The Minister: Cold by Day, Hot by Night-Chapter 112: Future Son-in-law Lu Zhan

Carriages were a rare sight in the village, so when two magnificent ones rolled in, they immediately attracted a crowd of curious onlookers.

By the time Zhi Wan and her party reached the end of the village, they realized a crowd of villagers, eager to see what was happening, had followed them.

Ouyang Zhenzhu had never seen villagers before. Looking at their simple, honest faces, she was filled with curiosity. She showed none of the airs expected of a Miss of the Marquis Mansion, even waving to the crowd. When she saw children, she pulled out some candy to give to them.

"Pretty Sister, are you here to see Brother Daniu and Brother Erniu?" a boy who had received some candy asked, mustering his courage.

Before Ouyang Zhenzhu could reply, the boy turned to the fenced-in yard ahead and shouted, "Brother Daniu! Brother Erniu! Some important people are here to see you!"

Someone immediately opened the gate from inside the yard and said irritably, "Tie Dan, are you looking for trouble again? How dare you come here and mess with us...?"

The voice died abruptly when he saw Zhi Wan and the others standing outside the gate. "You are..."

A middle-aged woman walked out from behind him. "Erniu, who is it?"

Zhi Wan recognized her at a glance. Her eyes instantly welled up, and her voice choked with emotion. "Nanny!"

The woman was holding a wicker basket. Hearing that form of address, the basket in her hands fell to the ground with a CLATTER. She took an excited step forward, wanting to grab Zhi Wan’s hand, but then she saw how calloused her own hands were and quickly lowered them. She looked at Zhi Wan, completely flustered. "You... you are... my Miss?"

Zhi Wan nodded and hurried to take her hand. "Nanny, it’s me, Wan’er..."

"Wan’er? You really are my Miss Wan’er!" Tears of joy welled up in the woman’s eyes. She gripped Zhi Wan’s hand in return, her voice trembling. "I haven’t seen you in so many years. My Miss Wan’er has grown up, and you’re even more beautiful. I almost didn’t recognize you."

"Nanny..." A lump formed in Zhi Wan’s throat, and she threw herself into the woman’s arms.

Nanny Chen held her tightly as tears streamed from her eyes.

"Mother, you should invite the Miss inside to sit down," Erniu reminded her quietly from the side.

"Right, right! Look at me, I’m so happy I’ve lost my head. Miss, please, come inside and sit," Nanny Chen said with a smile, wiping her tears.

Zhi Wan and her party followed her into the fenced-in yard.

Chen Jiu was about to follow them in when he noticed that his Princely Heir hadn’t yet gotten out of the carriage. He quickly stopped and turned back.

"Princely Heir, we’ve arrived at Nanny Chen’s home. Would you like to go inside and sit for a while?"

Lu Zhan disembarked from the carriage in silence.

The gawking villagers had been about to disperse, but when they saw a handsome and noble-looking man step out of the carriage, they stopped in their tracks and stared at him, dumbfounded.

"Is he a deity?"

a child suddenly asked.

No one else spoke, but they all thought, ’Even if this man isn’t a deity, he must be a god who has descended to the mortal realm.’

’To think that one day, our Red Leaf Village would welcome such an esteemed guest.’

’And those two young ladies who went in just now were both as beautiful as celestial fairies, each more so than the last.’

Lu Zhan paid no heed to the villagers’ murmurs behind him.

Chen Jiu, however, puffed out his chest, feeling quite proud.

He had grown up by the Princely Heir’s side and was used to hearing praise for him from all sorts of people, but this was the first time he had heard such compliments from simple villagers.

’His Princely Heir was, after all, widely acknowledged as the most handsome man in the Capital. Of course he was like a deity.’

But when he saw the Princely Heir’s cold expression, Chen Jiu’s smug look was immediately replaced by a chagrined one.

’What’s wrong with the Princely Heir?’

The cold aura emanating from him was so intense that even he, his personal guard, didn’t dare to approach rashly.

Inside the house, Zhi Wan saw Lu Zhan enter and realized she had forgotten all about her cousin. She quickly stood up to introduce him to Nanny Chen and Erniu. "Nanny, Brother Erniu, this is Prince Lu."

Nanny Chen knew from years ago that Zhi Wan had been taken to the Capital City to be raised by Duchess Dingguo. Upon hearing his title, she immediately understood Lu Zhan’s identity. She couldn’t help but size him up. Then, as if a thought occurred to her, she glanced at Zhi Wan with a knowing smile before leading her son forward to pay their respects to Lu Zhan.

"This humble woman greets Prince Lu."

Lu Zhan made a gesture to help her up. "Nanny, there is no need for such formalities."

"Thank you, Princely Heir. Please, have a seat," Nanny Chen said respectfully, personally offering him a bowl of tea. "It’s just simple tea. I hope the Princely Heir doesn’t mind."

Lu Zhan reached out to accept it. "Nanny, you are too kind."

Seeing that he showed no sign of disdain, Nanny Chen secretly nodded in approval.

’This future son-in-law is a good one.’

’He will definitely treat the Miss well in the future.’

With this in mind, she quickly turned to her son and instructed, "Hurry and slaughter a chicken. And send someone to the fields to get your older brother. Tell him to go to town and buy some good wine and food."

"I’ll go right away," Erniu said, hurrying off.

"Nanny, call Brother Erniu back. We won’t be staying for a meal. We have to rush back to the city soon," Zhi Wan tried to dissuade her.

Nanny Chen placed a hand on her shoulder and said, feigning anger, "You came all this way to see me, and you won’t even stay for a single bite? I know... you’re not used to farmhouse food..."

"Nanny, that’s not what I meant..."

"As long as it’s not!" Nanny Chen breathed a sigh of relief. "I know. You must have returned to Yangzhou this time to bring your fiancé to pay respects at the Master and Madam’s graves. If they could know this in the afterlife, they would surely be gratified. Seeing that my Miss has found her match, I feel so gratified as well." As she spoke, she began to wipe away tears.

Zhi Wan looked completely bewildered. "What fiancé?"

Nanny Chen shot her a playful glare, then turned to Lu Zhan, who was seated to the side. She said with a smile, "Prince Lu is a man among men, a perfect match for our Miss."

Zhi Wan was completely stunned. When she came to her senses, her face flushed crimson and she said urgently, "Nanny, you’ve mis..."

"Prince Lu, although the Master and Madam have passed away, Miss Wan’er still has us. In the future, I hope you will treat her well and never let her suffer any grievance. Otherwise, even if I have to drag my old bones all the way to the Capital City, I will go and demand justice for her!" Nanny Chen looked at Lu Zhan with a solemn expression, her tone neither servile nor overbearing.

Lu Zhan’s hand, holding the coarse porcelain teacup, paused for a moment. He turned his head to look at Zhi Wan.

He saw that the young woman’s face was so red it looked as if it might start bleeding.

"Nanny, you’ve misunderstood. He’s my cou..." 𝑓𝑟ℯ𝘦𝓌𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝓋𝑒𝓁.𝑐ℴ𝓂

"I understand," Lu Zhan interrupted her in a soft voice. He lowered his head to sip his tea, his long, dark lashes drooping slightly, hiding the turbulent emotions within.

The tea leaves were coarse, and the teacup was crude, but the tea itself was not unpleasant to drink. In fact, it had a unique flavor of its own.

Lu Zhan took another sip.

Zhi Wan’s beautiful eyes widened as she stared at him in astonishment. "Cousin, you..."

"Hm?" The end of Lu Zhan’s syllable lifted slightly. "What is it?"

Meeting his dark, deep eyes, the question Zhi Wan was about to ask got stuck in her throat. ’He must have gone along with it because he couldn’t bear to embarrass Nanny, right?’

She truly saw her cousin as an older brother, and she believed he felt the same way about her.

Thinking this, she felt a little more at ease.

’Let Nanny misunderstand, then. They lived so far apart; who knew when they would see each other again?’

However, Ouyang Zhenzhu, who was standing to the side, covered her mouth and started giggling. As if eager to stir up trouble, she chimed in playfully, "Wanwan and Mr. Lu really are a perfect match!"

Zhi Wan: "..."