That night, Consort Hui stayed with Emperor Kangxi. When Holland learned of this, she was furious again, but she understood that beauty alone was not enough to secure her position; she needed to have her own offspring. Since entering the palace, among the young ladies of her cohort, only Cao Peining could rival her. The others were all at the rank of Attendant, while she was the first to be promoted to Noble Lady.
The next day, Holland sent Huian to the Lu family home where Lanqin was staying to invite her over for a gathering. Fortunately, the Lu family home was not far from the location of the Jinan Prefectural Government Office, and the sedan chair arrived at the Lu family mansion in just a quarter of an hour.
Lanqin and Ziran were admiring the red brocade in the back garden when Yanyu arrived. Seeing Lanqin and her maid, she remembered that ever since she had asked the Fourth Master that question in the carriage that day, she hadn't seen him come to ask her again. Thinking of this, Yanyu bit her lower lip, stepped on the flowerpot soles, and helped Yunyuan walk towards Lanqin.
Zi Ran pulled on Lan Qin's arm and said, "Princess, be careful, it's a bit slippery here!"
"Sister, you have such a refined taste. These red brocades are actually quite silly. They will fight for food non-stop until their bellies burst!" Yan Yu said with a gentle smile.
Lanqin glanced to the side and saw a woman in a bright red Shu brocade embroidered with a hundred flowers and butterflies walking over. It was none other than Yan Yu!
“These fish are really something. You tell them to go east, and they go east; you tell them to go west, and they go west. They chase each other endlessly for a little bit of food. They’re really quite foolish!” Lanqin withdrew her hand, straightened up, and said.
"What do you mean by this?" Yan Yu seemed to think that Lan Qin was saying that she was being controlled, and her face immediately turned red and white with anger. She couldn't help but ask urgently, and even Yun Yuan, who was pulling on her clothes, couldn't stop her.
"What do you mean! I was just talking about the red brocade. What are you thinking about, little sister?" As soon as Lanqin saw Yan Yu, she remembered the arrogant class beauty from the next class when she was still Lin Mengyao. She was so smug and wanted all the men in the world to fall at her feet.
"If my elder sister knew you were talking to me like that, she would never tolerate you... You're so seductive!!" Yan Yu became angrier and angrier, completely ignoring what Chun Liu had said.
"Haha, we are both princesses, so how should I speak to you, Princess Yan Yu!" Lan Qin stared fiercely at Yan Yu, her gaze a stark contrast to her usual kind and lively demeanor, as if she were a completely different person!
Just because I don't deceive others doesn't mean I'll be deceived! Lanqin told herself in her heart, her fighting spirit gradually burning.
"You—" Yan Yu was speechless for a moment, then pulled off the handkerchief in front of her chest and fanned herself abruptly.
Looking at her like that, Lanqin could only laugh inwardly. She was exactly like the girl from the next class: narrow-minded, outspoken, jealous, self-assured about her beauty, and very suspicious.
"Princess, you're here!" Nianxue's voice suddenly came from behind. Lanqin dropped Yanyu and turned around to see Nianxue.
Seeing Yan Yu's indignant expression, Nian Xue suddenly felt a sense of unease. She ran to Lan Qin's side and whispered a few words in her ear.
Lanqin was taken aback, then turned to Yanyu and said, "Sister, you can enjoy yourself here. Remember, don't feed them too much, or those mindless creatures will die from overeating!"
After Lanqin left, Yan Yu stomped her foot and threw the handkerchief in her hand into the water, scaring Yun Yuan, who was standing to the side, into not daring to say anything more.
"Princess, this is the first time I've ever seen Princess Yan Yu so angry that she can't say a word!" Zi Ran and Nian Xue said as they walked back with Lan Qin.
"She provoked me, and if I don't get back at her, I'll be letting myself down!" Lanqin said, but her mind wasn't on Yan Yu at the moment. "Nianxue, did that palace maid say anything else?"
"No, he just said that Consort Lan hadn't seen the Princess for a long time and missed her dearly, so he invited the Princess to come over and reminisce about their sisterly bond," Nianxue said, mimicking Huian's tone.
"Hmph, my second sister must have something on her mind, otherwise she would never have come to me. Sisterly affection is probably the least valuable thing," Lanqin muttered to herself.
When Lanqin and her two servants arrived at the entrance of their courtyard, they saw Huian already standing there.
"This servant greets Princess Niu!" Hui'an curtsied and smiled slightly.
“Miss Hui’an, please get up. I am not a mistress of the palace and do not deserve your courtesy,” Lanqin said.
"Your Highness, what are you saying? Your Highness is the younger sister of our Consort Lan, and also the princess of the Fourth Prince. This servant should naturally pay her respects to Your Highness." Hui'an was quick-witted and was highly regarded by Holland.
"I heard that my sister wants to see me. May I ask what it is about?" Lanqin asked as she walked inside.
“It’s nothing much. Your Excellency has been missing the old master and his wife, as well as all your brothers and sisters, but they are all far away in the capital. Only you, Princess, are by your side, so you would like to come and have a chat with me,” Huian said carefully.
"Oh, then I'll go with you, Miss. I'll go inside and change my clothes." Lanqin couldn't find a reason to refuse, and she was also curious about why Holland wanted to see her at this moment.
Hui'an naturally agreed. After Lanqin changed her clothes, he instructed the steward of the Lu family to prepare a sedan chair so that she could leave the mansion with Hui'an's sedan chair.
Nianxue followed beside Lanqin's sedan chair when she suddenly remembered something and said to Lanqin through the curtain, "Princess, we're going to see Consort Lan like this without informing our master yet!"
Upon hearing this, Lanqin said sullenly, "He's so busy right now that he probably doesn't have time to pay attention to me. He's just going to take a look and will be back in a bit."
Seeing this, Nianxue didn't say anything more.
The two sedan chairs stopped at the side gate of the Jinan Prefectural Government Office. Lanqin put her hand on Nianxue's arm and stepped out of the sedan chair. Led by Hui'an, the mistress and servant walked inside, turning through several gates, before finally arriving at Guanlan Garden, where Holland lived.
"This humble servant greets Your Excellency!" As Lanqin approached, she gave a curtsy to Holland, who was standing at the door smiling at her.
"My sister is here, come here quickly, no need for so much formality!" Holland looked at Lanqin, who was bowing her head, a hint of pride flashing through her mind, but she immediately called Lanqin to get up in a friendly manner.
"It is truly my fault that I have not yet paid my respects to Your Excellency. Is Your Excellency in good health?" Lanqin walked up to Holland and was grabbed by the hand. She remembered what Yang had done to her and did not have much affection for this older sister in front of her.
"I'm not like that. I've heard that my sister is often with the Emperor these days. Why doesn't she come over for a visit?" Holland said casually.
"Sister, you don't know this, but every time the Emperor summons me, I don't have time to greet you." Lanqin subtly pulled her hand away from hers.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com