Lanqin took the Third Prince's hand, and the three of them entered the South Courtyard together. The Third Prince hadn't been to the South Courtyard for a long time, and he noticed that the courtyard was different from before. He remembered that Lanqin used to build a slide under the grape tree in the courtyard, and he, the First Prince, and Da and A often came here to play.
How happy we were back then! Playing on the slide, and enjoying Master Niu's delicious food. It feels like ages ago, like it was so long ago. But it was only last year.
“It’s changed here,” the Third Prince couldn’t help but say as he walked in.
Lanqin smiled slightly and said, "So the slide has been put away. If the Third Prince wants to play on it, I'll have someone put it back here, okay?"
The Third Prince quickly said, "The little brother or sister in my belly will probably want to play. Hongjun is too old to play anymore."
Lanqin smiled and patted his little crescent-shaped head: "You're not that big yet, you can still play."
The Third Prince forced a smile and asked, "What are all these plants growing here?"
Lanqin took the Third Prince's hand and walked to the small vegetable garden where tomatoes were planted. She said affectionately, "Look at those little lantern-shaped fruits. Aren't they beautiful? They're edible too. Pick one and try it!"
Nianxue hurriedly went to pick a tomato, but Lanqin stopped her, saying, "Let him pick it!"
The Third Prince has been living a life of luxury since childhood, and has never seen farming. He has truly been waited on hand and foot, and probably doesn't even know where rice, potatoes, and corn come from.
Sure enough, the Third Prince looked at the small vegetable garden with a face full of doubt, as if to say: Why not plant some nice flowers instead of just some unsightly leaves? And the fruit isn't from a fruit tree, nor is it very attractive.
"Ah, this, this thing can be eaten?" The Third Prince was a little at a loss.
"Yes, you can eat it! Go try it. Pick one, wash it, and you can eat it. It tastes pretty good," Lanqin encouraged.
The Third Prince looked at Lanqin and then at Nianxue. Seeing that they were both looking at him with encouragement, he took a step, stepped over the small fence, and entered the small vegetable garden.
When the Third Prince saw these vegetables for the first time, the sudden sense of novelty dispelled all the tangled thoughts in his mind. After all, he was just a child, and the burden of having so many worries forced upon him was already somewhat unbearable.
This was something that neither the Fujin nor Lady Yin had anticipated.
"That one is better, pick that one," Lanqin instructed from the side.
The Third Prince looked around in front of the tomato plant, unsure which one to pick.
"Which one?" the Third Prince asked.
“That one, the one next to your right leg, small and red,” Lanqin said.
Following Lanqin's instructions, the Third Prince picked a bright red and round tomato and happily revealed his most genuine smile.
Nianxue took the tomatoes from his hand and quickly took them to the small kitchen to wash them.
"Can I still pick those?" The Third Prince took a bite of the cherry tomato he had picked himself and found it tasted completely different from the apples and pears he usually ate, but it was still delicious. The child's playfulness was naturally aroused.
"Of course! How about we use the vegetables that the Third Prince picked for dinner?" Lanqin said happily when she saw the smile on the Third Prince's face.
The Third Prince nodded and then walked towards the area where chili peppers and eggplants were planted.
Lanqin and Nianxue stood outside the fence, guiding the Third Prince as he began picking chili peppers.
She picked this and that, and before long, Nianxue's basket was more than half full of chili peppers.
A fine layer of sweat began to appear on the Third Prince's little crescent-shaped forehead. Lanqin couldn't help but tell him to rest, but perhaps the Third Prince hadn't been this happy in a long time, and he seemed unable to stop.
"Hey, a bug~~~" Suddenly, the Third Prince shouted, and sure enough, a soft caterpillar was crawling on his trouser leg.
"Don't move, Third Prince, there's no rush," Lanqin said, suppressing a laugh.
But now the Third Prince looked like a frightened little animal, trembling all over, because the caterpillar looked absolutely disgusting.
Nianxue quickly stepped inside, picked up a dry twig from the ground, and carefully removed the caterpillar from the Third Prince's body.
As soon as the insect left the Third Prince, he immediately relaxed like a deflated balloon.
"How come there are bugs here?" The Third Prince was a little scared and dared not continue.
“Third Prince, it’s natural for there to be caterpillars in the vegetable garden. Where there are vegetables, there will be insects,” Nianxue said.
"Third Prince, come here and wipe your sweat. Let Nianxue pick a few eggplants. Later, Chef Niu will make you a spicy eggplant dish, it's delicious." Lanqin waved her hand, signaling the Third Prince to come over.
This time, the Third Prince did not resist and obediently went out.
Having received the instructions, Niu Baoquan naturally worked very hard to prepare this dinner for Lanqin.
Seeing that the Third Prince was covered in sweat, Lanqin instructed Xicha to take him to take a bath and let him take off his clothes to dry.
"Well, I don't have any clothes to change into, so I guess I won't wash it," the Third Prince hesitated. At this moment, he no longer felt the same resistance to Lanqin as before, but there was still a knot in his heart. However, he had just been very happy, and it seemed that he couldn't hate Lanqin anymore... This feeling made the Third Prince a little annoyed with himself.
"Go take a shower. I'll have Nianxue fetch you a set of clothes from the front yard. It'll be quick. By the time you've finished your shower, Master Niu will have prepared dinner. Then, we can enjoy the chili peppers and tomatoes that the Third Prince picked himself, okay?" Lanqin wiped the sweat from the Third Prince's forehead.
In the end, the Third Prince was still dragged to take a bath by Xicha, so Nianxue asked Lanqi to get a set of clothes for the Third Prince.
Seeing that Lanqin was also tired, Nianxue quickly helped her into the main house.
“Princess, I feel like the Third Prince is different from before,” Nianxue said, her smile fading.
"You noticed it too?" Lanqin slowly walked to the main bed, her large belly making her walk very slowly.
"You noticed it too, Princess? This servant thinks the Third Prince doesn't seem as close to you as he used to be," Nianxue said worriedly.
"Look, did he call me 'Auntie' even once today?" Lanqin said as she slowly sat down.
“Yes, he hasn’t called me ‘Princess’ since he came today. There’s always a hint of resistance in his expression. What’s wrong?” Nianxue asked, puzzled. “He suddenly stopped coming before. Did something happen?”
“Nianxue, something must have happened to the Third Prince. I have a feeling it’s related to me,” Lanqin said.
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