Two or three days later, Lanqin's hand recovered, and the news of Fourth Master's return finally arrived, delivered by Su Peisheng. Fourth Master came after Lanqin had finished her dinner. She had already instructed the kitchen to prepare his favorite dishes. When it was time for dinner and Fourth Master hadn't returned, Lanqin still asked Niu Baoquan to prepare, and sure enough, Fourth Master ordered dinner as soon as he entered the door.

Lanqin gave Cui Niang a wink, and the latter quickly went to the small kitchen to serve the meal.

"You seem to have lost weight, but it's only been seven or eight days. You must not have been eating properly." Lanqin suddenly threw herself into the Fourth Master's arms, wrapped her arms around his waist, and said coquettishly.

"Be careful with your belly. You're a mother of two now, and you still don't know your place." Although Fourth Master was scolding, his tone was as gentle as could be.

“Your child is very strong; he can’t be easily hurt,” Lanqin said, tiptoeing to give Fourth Master a light peck on the chin.

"If it were only because you've been married for less than three months, I would want you right now." The Fourth Prince had been abstaining from sex for seven or eight days in the palace, and he had a lot of important political affairs to attend to every day. At this moment, with just a little teasing from Lanqin, he couldn't resist.

"Master, please have someone clean your face. We'll be having dinner soon," Lanqin said, her heart trembling slightly as she looked at the desire on Fourth Master's face.

Fourth Master did not immediately drag Lanqin to London. He washed his face with the help of Xicha. The table for dinner had been set up, and the meal that Chef Niu had carefully prepared for Fourth Master was served.

"The tea you sent was quite good, otherwise I'm afraid I'd break out in a rash on my face," Fourth Master said as he sat down, picking up his chopsticks and starting to eat. He was very satisfied with Lanqin's arrangement: stir-fried beef with peppers, steamed pork with taro and rice flour, mushroom and fish soup, preserved egg with minced garlic, lightly blanched clover, a little sweet lotus root, and chicken feet tips with a hint of pickled peppers. Fourth Master started eating heartily before he could even speak.

"Do Sister Song's two outfits still fit you well?" Lanqin ladled a bowl of fish soup for Fourth Master and pushed it in front of him.

Fourth Master paused for a moment, glanced at Lanqin, lowered his head and drank some fish soup, saying, "It really wasn't you who made it. No wonder the stitches are so good; it's Yu Ning's skill."

Lanqin pouted and said, "I'm not good at needlework. But I see that you're wearing so many layers, aren't you hot? Those fabrics are cool to wear, so Sister Song said it would be good to make you two sets of inner clothes."

Fourth Master nodded and said, "Very comfortable. Have Su Peisheng send some more fabric to Yu Ning and make a few more sets. There are still some of that kind of fabric in my storeroom."

Lanqin laughed and said, "You shameless bastard, Sister Song did this for you, and you've given her something to do instead."

Fourth Prince glanced at Lanqin a few times and said, "The eldest princess has also married, and Yu Ning has nothing to do, so making a few more sets of clothes would be a good idea."

Lanqin nodded and stopped trying to get Fourth Master to talk. Fourth Master also seemed to be too busy to say anything more, and he ate almost all the dishes, even finishing three small bowls of rice.

Lanqin looked on, thinking to herself: He hasn't had a single decent meal in the palace. And Consort De is really something; how come the Fourth Prince has been in the palace for so long, and she hasn't even let him have a meal there?

After finishing his meal, Fourth Master stretched out his arms wide, even letting out an unseemly burp.

"I used too much today. Come on, let's take a walk in the moonlight." Fourth Master stood up and swayed his hips from side to side with a powerful and imposing manner.

Lanqin nodded, and let the Fourth Master take her hand. The two of them went to the courtyard together.

Cui Niang and the other maids stood outside listening to the commotion inside. When they saw Fourth Master and Lanqin come out together, they all hurriedly went inside, trying their best to give the two of them some alone time.

This was something Lanqin had specifically instructed her to do; she simply didn't like having maids constantly hovering around Fourth Master when he was here.

Lanqin finally couldn't hold back and asked, "Master, how is the preparation of military rations going? It's really not easy to raise 100,000 dan of military rations in such a short time."

Fourth Master didn't want to discuss these weighty political matters with Lanqin, as it would only cause the young woman unnecessary worry. However, since Lanqin had asked, he began to speak.

"We've already raised 50,000 dan, almost half. Fortunately, Da Chun and Li Wei bought a batch of grain at low prices in Guangdong and Guangxi. As for the other half, Your Majesty is ordering officials in the Jiangzhe and Nantong areas to immediately raise military rations," Fourth Master said. This idea was originally Lan Qin's, who sent Li Wei and Da Chun out to buy grain.

"I'm afraid it will be difficult to raise enough in a short time. How is things on Father Emperor's side? It's good enough if they can maintain morale without military rations," Lanqin said.

"Father Emperor led the soldiers of the Three Banners into an encounter with the Dzungars in the Kuyeket Grassland of northern Mongolia. Both sides have suffered losses and are currently in a stalemate," the Fourth Prince said.

“Master, Qin’er has a way to quickly raise 50,000 dan of grain,” Lanqin said.

Fourth Master was just casually talking to Lanqin, but he didn't expect her to have some ideas at this time.

"Your Excellency can order the officials and wealthy households in the capital to donate grain. They enjoy the current prosperity, so why can't they even contribute some grain at a time like this? Why should the court protect their safety? As for the officials, they are paid by the court; getting each household to donate ten dan of grain shouldn't be difficult," Lanqin said. "For the wealthy households, the court can promise them tax reductions or exemptions in the future for those who donate grain during the war, or allow their children to participate in the imperial examinations and even enter officialdom."

When Fourth Master heard Lanqin say this, he suddenly felt enlightened. Why hadn't he thought of asking people in the capital to donate grain? Wouldn't that have made it much easier to raise the funds?

"My lord, what's wrong? Did I say anything inappropriate? I just feel that Father Emperor urgently needs military rations right now. Rather than waiting for grain from the Jiangnan region to arrive, let's think of a solution that's readily available to us first," Lanqin said.

“In the past, when the imperial court was in dire straits, it lent them money. Now that the imperial court is in trouble, it shouldn’t be difficult to get them to donate some grain. As for the wealthy households, we can indeed follow the method you suggested; I’m sure they will be very grateful.” Fourth Master held Lanqin’s hand, feeling that this little woman was his brain trust. Why was it that she always had an unexpected solution to everything?

"Master, what's wrong?" Lanqin asked when she saw the Fourth Master staring at her.