The next morning, Hongshi and Geng Youran also quickly received the news.
"What? You want me to raise Hongshi? Eunuch Gao, you must have misheard me."
Gao Wuyong smiled:
"Princess, don't worry, the Prince said it's only a temporary arrangement. Prince Hongshi has already started his classes and will probably come to pay his respects to you this afternoon."
Although it was said to be an estimate, Hongshi would definitely come over in the afternoon.
After Gao Wuyong left, Geng Youran kept thinking about the reasons and purpose behind Yinzhen's actions.
Even though the matter of Consort Nian has been investigated and clarified, it is not her place as a princess to raise Prince Hongshi.
“Princess, if you ask me, you don’t need to worry. Prince Hongshi has always had a good relationship with you, and since it’s just temporary care, there shouldn’t be any problems.”
Geng Youran sighed. Living under someone else's roof, he had no choice but to listen to their orders.
"Alright, then go make some osmanthus cake, Hongshi likes it. In the afternoon, prepare some bok choy and bean sprouts to make something refreshing for Hongshi. He's in a bad mood right now, so he probably won't eat much."
"yes."
Not long after Qianxue left, the wet nurse brought Hongzhou in. Unlike his slightly dark complexion when he was first born, Hongzhou was now getting fairer and fairer, and was quite chubby.
Children have limited energy. After playing with Hongzhou for a while, Geng Youran asked the nanny to take her back to sleep.
Geng Youran had something on her mind and didn't eat much for lunch.
Staring blankly at the untouched page of the book, Geng Youran stared at it for more than an hour.
"Princess, Prince Hongshi has arrived."
"Let him in."
"Yes, sir."
Hongshi entered the room and respectfully greeted Geng Youran. Geng Youran got up and went over to help Hongshi up.
You could tell from Hongshi's slightly red eyes that the kid had been crying for a while.
She patted Hongshi on the shoulder, then had Qianxue bring in the osmanthus cake she had made.
Hongshi looked at the osmanthus cake in front of him but didn't touch it. He opened his mouth, but in the end, he didn't say anything.
Geng Youran smiled:
"Don't overthink it, I know what you're trying to say. Your father just said that I should take care of you for a while, and you'll definitely have another chance to see Consort Li."
Hongshi smiled bitterly. His mother was now under house arrest, and he was being closely watched, so a meeting was impossible.
“You don’t need to comfort me. I know my mother did something wrong. But as her son, I can’t be filial to her. I’m not worthy of being a son.”
Upon hearing this, Geng Youran gave Hongshi a sharp rap on the head.
“Silly boy, what are you thinking? Taking good care of yourself is the greatest filial piety you can show to Consort Li. Besides, your mother has served the prince for so many years, there is still some affection between them. As long as she sincerely repents, I believe your father will lift the confinement and let you see her.”
Hearing Geng Youran say this, Hongshi felt much better. After eating some snacks, he went back to his courtyard to study.
Before leaving, he promised Geng Youran that he would come over for dinner that evening.
But to everyone's surprise, not only did Hongshi come over that evening, but Yinzhen also came.
"Your Highness, may you be blessed."
"Your son greets his father. May your father be blessed."
"Get up!"
"Thank you, sir."
"Thank you, Father."
The atmosphere at the table was gloomy. Hongshi kept his head down, not daring to look up, let alone eat.
Yinzhen simply sat there without touching his chopsticks.
Geng Youran's stomach was already rumbling, and she forced herself to speak cautiously in a low voice:
"Sir, let's eat first, we can talk about this later."
Yinzhen sighed, picked up his chopsticks, and placed a piece of food on Hongshi's plate:
"Eat."
Hongshi forced back his tears and nodded vigorously. Geng Youran felt very sorry for the child.
He is just a child who is not even ten years old. In modern times, he would still be in elementary school, but here he has already fallen into a power struggle.
The three of them finished their dinner quietly. After dinner, Yinzhen called out to Hongshi, who was about to kneel and pay his respects.
"Sir, while you and Hongshi chat, I'll go make some tea."
Geng Youran had no desire to participate in the father-son conversation, because the scene was too bizarre, like a biological father and son and a stepmother.
"You Ran, stay here."
"……yes."
Well, Geng Youran tried to dodge but failed.
"The reason your mother was confined to her quarters was because she tried to sow discord between Consort Nian and Lady Geng by poisoning her. Fortunately, Lady Geng brought Nian Gengyao here, and she couldn't leave the scene, which is why we have both witnesses and physical evidence. Father knows you are kind-hearted and a filial child, but blind obedience is another kind of evil. Do you understand?"
Hongshi nodded with red eyes. Seeing the tense atmosphere, Geng Youran stepped forward and said:
"Master, it's getting late. Let Hongshi go home and rest early. He has school tomorrow."
Yinzhen glanced at Geng Youran, who had spoken up to dissuade him, then at Hongshi, who was still kneeling on the ground, and finally relented:
"Gao Wuyong, escort the prince back to rest."
"Yes, sir."
After Hongshi left, Qianxue brought the tea into the room and then went out, leaving only Yinzhen and Geng Youran in the room.
The two remained silent until Geng Youran felt her legs were about to go numb, at which point Yinzhen finally spoke.
"You seem to feel sorry for him."
Geng Youran secretly rolled her eyes, thinking to herself that this man was quite the actor. He was a strict father in front of his child, but now he was making fun of him.
“My lord, I have watched Hongshi grow up. This child has had a tough time.”
"Stop, I know what you're trying to say. Do you know what a crime it is to let a man from outside the house into the mansion? The fact that I haven't punished you is already a favor."
Geng Youran stuck out her tongue.
Well, they haven't forgotten about that either.
She walked to Yinzhen's side, offered him the tea she had poured, and then went around behind him, massaging his shoulders.
"My lord, how have you been resting lately? I feel stiff all over."
Yinzhen rubbed his temples; he had indeed been quite tired lately.
On one hand, they had to outwit and outmaneuver Yinzhi and his gang, and on the other hand, they had to deal with the disaster situation.
"The earthquake in Sichuan was particularly severe in Guanghan and Shifang. Father Emperor put you in charge of disaster relief, but the Eighth Prince is trying to trip you up in this matter."
"Hasn't disaster relief always been the responsibility of the Ministry of Revenue and others?"
"I am only in charge of a small part, but the specific details of the disaster are not being reported, and the reports are inaccurate. I plan to ask Father Emperor for permission to go there in person."
"Sir, this earthquake has aftershocks. It might not be safe to go there now."
"I must go. The disaster relief funds distributed from the national treasury are supposed to be for disaster relief, but in reality, they have all ended up in the bellies of those unjust people. I'm going this time to deal with this matter."
Geng Youran roughly understood that the Fourth Prince wanted to use this opportunity to eliminate some of the Eighth Prince's people.
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