"What are you planning to do now?" Fourth Prince took off his princely hat and tossed it to Su Peisheng, who had followed him in. "Quickly change your shoes, or they'll get wet inside."
Lanqin then took off her shoes with the help of Sihua, and they were indeed a bit damp inside.
"It's so cold. I haven't even walked on the snow, yet I'm all wet inside." Lanqin took off her shoes and climbed onto the kang (heated brick bed).
The Fourth Prince also took off his shoes and got onto the heated kang with Lanqin. The two of them lay on the kang, talking. It wasn't lunchtime yet, and they were afraid of being summoned by Emperor Kangxi, so they had no choice but to sit there.
Lanqin knew that the fact that Kangxi was coming to the Fourth Prince's villa had already made many people start to make plans.
By noon, no news had come from Kangxi, and Lanqin was starving.
"Master, quickly tell them to bring out the hot pot, I'm so hungry!" Lanqin felt her stomach was empty. She had just eaten a few pastries, but she couldn't resist the empty hunger.
“Alright, let them serve the meal,” said the Fourth Prince. He was also pondering Kangxi’s thoughts; it seemed a bit odd that the Emperor hadn’t come to serve the meal on their first day.
"My lord, should I pay my respects to Father Emperor regularly?" Lanqin suddenly thought of this question.
"No need," said the Fourth Prince. "Father probably doesn't like going to pay his respects every day. Send Hongli over tomorrow and see how Father arranges things. It would be best if you could pick him up in the evening."
Lanqin nodded and said, "Yes, is Your Highness going to the palace to serve tomorrow?"
The Fourth Prince looked at the young woman and said, "Of course. The court has just selected a new batch of people, and they need to be taught how to adapt to their new jobs."
"Yes, I understand," Lanqin said, pouting.
The Fourth Prince tapped her little mouth and chuckled, "Everyone wants to serve Father Emperor, and you're not willing?"
Lanqin smiled slyly and said, "But serving a ruler is like serving a tiger."
Fourth Master looked at Lanqin and said, "Are you reminding me?"
Lanqin said, "Your Majesty, although it seems like Your Majesty is very honored and favored by the Emperor now that Father has come, Your Majesty also needs to see another side. Father has come here to see what Your Majesty is like in daily life, and to see if Your Majesty is a person who can manage both the family and the court well."
The Fourth Prince fell silent, realizing that Lanqin's words made sense. Why did Kangxi suddenly want to come to the Yuanmingyuan? Was it really because of Hongli?
“Your Majesty, it’s very likely that Father is observing you. He’s seeing if you can handle the relationships within the family, the relationships between your brothers, and the affairs of the court. So during this time, Your Majesty must put Father’s mind at ease, no matter what,” Lanqin said.
Lunch was served, but the Fourth Prince had no appetite for it. His thinking was indeed too simplistic; he only wanted to make Kangxi happy, comfortable, and able to eat and drink well, allowing him to recuperate. The young woman's words were true. As the Emperor, when choosing a new Crown Prince, wouldn't he consider the prince's character and conduct? Especially after the former Crown Prince's actions, Kangxi would be even more wary of a prince's conduct.
"Qin'er, what do you think Father Emperor will see first right now?" the Fourth Prince asked.
“Of course, it should be brotherly love and respect. Although it’s impossible in the royal family, Father Emperor, as a father, doesn’t want to see his sons scheming against each other every day. Especially you, Master, there’s hardly anyone left who can rival you. All eyes are on you. You have to be extremely careful right now, and not make a single wrong move. Even Father Emperor will be watching you closely,” Lanqin said.
“That’s right, that seems to be the case now. But Father’s thoughts are unfathomable, and I dare not presume to know them. Let things take their course, and don’t overdo it,” said the Fourth Prince.
Lanqin nodded and said, "Yes. I will just do it naturally."
After the two finished their meal, Lanqin felt cold and wanted to rest in bed for a while. Fourth Prince, fearing that Kangxi's arrival would be inconvenient on the first day and that he might be summoned at any time, did not rest but instead read in his study.
Lanqin was playing with Hongli on the bed. She saw that Hongli was a little over two years old, with a round face and was very cute.
“Hongli, your imperial grandfather is here. Shall we go and spend more time with him?” Lanqin asked tentatively.
"Is Grandfather the one in the yellow clothes?" Hongli still remembered Kangxi.
“Yes, it’s the Emperor Grandfather who sits in the palace, the one everyone has to bow to,” Lanqin said.
"Does Grandpa Emperor like Hongli?" Hongli asked in his childish voice.
“I like it! Grandpa Emperor is going to take Hongli to stay with him. Grandpa Emperor is going to teach Hongli to write, okay?” Lanqin said.
"Okay!" Hongli was wearing a bright green cotton robe, with a pigtail-like braid at the back of his head. His shiny, round forehead was very endearing.
Lanqin placed Hongli on her lap, looked at his cute little back, and asked, "Hongli, you may be going to see your grandfather tomorrow. Your mother may not be by your side, so you must listen to your grandfather."
"Why isn't Mother here?" Hongli was playing with his little cloth tiger when he heard Lanqin say this and quickly asked.
"Your mother can't be by your grandfather's side," Lanqin said.
"Why not? Does Grandfather not like Mother?" Hongli asked.
“No, perhaps Grandfather just wants to be with Hongli?” Lanqin said.
"Then Hongli would like to be with his mother, wouldn't he?" Hongli cleverly retorted.
Lanqin sighed and said, "Then your mother will ask your grandfather to bring you back every night."
Hongli finally understood. He flung the cloth tiger in his hand, turned around and threw himself into Lanqin's arms, saying, "Mother, Hongli doesn't want to leave you."
Upon hearing this, Lanqin knew that Hongli understood her meaning, so she hugged him and said, "Hongli, don't cry. Your imperial grandfather likes you. Others who want to get close to your imperial grandfather don't have the chance yet."
"But Hongli doesn't want to leave his mother." Hongli sobbed.
"It's not leaving, it's just going to keep your grandfather company. You can still see your mother every day," Lanqin immediately coaxed.
"But, but Hongli will miss his mother," Hongli said, raising his large, tear-filled eyes.
“Then your mother will go and pay her respects to your grandfather every day, so that she can see Hongli. Is that alright?” Lanqin said.
"Fine, Mother will visit Hongli every day," Hongli said, feeling wronged. He didn't know why he had to go and accompany his grandfather when he came, leaving behind his beloved mother.
Lanqin held Hongli in her arms and told him stories for a long time before finally coaxing him to sleep. Kangxi did not come to Jiuzhou Qingyan to deliver a message, probably because he was tired, or perhaps he was busy preparing the formalities.
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