with a smile; smilingly
Literary expression describing a gentle, composed smile. Used in written narratives or formal descriptions, not in everyday conversation.
He nodded with a smile.
The old man was gazing at his grandchild with a gentle smile.
The kanji 莞 (kan) and 爾 (ji) together form a classical Chinese-derived compound meaning 'smiling'. The phrase 莞爾として is a fixed literary expression using the classical adverbial particle として.