As time went by, the teahouse became increasingly crowded, and the entire floor of private rooms was booked by Yin's men. At the entrance to the stairs, Erlu dispatched six guards to prevent any unauthorized personnel from appearing.
The tea drinkers on the first floor were mostly regulars. When they discovered that the private rooms on the third floor were no longer open to the public, they began to discuss it amongst themselves. The night before, they had heard that the owner of the only five-courtyard house had arrived, so they mustered up their courage and went out of their homes to see who it was.
To their surprise, they only saw a young couple surrounded by many guards. As soon as they entered, the guards surrounded them, and they didn't even get a clear look at the couple's faces.
"Is that family coming out? I see all the private rooms on the third floor have been booked!" The small county town was very interested in the arrival of Yin and Qingyan, and only passing merchants had the spare money to go to the private rooms.
Last night, the owner of the five-courtyard house came over, and all the nearby residents who were free came to the teahouse, hoping to chat with others. Everyone has a gossipy nature.
"Sisi, let's go out." Qingyan leaned against the inner window frame, her little face scrunched up. The people on the first floor often looked up, and she could tell what they meant from their eyes.
"Why?!"
Yin looked up at her. At first, she had a gentle smile on her face, but now, her expression was gloomy and gloomy.
"Fourth Brother, they're all talking about us!" As soon as Qingyan entered the mansion, he noticed the gossip in the eyes of the common people, which was definitely not a good thing.
Um?!
Yin didn't care about those people. As a prince, he was already used to the common people gossiping about their behavior.
"Let's go!" Yin noticed that Xiao Guai was not used to it. "Su Peisheng, have Erlu clear the way back!"
Yin pursed his lips; he didn't want them to hear gossip when they went down.
“!” Su Peisheng accepted the order and returned.
Two rows of guards stood from the third floor all the way to the entrance of the teahouse. The tea drinkers on the first floor were taken aback by this display and fell silent. This...
Qingyan put on a cap and was led down the stairs by Yin. She glanced at the tea drinkers on the first floor and saw that they all had their heads down and didn't dare to look at her. She couldn't help but find it a little funny.
"Fourth Brother, are we that scary?!" Qingyan's lips curled up slightly.
"Um."
Since leaving, Yin felt he had to stand on his own. Unlike in the capital, most of the guards Erlu brought were sent from the Emperor's side. Many of them were proud and arrogant, hoping to stay in the Imperial Guard. At least, they could rise through the ranks. But it was different when they came to the side of the princes. If their master could sit in a high position, they would be his confidants. Otherwise, they would be disliked by the new emperor.
Yin coldly surveyed the tea drinkers before leaving with Qingyan.
His powerful aura made the tea drinkers gasp; they absolutely dared not provoke such a formidable person.
The teahouse owner also saw Yin come downstairs and felt extremely regretful. He hadn't been polite enough to receive him; judging from his appearance, this man was definitely not a good person.
"Showcase, should we tell the magistrate?" The waiter had taken the reward money from Yin and Qingyan and wanted to keep it a secret, but he couldn't disobey the magistrate's order.
"I won't say!" The shopkeeper shook his head. The man had already left; what would the magistrate do if he did?
Besides, the magistrate only instructed them to keep an eye on the young couple who used the minted silver, but this couple didn't, so it's better to avoid trouble.
"That man must be a member of the imperial family; he has even more imposing presence than the county magistrate!"
"Women have unbound feet, they are not Han Chinese!"
"Natural feet? Why cover your face?"
Manchu noblewomen never wore caps. Last night, the woman in the five-courtyard mansion wore a cap, and today this one...
"It seems he brought his concubine with him!"
Many men chuckled; after all, which member of the royal family or clan didn't have multiple wives and concubines?
On the other side, Yin had a doting smile on his face as he peeled fresh longans and fed them to her.
"Spit it out!" Qingyan finished eating, her watery eyes darting around. Sulan was not present.
He placed his left hand under her chin, clearly intending for her to spit the longan pits into his hand. Qingyan pursed her lips and shook her head happily.
"Spit it out." Yin was now arguing with her. "Don't worry about it."
Under the pressure of his gaze, Qingyan had no choice but to spit into his palm.
His actions stunned her. He was of noble birth and surrounded by many servants. When had he ever done such a thing?
"Si Si, you don't need to do this." Qing Yan was a little uncomfortable.
"My little darling, you are my wife." Yin smiled, a gentle warmth in his phoenix eyes.
"Um... you don't need to do that. You're the Fourth Prince, and outsiders will start talking about me again!" Qingyan was secretly pleased, but didn't want the Third Princess to nag any further.
Yin wiped his hands with a silk handkerchief. There were many people outside gossiping about Xiao Guai with the court officials. How could he not be angry?
"I'll handle it!" Yin roughly guessed who was gossiping.
"No, let them talk. They're all just jealous of me anyway!" Qingyan shook his head. He shouldn't be involved in the affairs between his sisters-in-law.
"I'm not magnanimous. I'll deal with those who bully you myself!" Yin wouldn't give Fei Yanggu and his two sons another chance to take Xiao Guai away from him.
Yin continued feeding Qingyan. He really enjoyed feeding her. Ever since she was little, whenever they were alone together, he would feed her.
"Hehe...too..." Qingyan felt a little embarrassed. "What if Father Emperor finds out?"
Qingyan pursed her lips and scrunched up her face. Kangxi would never allow female relatives to affect the princes' relationships.
"No!" Yin pulled her into his arms, his eyes coldly staring at the carriage curtain. He was using this opportunity to reveal his true self, and Kangxi wouldn't find it abrupt. Pretending to be a young child for the past few years had been exhausting enough.
"Little darling, we don't need to punish people ourselves!" Yin poured her a glass of plum juice.
He had his reasons for feeding Xiao Guai; he really didn't dare let Xiao Guai eat the food from this small county town on her own, for fear that she would get sick from it.
Cunning!
Waaaaah!
Qingyan was mentally speculating about when a certain fourth person had become so cunning.
"Four four..."
"Internal strife is good." Yin smiled, Yin Zhi had picked up some of the literati's bad habits, such as having a beautiful woman by his side.
Yin had always wanted to secretly deal with Yin Zhi, and he would never let what Dong E Shi had done to Xiao Guai go unpunished.
"Doesn't Father always say that brothers should work together?" Qingyan muttered softly.
Yin didn't say much, and his soft heart depended on the person he was dealing with; it was best to leave out Yin Zhi and Dong E Shi.
Working together?
Kangxi's wishes were good, but none of his sons carried them out. Even the eighth, ninth, and tenth princes, who were like brothers, abandoned the eighth prince in the struggle for the throne.
"Fourth Brother, where are we going?" Qingyan watched the carriage leave the commercial street, feeling puzzled. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please go to m.qidian.com to read.)
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