"Then I must ask Eunuch Su to take this crab-paste pastry to my brother as well, so he can have a taste." Nian Shilan spoke casually, even coquettishly, as if it were just a passing joke.
Nian Gengyao burst out laughing. "Shilan has always been like this! Back at home, she even bossed me, her own brother, around. Now that she's in the palace, she's even bolder! Hahaha!"
Before his laughter had faded, there was a sharp clack.
The Emperor set his chopsticks down on the table with measured force. The sound was not loud, but it was like a stone falling into still water.
Nian Gengyao strode ahead, his steps broad and swaggering. As he walked, he laughed out loud. "Shilan, oh, Shilan! You were so daring and mischievous in the hall just now. You're as arrogant as your big brother. No wonder you're my sister, Nian Gengyao's!"
Nian Shilan stopped and turned to look at Nian Gengyao with a smile. "Arrogant?"
Nian Gengyao raised an eyebrow at her.
Nian Shilan said, enunciating each word, "Your little sister thinks you're not arrogant enough."
Nian Gengyao stared at her for a moment, then suddenly threw his head back and roared with laughter.
"Hahaha! Good! Not arrogant enough, you say!"
Looking at her brother's spirited face, Nian Shilan silently thought: Brother, in this life, your little sister will be reckless right alongside you, all the way to the end. Let's see how it turns out.
Come on, madam! As long as the Nian brothers and sisters can figure it out. Nian Gengyao himself was a Jinshi and became an official. He was born in Hanlin and had a good mind.