Chapter 648 - Chapter 648: Chapter 635: Are You Afraid? (1/2)

Chapter 648: Chapter 635: Are You Afraid?

Naturally, a wife’s cooking is the best.

While in the capital city, although he was dressed in fine clothes and ate refined food every day, in Chu Jinnian’s view, the food tasted just like chewing wax, often unable to swallow it.

Eating a bowl of plain soup noodles here, he felt it was an indescribable delicacy.

“How long do you plan to stay this time?” Zhuang Qingning asked as she propped her chin.

“At least a year,” Chu Jinnian smiled and quickly placed the cutlery he had just used into the washbasin, washed it himself, dried it with a dish towel, and placed it on the nearby dish rack.

“That long?” Zhuang Qingning was somewhat surprised.

“Do you think the time is too long? I feel it’s a bit short. I plan to request the Emperor to extend my leave after our wedding is done,” Chu Jinnian responded with a laugh.

“It’s not that I think it’s too long, but considering your numerous responsibilities in Beijing and at the Ministry of Justice, it’s peculiar that the emperor would grant you this long of a leave,” she noted wryly.

“Because I asked the Empress and the Emperor for a marriage grant, and I also requested a year leave to prepare for the wedding,” Chu Jinnian replied. “Previously, both the Empress and the Emperor were concerned about my unwillingness to marry. Now that I’m willing to marry, they are overjoyed with happiness and overlook the other matters.”

“The imperial decree of marriage is on the way. In a short while, it should arrive. The wedding is scheduled for next August, when the Osmanthus fragrance pervades the air. You will definitely like it.”

Zhuang Qingning indeed greatly adored Osmanthus.

The fragrance of Osmanthus is subtle, yet rich. It doesn’t compete with the flamboyance of other flowers. Most importantly, it can be made into many food items, especially the Osmanthus cake, which Zhuang Qingning was particularly fond of.

Getting married at this time would indeed be excellent.

Zhuang Qingning looked at Chu Jinnian and smiled, “Now that you’re back for so long, there’s finally someone to help with the chores in the courtyard.”

“Of course,” Chu Jinnian straightened his body, “Just command it, Miss Zhuang.”

Whether it’s sweeping the courtyard, cooking or doing laundry, he can do all of it.

The smile on Zhuang Qingning’s face deepened, and she poured Chu Jinnian another cup of the freshly made pear soup.

The return of Chu Jinnian made everyone in Qingzhuyuan very delighted.

After all, as servants, if they couldn’t see their master for many years, they would indeed feel as if they didn’t exist.

However, everyone quickly discovered that Chu Jinnian, after returning, seemed to not have really returned.

He left early in the morning before dawn and didn’t even eat breakfast in Qingzhuyuan. It wasn’t until Chu Jinnian had finished his dinner at Zhuang Qingning’s place that he was willing to return.

Therefore, the recent greetings among the servants included “Have you seen the young master today?” and similar phrases.

Not only the servants, even between Fan Wenxuan and Chu Jinzhou, the situation was the same.

At first, they found it somewhat annoying, perceiving that Chu Jinnian was excessively smitten with love. But later, from time to time when they saw different kinds of snacks brought back by Chu Jinnian from Zhuang Qingning’s place, their annoyance instantly disappeared.

Eating these cakes, which they could never taste before, was much better than the previous state.

Moreover, everything about brothers is fleeting. Eventually, they would fly apart over beautiful women. The cakes in front of them were more realistic.