Chapter 23: How Considerate You Are, My Husband

Lihua, this man…

Gan Qiongying truly didn’t know how to describe him.

Fortunately, she had been worrying about how to break the stalemate between them. Hearing his words, she smiled and looked at Lihua with a sweet expression. “How considerate you are, my husband.”

As soon as Gan Qiongying finished speaking, everyone in the room except her stiffened.

Her own people were unaccustomed to seeing her in such a state.

Lihua’s people were chilled to the bone by her behavior.

As for Lihua himself… he had no idea how to respond to such a situation.

Already physically impaired, he lost control of his footing and stride upon hearing her words, stumbling through the doorway and coming to a halt beside the table.

Like a clumsy fool.

Gan Qiongying let out a light laugh.

Lihua’s blood rushed to his head, his ears instantly turning red. His first thought was that she was mocking his lameness.

But when he met Gan Qiongying’s eyes, trying to find the usual contempt and scorn in her gaze, he only saw teasing—and even a tenderness he dared not dwell on.

“I heard you went to inspect the shops. Have you eaten outside?”

Lihua’s ears grew even redder, the flush spreading down his neck.

He nodded first, then shook his head, then nodded again.

Gan Qiongying: “Hahahaha…”

Lihua: “…” He parted his lips slightly, but the wound on his tongue from last night had torn open. The physician had warned that if it wasn’t properly cared for, he might develop a stutter. He couldn’t defend himself.

His entire body flushed red, as if about to explode.

Thankfully, Gan Qiongying’s laughter was brief, and she soon stopped. Looking at Lihua, she said, “If you haven’t eaten, don’t bother now. The food at the Consort’s residence is truly awful.”

Lihua offered no opinion, simply lowering his head and taking a seat at the table.

For some reason, Gan Qiongying sensed a trace of inexplicable docility in him.

How strange.

At the Princess Manor, he had truly acted as if he would “rather die than yield.”

How had all those prickly edges vanished overnight?

She tested the waters: “Have you packed your things? Come back with me today?”

Lihua’s hands rested naturally on his knees. Hearing her words, he slowly raised his head to look at Gan Qiongying.

Seeing that his eyes held little resistance, Gan Qiongying couldn’t help but feel pleased. It was good that he was obedient—she had enough on her plate already. If Lihua was compliant, it would save her a lot of trouble.

So she smiled with utmost gentleness and said, “Husband, come back with me. The Princess Manor has imperial chefs, plenty of medicinal tonics for your health, and the mansion physician is a retired Imperial Physician. The beds are softer too, better for your recovery.”

“You’re frail and need careful nurturing.”

Lihua stared at her, his eyes almost piercing through her flesh to see her soul.

How could a person change so drastically overnight?

Was it simply because his eyes resembled Zhongli Zhengzhen’s?

Seeing no sign of objection from him, Gan Qiongying turned to Manyue and the others. “Go, assist the Consort’s people in packing the items he uses daily. Bring everything.”

Manyue immediately obeyed and set to work, but Tianjiao and San Jiu beside Lihua raised their eyebrows so high they nearly flew off their faces, their eyes glued to Lihua.

They were waiting for Lihua to make his stance clear.

To them, the Princess Manor was a den of tigers and wolves. The young master was pure and harmless by nature, like a tender rabbit—if he entered, he would be torn apart, devoured, and left without a whole corpse!

But even after Manyue and Silver Moon joined forces to escort Tianjiao out, and San Jiu had no choice but to withdraw, Lihua still hadn’t expressed his stance.

He even poured himself another cup of tea, drinking it slowly.

Only two people remained in the room, and for a moment, they faced each other in silence.

Gan Qiongying had indeed been a bit forceful today, seemingly implying that whether Lihua was willing or not, he had to go with her.

But as she watched Lihua’s silent acquiescence, while feeling pleased, she couldn’t help but recall that he and Zhongli Zhengzhen were actually twins.

Perhaps because they hadn’t grown up in the same environment, Zhongli Zhengzhen commanded attention the moment he sat down, exuding an overwhelming sense of aggression and oppression, with an aura of nobility that was almost suffocating.

But Lihua, despite being wealthy enough to rival a nation, felt more down-to-earth. He had an approachable, ordinary quality that made people feel no great distance from him.

The only thing the two brothers shared was their face.

It was only at this moment that Gan Qiongying recalled the sleeping face she had seen yesterday—the one that belonged to Lihua.

That face was undoubtedly stunning, with a superior bone structure that most men in this world lacked—a tall, straight nose bridge and a complexion as flawless as jade.

But as she thought about it carefully now, even if twins shared identical faces, they looked different on two different people.

Zhongli Zhengzhen was sharp and imposing, like a dangerous, unsheathed blade. Looking at him for too long felt as if one might be cut.

But Lihua, who had slept behind the bed curtains last night, even with his eyes closed, carried not a trace of aggression or danger.

He lay there, his features elegant and refined, his temperament gentle and smooth, like a sleeping jade mountain, glowing with a soft, lustrous light.

Perhaps because Gan Qiongying had been staring at Lihua, lost in thought, for too long without speaking.

Lihua turned his gaze back to her, and Gan Qiongying met his clear eyes, feeling once again that these eyes perfectly complemented his original appearance.

Like the essence of a jade heart, overflowing with brilliance and radiance.

The face he wore in disguise was somewhat ordinary in comparison.

Lihua felt somewhat unsettled under Gan Qiongying’s gaze. After a moment’s thought, he picked up the teapot and poured her a cup of tea.

Gan Qiongying: “…!”

It wasn’t her imagination—Lihua had suddenly become docile. Why?

Had he come to his senses? Or was it an act?

She would never have guessed that it was because last night, she hadn’t pulled back that quilt, allowing Lihua, for the first time in his life, to protect himself successfully when he was unable to do so.

And because of what she had said: “I’ve come to take you home.”

The two of them drank their tea quietly, occasionally observing each other, but no longer speaking. Yet the atmosphere was inexplicably harmonious and pleasant.

Although Lihua didn’t have many belongings, they still filled two large carts, mostly consisting of account books and the like. His clothes, however, only took up two small bundles.

“Who do you want to bring with you?” Gan Qiongying asked Lihua just before departure.

Lihua paused for a moment before Gan Qiongying took his wrist and pulled him toward her carriage.

“You’ll ride with me. Whoever you want to bring, I’ll have them follow. Once we reach the Princess Manor, you can arrange things as you see fit. How does that sound?”

Her tone was indulgent, her smile radiant. Already exceptionally beautiful, her demeanor at this moment was even more dazzling.

Lihua’s ears turned red again, and even Tianjiao, standing not far behind him, was stunned by Gan Qiongying’s peacock-like display.

Master and servant stood there like two wooden stakes.

One of them was pulled into the carriage by Gan Qiongying.

In the end, only a few elderly servants remained in the Consort’s residence to clean and watch over the courtyard, while the rest followed in a grand and imposing procession as they relocated to the Princess Manor.

This news had already reached Zhongli Zhengzhen’s ears swiftly before the journey even began.

Of course, it was San Jiu who delivered it, anxious for his master and fearing that his master might be humiliated and toyed with by Princess Duanrong.

Even if San Jiu hadn’t delivered the news, this incident would have quickly spread throughout Yindu.

Because on the return journey, the Princess’s carriage collided with a firewood-carrying ox cart not far from the vegetable market!