"Thank you, Your Majesty." She pretended to be natural.
An Qi'en clearly felt that since her divorce, Lu Bochu had not avoided suspicion at all. He would make people misunderstand regardless of the occasion. Before her divorce, he knew how to avoid suspicion.
Lu Bochu looked at her seriously, said nothing and continued to look into the distance, waiting for An Shi'an to return.
After a while, the sound of horse hooves was heard in the distance, and An Shi'an rode the horse in high spirits. An Qien immediately showed an eight-tooth smile and waved at him. If there weren't so many people, she would have run over excitedly.
With a "whisper", the horse stopped. An Shi'an got off the horse, strode up to Lu Bochu, clasped his fists and said, "I'm sorry to see you, Your Majesty."
Lu Bochu said happily: "I have finally waited for you to come,"
"After I finished my business at Guyang, I rushed over immediately, keeping the prince waiting for a long time."
"You came back just in time. Construction is about to start. With you here, I can save a lot of worry."
The two chatted for a few words, and everyone could see that An Shi'an was the person that King Xian trusted the most.
An Qien shouted happily: "Brother."
Lu Bochu saw her smiling so brightly and showing her bare white teeth. This happiness came from the bottom of her heart. But when she smiled at him, she didn't show her teeth. He couldn't help but wonder, is he that cruel? To make her so reserved when she smiles?
An Shian also smiled happily when he saw his sister whom he hadn't seen for half a year: "Tianliang, didn't brother tell you not to come and pick her up?"
"It's not cold. Even if it's windy, rainy or snowy, Qi En will come. I haven't seen my brother for so long, Qi En wants to see him for the first time."
Her tone of voice is crisp and sweet, with a bit of a coquettish and cute touch.
Lu Bochu made a comparison again. An Qien had never spoken to him like this before, and he thought to himself that he was really treating one person favorably and the other!
He also regards her as his sister! Why haven’t he ever seen her call her brother? It’s so sweet!
An Qien said happily again: "I made delicious food for my brother. Is he hungry?"
An Shi'an touched his belly, his face full of joy: "It's a bit, brother really misses your craftsmanship."
The relationship between the brother and sister was so good that some civil and military officials present were surprised. It was well known that An Qien was a concubine or an abandoned wife! Normally, such a woman would not be recognized by her mother, and she would live as lowly as a servant, but An Qi'en lived a better life than her legitimate daughter!
Only then did Lin Zhehua understand that it was no wonder that An Qi'en was so aloof and disdainful of the position of the Lin family's concubine. It turned out that her mother-in-law was used to it!
What he couldn't understand was that it was just a concubine who did such a shameful thing and her family members were still so kind to her. If it had been him, he would have beaten this rebellious girl to death!
An Shian briefly said a few words to An Qien, and then greeted the ministers politely.
After saying hello, Lu Bochu asked everyone to disperse.
An Qi'en was about to say goodbye to Lu Bochu when she heard him say.
"I happen to be hungry too. Qi En, wouldn't you mind an extra pair of chopsticks?"
An Qi'en's expression remained as usual: "Your Majesty is joking, why would you mind."
What I was thinking was, does she have the right to mind?
Lu Bochu raised a beautiful smile: "As long as you don't mind, I've always been thinking about your craftsmanship."
An Qi'en smiled respectfully at him and said nothing.
An Shi'an naturally said to Lu Bochu in a familiar manner: "Your Majesty, let's go to Qi'en's to eat and chat."
The two of them happily mounted their horses with heroic movements. An Qien got on the carriage.
When they arrived at their residence, Qingbi and Bailu served tea, while An Qien and Minghua served the dishes. The dishes had been kept warm in the pot.
After everyone was present, the maids wisely retreated outside to guard.
An Qi'en took out her own brew of golden cherry blossoms and poured it into a delicate ceramic wine glass. She introduced: "I picked this on the mountain and brewed it myself. It tastes so good that my brother and the prince will try it."
Lu Bochu and An Shi'an picked up the wine glasses and took a sip. Looking at their expressions, they knew that the wine was good wine.
Lu Bochu praised: "Refreshing, mellow, and the best wine I have ever tasted."
An Shian: "Yes, you can't even buy it outside. It's so rare."
An Qi'en also poured herself a glass of wine and took a sip gracefully. Although Lu Bochu's words to her brother were exaggerated, she really liked the fruit wine she made.
"Brother, if the prince likes to drink it, Qi En will brew some."
Lu Bochu: "Well, I will brew more and bring it back to the house so that I can drink two cups every now and then. If you have time, you can make more of those buns. If there are not enough people, I will have someone come over and help you."
He was always rude, and he thought An Qi'en would take the initiative to send the buns over, but he found that as long as he didn't take the initiative to come over and ask for them, An Qi'en wouldn't go to him!
I have no choice but to ask for food.
An Shi'an didn't think much about it. After all, they were all too familiar. It was normal to ask for a few steamed buns. He ate the pepper chicken made by An Qien with relish.
An Qi'en's face was as normal as he replied: "We have enough people, Qi'en will pack it up and let Bai Lu deliver it."
Lu Bochu picked up a piece of fat and tender meat and stuffed it into his mouth. He had never eaten this kind of meat before. It was salty, sweet, fragrant and had a long aftertaste. He asked doubtfully: "This meat is a little different."
He has never eaten meat with this kind of taste. This is the first time he has eaten it today, and he can't help but find it novel.
Before An Qi'en could speak, An Shi'an explained with great interest: "This is barbecued pork, and it is also Bei Zhi's favorite dish. When Qi'en was in the house before, he would often cook it for me."
After saying this, An Shi'an also picked up a piece and put it in his mouth, eating it with relish. He hadn't eaten such delicious food for a long time, and An Shi'an looked happy.
Lu Bochu sincerely praised: "Qi En's skills are really better than those of the royal chefs in the palace. I really envy Shi An to have a sister like you who can often eat delicious food."
An Shi'an replied proudly: "My sister is indeed rare in the world."
Following this topic, An Shian suddenly thought of how boring it would be for her to live here alone, doing nothing but praying and chanting scriptures and going up and down the mountain every day. He knew that she, a girl, was not someone who was content with the status quo.
He asked: "Qi'en, what are your plans? Although the air in this mountain is good and there are not so many worries, it also wears off people's will. My brother thinks you might as well go down the mountain and do something you like."
Afraid that An Qi'en would have concerns, he continued: "You spend about the same amount of time praying and chanting sutras at Linghan Temple. There is no need to stay here for three years. A woman's youth is only a few years. Go do something you like, don't do it." Allow yourself to have regrets.”
An Qien had her own plans, and since the topic came to this, she said it directly: "Brother, I plan to open a medical clinic and a restaurant, and I also bought a house. We can live together when my brother comes back. "
Lu Bochu was surprised. He had already arranged a place for An Shi'an to live, but he didn't expect An Qi'en to buy a house!
