Perhaps spurred on by Yinti, Kangxi decided to go to Rehe to escape the summer heat ahead of schedule. Before leaving, at the urging of Consort De, he agreed to Consort Hui's request to send her to the former residence of Prince Heshuo to live with his son Yinti, where she would be imprisoned with them and not allowed to come and go freely.
Accompanying Emperor Kangxi were the Third Prince, Eighth Prince, Ninth Prince, and Tenth Prince, as well as the Twentieth Prince, several young princesses, and the Empress Dowager. This time, Consort Yi was also brought along, leaving only Consort De and Consort Rong in the palace. Clearly, Consort De was in charge of handling matters within the harem.
In terms of government affairs, the Crown Prince acted as regent, while Prince Yong assisted in governing, with each supervising the other.
That day, the Fourth Prince returned to his residence in his own carriage. Ever since Emperor Kangxi went to Rehe, he had been feeling uneasy, because the case hadn't been fully investigated, and now that Kangxi was gone, the case was simply shelved. Why hadn't Kangxi waited any longer? Didn't this itself reveal his attitude?
As the Fourth Prince was pondering these matters, his carriage suddenly came to a halt, as if someone had blocked his way.
"Where did this come from! Are you out of your mind! Daring to block our prince's carriage!" The coachman, Ye Shi, was startled and immediately shouted at the person blocking the carriage. Because the person in front of the horse suddenly rushed out, the coachman quickly reined in the horse, and the horse reared up with a long neigh before coming to a stop.
"Your Highness, Your Highness, please do justice for us!" A man stopped the Fourth Prince's carriage, knelt in front of the horse, and kowtowed, shouting loudly.
"Who are you, daring to stop our prince's carriage?" The coachman learned from the man that he knew the person sitting in the carriage was the current prince, yet he still dared to stop the carriage, obviously he had some reason to do so.
"Su Peisheng, take him back to the Prince's Mansion!" Fourth Master said, not wanting to hear his reasons for stopping the carriage on the street.
Su Peisheng whispered a few words to the coachman, then had the man follow along on the side of the carriage towards the Prince Yong's residence.
"Sir, you're bringing along someone of unknown origin. What if he's an assassin?" Su Peisheng was called into the carriage by the Fourth Master to make room for the man.
"Where did so many assassins come from!" Fourth Master said, looking at Su Peisheng.
“Your Highness, you are now the Prince Yong, entrusted with important responsibilities by the Emperor. Perhaps some people are envious!” Su Peisheng said.
"You servant, I know what I'm doing," the Fourth Prince said with a smile.
After they arrived at the Prince Yong's residence, the Fourth Prince immediately had Su Peisheng take the man who had stopped the carriage to the front yard, while he went to Lanqin's place for the night before coming to see him.
The man was extremely grateful, never expecting that his act of stopping him would actually allow him to enter the Prince Yong's residence.
Fourth Master walked briskly towards the South Courtyard. He still prefers and is most used to seeing Lanqin and the children every day when he comes home.
Inside the small courtyard in the south, the sun was setting, and the innocent voices of children drifted through the air. Before Fourth Master even entered, he heard Wuxiha's laughter.
The Fourth Prince felt a warmth in his heart. He immediately walked up the steps, and as soon as he reached the courtyard gate, he saw several maids swinging a long rope in the yard. Ushiha and Bechuk were jumping in the middle. With each swing of the maids, Ushiha and Bechuk would jump. The Fourth Prince had never seen such a game before. He saw Lanqin standing at the bottom of the steps in front of the main house, watching her two daughters jump rope, with a contented and peaceful expression, holding a chubby little Hongli in her arms.
The scene was so beautiful that the Fourth Master was mesmerized. He stood there for a long time without uttering a sound, simply gazing at the sight.
Lanqin's gaze finally fell on Fourth Master, who was standing at the gate of the courtyard.
The two smiled at each other, separated by a courtyard and the maids and children of the crowd.
"Father!" Ushiha saw Fourth Master and immediately called out. The little girl was getting prettier and prettier, her long braids bouncing behind her head with each jump.
"Father!" Bechuk also saw Fourth Master and called out.
Fourth Master smiled at them and then walked along the covered walkway toward Lanqin.
"You must have prepared this for them?" Fourth Prince walked up to Lanqin and took Hongli from her arms.
"Would you like to give it a try, Master?" Lanqin asked with a mischievous smile.
"What kind of behavior is this!" Fourth Master said with a stern face.
"What kind of decorum is this in front of the children?" Lanqin stuck out her pink little tongue and gave Fourth Master a playful chuckle.
"Swing it around! Ushiha, Bechuk, let Mother jump!"
As they spoke, Lanqin had already run down the steps. After Wuxiha and Bechuk jumped out of the rope, Lanqin rushed in. Because of the South Courtyard, Lanqin never wore platform shoes. She was wearing light embroidered shoes and nimbly jumped around the rope like a butterfly.
"Mom is so amazing!"
"Master dances so well."
Fourth Master looked at Lanqin with a bright smile on her face, just like a girl.
Many years later, Fourth Master never forgot Lanqin at this time, Lanqin jumping rope.
After the maids took the children away to wash their faces, Lanqin and the Fourth Master went into the main room together. After the maids helped them wash their hands and faces, they began to set out the meal.
Ushiha and Bechuk also joined Lanqin and the Fourth Prince for their meal. The two little girls were doing exceptionally well, the sister and sister constantly whispering secrets only they understood. Lanqin hadn't assigned any governesses to serve them; she felt those rigid governesses would turn these most noble princesses of the era of the long queue into brain-dead and helpless cripples. Lanqin didn't want her daughters to become like that, so she personally oversaw their upbringing. She told them what they could and couldn't do, never adhering to any of those so-called "female precepts."
“Ushiha, Bechuk, no more whispering. Begin your meal. Do not speak while eating unless absolutely necessary. Silence while eating is the proper demeanor of a lady,” Lanqin said.
"Mother, can we talk a little longer?" Ushiha protested.
"No, we must start eating now," Lanqin said, immediately rejecting the idea.
“Alright, let’s finish our meal first,” Ushikha said to Bechuk, his expression as solemn as if he were deciding on some important national matter.
The Fourth Master couldn't help but curl his lips into a smile, but he absolutely refused to interfere with Lanqin's education of the two girls. This was something Lanqin had specifically agreed upon with the Fourth Master. When she was disciplining the children, he was not allowed to disagree.
After dinner, the Fourth Prince remembered the person who had stopped his carriage, and said to Lanqin, "I still have things to do in the front yard. I'll come here after I've finished dealing with them."
And so, Fourth Master left again.
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