The queen is spoiling the king and madly criticizing him for spoiling her

"It's cold outside. Your Majesty and Your Majesty, please move to the front hall to talk." Gu Yuanqing took the initiative to lead the way for Xie Ci'an.

"Father-in-law, there's no need to be so polite. The Queen has been worried all day since she knew that Jianbai was going to discuss marriage, so I accompanied her back to take a look. Unexpectedly, Lord Qian was here too." Xie Ci'an naturally sat in the main seat holding Gu Jianchu's hand.

Lord Qian was momentarily unable to grasp the meaning of the Emperor's words. "The Marquis and Jianbai returned to the capital early, so I thought of bringing my daughter here to pay them a visit."

There are rumors inside and outside the palace now that the Queen is the most favored concubine in the harem.

Whenever the empress wants to return to her parents' home, the emperor will accompany her, which shows that the rumors outside are not false.

However, when he thought that the Queen Mother was so concerned about Gu Jianbai's marriage, a feeling of guilt lingered in his heart. After all, he had done something wrong, and some cold sweat broke out on his forehead.

Gu Jianchu observed carefully and noticed the sweat on Lord Qian's forehead. "Lord Qian, are you feeling unwell?"

Minister Qian quickly wiped the sweat from his forehead with his sleeve and said, "Thank you for your concern, Your Majesty. I am not feeling unwell. It's just that the fire in the room is too strong, and I feel a little hot."

[I have to admit, Diana's mental strength is really strong. She doesn't even look guilty at all. If she married my brother, wouldn't she tear my family apart?]

Xie Ci'an: That shouldn't be the case.

"I'm glad that Lord Qian is alright." Xie Ci'an continued, "Don't stand around here anymore. It's time for everyone to eat."

How can they eat when the emperor is sitting here?

In the end, he still sits in the position of the lower hand according to his official position.

Qian Yue and Gu Jianbai had been together for some time before, and now that they were about to discuss marriage, they simply sat together.

Gu Jianchu hadn't eaten home-cooked meals for a long time, so everything he saw seemed delicious. "Home-made fried spring rolls are still the best. Even though we have them in the palace, they can never be as delicious as home-cooked ones."

Because Gu Jianchu was the youngest, Xu was particularly doting on this youngest daughter.

When the imperial edict granting the marriage was delivered to the mansion, Xu cried at home for several days.

Seeing her daughter say this, Mrs. Xu said gently, "Achu likes it. I'll ask the kitchen to make more and take it with her when she leaves."

"Thank you for your help, mother." Gu Jianchu did not refuse his mother's kindness.

The king and his ministers have other things to say.

Gu Jianchu and his mother were chatting about household matters when they saw an unfamiliar maid walk up to Qian Yue and whisper a few words to her.

The master and servant spoke in a very low voice, and they were sitting far away and couldn't hear them. Fortunately, the melon-eating system transmitted the voice to her.

He's here, he's here, he's finally here with the intention of eloping. My cousin bribed a servant to pass on a message to Qian Yue, saying he wanted to see her one last time before she got married, and that they would never see each other again in this life.

Ever since the affair between my cousin and Qian Yue was exposed, Qian Yue has been locked up at home by Minister Qian. My cousin has tried many ways to see Qian Yue, but has not been able to do so.

Gu Jianchu asked Yunhe to quietly inform his cousin that Qian Yue would come to Nanping Marquis' Mansion for a banquet today.

I believe this cousin also knows that this is the best opportunity to see Qianyue.

Gu Jianchu was always paying attention to Qian Yue's movements. After hearing what the maid said, Qian Yue's face instantly darkened. Then he stood up and said, "Daddy, I feel a little unwell. I want to go out for some fresh air."

[Haha, your nature as a wicked woman really can't be changed. I thought you'd be more restrained if you wanted to marry my brother.]

"Where do you feel uncomfortable?" Minister Qian asked with concern.

"I just drank a few sips of wine and my head feels dizzy, but it's no big deal." Qian Yue pretended to be weak and asked someone to support her.

Minister Qian was still a little worried, but seeing so many people still present, he could only wave his hand and said, "Don't go too far."

Gu Jianbai slowly stood up and said, "Miss Qian, I'll go with you."

"No need. I won't go far. I'll just walk around nearby. The Empress and the Emperor have come here with great difficulty. You should stay and spend more time with them." Although Qian Yue refused Gu Jianbai, she said it in a considerate way that made people less angry.

"It's cold outside, you should come back early." Gu Jianbai usually faced rough men in the military camp. After just a few words with Qian Yue, his face was already slightly flushed.

After Gu Jianbai personally sent Qian Yue out, he returned to the table.

Xu grabbed Gu Jianchu's hand and couldn't help but say, "Mother remembers that Ah Chu likes crispy chicken the most. Mother will ask the kitchen to make it for you."

Just as Xu was about to give orders, Gu Jianchu immediately stopped her, "I've almost finished eating. There's no need to bother."

Gu Jianchu had no appetite at all now, he just wanted to eat melon.

[Holy crap, this is so exciting! This crazy couple is actually meeting in the plum garden behind the mansion. My cousin has already suggested elopement.]

The reason why she came back was not just to watch the show, but also to let her elder brother and father see the true face of the Qian family.

Just as Gu Jianchu was racking his brains to think of how to get everyone to go to the plum garden, Xie Ci'an had already spoken, "I remember there's a plum garden in the backyard of the Nanping Marquis's mansion. I wonder if it's in bloom now?"

The previous owner of this mansion was Prince Yu. The prince liked to show off his literary taste and planted a plum forest in the backyard. Later, the prince died without leaving behind a wife and children. The mansion was vacant, so it was given by the late emperor to Gu Yuanqing to live in.

Not knowing why the emperor mentioned the plum garden, Gu Yuanqing answered truthfully, "The servants in the palace don't know how to take care of it. Only half of it is open, and the rest will probably be open later."

"I'm here just in time. Why don't you two, my dear ministers, accompany me to appreciate the plum blossoms?" Xie Ci'an had already spoken, so even if they were reluctant, they had to accompany him.

Gu Jianchu was just worrying about how to move all these people to the Plum Garden, and then someone came and offered him a pillow just when he was dozing off.

Cheng Song and Wen Zhu brought the cloaks of the emperor and empress respectively. The maid beside Xu naturally took Gu Jianchu's cloak and stepped forward to help put it on Gu Jianchu.

Not only Minister Qian and Gu Yuanqing, but everyone in the room accompanied the Emperor and Empress to the Plum Garden.

The Plum Garden was far away in the northwest corner of the Marquis' Mansion, and the cold wind blew on everyone's faces like a knife.

After arriving at the plum garden, Gu Jianchu had no intention of appreciating the plum blossoms, and his eyes looked around.

Qian Yue didn't see it, but she saw the Qian family's maidservant who was helping to keep watch not far away. "I see that the plum blossoms over there are in full bloom. I want to take a few branches back to put in a vase."

Gu Jianchu finally understood clearly that as long as he brought the emperor over, these people behind him would naturally follow.

Xie Ci'an did not refute and followed Gu Jianchu, walking all the way west.

The little maid who was guarding by the side did not expect that the emperor and the queen would come over. Seeing this scene, she was so scared that she ran in the opposite direction.

Now not only Gu Jianchu saw it, but Minister Qian, Gu Jianbai and others who were following closely behind him also saw it.

"I remember that this is Miss Qian's personal maid." Gu Jianchu mentioned it casually.