They continued until they were both exhausted, then collapsed onto the snow, panting heavily.
"That was exhilarating!" Fourth Master turned to Lanqin and said, "It's been a long time since I've had such a wonderful time playing in the snow."
"Yes, it's been so long since I've had this much fun. Before, there was never this much snow in winter, so I couldn't play at all!" Lanqin laughed. Although she had been in the Qing Dynasty for seven or eight years and had seen much heavier snowfalls every year than in later generations, she had never been able to play as happily as she had today.
"Haven't you seen her before?" Fourth Master asked, looking at Lanqin's profile with a puzzled expression.
"Oh, no. It's just that I've never had as much fun as I have with you today, Master." Lanqin said, turning her head to look at the Fourth Master.
Because of the snow and the cold weather, the little woman's snow-white face became even whiter, and the little bit of red on her nose and cherry lips became even redder, making her look truly pitiful.
Because of his fever, Fourth Master's face seemed a bit thinner, and he even had some stubble, making him look rugged and handsome.
The two lay there on the snow, their cloaks having slipped off during the earlier tumbling and falling to the side.
"Master, you're just right, you'll freeze if you do this!" Lanqin said to the Fourth Master, who had already climbed onto her.
"Wait a moment." Fourth Master glanced at the two cloaks, one white and one black, lying not far away. Then he quickly got up from Lanqin, somersaulted over, and took both cloaks.
"Come here, lie down on this!" Fourth Master spread his black cloak under a big tree.
Lanqin crawled over like a puppy and lay down on the black fur cloak that Fourth Master had laid out. Fourth Master then covered Lanqin with the white cloak. Instantly, Lanqin no longer felt cold.
Fourth Master lay down beside Lanqin on the cloak. The two of them looked at the snow piled on the leaves above them. And so, with the snow as their bed and the trees as their sky, they held hands and stood shoulder to shoulder, watching the snowflakes pelting their faces through the sparse leaves.
"It's snowing again!" Lanqin said.
"There seems to be an unusually large amount of snow this year!" Fourth Master said.
The two embraced in the snow, and even many years later, they still remembered that scene.
When Lanqin and the Fourth Prince left the capital, the women in the Fourth Prince's mansion were not quite sure what was going on. Anyway, the Fourth Prince and Lanqin just left, leaving behind the whole mansion.
Hongli remained at Changchun Garden with Kangxi, while Wuxiha and Bechuk were entrusted to Song Shi. When Nian Shi learned that the Fourth Prince had taken Lanqin out again, she was so angry that she smashed everything in the room. Although her confinement order had been lifted, the Fourth Prince hadn't shown his face to her since. Now, like other women without favor, she could only sit alone in her room every day.
Liu thought that her actions were completely unknown to the Fourth Prince, but little did she know that Lanqin had already presented Mu Qingyang's testimony to him. The Fourth Prince, out of consideration for her pregnancy, had not yet taken any action against her. Upon learning that the Fourth Prince had taken Lanqin out, Liu was furious, blaming him for being so heartless as to not even visit her.
Fucha resented Lanqin for not reporting Liu to the Fourth Prince, allowing that wretched woman to continue living across the street. Every day, seeing Liu smugly clutching her belly, she felt an urge to kick her pregnant belly a few times to vent her anger. She didn't understand why Lanqin was so protective of Liu, so she could only endure it and wait for an opportunity.
Madam Song and her children lived their own lives behind closed doors. Old Madam Song had already returned home, and Song Shucheng had taken up his post. To take care of him, Madam Song spent almost all the money she had saved over the years to buy him a two-courtyard house in the capital.
Wu Shi and Wu Ruyue also lived their lives almost entirely behind closed doors. The two sisters chatted and laughed together, and their days were peaceful. However, what Wu Shi didn't realize was that a seed had already been planted in Ruyue's heart. Wu Shi wasn't unhappy about the Fourth Master taking Lanqin out; on the contrary, Wu Ruyue harbored a faint resentment towards Lanqin.
Madam Geng was overjoyed that Lanqin wasn't in the manor, so she could raise Hongzhou in peace. Hongzhou was already two years old, very well-behaved, and adored Madam Geng, already regarding her as his mother. When Lanqin left, she only glanced at Hongzhou from afar.
Along the way, the Fourth Master only brought Su Peisheng with him, and Lanqin only brought Sihua and Shuiling. All the other maids stayed in the courtyard, closed the doors, and lived their own lives.
"Master, there's a porridge shop up ahead. Shall we stop for a bite?" Su Peisheng asked the Fourth Master from his horse. Si Hua and Shui Ling were in the small carriage behind, while the Fourth Master and Lan Qin rode in a large carriage.
Because it was snowing, the carriage was moving very slowly. It had been a whole day, and they had only just left Beijing.
"Yes, let's go over there and rest for a bit," Fourth Master said.
Inside, Fourth Master and Lanqin sat in the carriage, discussing which route would be closer.
"My lord, I'm a little hungry. Why don't we have our meal at the porridge shop and then find a place to rest?" Lanqin said.
"Don't worry, I know this direction and where there are good inns," Fourth Master said.
Su Peisheng helped open the carriage curtain and helped the Fourth Master down first, followed by Lanqin. Two maids had already climbed out of the carriage as well.
The group headed into the porridge shop, while the coachman drove the carriage to the side to rest.
"Su Peisheng, don't forget to get some food for the coachmen. They've been driving the carriage all day, it must be hard for them," Lanqin said kindly.
"Yes, don't worry, this servant remembers them," Su Peisheng said.
"Sirs, please have a seat here!" The porridge stall worker greeted them warmly as soon as he saw the group of people arrive. Lanqin noticed that the entire porridge stall was almost full of people.
"Are there no seats inside?" Fourth Master asked, glancing around.
"Yes, there's another floor upstairs. Please come upstairs, esteemed guests!" the waiter said hurriedly.
"Sir, there's still some upstairs. This porridge shop is doing quite well!" Lanqin said.
"Madam, although this is just a soup kitchen, travelers from all over the country stop here to rest and have some food. Business is really good," the waiter said with a smile.
“Yes, Master, let’s go up!” Lanqin said.
The group followed the worker upstairs, and after being seated, the worker began asking them what they wanted to eat.
"Isn't this a soup kitchen? It only has soup. Can we order anything else?" Lanqin asked.
"Oh, my lady, we also have congee and side dishes, as well as wine," the waiter said.
"Just bring out all the best food you have here. No need to order anything else," Fourth Master said coldly.
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