hometown, Gaotang County in Liaocheng City.

Upon arrival, Jingtao’s cousin welcomed us and helped us with the check-in process at the largest hotel in Gaotang County, Gaotangzhou Hotel.

After a quick freshening up, I went to rehearse the wedding ceremony with Jingtao. The emcee was very professional and explained all the details of the ceremony, including various procedures.

During the rehearsal, Chen Kun and Xiao Yu arrived at the venue, as well as the bride’s six friends.

After the rehearsal, we went to have a meal, which was arranged by the hotel. There were many delicious dishes, and I hadn’t eaten all day, so the food was satisfying.

Because I rushed out in the morning and forgot to bring a dress shirt, I went to a nearby shopping mall after dinner to buy one.

I stumbled upon a toy corner in the mall, which was quite interesting.

After buying the dress shirt, I went to visit the surroundings of the Gaotang Dajue Temple. Later in the evening, I had a meeting with the groomsmen to discuss our roles and responsibilities for the next day.

On the morning of the 2nd, I woke up at 4:30 am, got ready, and went to Jingtao’s house to prepare for the makeup and hair styling.

Around 8 o’clock, we went to the hotel with the wedding car, picked up the bride, and faced some challenges in helping the groom greet the bride. After picking her up, we performed a ceremony called “changing the bride’s surname,” and then another ceremony at Jingtao’s house.

Back at the hotel, we proceeded with the Western-style wedding ceremony, and everything went smoothly.

At the end, Jingtao gave a heartfelt speech: a wedding brings family and friends together to witness and celebrate a joyful and happy moment in life.