Welcome friends and all! Many people among Vallo Natives & Outlanders were invited, and all are welcome to join in a wedding and solstice feast & celebration.
Do wear pastels or bright, happy colors in floral or golden tones. Don't wear white, black or red - the latter is reserved for those getting married.
Wedding presents or a gift off the registry are fine, but if you want to be traditional, bring money in a red envelope to give to the happy couple. No need to overthink it though - Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian will be happy just to have you in attendance!
There is a table at the front to design your own paper lantern, put your name on it, draw a little drawing. Think of this like a guest book, and they'll be hung up around the Cloud Recesses as the evening goes on, lighting the way.
There were no public wedding vows - Lan Wangji's and Wei Wuxian's vows were exchanged privately earlier in the day.
WHAT
WANGXIAN WEDDING
WHEN
DECEMBER 21 - 6pm
THE GROOMS
CEREMONY
Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji's actual wedding ceremony will be performed in the early afternoon with family only present: Jiang Yanli, Jiang Cheng, Lan Xichen, Lan Sizhui, and Wen Qing will be attendance. Both grooms will be wearing bright, joyful red to bring luck to their new family.
Traditionally, prior to the ceremony the family would play Chuangmen, or door games, which are fun pranks that challenge the groom to demonstrate his wits and dedication to winning in order to prove himself worthy of the bride. In this case, both Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian would be challenged with riddles and games in the hours prior to the wedding in order to distract them from nerves.
During the ceremony itself, which will be brief and quick and located at Lotus Pier's ancestor shrine, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji will sign the legal documents required to make their wedding official. It's during this time that prayers with ancestors are completed, with both grooms laying on the floor and thanking their ancestors for all their blessings (note: Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian completed their prayers to the Lan ancestors earlier that morning).
Upon signing the marriage contract, the newlyweds celebrate with their family and serve them tea to thank them for all the support and love. Now is the time for kind words and heartfelt verbalizations of all that family has done for them! Expect lots of happy tears to go with your orange blossom tea. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji will kneel on tea pillows facing their loved ones as they serve them tea. It's the last quiet moment before Jiang Cheng will whip out a red umbrella for luck to hold over their heads in a symbol of familial protection.
RECEPTION
Departing the shrine of Lotus Pier, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji now get to greet their wedding guests and have a loud, long, joy-filled party. Vanya Hargreeves will be performing a violin solo of 'Wu Ji', the happy couple's song, as they enter the banquet hall together.
Wedding banquets in Chinese society are known as xǐ-jǐu (喜酒, lit. joyful wine), and are usually more important than the wedding itself. Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji's banquet will be elaborate and will consist of 9 courses, including such favorite dishes as lotus rib soup, roast pork, peking duck, red bean soup, glutinous rice balls, sichuan-style cucumber salad and green beans, dumplings, roasted daikon and carrots, and a variety of different bao. Laughter, joy, jokes, and intermingling are encouraged as it is traditional for happy feasting to ward off evil spirits.
During the meal, Wei Wuxian and Lan Wangji will walk around greeting guests. It is customary for shots of baijiu (a strong rice-wine) to be given by guests to the newlyweds; however, as Lan Wangji is a supreme lightweight he will only take one shot at the end of the feast once he's had some food (seriously, you don't want to see him get drunk. However, Wei Wuxian's intoxication is all but guaranteed). There are mooncakes and a large wedding cake at the end of the meal, and the guests might catch a glimpse of Wei Wuxian insisting on feeding a little cake to Lan Wangji, despite that not being a Chinese tradition. It'll get a little messy.
Also added in despite tradition (one of the grooms likes bucking convention, if you haven't noticed), there is a small area for dancing, and Wei Wuxian is a big fan of catchy pop music, so feel free to join him being ridiculous on the dance floor! He welcomes the chaos but knows better than to try and get his husband to dance in public.
Toward the end of the evening, a racket can be heard on the grounds outside of Lotus Pier: a beautiful fireworks display by George Weasley! This is a surprise by Lan Wangji for Wei Wuxian; Lan Wangji has given George artistic license to make the show as spectacular and sappy as he possibly wants, with lots of bright colors and symbols.
As the night dwindles, each guest will be given a small bag containing little tokens of affection. In this case, it will be filled with beautiful red-foiled chocolates from a local chocolatier. Lan Wangji and Wei Wuxian will personally thank everyone for coming at the door, before performing the traditional exchange of marital cups and four ceremonial bows to Heaven and Earth, their ancestors, their parents, and each other.