Su Yushan, who was playing dominoes at the table, was restless. She vaguely heard a servant report that Hongli had returned, and she was finally relieved. She guessed that it must have been Changyue who sent the message.
Upon entering the courtyard, Hongli immediately saw Li Yu and Demin kneeling in the sun, their faces bruised and battered.
Upon seeing Fourth Master, Li Yu felt a lump in her throat, feeling both wronged and ashamed. She softly called out, "Fourth Master..."
Hongli's brow twitched slightly, but he ultimately said nothing and resolutely stepped into the house.
As soon as Hongli entered, everyone immediately stood up and bowed respectfully to the side.
Noticing the dominoes set up on the table beside him, Hongli, who was standing with his hands behind his back, casually asked, "You guys are having a good time, playing cards! Aren't you done yet? Keep going!"
Yu Ying smiled and replied, "It's just a pastime, it's not important. Fourth Master, please take a seat."
Hongli did not step forward, but turned to Su Yushan and asked, "I remember you don't know how to play Pai Gow."
Su Yushan nodded and said, "I really don't know how. Sister Fucha kindly taught me, and I will humbly learn from her."
"Is that so?" Hongli's gaze slowly shifted to Princess Fucha, because he knew very well that Yushan disliked Pai Gow and even less liked being with them. She was probably forced to stay today.
When Hongli's gaze first fell in their direction, Princess Fucha nervously smoothed the stray hairs at her temples, her eyes lowered and a smile playing on her lips. But seeing Hongli staring at her with an inscrutable expression, she couldn't help but feel uneasy, wondering if she had done anything wrong by simply teaching Su Yushan how to play Pai Gow.
While she was feeling nervous, Hongli had already looked away and asked Su Yushan with a smile, "Have you learned it?"
Su Yushan felt a headache coming on. "I can barely understand the rules, but it's hard to apply them. I easily forget them as soon as I play a card."
"You must have paid a lot of tuition fees, right?"
She felt heartbroken when she talked about it, "I lost two taels of silver." Although it was only two taels, she was unwilling to accept losing to Princess Fucha!
Two ounces is nothing, but he had to help her get revenge! So Hongli pulled her closer and sat her down, saying he would teach her himself.
However, he did not sit in the main seat, but had a round stool brought over and sat down next to Su Yushan.
Hongli insisted that they continue, and they dared not refuse. They could only grit their teeth and continue playing their cards in front of the Fourth Prince.
Hongli rarely visits Lanzhao Academy during the day, so his visit today is clearly for Li Yu. However, after arriving, he doesn't inquire about Li Yu's punishment of kneeling, but instead tells them to continue playing dominoes, which is illogical!
Yu Ying was puzzled and secretly guessed what Hongli was thinking. Su Yushan also did not understand why Hongli was doing this, but she was sure that Hongli had his own plans. She didn't need to worry and just accompanied him in his performance.
Hongli didn't play Pai Gow much, mainly because he was too busy and didn't have the time. When he had free time, he wanted to spend it with Yushan and the children, so he didn't have time for leisure. However, he had seen the ladies playing Pai Gow when he was in the palace, so he was familiar with the game.
Yu Shan had been trying hard to remember the rules ever since she sat down, but she kept losing to them and never won. As soon as Hong Li sat down and gave her some advice, she quickly won a game and finally tasted the joy of victory!
Seeing her droopy lips finally turn up, Hongli felt much better. He raised his hand, and the maidservant brought him a teacup. Just then, the teacup tilted, and the tea spilled onto the back of his hand!
The sound of the porcelain shattering was exceptionally crisp, startling everyone present. Su Yushan, who was closest to him, gasped and quickly grasped his hand, filled with worry.
"Your hand is all red! It must hurt a lot."
The maidservant turned pale with fright and hurriedly knelt on the ground, kowtowing and begging for forgiveness, "This servant knows her mistake, it was my negligence, please forgive me, Fourth Master!"
Yu Ying immediately instructed her head maid, Dong Ling, to go inside and fetch burn ointment to apply to Hongli's hand.
Dongling opened the plaster and carefully applied it to him, but Hongli frowned, "It hurts!"
He flung her away, forbidding her from applying the medicine any further. Su Yushan was supposed to apply the medicine for him, but after thinking it over, she guessed Hongli's intention and remained silent, sitting quietly to one side.
Seeing that Su Yushan didn't move, Gao Xiuwen knew something was amiss and didn't step forward.
Princess Fucha volunteered, "Fourth Master, let me help you!"
She approached with delight, thinking she had finally gotten a chance to spend time with Hongli, but to her surprise, Hongli looked disgusted. "This ointment already smells bad, and with the fragrance on you, it makes me even more dizzy!"
At this point, Yu Ying realized that Hongli had gone through all this trouble just to punish her servants, to nitpick and get angry. The reason he didn't speak up to exempt Li Yu from punishment was because he was waiting for her to speak up. If she didn't release the servants, he would probably keep making a scene.
Having seen through his thoughts, Yu Ying finally spoke up, "Li Yu has served Fourth Master for many years and is the most considerate. Let Li Yu come and apply the medicine for Fourth Master!"
Li Yu, kneeling outside, was filled with anxiety. He wondered if his master had ignored him because he thought he had caused trouble and was angry with him. Unexpectedly, he was soon summoned inside.
This call spared him from kneeling as punishment. He tried to stand up, but his legs were sore and numb that he didn't even have the strength to stand. Yunfang stepped forward and helped him up. Li Yu was secretly delighted to see this.
"Thank you for your help."
However, Yunfang turned her face away and said coldly, "I didn't want to come, but the princess ordered me to come."
He was helped up but could hardly take a step. He felt as if his legs were no longer his own, as if they were numb and he was walking on cotton. They were so soft that he could not stand steadily and had no strength at all.
He managed to take a few steps, and after a long while, he finally regained some consciousness and, with Yunfang's help, slowly walked into the house.
After entering the room, Li Yu personally applied the medicine to his master, and Hongli finally stopped complaining.
After applying the medicine, Hongli said to Su Yushan, "I'd like to have tomato fish tonight. Do you have time to cook it?"
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