Chapter 178: A Family Of Five

Translator: Henyee Translations  Editor: Henyee Translations

The snacks could only fill her stomach. She still had to eat the main meal. Coincidentally, there was a stall selling glutinous rice balls nearby. Yu Wan was actually not obsessed with sweets, but for some reason, she felt like eating them recently.

“Yan Jiuchao, shall we go eat glutinous rice balls?” She turned to look at Yan Jiuchao.

Yan Jiuchao snorted in disdain. “It’s so dirty! I’m not eating it!”

Yu Wan had already jumped off the carriage with the three little lads.

Yan Jiuchao : “…” She was really spoiled. She even dared to ignore me! The ignored young master’s face darkened as he alighted from the carriage.

This street was connected to the most prosperous Chang’an Street in the Capital, but there were few shops, so there was not much traffic. The stall selling glutinous rice balls was at the entrance of an alley on the right side of the street. There were two small tables placed by the street, and the remaining one was placed in the alley.

The tables by the street were already occupied. Considering that a certain noble young master was probably unwilling to share a table with others, Yu Wan brought the little munchkins to a small table in the alley.

The table was small, and the stool was even smaller. It was just nice for her to sit with the little lads, but it was a pity for Yan Jiuchao. The way he bent over was a little comical and even a little aggrieved. Yu Wan couldn’t help but want to laugh. At the same time, she felt that such a time was a little beautiful.

“Young Master, Madam, do you want to eat glutinous rice balls or dumplings?” The lady boss of the stall walked over and asked. She had never seen such a good-looking family and could not help but take a few more glances. She sighed and thought that they were really a match made in heaven. No wonder the children were all so adorable.

Yu Wan was about to say that she had misunderstood when Yan Jiuchao said indifferently, “Gluttonous rice balls.”

“Young Master, you picked the right one. Our glutinous rice balls are the best. There are sesame filling, peanut filling, bean paste filling, lotus filling, and five kernel filling. Which one do you want?”

“One bowl each.”

“Large or small?”

“Large.”

“A small bowl for the children.”

“That works too.”

“Do you want it in rice wine? Or pure soup?”

“Rice wine.”

The two of them went back and forth, and Yu Wan could not interrupt at all. The fragrance of the scallion pancake came from the alley diagonally opposite, so Yu Wan simply got up to buy it.

In the past, Shadow Six and Shadow Thirteen would do these things, but today, the two of them were not around.

Yu Wan came to the stall selling scallion pancakes. The business of this stall was very good. They used vegetable oil and were much more expensive than other scallion pancakes. It cost six copper coins each. One had to know that the scallion pancakes in town only cost two copper coins.

The scallion pancake was big enough. Yu Wan estimated the appetite of the five of them and bought a total of three.

Yu Wan walked back with the scallion pancake wrapped in brown paper. She had just taken two steps when she bumped into an old friend she had not seen for many days.

“Young Master Xu?” Yu Wan looked at the man in front of her in surprise.

Yan Huaijing saw her from the other end of the alley. At that time, the carriage happened to pass by. He stopped the carriage and walked over. However, Yu Wan did not know all of this and thought that he was also here to buy scallion pancakes.

“I bought the last one. If Young Master Xu wants it, I’m afraid you’ll have to wait a little longer,” Yu Wan said.

Yan Huaijing stared at her deeply. Although he had long suspected that she was the person who sent him to the temple back then, after he was really sure, he was still shocked speechless.

“Young Master Xu? What’s wrong? Are you… looking for me?” Yu Wan felt that there was something wrong with his expression.

Yan Huaijing resisted the urge to bring her back to the manor and said in a low voice, “You don’t remember anything, right?”

“Young Master Xu, what are you referring to?” It was true that she didn’t inherit much of her past memories, but only her family knew about this.

Yan Huaijing thought about many things along the way, but he was still not sure if he should tell her the truth. She seemed to have forgotten not only him, but also her past in Prefecture Xu. Should he investigate it thoroughly before telling her, or should he tell her and let her investigate with him?

“Young Master Xu?” This person was simply ridiculous today.

Yan Huaijing took a deep breath and decided to tell her. “I…”

However, before he could finish his sentence, a vendor in a hurry rushed over from behind with a cart.

“Make way, make way!” The vendor pushed too quickly and even he couldn’t stop himself.

Seeing that he was about to bump into Yu Wan, Yan Huaijing stretched out his hand, intending to pull Yu Wan to his side. Unexpectedly, a slender arm grabbed Yu Wan’s shoulder faster than him. Yu Wan fell into a muscular chest, and a familiar cold fragrance floated on her clothes.

Yu Wan did not resist. She obediently lay in his arms until the vendor’s cart passed by.

Yan Huaijing’s pupils constricted.

Yu Wan straightened her body and looked at Yan Jiuchao, who had his back rubbed by the cart. She asked, “Are you alright?”

“It’s fine.” Yan Jiuchao let go of her and turned to look at Yan Huaijing. He said indifferently, “Your Highness, long time no see.”

Your Highness? Yu Wan’s eyes froze.

Yan Huaijing never expected his identity to be exposed by Yan Jiuchao. He had originally planned to tell her himself.

“So you were the one who saved me from the icehouse in the Tianxiang Restaurant that day.” Yu Wan bowed to Yan Huaijing in a distant manner. “I didn’t know your identity in the past, Your Highness. Please forgive me.”

Was she… drawing a line between herself and him? Yan Huaijing clenched his fists and looked coldly at Yan Jiuchao.

Yan Jiuchao raised his eyebrows and pulled Yu Wan’s wrist. “If there’s nothing else, we’ll leave first. We won’t disturb Your Highness anymore.”

Yan Huaijing’s gaze landed on Yu Wan’s wrist. Seeing that she did not shake off Yan Jiuchao’s hand, a flame lit up in his heart. “Yan Jiuchao, weren’t you punished by Father to reflect on your mistakes?”

Yan Jiuchao didn’t even look up. “Oh, if you have the ability, go complain to His Majesty.”

With Yan Jiuchao’s personality, even a fool could guess that he would not obediently shut himself in and reflect on his mistakes. As long as he did not cause too much trouble, the Emperor would turn a blind eye. If anyone really dared to expose Yan Jiuchao’s matter to the Emperor, they would not be looking for trouble with Yan Jiuchao, but would be offending the Emperor.

“Let’s go.” Yu Wan tugged at his sleeve, indicating for him not to argue with the Second Prince. After all, the Second Prince had helped her twice. Even if he hid his identity, she was in no position to criticize him.

The two of them returned to the alley where the glutinous rice balls were sold.

Jun Chang’an walked over. “Your Highness.”

“She’s not angry at all…” Yan Huaijing muttered.

“Isn’t that a good thing?” Jun Chang’an asked.

“You don’t understand.” Because she didn’t care, that’s why she wasn’t angry.

Yan Huaijing then looked at the two people sitting in the alley, as well as the three little fellows beside them. He had thought more than once that if her child was born, it would be as big as Yan Jiuchao’s children.

Yu Wan distributed the scallion pancakes. There were three little packages, one big package, and one for herself.

A mouthful of savory scallion pancake and a mouthful of sweet rice wine tasted unbelievably good. The three little munchkins were sweating profusely from eating. Yu Wan took out a handkerchief to wipe their sweat, her eyes filled with love. She looked at the children, and Yan Jiuchao looked at her. There was a gentleness in his eyes that Yan Huaijing had never seen before.

This scene was so heartwarming that it hurt Yan Huaijing’s eyes. An absurd thought suddenly flashed through Yan Huaijing’s mind. “Chang’an, why do I feel that…”

“What is it, Your Highness?” Jun Chang’an asked.

Yan Huaijing did not continue. Instead, he changed the topic. “Where is that old nanny?”

Jun Chang’an said, “Nanny Hui? I just sent her out of the city.”

Yan Huaijing looked at Yu Wan and the three children beside her. His eyes narrowed. “Bring her back.”

… .

“This old servant greets Your Highness. Long live Your Highness!”

In the courtyard of the Second Prince Manor, an old granny who was more than fifty years old knelt on the cold limestone slab and sincerely kowtowed to Yan Huaijing, who was standing under the corridor.

“You’re Nanny Hui?” Yan Huaijing asked.

Nanny Hui said, “My surname is lowly. It’s not worth mentioning.”

Yan Huaijing’s gaze landed on her. “I heard that you were expelled from the palace because you committed a crime.”

Yan Huaijing wanted to use her, so it was naturally impossible for him not to check her background. In terms of this nanny’s ability, no one could compare to her. She did not come from a prestigious family and was just a little orphan girl who was sold to the palace for two taels of silver. Previously, she was assigned to Yong Alley to serve those women who had lost favor all year round. Later on, she followed a female doctor and worked under her. She did not learn any other skills, but she could check the other party’s stomach.

She was more accurate than imperial physicians whether it was a prince or a princess.

She had also been assigned to Chuxiu Palace to supervise the newly selected ladies. The selected ladies had to undergo a body checkup when they entered the palace, and unless they were a virgin, they would not be kept. This nanny had done many tests, so she had experience.

With Nanny Hui’s ability, she should have been doing well in the palace. However, she liked to gamble and happened to bump into the Empress reorganizing the harem, so one of her hands was crippled and was expelled from the palace.

“Do you know why I called you here?” Yan Huaijing asked condescendingly.

Nanny Hui did not answer him. Instead, she lay on the ground and said loyally, “I’m willing to go through fire and water for Your Highness!”

Yan Huaijing’s expression did not change. “I heard that you only need to look at her appearance to know if she has given birth. Is that true?”

“It’s true, it’s true!” Nanny Hui straightened her back slightly. “When I was young, one look was enough. Now that I’m old, my eyes are blurry. I have to take three looks.”

Yan Huaijing said indifferently, “Not to mention three looks, I can let you have thirty looks, but you have to be sure not to make any mistakes!”

This gave Nanny Hui some confidence. “May I ask who you want me to see, Your Highness?”

“Miss! Miss, are you resting?” In the Yan Manor, outside Yan Ruyu’s boudoir, a young maidservant on night duty gently knocked on the door.

Yan Ruyu had just laid down. She knew the rules she had set. If it was not something important that she had to deal with, her maidservant would not bother her at this time.

“Cai Qin, go take a look,” she instructed.

“Yes.” Cai Qin, who was sleeping in the outer room, put on her shirt and opened the door. “What is it?”

The little maidservant said, “A eunuch came outside and left a letter. He asked me to hand it to you personally.”

“Got it. Go and rest.” Cai Qin closed the door, lit the oil lamp, and handed the letter to Yan Ruyu.

Yan Ruyu did not dare to neglect the letter from the palace. She quickly stood up and opened it. After reading it, she frowned suspiciously. “Worthy Consort Xu? She invited me to the palace tomorrow to admire the flowers?”

… .

In the alley, the glutinous rice balls and scallion pancakes were finally finished. The three little lads ate until their stomachs were round and they burped.

Yu Wan also seemed to have eaten too much. She didn’t usually eat so much, but the little fellows ate too well. She couldn’t help but eat more. Yan Jiuchao also seemed to have eaten a lot. She blinked and said, “Delicious, right?”

Yan Jiuchao nodded indifferently. He did not tell her that he could not taste it at all.

Yu Wan stretched lazily. “It’s getting late. I should go home.”

The little munchkins looked at her reluctantly with aggrieved expressions.

Yu Wan… Yu Wan couldn’t bear to leave them either. However, if she didn’t go back, her family would be worried. After all, she had a record for “missing”. If she didn’t return overnight, her father would definitely come out to look for her. That would violate the imperial edict.

It was unrealistic for Yan Jiuchao to bring the little munchkins back to Lotus Flower Village. He had been grounded because he had pleaded for her father. It was fine if he sneaked out of the manor occasionally, but if he really moved out, it would be too much.

“When is the city gate closed?” She calculated how long she could accompany the little fellows.

Yan Jiuchao snorted in disdain. “It will close at the time I say!”

Yu Wan : “…” So what if you have power? Hmm, it was really impressive to have power.

The rented carriage had long returned to town. Yu Wan and the little munchkins sat in Yan Jiuchao’s carriage.

Da Bao and Er’bao laid in Yu Wan’s arms, and Xiaobao was in his father’s arms. Xiaobao felt wronged. What did he do wrong?

The little guys ate and drank their fill. The carriage did not shake for long before they fell asleep in the arms of their father and Yu Wan.

The carriage slowly drove out of the Capital and towards Lotus Flower Village.

When the children were all asleep, Yu Wan asked about the matter that had been weighing on her mind for the entire night, “Yan Jiuchao, why are you unhappy today?”

Because he was comparing the private parts. Yan Jiuchao opened the food box and took out a small pear. “Do you want some pears?”

Yu Wan shook her head. “I don’t like pears.”

Yan Jiuchao took out another pear that was two to three times bigger. “What about this?”

Wasn’t it still a pear? Yu Wan looked at him strangely, not understanding what he was playing at. She said, “I can’t even eat a small one, so of course I don’t like big ones!”

He knew it! Young Master Yan, who was despised, was so heartbroken that he did not want to speak!