Becoming the Empress: Golden Finger Set Under My Bed

Translator: Storm in a Teacup

An Rushuang and Zhao Xiaotao stepped outside the room, finding Hong Yu was waiting for them in worry at the alley nearby, her body hidden behind the wall except for some part of her head. At noon, the sunshine was quite dazzling.

Hong Yu called them immediately when seeing An Rushuang. She was very hesitant, not knowing whether she should go out. What a poor girl.

Amused by her discreetness, An Rushuang couldn’t help laughing. Zhao Xiaotao, chuckling, also made fun of her, “What happened to you? Someone trod on your tail?”

Knowing she was joking around, Hong Yu snorted. “I just tried my best not to be discovered by others! Look at you...” f𝗿𝗲e𝒘e𝚋ｎ૦𝘃𝙚𝑙.com

Serving An Rushuang together these days, the two girls had become intimate friends.

An Rushuang giggled. “We still have work to do. Don’t waste time messing around.”

It was until then they stopped rowing.

Hong Yu turned around before shouting, “Uncle Qi, Miss An is ready to leave.”

The wagon driver, sitting on the shaft with one leg dangling, was smoking a long-stemmed pipe. Upon seeing An Rushuang coming up, he knocked the pipe against the shaft before stuffing it into his clothes. “Miss An! You finally came back,” he jumped off the wagon and shouted.

“Are you annoyed because we kept you waiting?” Zhao Xiaotao asked.

He, stroking his scalp, laughed naively without saying a word, merely concentrating on driving the horse. Uncle Qi, though not annoyed by the long waiting, was really fed up with Hong Yu, a chatterbox making him feel severe headache.

Since Hong Yu kept poking her head out of the window, An Rushuang asked casually what she was doing.

“Won’t the young lord An return home with you?” Hong Yu asked, staring outside the window in confusion.

An Rushuang, a little stunned by her words, suddenly realized that Hong Yu and Xiaotao had already known her elder brother was in the pharmacy, however, she had promised him she would never tell it to other people.

An Rushuang began to feel upset.

Catching a glimpse of the two maids, she, though knowing they were trustworthy, was still afraid that they would disclose the top secret carelessly. Having making up her mind, An Rushuang shook his head while saying, “I mistook him as my elder brother. Don’t mention it to anyone in case you would cause trouble for him.”

Hong Yu stared at An Rushuang with her eyes wide open. Growing up with Miss An together, she, of course, could recognize the young lord!

“How is it possible, my lady? The man is nobody but the young lord! I am sure it’s him.”

Let alone Hong Yu, Zhao Xiaotao was also astonished by An Rushuang’s words. Since they had talked in privacy for such a long time, how was it possible that he was not Miss An’s elder brother?

What did they talk about then? Though in doubt, Zhao Xiaotao still kept silent. After all, she had never met the young lord before.

An Rushuang leaned on the window frame, staring at the dazzling sunshine with a smile and answering coldly, seemingly caring about nothing, “There are a lot of people looking the same in the world. Who is closer to my elder brother, you or me?”

“Of course you are closer to him!” Hong Yu said in bewilderment.

“Since I almost mistook him as my elder brother, how could you confirm his identity?” An Rushuang glanced sideways at her with a cunning smile. “Moreover, if he is my elder brother, how could I not recognize him after a long talk? My elder brother serves in the army, while he was totally a stranger whose surname is Gu.”

Gu?

Hong Yu scratched her head, feeling a little embarrassed when thinking of her sureness of his identity minutes ago.

Zhao Xiaotao couldn’t help sighing in surprise. “There are really two persons looking that same. How astonishing it is.”

It was obvious that she was persuaded.

An Rushuang smiled in relief.

Suddenly, with the wagon turning slower, the driver asked outside the carriage, “Where are you going, Miss An? Return home or...”

Hong Yu lifted the curtain, finding they had arrived at the crossroad. “Do you need to deal with some business? Shall we go out after taking the lunch at home?”

Looking outside the window, An Rushuang, seeing the dazzling sun right at the top of their head, suddenly realized it was noon already. She, too busy to have lunch, immediately feel hungry at the moment.

“Since we are already here, there is no need going back to have lunch, or it will be too late to deal with the business,” Zhao Xiaotao suggested.

“Given the poor dishes at the restaurants, my lady, how could you eat such kind of food?” Hong Yu retorted.

Zhao Xiaotao stared at An Rushuang with a chuckle, “I know a restaurant not far from the Eastern Street named Baiwei Restaurant (TN: “Baiwei” in Chinese literally means “one hundred flavors”). The dishes there are really delicious!” She said eagerly, her mouth almost watering, “I still remember one day when I was so hungry, I was attracted by the smell of delicious food so I walked towards the Baiwei Restaurant. Though I had no money, the kind-hearted boss still gave me a steamed bun with dishes in it. The bun was so big and delicious...”

Zhao Xiaotao swallowed with a bitter smile. “If only I can eat another bun made by the Baiwei Restaurant...”

A little stunned, An Rushuang did hear about this restaurant before, but it was after she married into the royal family that the Baiwei Restaurant gained its reputation. It was surprising that as early as she just came to the capital, the Baiwei Restaurant had already been established.

“What a poor girl!” Hong Yu made fun of Zhao Xiaotao by sticking out her tongue. Staring at each other with their bloodshot eyes, these two young girls nearly had a fight.

“Stop rowing!”

An Rushuang shouted seriously at once and continued, “Since I have never been there before, let’s have a taste there together.” Given its proximity to the Eastern Street, she could also bring some dishes to Bian Wen—-after all, she was asking for his help.

“Okay!”

Zhao Xiaotao responded at once before lifting the curtain and informing Uncle Qi.

“Head for the Baiwei Restaurant!”

Uncle Qi responded loudly before speeding up.

Since it’s not far from here, it merely took them a quarter to get to the restaurant.

When Zhao Xiaotao was still recollecting the delicacy of the dishes, there suddenly came Uncle Qi’s shout. “Miss An, we have arrived at the Baiwei Pestaurant!”

Out of the window, there wasn’t any magnificent facade but two doors not so narrow with old lanterns hung at either side and a big and tipping board above inscribed with gilded Chinese characters, Baiwei Restaurant