"Beyond the rules, there are also human sentiments. Alright, I won't insist anymore. What you said is indeed right, serving one's master is the duty of servants." Lanqin didn't intend to continue on this topic. Talking about human rights with a ruler from three hundred years ago was like casting pearls before swine, wasn't it?
Fourth Master looked at Lanqin and sighed inwardly: This little girl is quite opinionated. Good, I like her.
Su Peisheng, accompanied by a young eunuch, brought up two large food boxes and placed bowls on the couch table.
Nianxue and Xicha helped Fourth Master Lanqin wash her hands and were about to leave when Fourth Master said, "You don't need to serve me here anymore. Su Peisheng, you go and have dinner with them. Hurry up, because I'll be waiting for you to serve me later."
What's going on? Why is Master saying such strange things in Princess Niu's room today? Su Peisheng and the others immediately knelt down and thanked their master for his kindness.
After they left, Lanqin smiled and said, "Thank you, Master!"
"Thank you for what, Master?" Fourth Master lowered his head and personally picked up the chopsticks placed there. This was the first time he had ever used chopsticks to eat by himself; in the past, the servants had always handed them to him.
"Master Xie has satisfied Lanqin's habit of not liking others standing to the side while she eats," she said sweetly, then picked up the serving chopsticks, placed a large shrimp in the bowl in front of Master Si.
"You think you can just fob me off with a shrimp?" Fourth Prince smirked. This little princess had inexplicably touched his heart ever since they first met at Huangjue Temple, when he heard her lie.
"I'll teach Grandpa how to play cards later, is that a thank you?" Lanqin couldn't wait any longer. She picked up her chopsticks and started eating immediately.
Fourth Master wanted to tease her, but seeing her eating so well, he was a little stunned.
Almost in a flash, the little princess had eaten most of the dishes on the table.
Fourth Master immediately picked up his chopsticks and started eating without saying a word.
Before he knew it, Fourth Master's appetite had been whetted by Lanqin, and he ate an extra bowl of rice than usual. He even brought the rice to him himself.
"I'm so full! My lord, I'm full." Lanqin finally put down her chopsticks and said contentedly.
"How can you eat so heartily?" Fourth Master also put down his chopsticks and said with a slight smile. How could she eat so much with those small red lips?
"If you can't even enjoy your food, what's the point of living? Eating and drinking are the two most important things in life." Lanqin was a foodie in the 21st century. When she transmigrated, what made her happiest was having a personal chef at home, so she could eat whatever she wanted—it was simply wonderful. But these past two weeks in the Fourth Prince's inner quarters have been tough on her; she's been eating the same rations as a concubine every day. Today, she finally got to satisfy her cravings.
Upon hearing this, Fourth Master thought there was a certain quirk to it. At this moment, Su Peisheng and the others had already finished eating. Seeing that their masters had put down their chopsticks, they came in to serve them by washing their hands and mouths.
After the servants finished tidying up, they all consciously retreated outside.
Seeing their expressions, Lanqin thought to herself: "Today, I'm going to give up thirty years of my youth to this 26-year-old fourth prince. It's not a bad deal, though. He's quite handsome, and I don't dislike him at all." She couldn't help but chuckle.
In her heart, Lanqin was a thirty-year-old single woman, and Fourth Master was four years younger than her. She felt a bit like she was looking at a younger brother, and it seemed like they were about to start a relationship between an older woman and a younger man.
Other women wouldn't even dare to look at him, but she dared to laugh to herself in front of him, and her eyes showed no fear or apprehension whatsoever.
"What are you laughing at?" Fourth Master asked, feigning anger.
"When you're full, you're happy! And when you're happy, you naturally laugh." Lanqin quickly tried to cover it up, thinking to herself, "In this feudal society, can't I even laugh?"
Fourth Master glanced at the neatly folded cloth behind her and said, "Now that you've eaten and drunk your fill, let me teach you how to play cards."
As soon as Lanqin heard that they were going to play cards, she perked up immediately. She carried the pile of playing cards that was behind her to the tatami table. But these homemade playing cards were nowhere near as good as real ones; one hand couldn't hold them all, and shuffling them was difficult.
She had no choice but to draw out the plum blossom cards and lay them out on the table one by one.
"Grandpa, let me teach you how to recognize the cards first. Look at these 14 cards, they all belong to the clubs. Starting from 3, count all the way to 10, this is the natural order from smallest to largest. Then look at the 'J' to the 'King,' also in an order from smallest to largest. However, these 6 cards are no longer distinguished by Arabic numerals; these are the face cards in Western terms, and that's how the order of ranking is agreed upon." Lanqin explained the meaning of each card in modern playing cards in as much detail as possible.
"When we fight, let's follow the rule of the bigger one beating the smaller one," Fourth Master interjected.
“Yes, it also depends on what kind of card game you’re playing. You can also play pairs, three-of-a-kind with a single card, or straights,” Lanqin continued, until she had shared all her card-playing tips in one go.
"I understand, sir. Let's play a game now. This is better than leaf cards; it can be played by two people," said Fourth Master.
Lanqin had been bored for a long time, so she immediately sat cross-legged opposite Fourth Master and began her first game of cards in ancient times.
"Master, you need something to gamble on when playing cards," Lanqin suddenly thought of something and said with a mysterious smile.
"What do you want to bet?" The Fourth Prince could tell from her smile that this little princess was up to something again.
"I have plenty of money. I won't be heartbroken if I lose. Let's put on some face paint." Lanqin glanced at Fourth Master's face and, seeing that he didn't seem unhappy, said with relief.
"Painted face stickers? Is that the same as drawing flowers on one's face?" Fourth Master asked.
"Yes, it's the same thing. Every time you lose, you stick a piece of paper on your face." Lanqin's interest in playing cards was completely aroused, and she forgot that the person sitting in front of her was not her roommate, but the Fourth Prince who controlled her food, clothing and shelter.
The Fourth Prince used to see eunuchs gambling together in the palace. When they lost all their money, they would draw turtles on their faces with a brush. He and his brothers had also secretly played this game, but as princes and princesses, they couldn't do such things in front of their servants; it was all done in private. Now, this little princess actually wanted to play this game with him, and he really couldn't bring himself to do it. However, playing cards was just for fun, and it wasn't really a big deal.
Seeing the Fourth Master's embarrassed expression, Lanqin seemed to realize that she had overstepped her bounds and quickly tried to smooth things over, saying, "Master, if you lose, give me one tael of silver. If I lose, you can just stick a note on me. Is that alright?" She was quite shrewd in her little scheme; after all, she would need to spend money to bribe those servants in the future, and she wasn't afraid of losing face.
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