Although the Fourth Prince Hongshi was only three years old, his mental age was like that of a five or six-year-old child. Perhaps it was because he had a bad fate since birth. First, his birth mother passed away, then he was raised by his wife for more than two years, and then he was taken out and raised alone in the front courtyard. The mother-son relationship that he had finally established with his wife was severed.

Now, he and the Third Prince are raised in the front courtyard, living in different rooms in the same place. Although he and Hongjun are brothers from the same mother, they were separated when they were too young and did not grow up together, so they have no affection for each other.

"Fourth Prince, dinner is ready. Would you like to eat with the Third Prince tonight?" Madam Xia entered Hongshi's room and saw the little boy lying on the table reading a book.

"No, I don't have much of an appetite. Do you have any iced bowls?" Hongshi asked.

"Yes, I had someone stew some mung bean soup and chill it with ice. Please serve a bowl to the Fourth Prince," said Madam Xia.

“Very well, let’s use those.” the Fourth Prince said.

Xia ordered her maid to serve the Fourth Prince a bowl of mung bean soup, while she herself picked up a palm-leaf fan to fan Hongshi.

While Hongshi was drinking mung bean soup and reading, Madam Xia said, "That concubine is really something. I told her that the Fourth Prince is afraid of the heat and asked her to bring in some ice basins. But she refused. Our Fourth Prince is still young. What if he gets sick from the heat?"

The plan was for Lady Nian to have Lady Xia constantly speak ill of Lanqin in front of Hongshi, making Hongshi dislike Lanqin and mistakenly believe that Lanqin was a harsh woman, so that the Fourth Prince would mistakenly believe that Lanqin was being mean to his offspring.

Hongshi actually had a slight misunderstanding about Lanqin. Back when he was in the Fujin's courtyard, he had heard the Fujin and Lingxiu say a lot of bad things about Lanqin.

“My second sister and third brother don’t have any either, right? It’s not good if I have them all by myself. She probably won’t give them to me because she’s eyeing these things,” Hongshi said. Xia Shi was slightly startled. She hadn’t expected that Hongshi, at such a young age, could see the reason behind something, something she herself might not have thought of.

“But it’s so cool in her own room. Since she’s in charge of the inner quarters, she should be thinking more about the master’s offspring. How can she just enjoy herself there?” Madam Xia continued to grumble in Hongshi’s ear.

Hongshi didn't take it to heart. After finishing his mung bean soup, he went out for a walk to loosen up his shin.

By now, the sun had set in the west, and the lingering heat of summer still scorched the people. After a day of intense sunshine, the trees on both sides of the road drooped their branches and leaves. Hongshi stood under the eaves, looking at some red clouds in the sky, and murmured, "It's going to rain tomorrow."

Hongjun, who was opposite, also came out. He was heading towards the South Courtyard. Ever since Lanqin suggested that the Fourth Prince let the two princes live in their own courtyards, the Third Prince had resumed his interactions with the South Courtyard. Sometimes, Lanqin would even keep the Third Prince there for meals before sending him back.

"Fourth brother, have you had dinner yet?" Hongjun asked as he saw little Hongshi standing on the steps in front of the house.

"No, it's just too hot, I don't have much of an appetite," Hongshi said.

"Come on, do you want to come with me to the concubine's place? The food she makes in her kitchen is delicious." Hongjun is already nine years old. He looks quite like Li Shi, but his build is like the Fourth Prince's, and he's almost as tall as Lanqin's nose.

"I won't go, Third Brother can go by himself." Hongshi was quite disdainful of Hongjun's behavior of recognizing the enemy as his mother. Because when he was with his wife before, she often told him that the Third Prince, as the son of Li, was close to Niohuru, who had killed his mother, and Hongshi had kept it in mind.

Seeing Hongshi's aloof and precocious demeanor, Hongjun stopped calling him and instead left the courtyard on his own, heading towards the south courtyard.

Hongshi glanced at the Third Prince's retreating figure, feeling slightly uneasy.

As evening approached and the room cooled down, Hongshi went back inside to practice calligraphy. Although he was only three years old, his handwriting was already as good as Hongjun's, and even the Fourth Prince had praised Hongshi's calligraphy as quite good.

In order to gain more approval from the Fourth Prince, Hongshi practiced calligraphy every day at dusk, writing twenty large characters each day.

Meanwhile, when Hongjun arrived at the South Courtyard, he was immediately warmly received by Nianxue and the others.

"Hongjun, is it very hot when you sleep at night in your room?" Lanqin asked the maids to bring the Third Prince an ice bowl, which he was eating while talking to Lanqin.

"It's alright. It's a bit hot during the day, but it gets cooler at night," Hongjun said.

"Is Hongshi very sensitive to heat?" Lanqin asked. "How about you bring Hongshi here for dinner next time?"

“Hongshi isn’t afraid of the heat. Every evening after dinner, he writes twenty large characters on his own in his room. He’s often covered in sweat but never complains about the heat,” Hongjun said. He quickly ate another spoonful of iced melon before adding, “I called him, but he wouldn’t come.”

Lanqin and Cui Niang exchanged a glance, then Lanqin took her handkerchief and wiped the Third Prince's mouth.

When dinner was served, the Third Prince had a great appetite. He was already a young man, and he ate just as much as Lanqin.

Because the Fourth Prince was busy procuring food supplies in the palace, he often returned to the mansion very late. Therefore, Lanqin did not wait for the Fourth Prince to come back for meals during this period.

"Auntie, this dish is delicious, much better than what the main kitchen makes," the Third Prince said as he ate.

"Eat more if you like it. Next time, call Hongshi and the brothers to dine together. That will make your aunt happy." Lanqin picked up another piece of shredded chicken for Hongjun.

“Hongshi keeps refusing to come. I’ve called him several times, but he still won’t come,” Hongjun said.

"Then why won't he come?" Lanqin picked up another chopstick of garlic-flavored vegetables for Hongjun.

“I don’t know either. He said he was raised by his wife,” Hongjun said.

Lanqin felt a little unsure about Hongshi's temperament. The young boy was far more profound than Hongjun, who was several years older. Of the three children left behind by Li Shi, the second princess was already engaged to the Nian family and rarely visited Lanqin, focusing entirely on her wedding preparations. The third prince, Hongjun, was more outgoing and had always had a good relationship with Lanqin. These two children were older, and Lanqin could understand their emotions. But the fourth prince, Hongshi, was the youngest, yet he always had a very serious demeanor, completely unlike a three-year-old. This made Lanqin wonder if the fourth prince's soul was actually that of a three-year-old, or perhaps, like herself, she had transmigrated into a child's body?