After Anran helped Lu Mingxiu change his clothes, Jinping brought in the soup.
He slowly drank from the spoon while watching Anran put away Niange's pillow and bedding.
The moment An Ran opened the cabinet, Lu Mingxiu's breathing became rapid. A dark glint flashed in his eyes, but he remained silent.
Sure enough, Jiu Niang quickly put the quilt inside and soon closed the cabinet door.
Lord Lu's excellent eyesight revealed that the sewing basket stuffed inside was gone, presumably moved elsewhere. He wondered if Ninth Sister had relocated those erotic books.
After finishing the soup, Anran took the tray out and gave Jinping a few instructions. Lu Mingxiu then went to wash up.
When Lu Mingxiu came in looking refreshed, An Ran had already changed into her nightgown, covered herself with the blanket, and was lying in bed waiting for him.
An Ran is most afraid of the cold, and now she no longer stands on ceremony with Lu Mingxiu. Even if the room is warm and cozy with the underfloor heating on, An Ran will still crawl into the quilt after changing into her nightgown.
Looking at her delicate little face peeking out from under the bright red satin quilt, the soft light accentuated her skin, making it appear even more delicate, like fine white porcelain or warm, flawless jade. Her dark, glassy eyes, with an unconscious blink, could captivate his entire being.
Lu Mingxiu's heart softened completely.
He blew out the lamp, lowered the curtain, turned around, and pulled Anran into his arms.
These days, with Nian-ge'er here, he and An-ran can only sleep properly, and even their usual hugs and kisses are no longer allowed. Heaven knows how hard he has to endure it; they are so close, yet even a touch is difficult.
She nestled peacefully and obediently in his arms.
“I’ve been investigating the Chen family these days, and they’re really something else,” Lu Mingxiu whispered in An Ran’s ear. “Especially your sixth brother-in-law, Chen Qian, he’s quite formidable. Since he came to Beijing, he’s been up and running and doing a lot of things.”
Before he finished speaking, An Ran felt a tightness in her heart. But in Lu Mingxiu's mind, he had no connection with Chen Qian; at most, Chen Qian was just a stranger.
Indeed, her interactions with Chen Qian in this life were almost negligible.
However, Lu Mingxiu was simply stating the facts calmly, without any other intention. An Ran tried her best not to stiffen her body. She was only grateful that there was a blanket between them; if anything happened, it wouldn't be easily discovered.
"Oh?" An Ran said softly, "My father thinks highly of this young master Chen."
Once, Zhao let it slip, and An Ran realized that An Yuanliang's first daughter he wanted to tell Chen Qian was actually herself.
Fortunately, too many things happened at the time, so the two didn't immediately hit it off.
“The Chen family made the right bet back then, and now their status as imperial merchants will naturally make them even wealthier,” Lu Mingxiu explained. “It’s just a bit strange that the Chen family only became the leading family in Yangzhou six or seven years ago.”
Although An Ran married Chen Qian in her previous life, her knowledge of the Chen family was limited to the well-known past.
"No wonder she moved my father." An Ran commented without any emotional bias.
As far as she knew, the betrothal gifts from the Chen family were considerable. Given Chen Qian's shrewdness, he might very well send An Yuanliang other valuable gifts as a bribe. After all, without An Yuanliang's approval, Chen Qian wouldn't have been able to marry Liu Niang so easily.
This was the father she had once longed for in her heart.
He knew something about the affairs of the Marquis of Nan'an's mansion. Lu Mingxiu gently kissed the end of her hair, as if to comfort her.
He intends to investigate both the Chen family and Chen Qian; anyone who dares to covet him will not be let off the hook. Readers, you can search for "" to find this site immediately.
Chapter 151
The next day was the day Liu Niang was to get married.
An Ran and Lu Mingxiu arrived early. Seeing that the previous incident had not affected the attitude of this distinguished ninth son-in-law towards his wife's family, An Yuanliang and Madam Zhao were very happy.
The two originally wanted to explain again to dispel the misunderstanding of the Ninth Son-in-law about the Marquis of Nan'an's mansion, but when they saw Lu Mingxiu personally helping An Ran tidy up the fur on her cloak and tie the longan-sized South Sea pearl on her belt under the corridor, Zhao stopped An Yuanliang.
No matter how much they tried to please him, it was no use. Lu Mingxiu was willing to be friendly to the Marquis of Nan'an and put aside his past unpleasantness, all for Jiu Niang's sake.
Although Jiu Niang has become the Lady of Pingyuan Marquis, in the eyes of others in the capital, An Jiu Niang comes from the Nan'an Marquis's family. If Lu Mingxiu doesn't refuse to acknowledge the Nan'an Marquis's family, it only shows that she is merely a figurehead as the Lady of Pingyuan Marquis.
Therefore, Lu Mingxiu remained calm and respectful towards the Grand Madam, An Yuanliang, and Zhao Shi, showing some deference to his elders. Despite his somewhat cold and distant demeanor, they were quite satisfied.
Zhao suddenly felt suspicious. Was it really the right thing for the wise and shrewd old lady to control Jiu Niang's younger siblings and use them to blackmail Jiu Niang?
Even though she treated Anxi and Anmu like proper young ladies and gentlemen, and Jiu Niang didn't say anything on the surface, did she really not have any resentment in her heart?
"My lord, today is Sixth Sister's big day. There are quite a few guests here out of respect for our Third and Ninth Sons-in-law. You'll have to go and greet them." Zhao stopped An Yuanliang and sent him away with a few words.
Lu Mingxiu said goodbye to An Ran and turned to go to the outer courtyard to find Yun Shen.
When he came to fetch the bride years ago, he was stopped outside and asked all sorts of tricky and strange questions; sending him a red envelope was a minor matter. But Yun Liu's timely intervention made the people inside dare not delay any longer.
After all, the Crown Prince is outside, and if anything were to happen to him, no one could bear the responsibility.
Despite the Chen family's low social status, the arrival of two sons-in-law of noble birth made everyone think that the two young ladies were doing well and had a good reputation in their husbands' families. An Feng and An Rui were young, and An Yu was even shorter, requiring Yun Shen and Lu Mingxiu to take turns carrying him. This gave others a sense of certainty about the future of the Nan'an Marquis's mansion.
Therefore, the main force blocking the door this time was still the four sons-in-law.
******
Liu Niang got up early in the morning to bathe and wash herself.
Fourth Sister and Fifth Sister arrived first, followed by Anran and Third Sister one after the other. Meanwhile, the unmarried Seventh Sister and Tenth Sister went to Sixth Sister's room early in the morning.
An Ran had already arrived at Sixth Sister's courtyard when she heard a maid outside announce that Third Sister had specifically asked An Ran to accompany her to pay respects to the Grand Madam. So An Ran turned back.
"Third Sister." Sure enough, halfway to Rong'an Hall, Anran was led by a maid to Zhao's courtyard. Third Sister was waiting for her there.
Third Sister's figure had become quite plump, her belly round and protruding, making her look much softer. She and An Ran didn't stand on ceremony, remaining reclined on the soft couch. She beckoned An Ran over. "Ninth Sister, come here."
An Ran approached and noticed that Third Sister looked tired and seemed to be feeling unwell.
"Third Sister, are you feeling unwell?" An Ran asked hurriedly.