As the twelfth lunar month approached, Yin summoned skilled chefs from his residence, some of whom specialized in making desserts for the New Year. Each time a sample was made, Qingyan was required to taste it personally.
That day, Su Lan brought out finger biscuits prepared for the twins from the kitchen. When Yi Ken'e saw her snacks, she reached out and grabbed one. Su Lan bent down slightly and let Yi Ken'e take it from the plate herself.
He had just put it in his mouth when he spat it out with two quick "pffts".
Startled, Su Lan quickly put the cookies aside. Su Zhu walked over from the soft couch to check if the cookies had been refilled.
"Suju, go and inform the master." Qingyan was about to receive the shopkeeper, so he asked Sulan and Suzhu to watch over the twins in the inner chamber, while Suju had just been promoted from the second-class palace maid.
Suju noticed that the young master was in great discomfort and dared not delay any longer. She quickly told Erlu to go to the Imperial Hospital and invite Imperial Physician Yuan. Then she turned around and ran to Qingyan's study.
As the twelfth lunar month approached, Yin had to report to Changchun Garden every day. Since he was not in Yuanmingyuan, the person in charge at this time was his wife.
Suju entered Qingyan's study, bowed deeply, and walked to Qingyan's side. She said a few words, and Qingyan's face instantly darkened.
"That's all for now. Come back tomorrow. There are some things I still need to consider." Qingyan said seriously as he dismissed the managers of Linglong Pavilion and the other shops.
After they left, she got up and hurried towards the inner bedroom through the back door.
The finger biscuits used for the twins were not made often; they were always made by Chef Liang of the mansion. Chef Liang was very skilled and came from the Imperial Stud Office. Anything the children ate had to go through several hurdles.
"Master, there's a problem with the flour supplied by the Imperial Household Department." Su Zhu noticed that a little bit of tapioca flour had been added to the biscuits. Long Feng Tiao was a premature baby and was particularly sensitive to these things, so the cooks in the mansion were very careful with them.
"What?!" Qingyan sat on the soft couch, coaxing Hutuli Fengsheng Zhalafen. Yikene was vomited by Sulan, his face was a little pale, but his eyes were very bright.
"Mother..." Yiken raised her two chubby little hands and rushed towards Qingyan.
"Baby, are you feeling unwell?" Qingyan asked.
Yiken shook his head, finding the biscuits unpalatable, and spat them out.
Just as Qingyan was about to feed Yikene some diluted water, Yin entered with Imperial Physician Yuan, disrupting the process.
"Little darling, how is Yiken?" Yin looked at Yiken with concern. The little guy understood his father's worries and was immediately pulled into Yin's arms.
Imperial Physician Yuan knelt on the ground and took the young prince's pulse.
"Fourth Princess Consort, this servant must look at those biscuits!" Imperial Physician Yuan dared not be careless. When His Majesty entrusted the safety of the twins to him, he understood the importance of these two children.
Su Zhu respectfully handed it over. The ladyfingers on the plate were barely touched. He broke off a small piece, put it in his mouth and tasted it. The taste was indeed a bit strange.
"Imperial Physician, Yiken'e has eaten some. What do you think we should do?" Qingyan felt a chill run down her spine.
"Fourth Princess Consort, you don't need to worry. Just let the young prince drink some detoxifying medicine for two days, and he'll be fine." Imperial Physician Yuan came over with a heavy heart, but when he found that the problem wasn't as serious as he had imagined, he felt relieved.
Qingyan's heart sank; her son had almost been killed again.
"This servant will immediately send Erlu to personally prepare the antidote medicine. Your Highness, this servant must report the truth to His Majesty," Imperial Physician Yuan explained.
Imperial Physician Yuan was loyal only to Emperor Kangxi. Although he was in charge of Consort Tong and the twins' health, he would always give a truthful report after each consultation.
“Okay,” Yin replied directly for Xiao Guai.
After examining the patient, Imperial Physician Yuan left with his medicine chest. Yin held Yiken'e and watched Imperial Physician Yuan's retreating figure, his feelings extremely complicated.
Yiken'e has been caught in the trap. With the Spring Festival approaching, are they trying to bring bad luck to Yin?
"Su Peisheng, you go and investigate personally to find out who delivered these raw materials," Yin instructed, his eyes turning icy.
Su Peisheng quickly agreed, bowed, and walked out of the inner chamber. Standing outside, Su Peisheng was furious, a stark contrast to his demeanor inside the hall.
Inside the mansion, the servants were all trembling with fear upon seeing Su Peisheng's anger.
Inside the inner chamber, Yin held Yiken'e in his arms, the father and son gazing at each other.
"You brat, how many finger biscuits did you eat?" Yin unleashed his aura, ready to make Yiken'e submit.
A few days ago, Emperor Kangxi praised Yiken'e, saying that the little fellow had managed to withstand the imperial aura. Even Consort Tong said that Yiken'e was a promising talent. Perhaps, these words were relayed to their master by some servants with ulterior motives.
It was this very statement that caused the calamity that would befall Yikene.
"You brat, still laughing?" Yin looked at Yiken'e's little face, his feelings were very complicated.
Currently, Yiken'e is still young and has not yet entered the study, so he cannot yet sense those additional attacks.
When they turned six and entered the Imperial Study, the princes would each have their own little schemes, and they would join forces to ostracize Yiken.
"Father...hug!" Yiken'e had been privately taught a lot by Emperor Kangxi. When she was at a disadvantage, Yiken'e would protect herself and reduce the chances of being hurt.
"Listen, next time you find something wrong, just throw it away. Don't put it in your mouth again!" Yin stared at Yiken and said slowly.
Yiken shook her little head, keeping Yin's words in mind.
"Little darling, have Sulan go and tell Mother about the situation, so that Mother won't worry." Yin was worried that since Yiken'e had invited Imperial Physician Yuan, there would be some negative comments in Changchun Garden.
"Sulan!" Qingyan got up and went directly to Changchun Garden to find Sulan so that she could explain things to Consort Tong.
Su Lan left, and Qing Yan turned to Yin's side, took Hu Tuli Fengsheng Zhalafen into his arms, and coaxed the little girl to laugh happily.
Just now, Yiken'e's face turned pale, which frightened the little girl, who hid her face in her arms.
"Yiken'er, don't joke about your body next time. You scared your little sister." Qingyan didn't care whether Yiken'er could understand or not, and directly scolded the little guy.
Yiken looked at Hutuli Fengsheng Zhalafen with a wronged expression, her two mournful little eyes making Qingyan laugh.
"Alright, let's eat something first. The two children must be hungry too." Yin protected his son.
Su Peisheng had prepared the meal well in advance, waiting for the four masters to dine.
On the dining table were the children's complementary foods. During the Lunar New Year, each household would send over some delicacies, and the various households had already begun preparing them.
Every little pastry that was served was a path to success for the chefs of each prefecture.
"Plum blossom cakes?" Yin looked at the skewer on the plate and couldn't help but chuckle.
Plum blossoms are in full bloom in the twelfth lunar month, making this snack especially fitting for the season. (To be continued. If you like this work, please vote for it on Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please visit m.qidian.com to read.)
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