Having many handsome men means no worries; pampering them all keeps me in good spirits.

Chapter 103 Harmonious Relationship

Gulimi directly separated their tightly clasped hands, placed them between them, and took Jiang Qingyan's arm, muttering, "My husband said he was going out on business, but it turns out he went out to find a male vixen..."

After saying that, he rolled his eyes at Chen Yuan. He had thought that Chen Yuan was the most alluring man in the world, but he never expected that the person in front of him was even more alluring than him...

Meanwhile, Shen Yuan, standing to the side, had a face full of black lines, and a whole bunch of retorts were about to come out, but he swallowed them back...

Well, it wasn't easy to get the Emperor to change his attitude towards me, so I'll just have to bear with it for now...

Jiang Qingyan glanced guiltily at the men beside her, then coughed awkwardly, "Um... Shen Meiren was really hungry... so I brought him back for dinner..."

The four of them were speechless upon hearing this. This reason was too lame... At noon, which palace wouldn't send food?

Lu Nian then slowly spoke: "Is Consort Shen... the attendant of Consort Yun?"

He was in the court the day Yun Yuxuan and Shen Yuan entered the palace, but at that time he only had eyes for his husband and didn't get a good look at Shen Yuan's appearance...

Upon hearing this, Shen Yuan slightly curved his lips. "General Lu, I have long admired your name."

Of these people, he only had a good impression of Lu Nian. The reason why Xia Kingdom failed to conquer Da'an was because of Lu Nian, the invincible Jade-Faced Yama, so he still had some appreciation for him.

Lu Nian smiled politely and nodded. After all, they were both her husband's men, and as her husband said, they were meant to spend the rest of their lives together…

Mo Ting took a deep breath, adjusted his mindset, and then instructed Eunuch Wang, "Eunuch Wang, order someone to serve the meal, and remember to add an extra set of chopsticks and bowls."

After saying that, he turned and walked into the hall by himself.

Jiang Qingyan sensed Mo Ting's displeasure and quickly ran forward to take his hand, coaxing him softly, "Baby, don't be angry, it's just having a meal together..."

The frustration in Mo Ting's eyes hadn't faded, but he still nodded understandingly, "Okay... I understand..."

Since ascending to the throne as Empress, he no longer had the right to be jealous or angry at will...

As her husband's only legal wife and the mother of the nation, he absolutely cannot be jealous...

As Liang Cheng delivered the meal, noticing the ever-increasing pile of bowls and chopsticks on the table, he pondered for a moment before saying to Jiang Qingyan, "Your Majesty, isn't this table a bit too small? Would it be alright if I went back and had a larger table made? That way, there won't be enough room for any more new guests..."

Upon hearing this, the beef in the mouths of the five people at the table instantly lost its appeal. Liang Cheng really knew how to rub salt in the wound!

Feeling the chill emanating from the table, Liang Cheng realized he had said the wrong thing, quickly covered his mouth, bowed, and "escaped."

Jiang Qingyan looked at the four people sitting awkwardly at the table, pinched her brow, and said helplessly, "If you feel uncomfortable eating together, then you can each dine in your own palace from now on. There's no need to come to Chaoyang Palace."

Gulimi was pouting and biting her chopsticks when she heard that she would no longer be able to dine with her husband. She was so frightened that she quickly picked up a piece of meat and placed it in Chen Yuan's bowl next to her...

He forced a smile and said softly, "Chenchen, quickly taste this meat and see if it's delicious. I think the meat tastes especially good when there are more people eating together..."

Lu Nian quickly placed a piece of green vegetable in Chen Yuan's bowl, somewhat embarrassed, and said, "Um... a balanced diet of meat and vegetables..."

Mo Ting, however, disdained such hypocrisy. Since he lived in his husband's palace, he was determined to dine with him every day.

Shen Yuan glanced at Mo Ting, who was eating in silence, and knew that he wouldn't take the initiative to accept him like the other two. So he chuckled and ladled a bowl of soup for him, but didn't say anything more.

In short, Mo Ting didn't like hearing anything that came out of his mouth...

Mo Ting looked up at the bowl of soup that Shen Yuan had handed him, and out of the corner of his eye he saw Jiang Qingyan's expectant look. In order not to make things difficult for her, he had no choice but to take the soup from her.

Seeing that the four of them were getting along well, Jiang Qingyan smiled with satisfaction. Relationships between men are just a matter of having a meal together…

After lunch, Lu Nian and Gulimi got up and returned to their own bedroom.

However, Shen Yuan remained seated, staring intently at Jiang Qingyan.

Jiang Qingyan raised an eyebrow and winked at him, but Shen Yuan seemed not to understand her meaning, tilting his head with a face full of question marks.

After the three of them sat at the table in a stalemate for a long time, Jiang Qingyan suddenly remembered something. She patted Mo Ting's hand and said softly, "I'll take Shen Meiren to the study. You should go back to bed and get some sleep."

After saying that, she took Shen Yuan's hand and led him to the study.

Jiang Qingyan found Liang Chenghua's portrait on the shelf, handed it to Shen Yuan, and asked, "Do you recognize this person?"

Shen Yuan slowly unfolded the portrait, and his gaze froze when he saw the person's face clearly. "Why do you have his portrait?"

Jiang Qingyan explained, "Do you remember a few months ago you had someone carve a wooden sculpture for you? After you left, that person went into the craftsman's house and asked him to carve an identical wooden sculpture for him."

Shen Yuan narrowed his eyes and said coldly, "Will the craftsman agree?"

Jiang Qingyan shook her head, lowered her eyes, and said, "No, later, in a fit of anger, he severed the craftsman's tendons and... killed his brother..."

Upon hearing this, Shen Yuan clenched his fists, his eyes filled with murderous intent. That person had actually come out to commit evil...

Seeing Shen Yuan's serious expression, Jiang Qingyan took his hand and asked softly, "Who exactly is that person?"

Shen Yuan took a deep breath, pulled Jiang Qingyan into his arms, rested his chin gently on her shoulder, and said in a slightly hoarse voice, "He is my senior brother..."

Jiang Qingyan was even more puzzled, "Why would your senior brother want a wooden carving of your likeness?"

Shen Yuan kept his eyes tightly closed, unwilling to recall that painful past. He raised his head and kissed Jiang Qingyan deeply on the lips…

Unlike their previous kisses, this time Jiang Qingyan could clearly feel the bitterness in Shen Yuan's heart, and even his breathing had changed.

After a long silence, Shen Yuan slowly spoke: "When I was young, my master took me from the mountains and arranged for a much older senior brother to take care of me. I respected him like a father. As I grew up, he began to have wicked thoughts about me and tried to do unto me on several occasions..."

Jiang Qingyan gently patted Shen Yuan's back, and in her heart she spat out a curse. This old man, whether in modern times or ancient times, is always this lewd character.

He probably wanted the wood carving so he could go back and molest it every day…

Shen Yuan took a deep breath. "In the past, whenever I sensed something was wrong, I would hide in my master's room. After my master passed away, I had nowhere to stay, so I had to sneak away at night... I thought I would never see him again, but I never expected him to come after me..."