Lanqin still looked at Xinyi with a blank expression, and forced a smile: You said that the Fourth Prince saw his cousin in the palace yesterday?
Hearing this, the maids Cui Niang and Nian Xue looked at Lan Qin with unease. It seemed that the Fourth Master had gone somewhere else last night. No wonder Su Peisheng refused to reveal anything. It turned out that the Fourth Master had some new situation.
“Third sister, Mother said that this Wuya Wanru seems to be very much liked by Consort De. If it weren’t for her lowly birth, she might have been betrothed to the Fourth Prince back then. Even if she wasn’t the primary wife, she would at least be a secondary wife or something. Concubines are too lowly, and she is Consort De’s own niece, so she was arranged to marry him back then,” Xinyi continued.
Lanqin was stunned for a long time. Cui Niang and Nianxue, who were standing to the side, thought that Lanqin couldn't accept it, so they quickly gave Xinyi a look, telling her not to say so much for the time being, and to let Lanqin digest it! Seeing Lanqin's dumbfounded expression, Xinyi also quickly shut up and didn't say anything.
“My lady, lunch is ready. Why don’t you eat first?” Cui Niang said hurriedly. “Chef Niu has prepared several new dishes for you and the Seventh Consort today. I have never seen them before.”
Knowing that Lanqin always loved to eat, Cui Niang had no choice but to use food to distract her.
"Oh, okay, Xinyi, let's go have lunch together. Chef Niu's cooking is excellent." Lanqin suddenly came to her senses, grabbed Xinyi's hand, and walked away. Xinyi didn't expect Lanqin to seem so unaffected, and was puzzled, but dared not say anything more, so she could only accompany Lanqin to lunch.
After finishing their meal, Xin Yi chatted with Lan Qin for a while before taking her leave. She was now the head of the Seventh Prince's household, and the household couldn't do without her for even a day. It was Consort Cheng's gratitude for Lan Qin and the Fourth Prince's care for the Seventh Prince that prompted her to immediately inform Lan Qin through Xin Yi. Consort De, on the other hand, had no intention of informing Lan Qin that her son was once again thinking about his first love, and the Fourth Prince refused to say anything either.
"My lady, the newly arrived Yunnan white tea is quite good. Shall I have Xicha brew some?" Cui Niang said, seeing Lanqin sitting on the daybed by the south window of the main room, lost in thought.
"Hmm, tell them to come in and report if they have anything to do later." Lanqin rested her chin on her hand. She curled up one leg, placing the other hand on her knee.
Cui Niang hummed in agreement. Seeing that Lanqin looked preoccupied, yet still managed to handle the household affairs, she knew Lanqin was a good mistress. Though sometimes a bit carefree, she was clear-headed when it came to important matters. At this time, if a man had wandering thoughts, a woman couldn't just throw a tantrum. If anything went wrong, wouldn't that give him an excuse to be unfaithful?
After meeting with several people in charge, Lanqin managed to handle everything without showing any emotion, sent them away, and then went to take a nap.
"My lady, let me let you loosen your hair first, so you can clear your head." Seeing that Lanqin hadn't shown any signs of distress, Cui Niang was afraid that she was holding in her anger and would harm her health, so she wanted to persuade her.
Lanqin nodded and let Sihua help her onto the main couch. Xicha quickly placed a large cushion behind her back so that Lanqin could lean against it. Sihua then began to let Lanqin's hair down.
"My lord, please don't take it to heart. That's all in the past. That Lady Wuya is Consort De's niece, so it's inevitable that she would run into you," Cui Niang said carefully, trying to comfort him.
Lanqin had her eyes closed at the moment, her head resting on Sihua's head, letting her continue.
“Master isn’t just mine. Even without this first love cousin, he’ll still end up with other women in the future. It’s not something I can’t understand,” Lanqin said.
After exchanging a relieved look with Nianxue, Cui Niang continued, "Yes, if Master thinks this way, then we are relieved."
"Pass on my message: do not let a single word of what happened today slip out. If Master doesn't say anything, I won't mention it either. And you must not speak of such things in front of Master, understand?" Lanqin's tone suddenly became stern.
"Yes," the maids standing in the room answered in unison.
Lanqin let Si Huatong do as she pleased, and after drinking another cup of white tea, she let Xicha take off her clothes and take a nap.
After the maids quietly withdrew, afraid of disturbing her, Lanqin frowned slightly. Her words were meant for them, to keep them from getting flustered and to remind them to continue living their lives as usual; but they were also meant for herself. The Fourth Prince would eventually become Emperor, and with the selection of imperial concubines every three years, who knew how many women would be chosen? If she was already jealous now, how could she possibly manage in the future?
Despite this, Lanqin felt quite uncomfortable. Since last night, she had a vague feeling that the Fourth Prince was acting differently than usual. This morning at breakfast, although he was the same person, Lanqin sensitively noticed that his gaze towards her was slightly different from usual. At the time, she didn't realize that he had encountered an old flame in the palace—the kind of old flame she hadn't been able to have. Xinyi had told her that the Fourth Prince had almost broken ties with Consort De over this Uya clan member. This made Lanqin feel completely at odds with the current Fourth Prince. He was so shrewd and composed; could he have once been a hot-blooded youth, capable of turning against his parents for a woman? This didn't fit the historical portrayal of Yongzheng!
With these jumbled thoughts in her mind, Lanqin drifted off to sleep. But her sleep was far from restful; in her dream, she seemed to meet someone from her hometown, which made Lanqin very happy. Finally, she had someone in this time and space with whom she could connect and chat.
"Master, Master!" Cui Niang's anxious voice suddenly came from beside her.
Lanqin tried to open her eyes, but it seemed she couldn't. She clearly heard Cui Niang's voice, but she just couldn't wake up.
"Cui Niang, what's wrong with the mistress? Why can't we wake her up?" This was Nian Xue's voice. She could actually distinguish everyone's voice.
Lanqin suddenly became anxious. Had her soul left her body again, preventing her physical body from waking up? Or was it that subconsciously she was disappointed in the Fourth Master and wanted to go back in time?
No, there are still two children here. I haven't had enough of being a favored concubine yet; I'll be the Empress Dowager someday.
Lanqin struggled to open her eyes, even using her hands and feet to exert force, and finally managed to open them, though her forehead was covered in sweat.
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