Breakfast

Fu Wutian's parents had died when he was ten.

His father, Fu Xiao, had spent his life fighting on the battlefield. He had risen on the battlefield and fallen on the battlefield. His mother, meanwhile, had been an extraordinary woman—not the usual gentle, refined sort, but forthright and bold. She had not been a citizen of Da Ya. It was said that Fu Xiao had brought her back from beyond the frontier in those years, and they had married soon afterward.

Fu Xiao had spent most of the year beyond the frontier, and his wife had lived there with him. After Fu Xiao died, she had not lingered either. After leaving behind only a few instructions, she followed Fu Xiao in death.

An Ziran had heard all this before marrying into Prince Fu's Manor.

Now, only Fu Wutian and Old Prince Fu remained as the heads of Prince Fu's Manor. On the first day after marriage, they were supposed to serve tea to their elders. Since Fu Wutian's parents were gone, they could only serve tea to Old Prince Fu.

After passing through the corridor, the two arrived at the main hall.

Old Prince Fu had already risen. He was seated at the place of honor, drinking the hot tea poured by a servant. In the otherwise empty hall, only he and the servant attending at his side were present.

The moment he saw them enter, Old Prince Fu immediately set down his teacup and stared straight at them.

Seeing him like this, An Ziran instinctively felt that Old Prince Fu was probably not entirely clear-headed at the moment. Fu Wutian must have deliberately taken advantage of his condition to arrange for him to agree to his grandson marrying a male consort. An Ziran did not believe the old prince would have agreed if he had not been ill.

An Ziran took a cup of tea from the tray held by a servant and offered it to Old Prince Fu. "Grandfather, please have some tea."

Old Prince Fu accepted it with a beaming smile and took a sip before saying, "My grandson's wife is so well-behaved." Then he stuffed a red packet into An Ziran's hand. It was thin and did not seem particularly weighty. Only afterward did An Ziran learn that it contained a ten-thousand-tael banknote. Such generosity with a single gesture truly surprised him.

An Ziran deliberately ignored the words "grandson's wife," accepted the red packet without changing expression, and thanked him.

Fu Wutian served tea as well, but Old Prince Fu was nowhere near as enthusiastic toward his own grandson.

Once they rose, An Ziran heard Old Prince Fu say to his grandson in a smug tone, "Wutian, it was not for nothing that Grandfather brought out such fine wine as Extreme Sun Drunk. You truly did not disappoint Grandfather. But I heard from the servants that you two were very intense yesterday. It is only the first day, so be more careful. Don't exhaust your wife."

Extreme Sun Drunk?

Could that have been the wine he drank last night?

An Ziran immediately looked at Fu Wutian, who said, "Grandfather, your grandson knows his limits."

Yet Old Prince Fu remained unconvinced. "If you knew your limits, why would your wife have cried out so loudly yesterday? Don't think I don't know. You must have tormented your wife hard last night, or how could he have gotten up so late this morning? It must have been your doing."

Before An Ziran had even finished listening, he already wanted to dig a hole and bury himself in it.

Once he regained his senses last night, he had known Fu Wutian had tricked him again. Although he had been mentally prepared, hearing those words from Old Prince Fu made him feel uncomfortable all over. He had always thought Fu Wutian had prepared that wine, but he had not expected the real culprit to be Old Prince Fu. He had been mistaken.

He discovered that Old Prince Fu only occasionally lost parts of his memory, but whether before or after losing it, his mind remained sharp. He even knew to seek benefits for his grandson. What An Ziran did not know was that because of Old Prince Fu's action, he had escaped the ordeal of consummating the marriage later on. Otherwise, last night would not have been limited to simple masturbation.

"Grandfather, your grandson will be more careful next time."

Fu Wutian remained utterly calm. Old Prince Fu was far more unrestrained after losing his memory.

An Ziran glanced at him. There would not be a next time.

Old Prince Fu failed to notice the undercurrent between them and happily took his grandson and grandson's wife to breakfast. The manor's breakfast was not especially lavish or extravagant. It was much like what the An Family ate: porridge, eggs, steamed buns, flatbreads, and the like.

An Ziran was not surprised. The people of Prince Fu's Manor were simply that sort. Compared to those who schemed against one another with bellies full of malicious thoughts, they were more genuine. He had long guessed they were not people who cared about appearances.

Fu Wutian placed a steamed bun and a flatbread into his bowl. The porridge had just been ladled from the pot, giving off a steaming, fragrant aroma that made one's mouth water.

An Ziran said nothing. Instead, he took a flatbread for the old prince, who was smiling at them. After hesitating for a moment, he placed one in Fu Wutian's bowl as well. His expression was exceptionally reluctant, but Fu Wutian still thanked him.

In that small moment of warmth, none of the three spoke again.

Fu Wutian was an adult with a large appetite. He ate three flatbreads and four steamed buns before stopping. Then he personally peeled two eggs and placed one in An Ziran's bowl.

"You forget your grandfather once you have a wife."

Old Prince Fu's complaining voice sounded beside them.

It even rhymed rather well.

An Ziran looked up and, sure enough, saw Old Prince Fu gazing at them resentfully. An unpeeled egg sat in his bowl, seemingly placed there by Fu Wutian. An Ziran had vaguely heard Fu Wutian say, "Peel it yourself," just now. His lips twitched slightly, and he promptly exchanged the egg in his own bowl for Old Prince Fu's.

"My grandson's wife is still the best." Old Prince Fu immediately beamed.

Fu Wutian calmly picked up an egg and peeled it for An Ziran, continuing to play favorites to the end.

Old Prince Fu ate his egg through gritted teeth.

What a childish grandfather and grandson pair!

An Ziran silently reached that conclusion.

Fu Wutian suddenly had a servant serve An Ziran another bowl of porridge. It was his second bowl, but before this, he had already eaten a flatbread, a steamed bun, and an egg. His stomach was already full, so he stopped him. "No need."

"You are still growing. You need to eat more," Fu Wutian said, unmoved.

An Ziran said, "I'm losing weight."

His weight had not yet dropped to a level that satisfied him, especially the baby fat on his face. Every time he looked in the mirror, he found it particularly annoying, so he had to keep losing weight.

Fu Wutian looked him straight in the eye, examining him from head to toe before finally settling his gaze on his face. "Princess Consort, I still prefer you when you are a little plump. You feel better to the touch, so there is no need to lose weight."

Because of that one sentence, An Ziran decided to lose weight no matter what.