Before they knew it, it was the fifteenth of August, the day of Yin Tao's wedding. Hong Xi and several of his brothers followed Yin Tao to pick up his bride.
The children followed behind Yinxiang, dressed in festive clothes, and went with the procession to Fucha's residence.
This was the first time Hongxi had done something like this. He was both curious and excited. Seeing that Yin Tao was being harassed by the brothers of the Fucha family, he not only did not have the awareness to help, but also watched the show from the sidelines.
Yin Tao was a good-natured man, and since the Fucha family was only putting on a show and making a scene, the atmosphere between the two sides was naturally very harmonious.
Hongsheng nudged Hongxi, who was eating sunflower seeds, and asked, "Second brother, aren't we going to help?"
Hongxi glanced at him. "How can we help? Help Uncle Twelfth steal the bride?"
Hongsheng scratched his head. This didn't seem right; his father might beat him if he found out.
Hongxi shook his head silently at his clueless look. "Let's just wait outside. Don't try to sneak in and cause trouble. There are a lot of women here today, so don't cause any trouble."
Hongsheng nodded, indicating that he understood.
Before long, at the auspicious hour, Yin Tao welcomed Fucha Chuxue into the sedan chair, and the group went to Yin Tao's residence with music and singing.
The newlyweds had just stood in the wedding hall when Liang Jiugong entered with the imperial edict. He read the edict aloud with great ceremony, unsurprisingly bestowing the title of Beizi upon Yin Tao.
Yin Tao knew in his heart that he was not valued by Kangxi. He was only granted the title of Beizi this time, and the next promotion would probably have to wait until the new emperor ascended the throne.
After the ceremony, Yinreng arrived late with a thick list of gifts, only to be caught red-handed by Yinti, who said, "You're late, you'll have to drink a penalty shot."
Yinreng glanced at Yinti and said, "Fine, I'll drink. I don't believe you can drink me to death."
Yinti: ...
When did you become so shameless?
Seeing this, the brothers on the side laughed along, but no one egged the two brothers on, for fear that if they got into trouble, they would be blamed.
Hongxi and several other young princes sat at a table eating and drinking. Hongxi looked around but couldn't find Hongli, and began to speculate.
"Hongshi, isn't Hongli here?"
While eating a large pork knuckle, Hongshi said indistinctly, "Hongli was sent to the estate by Father and has not been brought back since."
Hongxi frowned. "Why?"
Hongshi shook his head blankly, "I don't know either. Mother only said that Hongli deserved it, but no one told me why he deserved it."
The Prince Yong's mansion only had three princes. If something truly extraordinary hadn't happened to Hongli, Yinzhen would never have sent his lively, even precocious, princes to the estate and never brought them back.
Presumably, Yinzhen knew about Hongli's actions against Jifeng, but was it only for this reason?
After returning to Yuqing Palace, Hongxi's enthusiasm for school diminished.
Yinreng has been in a good mood lately. Because he has been sweet-talking and knows when to let go, his relationship with Kangxi has improved dramatically.
Indeed, in a good mood, His Highness the Crown Prince took Hongxi to the imperial estate outside the palace, intending to spend a few days there.
At Hongxi's request, the group was expanded to include Hongxi, Wenxi, Qingqing, Hongyu, and Hongshi.
Yinreng expressed some confusion as to why Hongshi was on the list.
But he was a good father and didn't want to get too involved in his children's social circles, so he didn't ask any further questions.
In fact, Yinreng was overthinking it. Hongxi brought Hongshi along simply to try and get some information about the Yongjun Prince's Mansion from his not-so-bright younger brother.
Once outside the imperial city, the children switched from carriages to horses, and the galloping ride was exhilarating.
Hongyu was so happy to be able to come out and have fun with everyone.
He even thought that Yinreng was a living bodhisattva who saved people from suffering.
There was no way around it; Yinzhen was just too good at making him do chores.
"Brother, you look haggard lately," Hongxi said with some surprise. "It's only been a few days, but it seems like the demon has drained all your life essence."
Hongyu smiled bitterly, "If she were really a demon, I would have killed her with one blow. It's just a pity that it was my fourth uncle who drained my life essence. Not only can I not fight her, but I also have to smile and thank him for his cultivation."
Hongxi couldn't help but laugh out loud. Hongshi, who was following behind, seemed to have heard them mention his father and spurred his horse to catch up. "Brother, are you talking about my father?"
Hongyu had just been looking distressed, but when he saw Hongshi's silly and cute expression, a devilish thought suddenly arose in his mind.
We can't blame Uncle Si entirely; it would be good to find fault with his son and give him a beating.
"Little brother, how about we race horses?" Hongyu suddenly smiled warmly, which made Hongshi's eyes light up. "Okay, okay!"
"Horse racing is more fun when there's a betting agreement. How about the loser gets beaten up?"
Hongshi's smile vanished instantly, his grin receded, and he cautiously shook his head before shrinking back behind Hongsheng. "Third Brother, let's play together instead."
For once, Hong Sheng had a moment of clarity. He patted Hong Shi on the shoulder and said, "What are you afraid of? Your fourth uncle will be happy to know you won, and when he's happy, he'll give you lots of good things. Don't you want another Gale Horse?"
Hongshi's eyes lit up again. "Okay, big brother, you'd better go easy on me. When I win something good, I'll definitely share half with you."
Hongyu shook the reins, "Hehe..."
Watching the two brothers speed away, Hongxi raised an eyebrow and looked at Hongsheng, "You're surprisingly smart for once."
Hongsheng: This doesn't sound like a compliment to me.
So when the group arrived at the village, Hongshi had already been beaten and was covered in dirt.
Yinreng glanced at the sobbing Hongshi, then... pretended not to see him and looked away.
Hongxi put his arm around Hongshi's shoulder and walked inside, saying, "Oh dear, little brother, how did you get covered in dirt?"
"It's my older brother, my older brother..."
"Brother, he was riding too fast, so all that dust flew onto you, right? Oh dear, hurry up and go take a shower and change your clothes, we'll go fishing later."
Hongshi's complaint was intercepted by Hongxi. He was initially a little indignant, but when he heard that they were going fishing, his mood immediately improved, and he happily dragged his servant to change his clothes.
Seeing this, Hongxi glanced at the refreshed Hongyu and asked, "Are you really satisfied now that you've beaten up this thing?"
Hongyu touched his nose without answering, and Hongxi shook his head with amusement, ignoring his angry older brother and going straight back to his room.
The imperial estate was much larger than any ordinary estate. Wenxi and Qingqing felt that it was not very interesting for the two of them to play alone, and they did not want to go fishing with Hongxi and the others, so they begged Yinreng to invite their own friends to come along.
So, Yinreng waved his hand and Wenxi summoned Manzhuer and Hesheli Xiuya over, saying they would stay for three days and that they should bring their own change of clothes and attendants.
The once empty imperial estate suddenly became lively.
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