"I've already consulted Doctor Lin, and Hongshi should be fine. He just needs to take his medicine for a few more days. Let the maids come in and keep an eye on him," the Fourth Master said. Then he pulled Lanqin up from the armchair and walked out.
"Master, where are you going?" Lanqin asked in surprise. He rushed back, wasn't it to take care of Hongshi?
“Hongshi is alright now. Staying here won’t make him recover any faster. If you don’t go and rest, you’ll wear yourself out. Come on, come with me to have a meal. I haven’t had a single satisfying meal in the palace. The food from your small kitchen is much to my liking,” said the Fourth Prince. He had been busy with flood control and disaster relief in the palace these days, and Kangxi was always summoning him to the Qianqing Palace for questioning. He hadn’t been eating properly, and he looked noticeably thinner.
Lanqin then noticed that Fourth Master's cheeks had sunken, and he had indeed lost weight. She immediately said with heartache, "Alright, keep Master company and have a proper meal. He's lost weight."
When the two of them arrived at the South Courtyard, Cui Niang had already asked Niu Baoquan to prepare a table of dishes according to Lanqin and Fourth Master's preferences, all made according to the couple's usual tastes.
Lanqin had been worried about Hongshi these past few days and had spent almost all her time there, so she had been eating haphazardly for lunch and dinner. Seeing the table full of her favorite dishes, she suddenly felt hungry again.
The Fourth Prince hadn't changed his clothes or even wiped his face since he returned, and was already changing with the help of the maids. Lanqin glanced at him a few times and couldn't bear to watch any longer. In such hot weather, the Fourth Prince was still wearing three layers: an undergarment, a thin satin casual robe, and then his official robe. The casual robe was already soaked with sweat, sticking to his back.
"Master, you've already drunk all the cooling and heat-relieving water. If you keep covering yourself like this, you'll easily get heatstroke," Lanqin said. She knew that when serving in the court, one had to wear official robes. Serving the Emperor, one couldn't be disheveled or unkempt.
"Hmm, the ones you sent were very good. I even shared them with my colleagues and subordinates, and they all thought they were delicious. Why don't you write down the recipe? I'll have the palace's main kitchen prepare the water accordingly. It's too much trouble for you to arrange for someone to deliver it every day." After changing into a casual robe, the Fourth Prince still felt hot and continued, "It seems like there aren't enough ice basins?"
"When the master saw that the Fourth Prince had a fever, he ordered us to take him there," Cui Niang said hurriedly.
Fourth Master nodded and walked with Lanqin to the prepared dining table to begin their meal.
“Now that Hongshi is better, there’s no need to send the ice basin over. The other princes and princesses don’t need it either, and it’s not appropriate for him to use it alone,” the Fourth Prince suddenly said.
Lanqin said, "What you say is true, sir. I only sent over a few because he had been running a fever."
Fourth Master nodded and personally picked up a piece of shredded chicken for Lanqin, saying, "Where did you learn those methods? Doctor Lin said they're very good for lowering body temperature."
Lanqin raised her hand and said, "Hehe, I was just overthinking things. A fever is just an increase in body temperature. The hands and feet are places where the body dissipates heat, so applying a cold towel to those areas will help dissipate heat."
Fourth Master nodded and asked, "I heard that Second Princess has gone out several times and is now able to look at the account books?"
"Heh, so Fourth Master has many eyes and ears. Even though he's not in the manor, he's still very aware of what's going on there," Lanqin thought to herself.
“Second Princess is clever and eager to learn. She quickly picked things up after being taken out by the purchasing staff. I want her to learn more about household management and administration during her time in the manor, so that she won’t suffer too much hardship after marrying into the Nian family,” Lanqin said.
"Hmm. Very good. I have an idea. Why don't we move Hongjun and Hongshi over here? There are a few houses behind your courtyard. We can just open up the wall and create a door." Fourth Master said.
Lanqin stared at Fourth Master in disbelief, thinking to herself: Are you asking me to be your child's nanny, and for free?!
"What's wrong? You don't want to?" Fourth Master frowned as he looked at Lanqin's stunned expression. He felt that he didn't have much energy or time to care for his two sons, but seeing how dedicated Lanqin was, he naturally wanted her to take care of more of them.
"It's not that I'm afraid I don't have the energy to take care of everyone! I already have two princesses, and there's a second one to go." Lanqin rolled her eyes inwardly. Actually, she really didn't want to get involved in so much. If she didn't manage it well, people would gossip about it; if she managed it well, it would take a lot of energy and effort.
Fourth Master hadn't expected Lanqin to refuse his request so bluntly. If he had given the child to another woman, she would have been overjoyed and grateful. Children were the women of the inner quarters, their only support. Now, he was being given two sons for free, and this little woman was acting as if she didn't really want to accept them!
When Cui Niang and Nian Xue, who were serving outside, heard this, they were extremely anxious. The Fourth Master was sending his offspring to Lan Qin, and she was still refusing to accept it.
The atmosphere suddenly became a little stiff. The Fourth Prince remained silent, and Lanqin didn't know what to say, so she coughed and said, "Since Your Highness has entrusted the Third Prince and the Fourth Prince to me with such confidence, then I do have such a method."
Fourth Master looked up at her and asked, "What method?"
Lanqin then said, "Why don't we entrust Hongshi to Sister Song to raise? After the eldest princess got married, Sister Song was the first to serve the master. She is gentle and kind, and Hongshi desperately needs maternal love. Sister Song will definitely be able to raise him well. You can leave the third prince Hongjun with me."
Although what Lanqin said made sense, Fourth Master still felt uneasy.
Looking at Fourth Master's expression, Lanqin knew that he was bothered by her earlier harsh words to him.
"Father!" Suddenly, Ushiha, a child in the arms of his wet nurse, called out from the doorway.
Fourth Master turned his head and saw it was Ushiha. He immediately lost his stern expression and reached out to greet her. The wet nurse put Ushiha down and let the little girl walk over by herself. Ushiha was wearing a pink qipao and had two little braids in her hair. She was very cute.
She was already over two years old and could walk very steadily. When she saw that the Fourth Master wanted to hold her, she immediately opened her little mouth and rushed into his arms.
"You only know how to call him 'Father,' but why don't you call him 'Mother'?" Lanqin said sternly, seeing the little girl laughing happily in Fourth Master's arms.
Looking at Lanqin's glare, Wuxiha said aggrievedly, "I only called him 'father' because I saw Mother and Father arguing!"
Children don't lie. Ushiha's words made both Fourth Master and Lanqin's faces turn unnatural. Lanqin knew that it must have been Cui Niang who had someone bring Ushiha over because she and Fourth Master were having a falling out.
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