As dawn broke, ten carriages slowly departed from the main gate of the Yuelai Inn. Qingyan leaned against the window, looking at the quiet street, her heart unable to find peace for a long time.
When Fei Yanggu and his two sons learned about the missing children last night, they didn't sleep a wink all night and discussed a way to protect the twins.
During the southern tour, whichever of the three men had time would lead the new army to protect the children.
At dawn, Fei Yanggu was off duty and rode his horse, leading the new army, to surround Qingyan's carriage. When Qingyan looked out, he saw Fei Yanggu on the left side of the carriage.
“Father…” Qingyan said in a low voice.
Fei Yanggu understood and smiled at her.
"Little darling, it's windy outside, don't look anymore!" Fei Yanggu doted on Qingyan, and he would never compromise when it came to Qingyan.
Qingyan withdrew her head, and Sulan got into the carriage and placed breakfast on the table.
"Master, I have prepared some egg pancakes and purple rice porridge and handed them to the three gentlemen." Su Lan prepares portions for Fei Yanggu and the others every day.
Qingyan nodded in satisfaction. On the table were two small plates of pancakes, two bowls of purple rice porridge, and several small dishes of side dishes.
"This is for the master as a snack." Su Lan specially went to queue up early to buy the famous local pancakes.
Qingyan's eyes lit up. The large pancake was rolled with various sauces and a scallion.
"Master, I'll use yours too, you need to see Father." Qingyan smiled, and after a while, she finished the scallions and quickly went to brush her teeth.
Yin shook his head helplessly, having never seen his wife love food so much.
"Fine, I won't fight you for it. You can use it yourself." Yin took the prepared pancakes and ate them with the side dishes.
The meals on the road were simple. The Qingyan kitchen prepared delicious dishes every day, which was significantly different from the stews prepared by the imperial kitchen.
Fortunately, before the trip, Emperor Kangxi had made it clear that the Emperor Emeritus and Empress Dowager Tong would eat from the Imperial Kitchen, while Yinzhen and he would each eat from their own private kitchens.
Qingyan did not bring a cook, but only sent Suzhu and Sulan to prepare.
After finishing his breakfast, Qingyan heard the streets bustling with activity as vendors set up stalls and people prepared to come out early to buy things.
"It is said that there is a morning market in the west of the city, and we are passing by there." Yin made a special trip to investigate the county town.
Actually, he had planned to take Qingyan for a stroll during his rest period.
After Qingyan started the Yuelai Inn, she would pay special attention to the local specialties wherever she went, and even try them herself to add some fresh and delicious flavors to the Yuelai Inn.
She nodded, her eyes fixed on the street outside. The people were up early to buy the freshest vegetables and prepare their meals for the day.
"There are so many people at the morning market!" Yin looked in the direction Qingyan was looking and saw that the crowd was increasing and the procession of carriages was speeding up.
Qingyan laughed. Yin rarely went to the market, so he certainly wouldn't understand these things.
"The goods are cheap and fresh, so the people are happy to come," Qingyan smiled.
Initially, the purchases for the mansion were mainly made from the morning market. Later, the vegetables grown in Yin's villa became self-sufficient.
As soon as he finished speaking, a horse neighed, and the carriage stopped, tilting slightly backward.
Qingyan lunged at the scooter and pressed her body against it.
At the same time, Yin shielded Qingyan with his body.
A cry reached her ears, and Su Peisheng quickly stood beside the carriage to apologize.
Fei Yanggu reacted quickly, immediately surrounding Qingyan's carriage.
Qingyan activated the screen in the space and found a fourteen or fifteen-year-old boy lying in front of Kangxi's carriage. He was thin and weak, and someone was chasing and beating him.
The boy collapsed to the ground in pain; although the fabric of his clothes was somewhat dirty, its quality was still evident.
"Fourth Prince, he must be the lost child." Qingyan sneered. Kangxi had been trying to avoid him, but he still ran into him.
Tulichen stepped forward and picked up the child. A man who looked like an old farmer in his forties walked over, bowed to Tulichen, and said that the child was being unreasonable.
“There’s no need to lie. The fabric this child is wearing is not something a farming family could afford,” Tulichen said, looking at the old farmer.
After he finished speaking, the surrounding people all moved away. Such scenes occur every day at the morning market, and everyone has become numb to them.
Those children looked like they had been abducted from wealthy families, but because officials protected each other, no one dared to say anything.
The carriage convoy in front of us didn't seem to be locals; they were probably outsiders.
"You...you all wait here." The old farmer looked at the guards around him, feeling timid.
They received instructions from the capital that they must not confront the large convoy.
"Tulichen, hand the man over to the guards behind you, find out where he lives, and send him back directly." Kangxi didn't want to get involved; these officials needed to be dealt with.
"Yes!" Tu Lichen handed the child over to the guards on the outside. Soon, he learned from the child that he was the eldest son of the richest man in the county. He had been framed by his illegitimate son and had been drugged and taken away.
Qingyan listened quietly and found it somewhat laughable. Which of those wealthy families didn't have many wives and concubines? Now, the children were suffering because of these infighting in the backyard.
"Four...Four..." Qingyan collapsed to the ground, exhausted. Just now, her nerves had been on edge.
Yin held Qingyan in his arms, letting her rest against his chest.
"Is it a child who went missing in the county town?" Yin asked, leaning on Qingyan's shoulder in a voice only the two of them could hear.
Qingyan nodded gently. The child looked like he had suffered. After being sent back, he should be able to live a good life.
The convoy did not stop because of this little incident. Tulichen also sent a small team to find out where the children had escaped from and to have them rescue the children.
"The root of the problem is the infighting in the backyard," Qingyan said bitterly.
Yin's carriage was ahead, so she must have heard the boy's cries. She didn't know what Yin's plans were.
"My elder brother will probably neglect his concubines!" Yin noticed that his relationship with his primary wife was getting better and better, and Consort Hui was not urging Lady Yin Genjueluo to have a legitimate son immediately.
It is said that Songkri Yirha looks a lot like Consort Hui when she was young. Consort Hui loved this granddaughter very much, even more so than her grandson.
"Hmph," Qingyan sneered, "I think a child born in the mansion of someone like Third Master would suffer."
After leaving the palace to establish his own residence, several of Yinzhi's children died young, which clearly indicates a problem.
Yinzhi, however, failed to realize that Consort Dong'e was incredibly cunning and that harming children was commonplace for her.
Perhaps, before the Third Prince's wife gave birth to several legitimate sons, it was best for the concubines not to have children, otherwise, it would harm their health and their hearts!
"Alright, that's someone else's problem, it has nothing to do with us!" Yin smiled, Qingyan disapproved of Yin Zhi's actions from the bottom of her heart.
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