The day finally arrived for the journey to the palace. The Fourth Prince had arranged a carriage early in the morning and stayed in the main courtyard the night before. After giving his wife some instructions, he happily went to the front courtyard. Lanqin had not yet gotten up. The Fourth Prince had eaten dinner at his wife's place the night before and had specifically told her not to get up early. He would send someone to fetch Lanqin after he finished dealing with some matters at the manor.
Having received this special order, our Comrade Lanqin naturally wouldn't get up early, much less wait for Fourth Master to call her.
It wasn't until after 7 AM that Lanqin slowly opened her eyes, and the Fourth Master hadn't sent anyone over. Nianxue helped Lanqin with her washing and dressing. Looking at the spirited Lanqin, Nianxue said, "Princess, yesterday Princess Geng seemed a bit strange, as if she wasn't the same as before."
Lanqin fiddled with some beaded flowers in her hands, glanced at Nianxue casually, and said, "No, Sister Geng has always been like that. You're overthinking it."
Nianxue paused, then relaxed and said, "Perhaps I'm overthinking it. Princess, which hairpin should you wear today?"
As the master and servant were talking, they heard Su Peisheng's voice from outside. Lanqin's face lit up with joy, and she said hurriedly, "Quick, quick, put this butterfly flower on me."
After Lanqin finished packing, Nianxue and Xicha followed behind her, while Li Shubao and several eunuchs brought by Eunuch Su carried two boxes and followed.
"Princess, there are plenty in the palace. You've brought way too many," Su Peisheng said with a forced smile.
“These are all things I’m used to every day, and I wouldn’t feel comfortable using anything else. For example, the teacups and bowls I use are definitely not available in the palace.” Lanqin really wasn’t used to using the kind of teacups that people used in ancient times, so she asked the Fourth Prince to have a few Starbucks-style cups with handles specially made for her.
Pottery workshops were ubiquitous in this era, so it wasn't difficult for our Comrade Lanqin to make some modern, handled cups. When the pottery masters saw Lanqin's design drawings, they were quite surprised; they had never seen such a completely different type of vessel before. Then, after they made them, they found that these cups were indeed more convenient for holding water. So, when Lanqin went to pick up the goods, the workshop owner tentatively asked her where she got the drawings and if she could be introduced to them.
After Lanqin learned who the person who wanted to see the design drawings was, she thought about it seriously, because these drawings were her own work. Perhaps she really could have been a successful designer and businesswoman in the Qing Dynasty three hundred years ago? Who knows!
In the end, Lanqin refused the pottery shop owner's offer because she didn't want archaeologists to find traces of modern cups in many Qing Dynasty tombs three hundred years later! That would be too outrageous; perhaps her small action could trigger a major shift in the historical landscape! Our Comrade Lanqin didn't want to cause such a big change; she'd rather be a quiet and beautiful woman in the Fourth Prince's backyard!
Su Peisheng was already used to Lanqin's special requests and didn't mind. Anyway, since Fourth Master could spoil her, why would he, a mere errand boy, mind?
When Lanqin arrived at the front gate of the capital, she was a little dumbfounded, because the primary wife and a large group of women were surrounding the Fourth Prince, fussing over him! Well, they all wanted to make their presence known to the Fourth Prince, so it's no wonder they were there!
"Princess Niu, the Fourth Prince is entrusting this to you. The palace is not as good as the manor, so please take good care of things. If anything is missing, send someone back to let us know." The Fujin saw Lanqin and the trunk behind her, and a barely perceptible glint of something else flashed in her eyes before she spoke with a friendly tone.
"Yes, thank you for your guidance, Madam." Lanqin curtsied obediently, then bowed to Madam Li. The others bowed at equal measure. When Lanqin's gaze fell upon Madam Geng, a look of surprise immediately appeared in her eyes, for Madam Geng was wearing the sky-blue cheongsam Lanqin had given her. She looked much more radiant, and with her exquisite makeup, she truly seemed transformed, standing out quite a bit among the group of beautiful women. Normally, Madam Geng would be the kind of woman who wouldn't attract any attention at all among this group of women. Not only Lanqin, but even the Fourth Prince glanced at her a few more times.
"Princess Consort, you should all go back now. The Prince will come back to visit from time to time, but it won't be long, just over a month. The Golden Festival is approaching, so you should start preparing," the Fourth Prince said to his wife.
The Banjin Festival was one of the biggest celebrations for the Manchus, established by Emperor Taizong of the Qing Dynasty (Huang Taiji) as the anniversary of the founding of the Qing Dynasty. Every year on this day, the Qing emperors would hold palace banquets and hold sacrificial ceremonies to celebrate. The primary and secondary wives of the princes would then enter the palace.
"Please rest assured, my lord, I will make all the preparations." The princess said obediently.
Li stood to the side, eagerly watching the Fourth Prince, but he didn't look at her. This made Li somewhat uncomfortable. Fortunately, the Fourth Prince suddenly burst into tears in the arms of his new wet nurse, attracting the Fourth Prince's attention.
"What's wrong? Why is Hongshi suddenly crying?" Fourth Master immediately turned his gaze over and even hurriedly went to the wet nurse's side to ask.
“The Fourth Prince must be feeling a bit bored, standing like this for so long,” Madam Li said gently. “Hongshi, let your father hug you. You haven’t seen your father for over a month.”
The Fourth Prince tenderly took his son from the wet nurse and held him in his arms, comforting him for a long time, saying, "Good boy, don't cry. Father will come back to see you soon."
Hearing this, Li was naturally delighted, but she couldn't show it on her face. She continued the conversation with the Fourth Prince and said, "Hongshi, quickly, recite the Three Character Classic that your mother taught you a while ago to your father!"
Hongshi is now one year old. Although he doesn't speak very fluently yet, he is quite articulate and intelligent. Since falling into the water, Li has been taking meticulous care of the Fourth Prince. As a result, the bond between the Fourth Prince and Li has been somewhat strengthened during this period.
Then, the one-year-old fourth prince began to recite: "At birth, people are inherently good; their natures are similar, but their habits differ..."
After hearing the Fourth Prince recite a passage, the Fourth Prince was indeed delighted. In fact, in front of all the women, he tapped Hongshi on the forehead. This was an unprecedented gesture, and even the Fujin (Prince's wife) was quite surprised.
As Li watched with satisfaction as Hongshi's position in the Fourth Prince's heart grew more and more important, she immediately revealed a radiant smile, happily took Hongshi out of the Fourth Prince's arms, and said, "Your Highness, I will take good care of Hongshi, so you don't need to worry."
The Fourth Prince was in a great mood. He nodded to Madam Li and even patted her on the shoulder before turning around and mounting his horse.
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