"Yeah, I got bitten by a bug. It's nothing, I've applied some medicine." Oh well, I guess I just pretended it was a bug bite, but the tone wasn't very nice.
"Mother, are you angry?"
Nonsense, you tricked me again, and I lost face big time. How could I not be angry? But Jiaming could only keep these words to herself. Looking at Xiao Hongxuan's innocent little face, she really couldn't say them out loud.
She took a deep breath and said, "No," her voice devoid of any emotion.
"Then, Mother, are you sick?" Otherwise, why would Mother's face be so red? As for shyness, the little guy hadn't thought of that yet, after all, he hadn't connected what his uncle said outside the carriage with what had just happened here. The thought of his mother being sick made the little guy's face immediately scrunch up with worry.
Jiaming felt a sudden warmth in her heart, and the shame and annoyance she had been suppressing vanished instantly. The blush on her face gradually faded, and she reached out to touch the little one's head, saying softly, "Xuan'er, don't worry, Mother isn't sick."
Looking at his mother's face, which wasn't very red, Xiao Hongxuan still had some doubts. "Really?"
“Really, ask Hongtao if you don’t believe me.” As she spoke, Jiaming hugged Hongxuan in her arms and gave Hongtao a clear wink.
Upon receiving a signal from her master, Hongtao quickly suppressed her smile and adopted a serious demeanor to make herself appear more trustworthy in front of her young master.
"Fourth Prince, His Majesty is really not sick."
“Then Mother, her face is red.” Hongxuan remembered that his older brother Honghui’s face was red when he had a fever. Now, he was stuck on this question. It had nothing to do with shyness, but it wasn’t that he was sick either. So why was it? He couldn’t figure it out. So he frowned, just like the Fourth Master always did.
When the little guy pressed her for an answer, Jiaming vaguely brushed him off with the word "hot".
Is Ke Hongxuan so easily dismissed? Of course not.
There's a saying, "The devil is always one step ahead of the saint," and she knew exactly what kind of person her son was. So, just as the little guy was about to ask, she quickly changed the subject, "What did you have for breakfast this morning, Xuan'er? Was it good?" At the same time, she wanted to distract him from the neck issue.
Looking at the time, breakfast had been over for quite some time, and Xuan'er should have digested most of her food by now. She didn't believe that her son, who was always a foodie, wouldn't be able to stay focused after she mentioned food.
To be fair, Jiaming underestimated Xiao Hongxuan. The little guy didn't just believe Jiaming's explanation of "hot." He listened to her questions while observing Jiaming's expression.
Finding that there was no redness at all, the tension on her little face lessened. Then she reached out her chubby little hand to touch Jiaming's forehead and found that it wasn't hot at all. Unlike her older brother back then, she finally stopped frowning like the Fourth Master and was no longer nervous. The phrase "smiling broadly" perfectly describes her now.
Jiaming was deeply moved by her son's careful treatment, and bubbles of happiness kept rising in her heart.
Witnessing all the red peaches from the side, she was deeply moved by how filial her young master was at such a young age, and even more so by the joy that her master had such a filial son.
You know, in high-ranking families, especially the royal family, kinship is usually very weak. From the rumors she heard, there were princes and princesses who abandoned their own mothers for status, fame, and fortune.
Jiaming and Hongxuan were unaware of Hongtao's thoughts, as the mother and son were chatting together.
Little Hongxuan counted on his chubby little fingers, cheerfully recounting what happened this morning. For example, he saw Mam, and he also saw Grandpa...
Jiaming listened attentively to him, occasionally interjecting a few words, then picking up a pastry and taking a few bites. She hadn't had breakfast since waking up, so she needed some snacks to fill her stomach and avoid going hungry until lunchtime. Of course, she didn't forget to feed her food-loving son a few bites as well.
Time passed quickly as the mother and son chatted and ate, and the procession, which had been moving forward, stopped to rest after noon.
Thanks to the constant influence of time-traveling women and men, families with the means have become accustomed to three meals a day. For example, the entire southern tour group, with the support of Emperor Kangxi, ate three meals a day.
“Master!” Jiaming was not surprised at all when she saw the Fourth Master arrive with lunch just delivered and set out. After all, Hongtao had just told her that “Master had his lunch arranged together with the Master’s/Young Master’s.” She just remembered the embarrassment she had caused this morning, and her eyes flickered, making her feel rather uncomfortable.
"Hmm!" Fourth Master responded calmly.
Jiaming glanced at him furtively a few times and found that he was expressionless, just like before. Now, she finally felt relieved and no longer uncomfortable.
"Father!" Hongxuan, who had just been led out of the carriage by Hongtao and was taking a stroll while resting, returned.
Fourth Master caught Hongxuan who rushed towards him, patted his little head, and said, "Alright, let's eat."
It wasn't that he didn't want to teach Hongxuan a lesson for making him get teased by his brothers again this morning, but it was just a little guy who wasn't even three years old yet, how could he talk to him about such things? He could only be more careful in the future, and, well, he also had to tell Ming'er to be more careful. Any traces of something should be covered up, no matter what. Thinking this, Fourth Master gave Jiaming a special look.
Jiaming, who was reaching for food with her chopsticks, paused in her actions when Fourth Master gave her a strange look. She blinked, her eyes filled with confusion.
Did he have something to say to her? That's why he gave her a wink. Thinking this, she deliberately stopped picking up food, but after waiting, she saw that the Fourth Master was still eating without saying a word, and Zheng Ren was really eating.
Jiaming finished her lunch with questions lingering in her mind. It wasn't until the Fourth Prince left that she suddenly realized that this was the Qing Dynasty, not modern times. Here, people were expected not to talk while eating or sleeping, so even if there was something to say, it wouldn't be during lunch. Besides, sometimes, there were things the Prince would tell her in private. And... well, why think so much? Just pretend you don't know. If the Prince sees that you don't understand, he'll probably tell you. It's better not to make trouble for yourself or worry too much.
Not long after lunch, due to their good habit of taking a midday nap, drowsiness came over them, so Jiaming and her two servants returned to the carriage for a short rest.
The caravan set off again, and as the noise outside the carriage subsided, Jiaming, whose vigilance had been somewhat worn down by the peace, was still the first to wake up. Hongtao, being used to it due to her status, was the second to wake up. In the end, only Xiao Hongxuan, who was still fast asleep, remained in the carriage.
The sleeping little one, with a rosy blush on his chubby face, smacking his lips, and his little belly rising and falling, was exceptionally cute.
Jiaming lovingly touched the little guy's forehead, hands, feet, and so on. After finding that everything was normal, she slowly started making a knot to pass the time.
After a while, Jiaming heard the little guy make a soft "hmm" sound. She immediately put down the half-finished knot in her hand and said gently, "He's awake."
"Hmm!" Xiao Hongxuan let out another soft hum, his eyes glazed over, looking dazed and adorable.
Just then, the sound of horses' hooves approached from afar outside the carriage, followed by a shout: "Sister-in-law Xiao Si, is Xiao Si here?" It was a question, but it was asked with great certainty.
Jiaming, with Hongxuan still a little groggy from just waking up, greeted the Tenth Prince through the curtain lifted by Hongtao in the carriage, saying, "Greetings, Tenth Prince."
"Sister-in-law, no need for such formalities. By the way, Master is planning to take Little Fourth son horseback riding." 46 10
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