Chapter 016 Madam, are you so afraid of me?

When several maids were delivering dinner to Changchun Garden, Ruan Qinghuan and Xia Lian were busy for a long time before they realized that it was already dark.

Looking at the decoration manuscripts on the table, Ruan Qinghuan straightened his back tiredly: "What do you think, if the storefront is decorated like this, won't it look very impressive?"

Xia Lian seemed not to recognize the young mistress. She stared at her without blinking, unable to believe that these were actually drawn by the mistress.

He was so surprised that he ignored the ink stains on her face.

Seeing Xia Lian remained silent for a while, Ruan Qinghuan wondered, "Isn't it pretty?"

Ruan Qinghuan lowered his head again and looked at the details carefully. Although it could not be called luxurious, such decoration was definitely eye-catching.

"Young Madam, didn't you hate painting in the past?"

Xia Lian had been serving her since she was young. When she was young, her mistress hired a painter to teach her how to paint. Every time, she would either overturn the inkstone, break the easel, or wrinkle the rice paper...

Over time, the lady gave up the idea of ​​letting her learn painting.

"That was in the past. I had no interest in it because I didn't need it. But now I need it, so I don't have to ask others for help."

Putting the pen on the pen stand, Ruan Qinghuan subconsciously raised his hand to wipe his forehead: "Tomorrow you can find a craftsman and show him this drawing. If he can make it look like this, I will order it."

Xia Lian raised her eyes from the painting, and when she saw the long ink stain on the young lady's forehead, she couldn't help but laugh out loud: "Young lady, you..."

The Prime Minister suddenly came in and interrupted Xia Lian. She immediately became serious and greeted him: "Sir"

He An frowned and looked at Ruan Qinghuan, only to see a flash of surprise in her eyes. After a moment of hesitation, she smiled and said, "Sorry to bother you, husband. Please bring the food here."

Xia Lian stood aside and winked at Ruan Qinghuan, but Ruan Qinghuan didn't understand what she meant for a long time. Finally, seeing her pointing at her forehead, Ruan Qinghuan guessed that Xia Lian might be feeling unwell.

"There's nothing for you to do here. If you don't feel well, go back and rest. We have work to do tomorrow."

Xia Lian: “…”

He An suppressed his smile. After Xia Lian left, he looked at the messy desk and the paper balls on the floor, and then looked at Ruan Qinghuan's cat-like face: "What have you done?"

"Nothing, just a painting." Ruan Qinghuan did not hide it and took a look at the sketch spread on the table.

He An took the sketch in his hand and read it carefully, with a flash of surprise in his eyes: "Did you draw this?"

"Yes, the lease of a shop on East Street has expired, so I plan to open a pawnshop. As a pawnshop, of course the storefront needs to be a bit grand."

He An pulled her to the table, then shook his head, and came to the basin stand, personally bent down to help her wash her hands: "Isn't the money from the prime minister's mansion enough for you to manage? You can't make much money running a small shop like that."

"That may not be the case. Today it may just be a small shop, but tomorrow it may become a wealthy merchant. Even if I take a step back, it would be good to make some money and be self-sufficient."

He An paused, his good mood instantly dropped by half: "Self-sufficiency?"

His voice was not loud, but Ruan Qinghuan could still hear his unhappiness: "No, other people run businesses to be self-sufficient. How could I, the wife of the prime minister, bow down for such a small amount of money? I just want to have a livelihood so that I won't be too bored."

He An wiped her hands dry and said, "Tomorrow I will talk to my mother and ask her to hand over the family's income to you."

"No, that's too hasty. I'm only eighteen, still young..." After meeting He An's cold eyes, he swallowed the rest of his words: "Well, okay."

The word "disrespectful" is the most appropriate one to use now.

He An's expression clearly meant, if you refuse again, try again?

Just as she was complaining about his tyranny, she saw He An putting some food on her plate, including vegetables and meat. Ruan Qinghuan was confused. What did he mean?

This is the first time that the two of them have dinner together like this since she married into the prime minister's mansion. Something must be wrong. What is He'an planning?

He An's movements of picking up food for her were very natural, making people feel that they were just a normal couple.

The sound of the breeze rustling the leaves outside the window made Ruan Qinghuan's mind go haywire. It was pitch black outside, and she was alone in the room with a widow...

Thinking of the embarrassment of the previous night, Ruan Qinghuan could even dig out three bedrooms and a living room with her toes. Looking at He An again, it was as if nothing had happened. She didn't know whether he had really forgotten or was pretending not to care.

Feeling her gaze, He An put down his chopsticks and asked, "Madam, are you so afraid of me?"

"No, you are such a good person, how could I be afraid? I respect you, so I dare not overstep the mark."

"Respect?" He An frowned: "How should a wife respect her husband?"

"Of course..." Ruan Qinghuan took a deep breath, his mind spinning rapidly: "First, I must respect my husband's habit of putting work first; second, I must let my husband take care of his health and get more rest; third, I must not disturb my husband too often, and it is best not to be the kind of person who does not show up."

He said it in one breath and paused: "Don't worry, sir, I can do all of this."

He Anshi couldn't help but laughed out loud: "Ruan Qinghuan, you are my wife, not my colleague, let alone my subordinate."

“So, I have to do better than my colleagues and subordinates.”

He An took a deep breath and softened his tone: "I know you are younger and may not be used to getting married. I can give you some time, but the premise is that it can't be too long."

When Ruan Qinghuan heard this, she was so happy that her face was full of joy: "Really?"

Ruan Qinghuan wanted to ask, how long is "not too long"?

But thinking about it, I might as well forget it, that would be a bit too much.

He An was not very happy when he saw this. His concession was to let her know that he was willing to tolerate her, but this did not make her so happy.

Ruan Qinghuan was truly relieved. Although He'an was a bit straight-talking, he was still a gentleman and would definitely do what he said.

Today is a good day, everything you want will come true.

Ruan Qinghuan wanted to talk to He'an about this this morning, but she hesitated again because of the Ruan family. Unexpectedly, He'an spoke first, which eased the relationship between the two.

Besides that, she also met the person she missed. When the shop in the east of the city reopens...will everything slowly develop as she expected?

Facts have proved that Ruan Qinghuan overthought.

After dinner, servants came over to bring hot water. He An raised his arm naturally. Yuan Qing Huan didn't react for a moment: "Sir, do you want to practice?"

He An: "Change clothes."

Ruan Qinghuan: “…”

She was indeed not very good at serving men as a feudal woman in ancient times, but there were some things that one could not be too picky about, otherwise it would cause trouble.

Reluctantly, she took off He'an's coat, which took about a quarter of an hour. He'an saw her clumsiness and was in a good mood.

Finally, she finished taking off her clothes, and Ruan Qinghuan felt relieved: "Please go in, sir."

"You too."

Ruan Qinghuan: “…”

Doesn't this guy keep his word?