"Master, didn't the master say he would take you somewhere today?" Si Hua asked. She had gotten up to serve the Fourth Master when he left; he had specifically instructed her to do so.
“When he finishes court, someone from the Qianqing Palace might send a message. Let’s take this time to go out for a walk, otherwise I might…” Lanqin realized that there were palace servants all around, and if she said it, it might have reached Consort De’s ears.
Seeing that Lanqin was determined to go out, Sihua had no choice but to follow her. Lanqin didn't know where she was going, so she headed towards the Imperial Garden. Actually, there wasn't much to do in the palace, so the masters of the various palaces could only go to the Imperial Garden to relax.
“Your Highness, Consort De meant well. She was afraid that you would get into unnecessary trouble.” Si Hua had naturally heard Consort De’s words and said as she walked with Lan Qin.
Lanqin remained silent, though she understood the reasoning; however, the natural antagonism between mother-in-law and daughter-in-law still existed.
The Imperial Garden was quiet in the morning because the Emperor was holding court, so the ladies of the palace wouldn't come to the Imperial Garden at this time, lest they run into the Emperor.
"Your Highness, there's a patch of reeds over there. Why don't we go take a look?" Si Hua saw that Lan Qin's good mood had vanished immediately because of Consort De's reprimand that morning.
Lanqin then walked towards a small pond. She saw that the pond was surrounded by long reeds, with some withered lotus stalks in the middle.
"Master, there seems to be someone watching us!" Si Hua, with her sharp eyes, spotted two people standing behind the reeds by the small pond, staring at Lan Qin and herself.
Lanqin glanced at the person opposite her and immediately sighed inwardly: Why is it that the more we should not see each other, the more we have to meet?
The two people walked around the pond toward Lanqin; they were indeed Indal and his servant.
As soon as Si Hua saw this, she nervously tugged at Lan Qin's sleeve and said, "Master, let's... let's go."
But before Lanqin could react, Indal had already stepped forward and bowed to her, saying, "Little Wang is here, and has encountered the county magistrate again."
Lanqin said somewhat awkwardly, "Hehe, what a coincidence! His Highness the Prince is also strolling through the Imperial Garden."
“Actually, I was waiting for the county magistrate here,” Indal said with a smile. He was already very handsome, and with his exotic air that was different from that of men in the Qing Dynasty, coupled with his direct way of speaking, Lanqin was so embarrassed that she almost blushed.
Upon hearing this, Si Hua became even more anxious, thinking about how to get Lan Qin away as soon as possible.
"I wonder what brings the prince here?" Lanqin's heart tightened. Last night, that man had said that this Prince Indal was coveting her. Hearing such words again naturally made her nervous.
"May I have a private conversation with the county magistrate?" Indar completely ignored the expression on Si Hua's face, and he didn't realize that it was unusual for him to speak to Lan Qin like this in the Qing Palace. If others saw this, it would cause a lot of trouble.
If this were given to any other woman, she would probably refuse upon hearing such words. However, Lanqin was a person who had traveled from the future and did not place as much importance on the separation of men and women as women of this era did. Seeing that Indar seemed to have something on his mind, she hesitated for a moment before agreeing.
"My lady, didn't Her Majesty say that you should go back immediately?" Si Hua said, grabbing Lan Qin's sleeve as soon as she saw that Lan Qin had agreed.
Seeing Si Hua's expression, Lan Qin knew that Si Hua didn't want her to speak to Indal alone. But she really didn't think there was anything wrong with it. In broad daylight, was it really an unforgivable crime to talk to a man for a few minutes?
"There's nothing urgent with Mother. A few words won't take much time!" Lanqin said, glancing at Sihua.
“County, may we go over there to talk?” Indal pointed to a small wooden pavilion, only about twenty meters away from the small pond.
Lanqin nodded and walked with Indal toward the small wooden pavilion, leaving Sihua and Hook standing there.
The two entered the pavilion, only to find it filled with fallen leaves. Autumn had likely arrived; the trees had shed all their leaves overnight, and the palace servants hadn't had time to clean them up, so the autumn wind had blown them inside.
Lanqin discovered that standing in the pavilion and looking at the small pond below offered a unique and beautiful view.
“County magistrate, I actually have a favor to ask of you. I wonder if you could help me with this?” Indar stood side by side with Lanqin, looking at the small pond in front of them.
Lanqin was slightly surprised that Indar's words were about something, and asked with slight astonishment, "What is it, Your Highness?"
Indar looked at Lanqin, hesitated for a moment, and then said, "I don't know why, but I feel that the county will definitely help with this. So I have taken the liberty of asking for your help. I would like to see the Emperor. The county has connections with the Emperor. Could you please convey a message that the Tibetan prince has important business to discuss with him?"
Lanqin was surprised to hear this, and said, "Why didn't the prince go through the Empress Dowager? The prince is the Empress Dowager's nephew, and he is also the emperor's cousin."
Indal seemed to have anticipated Lanqin's words, and said, "It is true that the Empress Dowager is my aunt, but she does not want me to meet the Emperor. I do not wish to elaborate on the reasons."
Lanqin looked at Indal, then at the distant scenery, and said, "Alright, that's not difficult. I can certainly convey this message to His Majesty on your behalf."
“County magistrate, if you can persuade the Emperor to see me, I will be eternally grateful. What I have to say to the Emperor is extremely important,” Indal said.
"Understood, don't worry. I'll help you with this." Lanqin felt that since that person had stepped forward to save her, she shouldn't think too much about it; it was just a matter of passing on a message.
"Thank you, County Magistrate," Indal said, pressing his palms together.
"No need to thank me, the prince also helped Lanqin," Lanqin said with a smile.
Si Hua stood next to Hook, looking at Lanqin and Indal standing side by side, and said, "What exactly does your prince want to say to our master?"
Hook looked at his master and said, "I don't know either. We servants never interfere in our master's affairs."
Si Hua glanced at Hu Ke a few times and said, "What do you mean? Are you saying I interrupted just now?"
Hook chuckled and said, "I didn't say that, but whether the girl interrupted or not, she knows in her heart."
"You!" Si Hua turned pale with anger, just like Hu Ke.
Lanqin emerged from the small wooden pavilion, and Sihua stamped her foot and hurriedly went to greet her, taking Lanqin's hand as they walked down from the other side.
"Master, let's go back quickly," Si Hua said.
"Okay, let's go!" Lanqin said calmly.
Hook followed the path Lanqin had taken down to the wooden pavilion, where Indall still stood with his hands behind his back, gazing at the scenery of the Royal Garden.
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