“Ke’er has become very disobedient. Suo’etu and his gang have corrupted my Yinreng, causing him to rebel time and time again. I have forgiven him time and time again, but when I heard from the Fourth Prince what he said to Yinreng, I truly believed that he knew he was wrong.”
"emperor......"
Liang Jiugong noticed that Kangxi's grip on the teacup tightened.
"I never expected him to act so well, fooling me, the fourth prince, and all his brothers!"
With a 'crack', the teacup that Kangxi had been playing with was suddenly thrown away and shattered into pieces.
"Your Majesty, please calm down. The imperial physician said that your body cannot withstand any more anger."
Kangxi took a deep breath, suppressed his raging anger, and lay down again with Liang Jiugong's help.
Before going to sleep, Kangxi asked:
"Where is Consort Zheng?"
"Your Majesty, the problem has been resolved."
"Yes, let's call Wei Zhu to help you, so we can handle it more cleanly."
"Yes, sir."
As per the Emperor's orders, Liang Jiugong and Wei Zhu split into two groups. One group killed Consort Zheng and all the people in her palace, leaving no one alive.
Wei Zhu was responsible for dealing with the servants who had dealings with the Second Prince, Yinreng.
In just three days, everything and everyone related to these two people was 'cleaned up'.
"Fourth Brother, have you found out anything about Second Brother?"
"What's wrong?"
With a slightly forlorn expression, Yinxiang said:
"I heard that my second brother has been completely imprisoned by Father Emperor in his own palace, and no one is allowed to visit him. Even Hongxi and the others can't get in."
Yinzhen stood up, walked around the desk to Yinxiang, and patted him on the shoulder:
“Thirteenth brother, I know you are reluctant, but this is Father’s will, and we cannot interfere. Moreover, what Second Brother did this time really hurt Father’s feelings.”
"How could I not know that, little brother? But fourth brother, after all, he is our second brother."
Yinzhen did not respond.
That evening, Yinzhen came to Geng Youran's place. Before coming, he had Gao Wuyong deliver a message to Geng Youran in the evening.
Knowing that Yinzhen had been busy lately, Geng Youran specially prepared several dishes to relieve his fatigue, such as 'stewed mutton with cabbage', 'mixed chrysanthemum greens', 'honey-glazed lotus root', 'astragalus chicken', and 'goji berry glutinous rice porridge'.
After Gao Wuyong came to deliver the message, Geng Youran quickly had Xiao Anzi prepare a chicken, and then had Qianxue take the list to the housekeeper to collect the ingredients.
The steward and the kitchen staff are now quite used to Geng Youran's behavior. After all, when the prince goes to her place for a meal, Geng Gege usually cooks it herself.
The most time-consuming and labor-intensive dishes are 'braised mutton with cabbage' and 'chicken with astragalus'.
First, blanch the chopped mutton pieces in boiling water to remove blood and any unpleasant smell. After blanching, remove the mutton pieces and rinse them thoroughly with clean water.
Then add an appropriate amount of water or broth to the pot, along with the blanched lamb chunks, ginger slices, scallion segments, and other seasonings. Bring to a boil over high heat, skim off any foam, then reduce to a simmer and cook until the lamb is tender.
During the stewing process, you can add appropriate amounts of salt, soy sauce, and other seasonings for flavor.
Then simmer over low heat for two hours.
After stewing the mutton, Geng Youran began to make 'Astragalus Chicken'.
Similar to the method for cooking mutton, marinate chicken pieces with Shaoxing wine and ginger slices for about an hour, then put the prepared chicken into a pot and add an appropriate amount of water.
Wrap the astragalus root, dried tangerine peel, and cinnamon in gauze and put them in a pot to stew with the chicken.
After bringing to a boil over high heat, skim off the foam, then reduce to low heat and simmer until the chicken is tender and the broth is thick. Add salt to taste.
After stewing the two most time-consuming dishes, Geng Youran asked Qianxue to make 'mixed chrysanthemum greens' and 'goji berry glutinous rice porridge', while she continued to make 'honey-glazed lotus root'.
The reason for making this dish is that over the years, Geng Youran has discovered that Yinzhen (the future emperor) really likes sweets, although he can control himself. His children, including Hongshi, have also developed this taste, with Hongzhou eating the sweetest.
When Yinzhen arrived in the evening, the dishes were already prepared.
As usual, Gao Wuyong and Qianxue waited at the door while Yinzhen and Geng Youran ate inside.
Yinzhen glanced at the dishes on the table and knew that Geng Youran had put a lot of thought into them.
"Thanks a lot,"
"When did Your Highness become so polite to me? You've been busy with your affairs lately, and I can't offer much help, so I can only prepare some food that suits your taste."
Yinzhen tasted a bite of the 'honey-glazed lotus root', which was sweet and had a faint fragrance of osmanthus.
"Father is not in good health, and the Emperor often goes to the palace. Consort Nian will be out of confinement in a few days, so you will still need to help with the arrangements for Fuyi's full moon celebration."
"Your Highness, rest assured, I know what I'm doing."
Yinzhen nodded in satisfaction.
Seven or eight days later, Nian Yunrong finished her postpartum confinement, and the Yong Prince's Mansion held a long-awaited and lively full moon celebration.
In addition, Geng Youran suggested to the Fujin that they invite Madam Nian to reunite with Consort Nian.
"Sister Geng, since you entered the manor, you've only met your family two or three times, haven't you? Why haven't you invited them over for a get-together?"
“My father is not in the capital. Usually, only my mother and younger brother are in the mansion. Your Highness occasionally sends them some things on my behalf, and I am already very satisfied.”
Afterwards, the Fujin told Yinzhen about the incident. Yinzhen thought about it carefully and then chose a time to invite Madam Geng over as well.
"Princess, Madam has arrived."
"My mother? What's she doing here? Quick, let's go wait at the door."
Geng Youran didn't go to the mansion gate, but waited at the courtyard gate. After about the time it takes for an incense stick to burn, she saw Madam Geng walking towards her.
"Daughter greets Mother."
"Get up quickly, this is against etiquette."
The mother and daughter entered the house one after the other. Seeing her daughter's radiant face, Mrs. Geng was also satisfied.
"Has the Prince treated you well all these years?"
"Don't worry, Mother, the Prince treats his daughter very well."
"That's good. Your brother is studying very hard these days. I wanted him to come with me, but he insisted on going to class. I couldn't persuade him otherwise, so I came by myself."
“It’s a good thing that my younger brother knows how to study hard; he’s much better than your grandson Hongzhou.”
Mrs. Geng also missed her grandson very much.
"My daughter has already sent Xiao Anzi to ask the Prince for permission. Perhaps you will see your grandson soon."
“Okay. Speaking of which, the last time I saw Hongzhou, he had just learned to walk.”
"Yes. They're very naughty now and often get punished."
Geng Youran did not mention that Hongzhou had been beaten and injured.
About an hour later, the mother and daughter, who were chatting happily inside the house, heard a clear male voice coming from the courtyard.
"Mother, your son is back!"
Geng Youran shook her head helplessly. This Hongzhou is already a teenager, and he's still so unreliable.
When Hongzhou entered the room, he saw a person who looked five or six parts similar to his mother standing with her.
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