I started as a concubine, and I made the crown prince cry with my delicious food.

The next morning, Ye An'an was woken up by a commotion.

"Your Majesty! Your Majesty! Get up quickly! General Ye Feng... General Ye Feng has entered the palace! He's at the palace gate now, saying... saying he's been ordered by the Emperor to come to the East Palace to visit you!" Fu Yun rushed into the room excitedly, her voice trembling.

"What?" Ye An'an was startled and sat up in bed, her mind still a little dazed.

So fast?

They said they would arrive tomorrow or the day after, so why did they come today?

She wasn't prepared at all!

"Quickly! Help me wash up!" Ye An'an panicked instantly. She jumped off the bed and frantically started looking for clothes.

What should I wear?

If I dress too extravagantly, will it make me seem distant from my family?

If I dress too plainly, will I lose my status as the Crown Prince's concubine and make him feel that I'm not living well?

Faced with a closet full of clothes, Ye An'an experienced decision paralysis for the first time.

In the end, she chose a light green ruqun (a type of traditional Chinese dress) in a relatively understated color but with exquisite embroidery. It was neither too flamboyant nor lacking in elegance.

Her hair was simply styled into a bun, adorned with two exquisite jade hairpins.

When she finished getting ready and hurriedly arrived at the entrance of Tinglan Water Pavilion, she immediately saw that towering figure standing at the gate.

The man was dressed in a dusty, dark-colored outfit. He was tall and robust, with broad shoulders and a thick back, standing there like a wall. His skin was a bronze color from years of exposure to the wind and sun at the border, and his face bore several shallow scars, which, far from making him look ferocious, added to his masculine and courageous air.

He simply stood there quietly, exuding an aura of fierce killing intent that kept strangers at bay.

The palace maids and eunuchs around him kept their distance and didn't dare to breathe loudly.

But the moment he saw Ye An'an walk out, his sharp edge instantly turned into a gentle touch.

In his sharp, eagle-like eyes, a gentleness and... a hint of awkwardness appeared that Ye An'an had never seen before.

"Second...Second Brother?" Ye An'an called out tentatively.

Her voice trembled slightly.

Upon hearing her call him "Second Brother," Ye Feng's eyes instantly welled up with tears.

He strode up to Ye An'an, stretched out his large, calloused, and scarred hands, wanting to touch her head, but as if afraid of hurting her, he paused in mid-air, and finally just gently placed his hand on her shoulder.

"An An." His voice was a little hoarse, with a slight, almost imperceptible tremor. "You've grown taller... and... thinner."

The last time he saw her was three years ago. Back then, she was still a little girl who hadn't fully grown up, with chubby cheeks, and she followed him around every day, asking for candy.

Three years have passed, and she has grown into such a graceful young woman. The childishness in her eyes has faded, replaced by a touch of feminine charm.

But life in the palace must be tough, right? Look at her small frame, she looks like she'd be blown away by a gust of wind.

A surge of intense heartache and... guilt welled up in Ye Feng's heart instantly.

As her older brother, he was often away from home and couldn't take good care of her.

Looking into his eyes, which were filled with heartache, and listening to his hoarse voice, Ye An'an's tension and panic caused by the "imposter" instantly vanished.

Instead, a warm, slightly sour feeling welled up in my nose.

This is what family is like.

They are the kind of family members who will unconditionally care for you and feel sorry for you, no matter what you become.

"Second Brother!" She could no longer hold back, and tears streamed down her face.

Her crying terrified Ye Feng.

"Hey, hey, why are you crying?" He was immediately at a loss. His hands, which could wield a sword on the battlefield without blinking, were now clumsy and didn't know where to put them.

"Did...did you suffer some injustice in the palace? Who bullied you? Tell your second brother! Your second brother will go right now and twist their head off!" He looked tense, and his murderous aura uncontrollably emanated from him.

Fuyun and Chenzhu, who were standing nearby, turned pale with fright.

"No, no!" Ye An'an quickly wiped away her tears, laughing and crying at the same time, "No one bullied me! I... I was just so happy to see you!"

She knew that her second brother was a simple-minded and straightforward person. If he knew someone was bullying him, he was capable of twisting someone's head off.

Ye Feng breathed a sigh of relief when he heard that no one was bullying her.

He rummaged around in his huge backpack for a while, and then, as if presenting a treasure, pulled out something tightly wrapped in oil paper and handed it over.

"Here, this is what your second brother brought back for you from the North. It's your favorite dried venison strips."

Ye An'an took the heavy oil paper package, opened it, and found it full of venison strips that had been roasted until they were crispy and glistening with oil.

A pure, smoky aroma of meat wafted over.

"Try it quickly and see if it still tastes the same." Ye Feng looked at her expectantly.

Ye An'an picked up one and put it in her mouth.

The meat strips are very chewy, savory and flavorful, and become more fragrant the more you chew them.

It's the most familiar taste from my memory, the taste that belongs to this body.

"It's delicious!" She nodded vigorously, tears welling up in her eyes again.

"As long as it tastes good!" Ye Feng smiled憨厚ly, revealing a set of big white teeth, looking at her satisfied expression.

He felt that all his efforts, even traveling day and night, were worth it to see his sister's smile.

"Second Brother, come in and sit down." Ye An'an pulled his arm and walked into the courtyard. "You must be tired, right? Are you hungry? I'll make you something delicious!"

"I'm not hungry, I'm not hungry," Ye Feng said, but his eyes were uncontrollably drawn to the rich, unique aroma wafting from the courtyard.

He sniffed and asked curiously, "An'an, what are you cooking in your yard? It smells so good!"

The flavor was so complex. There was the aroma of meat, the umami of bone broth, and another... I can't quite put my finger on it, but it was incredibly potent, a numbing and spicy aroma.

Just the smell made his stomach rumble again, even though he had just eaten breakfast.

When Ye An'an heard him ask this, a smug smile immediately appeared on her face.

She pulled him to the door of the small kitchen, pointing to the three large copper pots inside that were bubbling and steaming, and the cutting board next to them, which was full of all kinds of ingredients, like a queen showing off her treasures.

"Ta-da!" she exclaimed proudly, chin held high. "Second Brother, this is a welcome feast I've prepared for you and... for you!"

"This is called hot pot!"