Chapter 40: He Is My Husband

Accustomed to Shen Linyuan being away from home every morning, An Ling felt a bit out of place now that they were suddenly spending the day together.

She gave a shy response and walked toward the dining table. The man on the sofa also stood up.

"Would you like some porridge? Auntie Cheng made some and left it in the rice cooker to keep warm. I'll dish some out for you."

An Ling nodded. "I'll eat after I freshen up. I just came out to see if Auntie Cheng was here."

She had originally planned to tell Auntie Cheng not to cook lunch, but since Shen Linyuan was home...

Thinking of her mother’s words, An Ling paused.

She glanced at the man’s back as he stood in the kitchen. After a moment, she turned back toward her room.

Forget it.

Shen Linyuan finally had a day off; she should let him rest at home.

After changing her clothes, An Ling sat at the table to eat her porridge.

An Zhou was still pestering her on her phone.

An Ling replied speechlessly: [Big brother, don't rush me. I'm having a bowl of porridge and then I'll be there. Otherwise, I'll starve to death by the time you're done grilling.]

An Zhou: [I heard Mom tell you to bring Shen Linyuan along. Whatever you do, don't bring him! Do you hear me!]

Her gaze faltered.

[Why?]

An Zhou: [Why else? He's an outsider! Why would you bring an outsider to our weekend family dinner?]

An Ling: [...He's my husband.]

An Zhou: [A husband from an arranged marriage barely counts. Just don't bring him! And don't ask why. Though, I bet even if you asked, Shen Linyuan wouldn't agree anyway.]

An Ling wanted to argue but didn't know where to start, so she simply stopped replying.

In truth, even without An Zhou saying anything, she hadn't planned on asking Shen Linyuan.

After finishing her porridge, seeing the man sitting on the sofa with his head down reading a book, An Ling didn't want to disturb him. She intended to quietly return to her room to grab her bag.

But just as she turned around, a gentle voice came from behind her.

"If you aren't busy today, would you like to go out with me?"

An Ling’s back stiffened. "..."

She thought she was hallucinating.

She turned around hesitantly. "...Go out?"

Shen Linyuan placed a bookmark in his book, closed it gently, and looked up at her with a warm gaze. "Yes. Since it's the weekend, we could see a movie and have dinner out."

Isn't that a date?

An Ling quickly shook the thought away, her expression turning a bit stiff. "Um... I already have plans today. I have to head out in a bit."

Hearing this, Shen Linyuan’s eyes flickered with a momentary daze.

His fingers tightened unconsciously. Once he realized what he was doing, he abruptly relaxed his grip, the curve of his lips remaining unchanged. "I see. It's my fault for forgetting to ask sooner. I hope you have a good time, then."

An Ling gave him a slight nod and turned back to her room.

When she came back out after gathering her things, the living room was empty. The book had been left on the table.

The man was standing on the balcony, holding his phone as if he were making a call.

An Ling thought for a moment and felt she should at least say goodbye to Shen Linyuan before leaving. After all, she had just turned him down.

Just as she reached the balcony, the man's gentle voice reached her ears.

"...Go ahead and cancel the restaurant reservation... No need to hold it for me, just give it to another guest. My wife has other plans and won't be able to make it."

An Ling: "..."

Why did her conscience hurt a little?

After Shen Linyuan finished the call, he turned around and saw her standing in the living room.

He was startled for a second before he smiled. "Are you leaving? Do you need me to drive you?"

An Ling didn't answer. She simply stared at him, her expression thoughtful.

After a moment, she suddenly asked, "Shen Linyuan, what do you plan to do this afternoon?"

Shen Linyuan blinked, shaking his head. "I haven't thought about it. I'll probably stay home. Why do you ask?"

An Ling bit her lip and looked away for a moment before slowly shifting her gaze back to him.

"Um... are you planning to rest at home today?"

"Most likely."

An Ling went silent for a few seconds, then spoke haltingly. "Then, if you had the choice between going out or resting, which would you pick?"

Shen Linyan looked momentarily stunned. A slight smile tugged at the corners of his mouth, and his voice carried a hint of amusement. "If it's with my wife, I would choose the former."

An Ling paused.

Lifting her head to meet the man's gaze, she blinked.

"What if we go to my house? Would you go then?"

Shen Linyan’s movements faltered slightly, but he still nodded. "I would."

Having received her answer, An Ling silently pulled out her phone.

She held the phone up, her face half-hidden behind it, revealing only a pair of beautiful, curving eyes.

"It looks like I'll have to tell Auntie Cheng not to cook today. I'm taking you somewhere for good food."

When they arrived at the An residence, An Ling told Shen Linyan to just park the car at the entrance.

She stuffed her vibrating phone back into her bag and opened the car door to step out.

On the way there, she had decided to act first and report later, suddenly announcing in the family group chat that she was bringing Shen Linyan along for the gathering.

Mother An: [Great! Welcome, welcome.]

Father An: [Then we'll grill a bit more later.]

An Zhou: [?]

An Zhou: [??]

An Zhou: [??????]

The next second, her phone was bombarded with countless voice messages and texts.

An Ling chose to ignore them all.

After all, her mother had told her this morning to bring Shen Linyan along; she was simply following instructions.

Jiang Mai was away on a business trip today and couldn't make it, so the group was small to begin with. Bringing Shen Linyan along would just make it more lively.

Once Shen Linyan stepped out of the car, An Ling took his arm.

Different from his usual suit-and-tie appearance, the man was wearing a plain white inner shirt today paired with a dark gray cashmere cardigan. The watch on his wrist was sleek and simple, and though he wore plain black trousers, he still couldn't hide the innate air of nobility that surrounded him.

"Let the housekeeper get the things from the car later. Let's go in first."

An Ling gave him a cautious heads-up.

"My brother might say some unpleasant things later. You've met him before during business deals; he has a sharp tongue. Just ignore him."

The man looked down with a soft smile. "It's fine. It is quite sudden of me to drop by."

"It's not that sudden. Mom only called me this morning."

As they stepped into the courtyard, the smoky scent of charcoal grilling wafted toward them, accompanied by the sound of voices.

An Ling spotted them, and after identifying their outfits, she waved quickly. "Dad, Mom! We're here!"

Hearing her voice, Mother An and Father An looked over.

"Lingling and Linyan are here."

As they approached, Shen Linyan’s eyes crinkled warmly, his tone gentle and respectful. "Dad, Mom."

An Ling froze beside him.

Back at the Shen residence, Shen Linyan always addressed his parents formally as Mother and Father. Hearing him call her parents "Dad and Mom" alongside her felt a little strange.

Just then, a heavy cough sounded from the side.

An Zhou was standing in front of the grill, staring at her expressionlessly.

"What about me? Aren't you going to greet me?"

An Ling blinked and gave a cheeky grin. "Brother, how's the grilling going? I'm starving!"

As she spoke, she hurried over to grab a finished skewer from the plate.

Shen Linyan also looked over, his eyes curving politely. He was about to speak when An Zhou raised a hand to cut him off.

"Hold it right there, Chairman Shen. You should just call me President An."

If he had to hear Shen Linyan call him "brother," he felt like it would shave years off his life.

The man’s smile remained unchanged, his tone still polite and professional. "Of course, President An."

President An’s mouth twitched.

Damn, this guy was a good actor.

He certainly hadn't acted this way back at the dinner party.