Inside the orchard, even the owner's family did not reappear. They simply handed it over to Yinzhen and Qingyan to manage, since the entire property belonged to them anyway.
Kangxi sat at the dining table under the fruit tree, looking at the peach blossoms, listening to the happy laughter of children, and holding the talking Hafeng in his magnificent arms.
"Mafa...eat!" Hafeng waved his chubby little hand, pointing to the wooden bowl in front of him, which contained mashed potatoes with chicken broth, a treat for the little chubby boy.
"If Mafa has eaten, what will you eat?" Kangxi asked, looking down at the chubby little boy in his arms.
"Let's eat together!" Hafeng was very generous to the people he liked. After Kangxi hugged him several times, he had already decided that Kangxi was one of his own, so he generously shared the mashed potatoes.
Consort Tong watched the interaction between the grandmother and grandson with a smile on her face. Hafeng was even more favored by Emperor Kangxi than Yiken'e.
Kangxi took a spoonful with his left hand, ate it, then looked at Li Dequan, took a new spoon, and told Hafeng to eat it himself.
He had heard Imperial Physician Yuan mention that adults have strong immunity, so it's okay to use children's products, but they shouldn't be given back to the children to continue using.
Li Dequan had prepared the items for the three-dimensional young masters well in advance, fearing that Kangxi might need them.
"The fourth prince's wife has raised her child well; he knows to share with everyone." Kangxi nodded in satisfaction.
"Father, Hafeng only did this because he considers you one of his own. He wouldn't have given it to an outsider," Yinzhen said helplessly.
Hafeng's temper is very similar to Qingyan's, so Yinzhen likes him very much and doesn't want him to change at all.
Hearing this, Kangxi felt a warm glow inside. He hadn't spent as much time with Hafeng as with Yiken, but the boy seemed to like him, which made Kangxi very happy.
"This is a good habit; as long as you know your own people, it's fine." Kangxi nodded in satisfaction and began to feed Hafeng.
While eating, Hafeng waved his little fists, cheering on Yikene who was not far away.
As evening approached, a gentle breeze blew through the courtyard of the villa. Yinzhen had the dining table placed in the middle of the courtyard, surrounded by bright palace lanterns that illuminated the vast courtyard.
On the dining table were seasonal dishes, including two roast ducks. Li Dequan was the first to try the dishes. Originally, Yinzhen wanted to be the first to try them, but Kangxi gave him a look.
"Alright, all of you may leave now." Li Dequan led the servants to turn the roast duck into roast duck rolls. Kangxi waved his hand and dismissed all the servants around him. In the courtyard, only his family remained.
In addition to seasonal dishes, the table was set with a whole duck feast, with roast duck as the main ingredient, along with duck soup and some dishes made from duck offal, which was quite novel for Emperor Kangxi.
"Fourth Prince, this duck will taste quite good. Who came up with the idea?" Emperor Kangxi really liked roast duck and wondered if he should have the imperial chefs come and learn how to make it.
"It's the owner of this garden. Qingyan likes to eat this, so I had someone keep this dish. Father, it's good to eat more wild vegetables in the spring." Yinzhen knew that the servants of the Imperial Household Department would never send Kangxi these seasonal vegetables.
"Hmm, it tastes good." Kangxi ate a shepherd's purse bun, and the texture was quite good.
As Consort Tong ate her duck soup, she secretly wondered whether she should send a whole table of it to the Empress Dowager.
"Fourth Prince, should we send a portion to the Empress Dowager? Will it get cold?" Consort Tong asked Yinzhen.
Yinzhen quickly shook his head: "It's already been sent over. The roast duck is being roasted on the way. When it arrives at Changchun Garden, Grandma can use it right away."
Before dinner, Qingyan had already made arrangements, calculating the timing so that the Empress Dowager could enjoy this delicious whole duck feast. Of course, wild vegetables and other delicacies were also sent over.
According to Imperial Physician Yuan, if the Empress Dowager ate meat all the time, she would definitely suffer from hunger and thirst.
"Little darling, send away less wild vegetables; the Empress Dowager doesn't like them very much," Consort Tong said helplessly.
Although the Empress Dowager didn't have many requirements, she just didn't like these vegetables, so Consort Tong would pay extra attention to them every time she arranged a banquet.
Ugh!
“Mother, I’ve already sent it over. Imperial Physician Yuan said that Grandmother is getting older and needs to eat more vegetables so that she can better maintain her health,” Yinzhen said on Qingyan’s behalf.
Consort Tong gave a wry smile: "But the Empress Dowager doesn't appreciate it at all."
Emperor Kangxi patted Consort Tong's hand, indicating that he understood her predicament. He had been trying to persuade her for a long time, but the Empress Dowager just wouldn't budge.
"Father, I've asked the people who came before to say that this was picked by Yiken'e, and I hope Angguma will like it." Yinzhen instructed Yiken'e, and before the food was taken back, Yiken'e appeared before the servants and gave them some instructions.
“Grandpa, I did as you said, and Grandma Angguma will definitely like it,” Yiken said, puffing out her little chest.
Emperor Kangxi laughed heartily. The little fellow had done a good job. No matter what methods were used, as long as the Empress Dowager used them, it was already quite good.
"Alright, you two, father and son, have so many tricks up your sleeves." Kangxi laughed helplessly.
The next morning, Narentuya arrived at the villa. The Empress Dowager had sent her to retrieve the vegetable buns that had been delivered the day before. Kangxi and Consort Tong looked at each other in shock upon hearing her words.
"Li Dequan, quickly go and find Yinzhen and the fourth prince's wife for me." Kangxi was happy; the Empress Dowager could finally eat vegetables again.
That brat Yiken'e has a good idea; he managed to get the Empress Dowager to eat it.
"Also, this servant brought the Empress Dowager's gifts to the three young masters, saying they are very filial." Narentuya knew that Hafeng's gifts to the young prince were only because of the twins.
A smile appeared on Kangxi's face: "The children haven't gotten up yet, so please wait a little while before we talk."
"This servant has placed the things in the Imperial Noble Consort's side hall. Please give them to the young masters when they are awake. This servant must hurry back to serve the Empress Dowager." Narentuya was the Empress Dowager's most trusted confidante, so she could only be away from the Empress Dowager for a very short time.
"Alright." Consort Tong nodded in agreement and looked directly at Shu Rong beside her, instructing her to take inventory.
Upon receiving the news, Yinzhen and Qingyan quickly came over from their courtyard. They noticed that Narentuya had a velvet box in her hand containing a set of coral velvet and lapis lazuli jewelry.
"Fourth Prince, the Empress Dowager said that you suffered a loss this time, but you gained a Ruyi. This set of headdress was used by the Empress Dowager when she was young, and she gave it to Fourth Prince's wife as a reward. She told you not to look down on it because it's an old item, but it's of the finest quality. You can wear this set of headdress with your Mongolian everyday clothes at the next Autumn Festival." Narentuya had been with the Empress Dowager for a long time, and her words, spoken exclusively for the Empress Dowager, had a more authentic flavor.
Yinzhen and Qingyan expressed their gratitude and quickly arranged for the kitchen to prepare shepherd's purse buns, as requested by the Empress Dowager.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
