After this matter was resolved, Li's postpartum period ended smoothly.
The young prince has grown up to be very good, and the fourth prince, Yinzhen, returned Geng Youran to the Hall of Mental Cultivation.
Hearing what Geng Youran had seen and heard in the Prince's mansion during this time, the little palace maids broke out in a cold sweat. They thought that they had thought that becoming a prince's concubine would make them superior, but they never expected that they would still be worthless.
This may sound harsh, but it's the absolute truth when it comes to the Forbidden City.
In the blink of an eye, Geng Youran had spent several years in the Hall of Mental Cultivation. She thought she would be sent out of the palace when she got older, but an imperial edict completely changed the trajectory of her life.
In the forty-second year of the Kangxi Emperor's reign, Geng Youran followed the emperor's order and entered the residence of the Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, as a concubine.
For Geng Youran, this was the worst possible outcome, bar none.
She thought she would be able to leave the palace and marry smoothly until she died of old age, but who knew that she would become a concubine of a prince, especially one of the fourth prince's concubines.
Even if her history knowledge was terrible, she knew that the current Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, would become the future Yongzheng Emperor.
On his first night in the mansion, Yinzhen did not favor Geng Youran.
At this moment, he was still sitting in his study, pondering the purpose of his father's imperial edict.
Clearly, it wasn't as simple as just adding a backyard for her son.
The Fourth Prince, Yinzhen, is in a dilemma. If he doesn't favor his son, the Emperor, it won't be right. But if he does favor him, how can he do it in the right way?
Geng Youran also couldn't sleep that night.
She kept thinking about how she got to this point. She had been very careful, especially after returning from the Fourth Prince's residence. She never stepped forward in anything that could be done or promoted by a newcomer.
Some newcomers even gained favor and became the main concubines because of Geng Youran.
However, what Geng Youran didn't know was that the more she did this, the more suspicious Kangxi became of her.
Humans are naturally curious.
Although Emperor Kangxi was the ruler of the land, possessing the best of everything, this very fact fueled his yearning for novelty.
The appearance of Geng Youran satisfied an emperor's desire for novelty.
He wanted to see what kind of sparks would fly when such a 'boring' woman met her 'boring' son.
And so, one day, two days, three days, and many more days passed, and Yinzhen still did not go to Geng Youran's courtyard.
However, Geng Youran followed the rules and went to the Fujin's courtyard to pay his respects every day.
After all, Geng Youran had stayed in the Fourth Prince's residence for a period of time before, and with inquiries from her clansmen, the Fourth Princess knew that Geng Youran had no intention of vying for the Prince's favor.
On the contrary, Geng Youran seemed to have no interest in 'pampering'.
As for Madam Li, Geng Youran had taken excellent care of her during her pregnancy and postpartum period. She had no reason to be jealous or resentful over a princess who was not favored.
Because of these two people protecting them, no one else dared to say much; they could only laugh at them behind their backs.
"Princess, why aren't you in a hurry?"
"Xinyi, please just call me by my name. It feels strange when you address me like that."
Yes, Geng Youran brought Xinyi out.
When Emperor Kangxi asked her if she wanted to take a maid out of the palace, the first person Geng Youran thought of was Xinyi.
However, considering that Xinyi was already quite adept in the palace and didn't need to suffer with him, he gave up the idea.
Unexpectedly, Xinyi took the initiative to find her.
"You Ran, I'll go out of the palace with you."
Geng Youran was startled:
"Xinyi, are you crazy! Do you know what you're saying?"
Xinyi smiled.
"I know, it's nothing to be your maid."
When Geng Youran heard Xinyi say this, he felt even more indebted. When they came to Yangxin Hall, it was Xinyi who took the initiative to come along, and she really suffered a lot at the beginning.
Xinyi didn't want You Ran to overthink it, so she told You Ran what she was thinking:
“You Ran, although I have now reached the position of a lady-in-waiting, I am still a palace maid. In a while, my father and his family will be returning to the capital. If I go with you to the Fourth Prince's residence, I might have a better chance to see my mother.”
Geng Youran never expected that in this era, she would encounter a woman who understood so well what she needed.
She felt that if Xinyi had been born in modern times, she would definitely have lived a very exciting life.
"Since you've put it that way, I can't say anything more. There's just one thing: if you ever want to leave, you must tell me."
"Yes, I will."
And so, the two of them, one sitting in the sedan chair and the other following beside it, entered the Fourth Prince's residence together.
But Xinyi never expected that the Fourth Prince would be so disrespectful to the Emperor, not stepping into the courtyard for many days.
"Xinyi, you look quite cute when you're anxious."
"Oh, you're just trying to annoy me."
Xinyi felt that if she stayed in the house any longer, Geng Youran would drive her crazy, so she simply went to the small kitchen.
This small kitchen actually belonged to the Li family, but out of consideration for their past relationship, the Li family gave it to Geng Youran.
Of course, it should only be used when it is convenient.
Now that the osmanthus flowers are in bloom, the Fujin (wife of Geng You Ran) had some sent to Geng Your Ran a few days ago, so Geng Your Ran thought about making some desserts with these osmanthus flowers.
Holding the pre-processed osmanthus flowers, Xinyi headed straight to the small kitchen to cook them.
Today we're going to make two kinds of desserts with osmanthus flowers: osmanthus sugar and osmanthus glutinous rice balls.
First up is osmanthus sugar.
The osmanthus flowers used in osmanthus sugar must be picked on a sunny day to ensure the freshness and aroma of the flowers.
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