Regent, please maintain your aloof image.

Suddenly, Su Qianrou looked up at Mu Jinchen and asked, "What about yours? Didn't you say you were going to grill it for me too?" She realized what she had said after asking and felt a little embarrassed.

Mu Jinchen was surprised that she would ask such a question. He looked at her for a moment without answering.

The two looked at each other, speechless, and for a moment, the atmosphere was a little strange.

Su Qianrou was the first to come to her senses. She coughed lightly and said, "Ahem, I was just joking." Then, she turned her head awkwardly, saw the chess pieces on the side, picked one up casually, put it on the chessboard, and pretended to play chess.

"Sister Su can also play chess."

"Yes, I know a little."

Mu Zexuan was overjoyed, thinking to himself that his chance had come. He then looked at Mu Jinchen and said, "Fifth Uncle, don't you also know how to play chess? Perfect, why don't you and Sister Su play a game and see who is better?"

"Is there even a question? It's definitely my sister."

"That's not necessarily true. My fifth uncle is incredibly good at chess; no one has ever beaten him."

This only fueled Su Qianrou's fighting spirit, so she looked at Mu Jinchen and said, "Let's play a game."

Mu Jinchen looked at her silently. Just when Su Qianrou thought he wouldn't agree, he replied, "Okay," and then sat down to the side.

"please".

Seeing that she didn't intend to take back the chess piece she had just placed, Mu Jinchen didn't say anything. He casually picked up a white piece and placed it on the chessboard.

In no time, the two had played more than ten rounds.

Mu Zexuan looked at them, his smile impossible to hide.

Su Haoyu saw this by chance and became wary. He pulled him aside, grabbed his neck, and whispered, "Who are you? What is your purpose in approaching us? Tell me."

Seeing this, the hidden guards were about to make a move, but Mu Zexuan gave them a hand gesture, signaling them not to act rashly. Therefore, the guards did not appear, but instead kept a close eye on Su Haoyu.

"You will know who we are later. Don't worry, we mean no harm."

"Why should I believe you?"

"I'm just a kid, what bad intentions do you think I could have?"

“Just because you don’t have it doesn’t mean he doesn’t either,” Su Haoyu glanced at Mu Jinchen.

"You don't need to worry about that at all; he doesn't have it."

"I don't care what you're up to. I'm warning you, stay away from my sister. Otherwise, no matter who you are, I won't let you get away with it," she said before releasing him.

Mu Zexuan touched his neck and said, "Don't worry, we will never hurt Sister Su."

"That would be best," Su Haoyu said, then walked to Su Qianrou's side and stood guard.

Mu Zexuan then walked over to Mu Jinchen's side and watched him play chess.

Mu Jinchen glanced at him but didn't say anything.

An hour later, Su Qianrou lost to Mu Jinchen by a single move.

"I lost," but she wasn't disappointed. On the contrary, she was quite happy because she hadn't felt so exhilarated in a long time.

Li Nan's maternal grandfather loved playing Gomoku (Five in a Row), so in modern times, she often played Gomoku with him. At first, she would lose, but later she rarely lost. Even when she did lose, it was because she let him win. However, she has never played Gomoku since her grandfather passed away.

Even after arriving here, back in Yangzhou, she had played a game with Su Jing'an once, but Su Jing'an was no match for her, so unsurprisingly, she won.

"Your chess skills are quite good," Mu Jinchen said sincerely. At first, he didn't take it seriously and just played around. But as time went on, he realized that her chess skills were not bad at all, and could even be described as very good. Therefore, he became interested and started to treat her with great care. Unexpectedly, her chess skills were so exquisite that even he only won by one move in the end. This made him look at her in a new light.

"I can't compare to you."

Mu Jinchen simply smiled and then said, "It's getting late, let's head back first. Please forgive us for disturbing you today."

"It's alright, just be careful on the road."

"Ok".

Then, the two of them stood up.

Unbeknownst to them, Mu Zexuan had fallen asleep leaning back in his chair.

Upon seeing each other, the two instinctively looked at one another.

Su Qianrou seemed to be asking: Should I wake him up?

Mu Jinchen understood what she meant and said, "I'll carry him back."

"it is good".

Then, Mu Jinchen walked over, picked up Mu Zexuan, and started to walk out.

Su Qianrou was suddenly stopped by him, "Wait a minute."

Mu Jinchen turned around and looked at her in confusion, only to see her quickly walk over with her cloak and then cover Mu Zexuan with it.

"It's cold outside, don't catch a cold."

"Thank you very much".

"Don't be so polite. Children get sleepy easily, so take him home to rest."

"Mm," then Mu Jinchen carried Mu Zexuan out.

After they left, Su Haoyu said, "Sister, this guy doesn't seem like a simple person. You'd better keep your distance from him."

Su Qianrou looked towards the doorway, but could only see darkness. The figure had long since disappeared into the night. She said indifferently, "It was just a chance encounter. It's hard to say whether we'll meet again in the future." After a moment, she looked away and said, "Alright, it's getting late. Let's get some rest."

"Ok".

Then, the two of them went outside.

Anping Marquis's Mansion

In the study, the old Marquis sat at his desk, while the three Su brothers stood in front of him.

"Second Prince, you have been back for half a month, but neither His Majesty nor the Regent has summoned you. What are your plans?"

Before Su Jing'an could answer, Su Shenglin said, "Second brother, do you want your elder brother to help you with some socializing?"

Su Jing'an knew his elder brother well; he knew his brother wouldn't be so kind. Besides, the only person he could ask was Prince Min. However, he didn't want to get involved with Prince Min, so he declined, saying, "Thank you for your kindness, elder brother, but it's not necessary."

"Second brother, there's no need to be so polite. We're all family."

"I appreciate your kindness, elder brother."

"Brother, have you forgotten that Second Brother and Lord Song are related by marriage? Why would we need your help?"

"If my third brother hadn't mentioned it, I would have completely forgotten. I must say, my second brother is truly lucky to be related to Lord Song by marriage," he said, patting Su Jing'an on the shoulder.

Su Jing'an could easily hear the sarcasm in his voice, but he didn't take it to heart and said indifferently, "I can't compare to my elder brother."

Su Shenglin thought of his daughter marrying Prince Min, which, although only as a concubine, was still a great honor, and thus, the corners of his mouth couldn't help but turn up.

The old Marquis said, "Second son, this can't go on like this. Find some time to go to the Song residence, or have Xuan's wife go back and sound out their thoughts."

"Yes".

Not long after, Su Jing'an came out of the Ink Courtyard.

Qinghui had been waiting outside for a long time. When she saw him come out, she immediately stepped forward and said, "Greetings, Master."

"But what is it, Madam?"

"Reporting to Master, Madam requests your presence at Siyi Courtyard."

Without hesitation, Su Jing'an strode towards Siyi Courtyard.