The next day.
Su Peisheng specially sent a eunuch to say that the Fourth Prince's fever had subsided, but he was still a little weak and needed to rest in his room for a few more days. He also ordered the kitchen to send him the preserved egg and lean pork porridge invented by Lanqin for the next few days.
"Princess, it seems the master really liked your porridge. Now you can finally rest easy, right?" Huanbi covered her mouth and laughed. Yesterday, after returning from the kitchen, the princess stared blankly at the table full of food prepared by the Fourth Master, completely losing her usual appetite. In the end, most of it ended up in the stomachs of her three maids.
"Let's go see the First Prince and the Third Prince." Lanqin thought that if she took good care of the First Prince and the Third Prince, she would worry the Fourth Prince less, which would be a small way of showing her affection. Regardless of whether she had to give her heart to him, he was already Lin Mengyao's only support in this life.
Nianxue was scared last time; she couldn't feel at ease without following Gege. This time, she left Xicha and Huanbi in the room while she went out with Lanqin.
As soon as the master and servant arrived at the gate of the courtyard where the two princes lived, they heard the sound of whips being cracked inside.
Lanqin walked to the courtyard gate and looked inside: she saw a boy of about fifteen years old leading the eldest prince and the third prince in spinning tops! He was wielding a leather whip, whipping the wildly spinning top so hard it almost flew up.
Lanqin sighed inwardly: Consort De was truly blessed with many sons; all of them were so handsome. The Fourteenth Prince, though only fifteen or sixteen, was already almost as tall as the Fourth Prince, and perhaps even surpassed him in height. His features resembled Consort De's more than the Fourth Prince's, making him exceptionally handsome as well.
"Aunt Niu, do you know how to spin a top?" The Third Prince saw Lanqin at a glance, immediately ran over, grabbed her hand, and pulled her inside. This child, once you get to know him, is truly adorable. After being moved out of Li Shi's east courtyard by the Fourth Prince, he gradually changed his previous arrogant and willful temper.
When the eldest prince saw Lanqin arrive, he smiled slightly and continued watching his fourteenth uncle spin the top.
The Fourteenth Prince had already spotted Lanqin. Upon seeing that she was the little princess who had been in his fourth brother's arms in the woods yesterday, he began to thrust even more vigorously.
"Heh, looks like he's in his early teens," Lanqin thought to herself. This Fourteenth Prince is ten years younger than the Fourth Prince, so he's exactly sixteen now. Raised by Consort De since childhood, his relationship with his mother is definitely stronger than that between the Fourth Prince and Consort De. Many TV dramas have portrayed Consort De as not supporting the Fourth Prince's ascension to the throne, all for the sake of this youngest son.
"Wow, Fourteenth Uncle is amazing!" The Third Prince clapped his chubby little hands and cheered from the side. He was still young and couldn't whip the whip properly, so he could only watch from the side.
"Third Prince, do you want to smoke? Aunt Niu will make you a small one?" Lanqin squatted down, took the Third Prince's chubby little hand and asked. Then she saw Honghui and added, "Eldest Prince, shall I make you one too?"
The eldest prince looked at his fourteenth uncle, and seeing that he didn't seem to react, he nodded to Lanqin.
"Can you whip it?" The Fourteenth Prince finally stopped whipping, crossed his arms, and looked down at Lanqin.
In feudal society like the Qing Dynasty, spinning tops was a pastime rarely played by girls. This was because the feudal society's "Three Obediences and Four Virtues" aimed to cultivate obedient women who lacked talent and virtue. Spinning a top required loosening one's grip and wielding a whip, which was considered unladylike for young women. Therefore, daughters of respectable families rarely engaged in this activity.
"Sure, give me a smoke." Lanqin stood up and answered casually.
The Fourteenth Prince frowned slightly, flicked the whip towards Lanqin, but his expression remained cold.
Lanqin deftly took the whip, while Nianxue, standing to the side, was a little dumbfounded. She thought to herself: "Princess, when have you ever played with this before? Back when you were with the Master and Madam, didn't you complain that the eldest young master and the others were too noisy when they played with this?"
Lanqin walked over, picked up the top that had fallen to the ground, and then carefully wrapped the leather whip around the groove of the top.
With a flick of her arm, the top flew out, landing steadily on the ground and spinning wildly. Lanqin, quick as a flash, began whipping the small wooden top with her soft shoes.
Today she wore a light green, thin cheongsam, and her hair was simply styled in two buns, with a few simple yet delicate gauze flowers adorning each side. The two jade earrings, like water droplets, bounced wildly against her cheeks as Lanqin twitched.
"Wow, Aunt Niu drew so well!" the Third Prince exclaimed, clapping his hands. He didn't know when it started, but he had begun to call Lanqin "Auntie".
The eldest prince's eyes also flashed with surprise, and even the fourteenth prince was stunned for a moment before he restrained his arrogance.
After a while of activity, Lanqin felt sweat on her back and chest before she stopped. She handed the whip to the Fourteenth Prince and said, "This whip is too long for them. Let me make two sets of whips and tops that are suitable for their height."
"I didn't expect Princess Niu to know this too. Aren't women supposed to dislike such rough activities?" The Fourteenth Prince was spoiled by Consort De and had never been uncomfortable with anyone, except for a few in the palace. The Fourth Prince was given to Consort Tong, who later became Empress Xiaoyiren, to raise as a child. Therefore, Consort De doted on her youngest son. In fact, after the Fourth Prince's birth, Consort De also gave birth to another prince, the Sixth Prince of the Kangxi Emperor, but he died at the age of six. This further intensified Consort De's affection for her third son.
"I'm not an ordinary girl, you know," Lanqin said with a playful and cheerful laugh. She understood boys of fifteen or sixteen very well; they were in the midst of their rebellious adolescence, disdainful of everything, and eager to show off their uniqueness. Especially since he was a favored prince. But Lanqin wasn't afraid of him. For some reason, Lanqin could tell at a glance that the Fourteenth Prince, Yinti, was an upright boy, even though he was wearing a stern face at the moment.
Upon hearing this, the Fourteenth Prince was taken aback again, but immediately said, "Yes, it's quite extraordinary. Riding a horse, she managed to get Fourth Brother into the woods and make him disappear for a whole night."
Upon hearing this, the two young princes looked at Lanqin with surprise and disbelief. They hadn't seen their father last night, nor had they seen him early the next morning, but no one had told them that Fourth Master and Lanqin hadn't returned home all night.
Just then, a eunuch from Su Peisheng's side came over. Seeing that Lanqin and the Fourteenth Prince were both there, he first greeted them, then greeted the two young princes, and then said to the Fourteenth Prince, "Fourteenth Prince, His Majesty invites you to go over there to talk."
The Fourteenth Prince tossed the whip at Lanqin, then turned to his two nephews and said, "This afternoon, your Uncle Fourteen will accompany you horseback riding." After saying that, he followed the little eunuch to the Fourth Prince's residence.
Seeing that the two young princes were still looking at her with disbelief, Lanqin lowered her head and said to them, "Last night I went with your father to find a mythical beast, so you don't need to worry."
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