The two of them were busy in the kitchen, and had already prepared six dishes before sunset.

Li Hua was mainly busy cooking, and Gan Qiongying didn't help at all; instead, she kept busy with Li Hua.

She mainly acted as a little follower, either touching this or pinching that. Li Hua was made to take deep breaths frequently, but she never let Gan Qiongying leave, and even smeared some soot from the bottom of the pot on Gan Qiongying's face.

How could Li Hua bear to let her leave? This was a scene that Li Hua dared not even dream of.

For Li Hua, the most ordinary human moments were far more valuable than standing at the pinnacle of power, wielding life and death in his hands.

Gan Lin still hadn't returned before dinner was served.

Gan Qiongying asked Xiao Qiansong, "Why hasn't Gan Lin come back yet? Didn't you say he would be back around this time every night?"

“He should indeed be back. Every night, General Chen Wa of the Northwest Army personally escorts him back,” Xiao Qiansong said. “Why don’t the princess and the prince consort eat first, and I’ll send someone to urge him again.”

Xiao Qiansong also had his own plans. He was too afraid to eat at the same table as the prince consort, especially since he knew that the food was actually prepared by the prince consort... The prince consort's gaze towards him had never been kind, and Xiao Qiansong was afraid that eating this food would break his teeth.

Li Hua did indeed dislike Xiao Qiansong, mainly because Gan Qiongying and Gan Lin abandoned him when they left, and actually took this... imperial physician with them.

However, no matter how stingy Li Hua was, he could still distinguish right from wrong. He knew that Gan Qiongying was fortunate to have Physician Xiao by her side during childbirth. Otherwise, she would have given birth to twins prematurely, and in this harsh northwest frontier, in this simple temple... Li Hua simply couldn't imagine it.

Therefore, Li Hua felt a mixture of jealousy and gratitude towards Xiao Qiansong, which caused him to frequently look at Xiao Qiansong with a somewhat complicated expression.

Xiao Qiansong felt extremely uneasy under their gaze, as if thorns had grown on his bottom. Unable to stay in the room any longer, he paced around before saying to Gan Qiongying, "Gan Lin should have arrived by now. I'll go outside to meet him!"

After Xiao Qiansong finished speaking, he got up and ran away, his back view even showing a hint of panic.

Gan Qiongying slapped Li Hua's arm as she retaliated: "Look how scared you've made him! Try to control your jealousy, the whole room smells sour from you..."

How could Gan Qiongying not know what was going on with Li Hua? Half of what she said was to make Li Hua laugh.

As expected, Li Hua couldn't help but laugh. His laughter was like ice melting away. He shook his head and said, "I didn't mean to scare him... I was just a little jealous that he can always stay by your side."

Gan Qiongying's eyes darted around, glancing at the wet nurse and the child in the distance. Sweetie and Manyue were huddled together, talking about something by the door, oblivious to what was happening here.

She leaned close to Li Hua's ear and said, "What's there to be jealous of? I still have eighteen shadow guards by my side. Why aren't you jealous? They all have big pecs and amazing bodies. I still only like you, don't I?"

Gan Qiongying naturally knew that Li Hua's jealousy of Xiao Qiansong stemmed from the fact that Xiao Qiansong had stayed by her and Gan Lin's side during her time of crisis, which meant they had weathered the storm together. Such a bond was ultimately different.

However, Gan Qiongying didn't want Li Hua to get stuck on another point, so she lightly changed the subject.

As expected, Li Hua's attention was quickly diverted by Gan Qiongying. After sitting at the table and listening to what Gan Qiongying said, she glared at her with a hint of reproach in her eyes: "You are quite observant. Could it be that you have considered having them serve you?"

“That’s hard to say,” Gan Qiongying said, deliberately puffing out her chest. “After all, I’m so beautiful. Even if I don’t order them around, there’s no guarantee that someone won’t secretly like me.”

Li Hua gritted her teeth and pinched Gan Qiongying's leg under the table: "You're dreaming, aren't you?"

"There were a total of 167 people in Her Highness’s harem back then. I didn’t count these 18 people, which shows that I underestimated them."

Gan Qiongying chuckled and, upon hearing Li Hua mention her embarrassing past, quickly put on a smile, hugged Li Hua's waist, and rested her head on his shoulder.

He said in a deliberately sarcastic tone, "Your Highness, how can you only talk about me? I've only been in Jinchuan for a few days, and I've already heard about Your Highness's glorious achievements."

"When you beheaded that foreign enemy, how many young women and wives threw you handkerchiefs and sachets while you were circling the city? Do you dare to tell the truth?"

Gan Qiongying pretended to be angry and looked at Li Hua, saying, "You're a married man, and instead of hiding yourself properly, you're showing your face in public, attracting the hearts of young girls and married women. Tell me, between the two of us, who is the more heinous one!"

"And His Highness the Crown Prince is nominally married to the Crown Princess, but when I was there for so long, you had people stop me from even seeing the Crown Princess. Could it be that you're keeping a mistress hidden away?"

"You built a golden house for someone to hide them away, and all you know how to do is lock me up in a golden cage, right?"

Li Hua couldn't argue with Gan Qiongying at all, and she was genuinely worried that Gan Qiongying might mind this.

He opened his mouth to explain, "I don't want you to see Wen Xueling because she's completely insane right now. I'm afraid she might hurt you if she goes crazy. Zhong Lizheng's face and body are often scratched raw and bloody by her."

"As for those sachets and handkerchiefs, I didn't accept any of them."

Seeing Li Hua's earnest explanation, Gan Qiongying couldn't help but laugh. She didn't want to see Wen Xueling at all, and Li Hua was so affectionate towards her; if she could have diverted even a little bit of that affection, she wouldn't have almost gone insane.

She reached out and pinched Li Hua's chin, saying, "Alright, since you explained so earnestly, I'll forgive you!"

He then gave Li Hua a loud kiss on the lips: "Don't you all have all sorts of stamps in your chamber of commerce? I'll stamp one here for you, and then you're mine!"

Gan Qiongying covered Li Hua's face with several kisses, making Li Hua feel embarrassed. Then the two wet nurses looked over, and Li Hua quickly stepped back to stop Gan Qiongying.

"Alright, alright... If you want to cover yourself up, you can do it tonight." Li Hua said quickly and then tidied her clothes and hair.

He was once again the dignified and self-possessed gentleman.

Gan Qiongying pursed her lips, about to say something, when footsteps suddenly came from outside.

The footsteps were very hurried, almost slamming open the outer door.

Before she even entered the inner room, she was already calling out from outside, "Sister! Sister! I'm back!"

Gan Qiongying quickly got up from the table, ran to the door, pushed it open, and ran straight into Gan Lin's arms.

A cool breeze, carrying the scent of fresh snow, swept over her. Gan Qiongying, who had been waiting anxiously for him, finally settled down safely in his embrace.

At this moment, Li Hua also walked up behind the two of them. Gan Lin, who was covered in cold air, was afraid of upsetting the child, so he carried Gan Qiongying and turned half a circle around to the outer room.

Li Hua followed her out and had just closed the door when Gan Qiongying pulled her forward a step and wrapped her arm around her waist.

Li Hua also smelled the cool, snow-like scent, and the three of them hugged each other.