"Hmph, I think Father Emperor will deal with these daring individuals who covet the Qing Dynasty sooner or later." Fourteenth Prince was clearly very dissatisfied with Fourth Prince's rather conservative attitude of observing the battle.
"That will have to wait until our Great Qing is ready. You're almost sixteen now, and your house is already under construction. You should think about how to manage your own property," the Fourth Prince said.
Fourteen was about to say something when Consort De stopped him.
"Yinzhen, who supervised the construction of your fourteenth brother's residence?" Consort De actually knew that many of the princes' residences were supervised by the Fourth Prince, so she assumed that the fourteenth prince's residence was also supervised by the Fourth Prince.
"Mother, it should be the seventh prince. Last time, I recommended the seventh prince to Father Emperor, and Father Emperor gave him this job," the Fourth Prince said truthfully. He occasionally gave the seventh prince some pointers, after all, he had supervised the construction of several houses.
"Seventh Brother? Wasn't it you who was in charge of the construction all along?" Consort De asked incredulously. She had originally intended to take this opportunity to see that the brothers were relatively harmonious and to try to improve their relationship.
"Hmph, I think Father Emperor will deal with these daring individuals who covet the Qing Dynasty sooner or later." Fourteenth Prince was clearly very dissatisfied with Fourth Prince's rather conservative attitude of observing the battle.
"Seventh Prince has been idle for a while, and since my son is busy with matters at the Ministry of Revenue, he recommended him to Father Emperor. Fourteenth Prince, if you have any requests, just go directly to him. Consort Cheng is already living with Mother at Yonghe Palace, so what is there that you're embarrassed to say?" Fourth Prince said.
Consort De nodded and turned to Fourteenth Prince, saying, "Your fourth brother is right. Since your residence was built under the supervision of the seventh prince, didn't you want to build a smaller racetrack in the mansion last time? Go and discuss it with your seventh brother."
Fourteen nodded, grinned at Fourth Master, and said, "Then I'll go find Seventh Brother."
After sitting for a while, Fourteenth Prince left first. Seeing how affectionate Lanqin and Fourth Prince were, he knew he couldn't stay any longer.
Seeing that the Fourth Prince seemed to have no intention of leaving, Consort De understood. She was not unreasonable, so she said to the Fourth Prince, "Fourth Prince, why don't you rest here with the concubine for a while?"
After saying that, he smiled and took Demomo's hand and left.
Lanqin blushed slightly, a rare occurrence, and then led the Fourth Master to the side hall where she was resting.
"Why was this place arranged? It's a bit too remote," Fourth Master said as he walked with Lanqin.
"Perhaps all the rooms are full, and it wouldn't be convenient to move around. Besides, I won't be staying for very long anyway," Lanqin said nonchalantly.
Nianxue and Xicha were surprised to find that both Fourth Master and Lanqin had returned together. The two maids were also confined here and could not move around.
"Master, you've come to rest for lunch. Let me help you wash your face," Lanqin said to the two maids.
After they had finished serving Lanqin and the Fourth Master by washing their faces and hands and helping them undress, they withdrew. The masters had been here for two days, and seeing that Consort De hadn't mentioned letting them leave, they wondered how many days they would stay. They urged the masters to make their own arrangements.
"My lord, I miss the children. How is Wuxiha? How is Xichen?" Lanqin pouted and said coquettishly.
Fourth Master pulled the little woman into his arms and said in a hoarse voice, "Don't you miss me? I miss you."
Lanqin's heart stirred. She hugged Fourth Master's neck, stood on tiptoe, kissed Fourth Master's nose, and said coquettishly, "I miss you too, but I'm worried about the children."
The Fourth Master was stirred by her light, fleeting kiss. Although they had only been apart for two days, they were both in their early twenties and wished they could be together every day.
"The children are still young, but thankfully, the wet nurses are taking good care of them," Fourth Master said, while whispering sweet nothings in Lanqin's ear.
"Master, you still have to go to the Ministry of Revenue this afternoon. If you don't get enough rest, you won't have any energy," Lanqin murmured.
"Good boy, I'll only do it once, okay? Sleeping for another half an hour is enough." Fourth Master's hands became increasingly restless.
"You're so naughty, Master." Lanqin actually thought so too, so she looked up and met the Fourth Master's lips.
Since it was daytime, the Fourth Prince was mindful that this was Consort De's palace and didn't dare to use too much force. Lanqin also bit the corner of the quilt and tried her best to endure it so that she wouldn't make too much noise.
However, Nianxue and Xicha still heard some noise, and both of them blushed and stood guard outside.
After calming down, the two lay flat on the bed. Lanqin curled up slightly, resting her head on Fourth Master's arm and nestled in his arms.
"Qin'er, am I stupid? So stupid that I don't even know how to please my own mother and need your help?" Fourth Master said with his eyes closed.
“Since you didn’t grow up by your mother’s side, it’s only natural that you’re a little distant. Don’t worry about it too much. However, your mother still cares about you. You should take the initiative to let go of the matter of the Sixth Prince. Besides, you are a son and a man. Why should you be so concerned about saving face for your mother? Take the initiative in everything you do,” Lanqin said with a smile.
"How has your mother treated you these past two days?" Fourth Master felt smug; only this little woman could soothe the deepest wounds in his heart.
"Not bad at all. Mother only punished me by making me copy the records from the Imperial Household Department today. I didn't know until I copied them that Mother has to read so many things every day," Lanqin pouted. Actually, she wasn't complaining to the Fourth Prince. She was just feeling content and tender at the moment, and was simply being affectionate with him.
"You were punished? For what reason?" Fourth Master opened his eyes, turned his head to face Lanqin, and patted her head.
"It's nothing, it just means we can't talk about the concubines in the palace. It's also Lanqin's fault, I was just copying the list, it's already done." Seeing that the Fourth Prince was nervous, and afraid that he would misunderstand, Lanqin quickly opened her eyes and explained. Then, she carefully repeated what she had said to Consort Yi when she met Aunt An at the satin storehouse that day.
After hearing this, the Fourth Prince tapped Lanqin's nose and said, "Indeed, it was inappropriate to say those things in such a place. If someone with ulterior motives overheard, it would only cause more trouble. Consort Yi has always been at odds with Mother." As he finished speaking, a hint of approval flashed in the Fourth Prince's eyes, just as he had when he looked at the Ninth Prince.
It is said that after Emperor Yongzheng ascended the throne, Consort Yi was the only imperial concubine who was not allowed to leave the palace to live with her son. It seems that our Fourth Prince was indeed cunning; perhaps the seeds of his dislike for Consort Yi were already sown at this time.
Lanqin didn't reply. She was indeed quite tired. She had spent almost an hour and a half copying the booklet that morning, then busied herself with preparing lunch, and now she had been tormented by the Fourth Master. She was exhausted and fell asleep in a daze.
Fourth Master wasn't tired. He wanted to talk some more, but seeing that the little woman was already asleep, he couldn't bear to disturb her, so he closed his eyes and fell asleep as well.
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