"Prime Minister?", Lou Yi secretly raised an eyebrow at those words. Isn"t that her soon-to-be husband? Why did that man come running to his manor again so early in the morning?Before she could say a word though, a deep and low voice made her stop her words. "I seem to have come at a good time."
Knowing who the voice belongs to, Lou Yi slowly turned to face the person who came in without even waiting for her approval. The man wearing a court official"s robe was smiling at her. This man is precisely the Prime Minister of this kingdom, her soon-to-be husband - Xuan Xu Chen.
As far as Lou Yi"s information goes, Xuan Xu Chen grew up with the emperor together with General Chu Han Yun. While Chu Han Yun is backed with a large clan, Xuan Xu Chen, on the other hand, is the only one remaining of the Xuan family"s main branch. The elders of the family are still alive so even though Xuan Xu Chen was still a juvenile when his parents died, the other family branches weren"t able to take advantage of it.
It was also because Xuan Xu Chen was left alone at such an early age that he learned the ways of the world far earlier than his peers. He was able to survive and climb to where he is now because of his quick wit and ability to socialize. In fact, he acted like the big brother of the Emperor and the Great General during their younger years.
During Xuan Xu Chen"s first visit to send the betrothal gifts, the two had already talked for a long while.
"It is my honor to receive the Second Princess as my wife.", she remembered him saying back then, which almost made her raise her eyebrow. Lou Yi just doesn"t know if he was actually serious with his words or not. However, Xuan Xu Chen indeed surprised her with his next words.
"Perhaps you already know by now but I am the only one remaining of the Xuan family"s main branch.", he started his words. "The destruction of my family branch was due to the in-fighting in the inner courtyard. Thus, I have long decided that I will only have one wife in my entire life. As you are going to be my wife, be a.s.sured that there will be no concubines or even bed servants in the Xuan manor. Moreover, as long as we are husband and wife, all that I have will be handed to you for management."
Xuan Xu Chen was smiling all the while when he said those words that Lou Yi can"t help but feel suspicious. Such pleasant terms after marriage, if this were normal circ.u.mstances, will definitely make her satisfied. However, knowing that this man has the reputation of being a black-bellied person, Lou Yi carefully a.n.a.lyzed his words in her head, trying to find any hidden knife or malicious intent in them. Unfortunately, she found none.
Thinking that her information about the man is still insufficient, she took note of his words in her heart and planned to revisit them later.
"Such lovely terms, why are you willing to promise them to me? Don"t you have someone else suitable for those words?", she calmly retorted back then only to receive a hearty laugh from the man.
"The wise and cunning second princess of Zhao, why don"t you take a guess?", the man said with mirth in his eyes.
"This official greets the Second Princess.", Lou Yi snapped out of her daze when she heard Xuan Xu Chen greet her.
"Dispense the formalities, Prime Minister Xuan.", Lou Yi gracefully stood up, receiving the man"s curtsy and gesturing for him to take a seat. "Since you are already here, please take a seat and join me."
"My pleasure.", Xuan Xu Chen didn"t hesitate.
Lou Yi then gestured for Xiao Cui to get another set of plate and chopsticks for the guest. It didn"t take long for her maidservant to provide them to Xuan Xu Chen. Only when Xuan Xu Chen was provided his cutlery did Lou Yi picked up her chopsticks to continue eating. As it was bad etiquette to talk while eating, the two silently ate.
After half an hour, Xuan Xu Chen put down his chopsticks, seemingly full. Lou Yi, who was matching his eating pace, also put down her chopsticks. A small smile was playing on the man"s lips when he noticed that, although Lou Yi, who had her eyes trained on her plate by then, didn"t notice it.
Seeing that their master and the guest have finished eating, Xiao Ning and Xiao Mei promptly put away the dishes.
"What brings the Prime Minister here so early in the morning?", Lou Yi asked as soon as everything was cleared away from the table.
"Oh?", Xuan Xu Chen was amused. "I didn"t know that this hour is still "early" in the morning."
Indeed, it wasn"t early anymore as she was having a late breakfast due to waking up late. Realizing her blunder, Lou Yi berated herself in her mind. Thankfully, Xuan Xu Chen didn"t hold on to that topic.
"The morning court finished early, and as I was pa.s.sing by your manor, I thought of visiting my fiancee.", Xuan Xu Chen explained.