There is an oil lamp in the bamboo house, and the light is a warm orange-yellow hue.

Zhao Rong, Zhao Lingfei and Xiao Qian'er sat around the table, on which were four sets of bowls and chopsticks.

Zhao Rong's seat was facing the door. Zhao Lingfei and Xiao Qian'er sat next to him, on his right and left respectively, leaving the seat opposite him empty.

Zhao Rong thought about it and looked away.

"Uncle Xiaobai probably won't be back for dinner." He explained, "I asked him to help with something, so I asked him to go back to Duyou City first."

Xiao Qian'er always liked to sneak a peek at Brother Rong'er, and it was the same at this time. After Zhao Rong spoke, the little girl's peach blossom eyes rolled up slightly, and after looking at Brother Rong'er, she looked at the young lady who was reacting calmly as usual.

Concubine Zhao Ling was holding the bowl in an elegant posture, with her eyes lowered, holding the chopsticks, waiting with Qian'er for her husband to pick up the food first.

Hearing this, she turned her head slightly, looked at Xiao Qian'er, and then looked at the empty seat next to her.

Concubine Zhao Ling nodded gracefully towards her husband.

Xiao Qian'er pouted her pink lips, biting the ends of two chopsticks with her white teeth like shells. She looked at the two of them and cleverly said, "That's an extra pair of chopsticks and bowls. It looks like we'll have guests coming tonight~"

The three of them laughed.

Zhao Rong smiled dumbly and shook his head.

Having an extra pair of chopsticks when eating doesn't sound like a good sign. Xiao Qian'er's words were meant to flatter and auspiciously speak.

However, he thought it would be best if no guests came in the middle of the night, because...

Zhao Rong pursed his lips and turned his head to look around.

A bamboo house, a solitary lamp, a wooden table, and a hot meal.

Two beautiful women who will stay together until old age.

The scene is ordinary, but the atmosphere is warm and friendly.

He suddenly felt his heart filled with something warm, and the sense of weightlessness and emptiness he had felt when he was wandering outside during the day disappeared without a trace, and was replaced by a... heavy sense of solidity.

Zhao Rong didn't want to be disturbed by any guests like Dugu Chanyi later. It was nice to just eat and live a simple life like this.

"Brother Rong'er..."

Xiao Qian'er's voice came weakly, waking up Zhao Rong who was in a trance.

Turning around, he saw the little girl holding a large rice bowl that was only slightly bigger than the others, staring at him eagerly, "Hmm, I'm a little hungry..."

Qingjun also smiled faintly, picked up the bowl and chopsticks, turned his head quietly, and looked at him who had not yet been the first to pick up his chopsticks.

Zhao Rong smiled and shook his head, "There's no need for so many rules at home, just eat."

As he spoke, he reached out and picked up two pieces of food with his chopsticks and put them into the bowls of Concubine Zhao Lingfei and Xiao Qian'er respectively. Then he put his chopsticks away and took a sip of the hot white rice, chewing it in big mouthfuls, seeming to be enjoying the food very much.

The two girls looked at each other in surprise.

Xiao Qian'er pursed her lips, looked down at the food in the bowl that she had been secretly glancing at for a long time, then looked up at the man who was picking up food for her.

"Woohoo! Great! Brother Rong'er, Miss, I'm going to start eating."

As she spoke, the girl who was once called Xiao Chai and now called Qian'er started to eat. She lowered her head and ate voraciously, vowing to eat the old Zhao family out of money.

Concubine Zhao Ling laughed and shook her head, but she did not ask the little girl to observe etiquette as usual.

She opened her rosy little mouth and chewed the food he picked up in small bites. She ate very carefully, stopping from time to time, observing her husband and personal maid with her autumn eyes, and then gently picked up food for them, telling them to eat slowly so as not to choke.

“Mmmm, Mmmm, Brother Rong’er, Miss…” Xiao Qian’er, who was small but had a big belly, puffed up her cheeks. She blinked her eyes and said incoherently, “You guys eat quickly, or I’ll eat up all those plates~ Mmmm…”

"You, eat slowly." Zhao Lingfei said helplessly.

Zhao Rong couldn't help laughing.

Concubine Zhao Ling silently picked up a piece of food for him.

Zhao Rong took a mouthful of rice and also picked up a piece of rice for her with his chopsticks.

She looked down, bit her lip, and clamped it for him.

He picked up some food for her without showing any emotion.

Their eyes met in mid-air.

She looked at him.

He looked at her.

Qingmei blushed slightly, moved her eyes away, and looked away shyly.

Zhu Ma still looked at her calmly.

"Puchi~" It was Xiao Qian'er who was eating and peeking and laughing.

"Well, we're already an old married couple..." She muttered as if no one heard her.

Zhao Rong's eyes remained the same.

However, Zhao Lingfei's cheeks became even redder, like peach blossoms in March.

Xiao Qian'er held the big bowl in both hands to cover her face, blocking the young lady's slightly angry eyes.

Zhao Rong chuckled.

He held the bowl, and sometimes looked at the beautiful Qingjun who was shyly lowering her head, and sometimes looked at Xiaoqianer who was happily eating and winking at him. His eyes were extremely serious and focused, without any deviation, as he looked at them carefully, as if... he wanted to always remember these two beloved childhood sweethearts who were more like partners and family than lovers at this moment.

They are family.

He has lived in this world for so long before he realized that what he really wanted was not free food and beautiful women, but... home and family.

Qingjun is family, Qianer is family, and Xiaoxiao is also family.

It was his 'search for her among the crowds for a thousand times'. Today, Zhao Rong was lost and wandering around the whole day. In the end, he suddenly looked back and found that the 'thing' he was looking for was right there in the dim light.

Zhao Rong's eyes were clear. He wanted to protect this complete and warm family that belonged to him.

This is the most precious thing to him in this world.

At this time, at the table.

"Husband, you...you eat too." Concubine Zhao Ling whispered with her head down.

"Okay." Zhao Rong nodded, but still didn't move his chopsticks. Looking at her lightly touching her hair with her slender fingers, he suddenly said, "Qingjun, you've worked hard."

Concubine Zhao Lingfei paused with her bare hands holding the bowl and chopsticks, then lowered her head even lower, with her pretty face almost buried in the bowl.

"And Qian'er too, you guys have worked hard."

Xiao Qian'er, who was happily eating, suddenly stopped what she was doing.

"Mmm..." Her little face was buried in the big bowl, and her expression could not be seen clearly. All she could see was that her ears were red.

This was a sudden love word from Brother Rong'er.

Inside the house, the candle flame on the oil lamp flickered silently. The atmosphere was peaceful, but two hearts were beating rapidly at this moment, and the temperature was much warmer and hotter than the candle flame.

"From last night till now, I have been thinking a lot and I found that the problem lies with me..."

"Don't talk nonsense." The two girls said almost in unison and looked up in surprise.

Concubine Zhao Lingfei forgot about being shy, her pretty face flushed, and she stretched out her bare hand holding the chopsticks as fast as lightning and stuffed the thin tip of the chopsticks with the food on it into Zhao Rongwei's mouth.

Blocked his subsequent words.

"Hmm..." Zhao Rong.

Xiao Qian'er also reacted and followed the young lady. She let go of the chopsticks that she was biting with her white teeth, picked up a piece of steamed pork with rice flour from the bowl, stretched out her little hand, and stuffed it into the dazed Zhao Rong's mouth.

“Mmmm…” Zhao Rong.

Thus, on the dining table under the candlelight in the house, the following scene appeared:

A cold and beautiful girl with autumn eyes and a pretty and lively girl with peach blossom eyes both blushed and bit their lips in anger at a handsome scholar. Both girls stretched their arms forward and stuffed the chopsticks in their hands into his mouth.

The handsome scholar was holding the bowl and chopsticks in his hands, and his movements were frozen, let alone speaking, as his mouth was blocked by the chopsticks they had bitten.

He responded, blinking.

"Hmm?"

What are you doing?

"You are not allowed to say that." Concubine Zhao Ling's eyes sparkled, her gaze fixed on him infatuatedly, and she stared at him in a serious tone.

"That's right, huh, you stinky brother Rong'er, even such delicious food can't stop your mouth." Xiao Qian'er wrinkled her nose, looking fierce.

Zhao Rong blinked, restrained his smile, and nodded.

"That's almost right." Xiao Qian'er pretended to be fierce.

But just as she and Concubine Zhao Ling were about to take back their chopsticks, Zhao Rong suddenly put down his bowl and reached out to grab their soft, slender hands.

He felt as if he was holding two pieces of warm and soft jade.

Xiao Qian'er's little hands are warm and chubby.

Qingjun's hands were slightly cool and smooth.

Zhao Rong grabbed one in each hand and held it tightly in his big hands with great care to prevent them from slipping away.

"Husband... Sir..."

"Um, Brother Ronger..."

The two girls felt embarrassed for a moment and had different reactions. They tried to pull their hands away with a little force, but they felt more and more the sun-like warmth and irresistible strength of his big hands, so they let their childhood sweetheart hold them in a somewhat domineering manner, and they all lowered their heads in shame, with their starry eyes shifted.

Zhao Rong rubbed their hands lovingly, took the thin chopsticks from the two girls' hands, looked down at the jade-like lines on their palms with a serious and focused expression, as if he could not see enough. Then he blew a breath of hot air gently on Qingjun and Xiaoqian'er's white and tender palms, and without waiting for their slender fingers to tremble, Zhao Rong moved his face closer, letting the two girls' white and slender hands cover both sides of his face, one of them pressed tightly against one side.

Zhao Lingfei's long eyelashes trembled, and the fingertips that were touching his face and her heart trembled along with them.

The clever and playful Xiao Qian'er was exceptionally quiet and well-behaved at this moment. She tilted her head and stared at him in a daze. Her little hand gently stroked his slightly bearded chin and the corners of his lips with incomparable tenderness.

Zhao Rong held their gentle hands in both of his own, and pressed his face against their palms, feeling their warmth. He lowered his eyes quietly, savoring this rare tender moment.

The bare hand on his left cheek threaded his threads, wove his clothes, washed his clothes, cooked for him, and dressed and folded his quilts for him.

The little hand on his right cheek was trembling with the sword, torturing traitors, and was stained with blood.

Zhao Rong lowered his brows and remained silent.

Zhao Lingfei and Xiao Qian'er both raised their other hands and gently placed them on the back of his hands that were holding theirs. The two girls stared at his face without blinking.

At this moment, the three of them were silent at the dinner table.

For a moment, the atmosphere fell into a strange tranquility and warmth.

"Qingjun, Qian'er, I want to... apologize to you first..." Zhao Rong suddenly spoke.

"You are not allowed to say it." Concubine Zhao Ling's voice trembled, and Xiao Qian'er nodded vigorously.

Zhao Rong shook his head, looked up at them, and spoke softly...

…