Throughout the journey, Qingyan was filled with anxiety. She declined all the invitations from the women, but her behavior did not diminish their enthusiasm; on the contrary, they were even more eager to invite her.
As they entered the edge of the grassland, Qingyan became increasingly anxious and irritated with Yin. Looking at Yin's calm and composed demeanor, she wanted to complain.
She forced herself to suppress her temper and served Yin.
"Are you angry?" Qingyan asked with a stern face, always taking a deep breath when serving him.
Yin pinched her little face. No one else dared to lose their temper in front of him, but Qingyan was an exception.
"No!" Qingyan's tone was firm, and she increased the force in her hand movements slightly.
He stopped Qingyan and comforted her. After a few days, Qingyan understood why the women didn't want to come to the grassland anymore.
Besides the inconvenience of life on the grasslands, the most crucial point was that Mongolian noblewomen must not be allowed to get close to Yin.
"We will arrive at the grasslands early the day after tomorrow." Yin brought another piece of bad news. Qingyan frowned and smiled, she hadn't mentally prepared herself, and was about to face it.
"Hmm, there's a banquet tonight?" Qingyan remembered that it often appeared in novels, where Mongolian noble ladies would toast at the banquet, and the princes would probably all be favored by the noble ladies.
"I won't be someone else's object of desire," Yin said in a low voice.
Yin knew Qingyan's temperament, and given the previous imperial decree, many people wanted to see him take people into his residence. If he did take people into his residence, the palace would also make arrangements.
The little girl's body tensed up, and he patted her back.
The women had essentially isolated Qingyan, and all they wanted to do on their trip to the grasslands was to enjoy each day.
Ugh!
Qingyan was stunned; she hadn't expected Yin to speak so directly.
He simply didn't want to steal the Crown Prince's attention. The Crown Prince was always arrogant, and if any noble lady took a liking to another prince, he would remember it and make things difficult for her in the future.
"For the sake of peace," he sighed.
The Crown Prince was very petty, as Yin knew all too well. In the Imperial Study, the Crown Prince often caused Yin a lot of trouble.
The sound of horses' hooves came from outside the carriage. Qingyan tilted her head and looked out. Sure enough, a man dressed in golden riding clothes ran past quickly, followed by more than a dozen guards.
Yin snorted coldly. The Crown Prince had gone out riding again; in reality, he was just looking for fun around.
No one would say anything if he stayed out all night, but Kangxi noticed and didn't intend to remind the Crown Prince to restrain himself. Kangxi planned to give the Mongol tribes a warning.
As evening approached, the imperial entourage set up camp. To the right of Yin's tent, a small kitchen had been specially built, where Su Lan was cooking millet porridge and preparing several delicious cold dishes that Yin liked.
When dinner was served, Yin was touched. In the center of the table was a spicy mutton hot pot with Yin's favorite vegetables, a dish of onions and wood ear mushrooms, a dish of Qingyan's special pickled vegetables, several dishes of cold dishes, a plate of purple sweet potato buns, and a bowl of red date and millet porridge for each person.
Aside from mutton, the rest was basically what Qingyan brought from the capital. How much of his favorite food was in her luggage?
Even the imperial chefs in the imperial kitchen only brought basic seasonings, which they would buy at a nearby market a day in advance, so it was difficult for Emperor Kangxi to have delicious meals.
"It tastes good." Yin rarely praised the mutton hot pot. "Su Peisheng, reward the person who made the mutton hot pot with ten taels of silver."
Su Lan came in to express her gratitude. Before entering the palace, Su Lan had been specially trained. Qing Yan's father asked Su Lan to identify the ingredients, and Qing Yan also had his own little tricks. Su Lan combined the two, and the taste became better and better.
Hearing the praise, Qingyan's eyes sparkled. It was rumored in the palace that the Fourth Prince was not picky about food, but he rarely praised anything.
“There’s plenty of mutton on the grasslands, so we can cook it often.” Yin was worried that Qingyan wouldn’t be able to adapt.
On the table were ten dishes of various sizes, five of which were cold vegetable salads. There weren't so many ingredients for cold salads back on the grasslands. Yin took a couple of bites of the cold dandelion salad and quickly pointed it out.
"I can make this often when I get back." Yin thought it tasted excellent and suited his taste perfectly.
“Master, these are dandelions. They might not be as convenient as they are here when we go back.” Yin was surprised when Qingyan said this.
Dandelions are abundant on the grasslands, so Qingyan used what was available.
However, the people in the imperial kitchen would not choose such a simple method; they would use quite complicated methods to cook the ingredients.
"It tastes good. We'll prepare more when we get back." The palace grounds are practically barren, which is also problematic.
Qingyan pouted, blaming herself for being so nosy and talking so much.
"You don't need to lift a finger in the palace." Yin noticed that the imperial chefs in the imperial kitchen thought highly of Qingyan. He had his own sources of information, and he hadn't missed any of the actions of the women in other courtyards. Qingyan loved to eat and loved to study.
Ugh!
Qingyan stuck out her tongue. How embarrassing!
"Okay!" Qingyan's little face was flushed, and she was holding a small handkerchief in her little hands.
Outside the tent, a campfire was lit, and guards patrolled in armor. Yin sat at his desk, looking at the book in his hand. Even during the autumn season, Yin would not miss his lessons. Qingyan sat cross-legged on the soft couch, holding a embroidery frame and embroidering her handkerchief.
Recently, she has become somewhat 'obsessed' with embroidery. The items they use are basically made by the Imperial Clothing Bureau. The flower patterns she draws herself are all handmade. Qingyan likes the cute little versions.
"It will be very cute. Make this into a purse for Master." Qingyan embroidered a handkerchief, and the little figure on it looked somewhat like Qingyan. "From now on, you are not allowed to make similar designs. If the servants around you are not careful, it will be troublesome if they lose it."
Qingyan fell silent; she simply wanted to finish embroidering it and put it away herself.
"Yes, it won't happen again!" Yin pointed out, and Qingyan had no choice but to agree.
Qingyan was glad that the embroidery was drawn in the lower right corner, so that it could be done with only half the fabric.
"Make another bamboo-shaped one outside, and put the small sachet inside." Yin liked dragon's breath incense, and he put it in every one of his sachets. Qingyan's room was rarely scented, and Yin was used to it. Every time he went there, he would put the sachet in the study.
Qingyan nodded quickly. She had brought Mozhu's purse; all she had to do was tie a love knot on it.
After he finished speaking, Qingyan looked at the words again, her heart filled with unease. This portrait shouldn't be given away. Indeed, Yin was her man; even if she gave it to him, it shouldn't be a problem.
Qingyan regretted not thinking things through before making the design.
She immediately began to reflect on her actions, realizing that she had gone too far. Yin had only given her a hint, but Qingyan immediately reflected on it. Often, what she understood on her own was more firmly remembered than what he personally told her.
"Master, I know I was wrong!" Qingyan said quickly as he put down the pen.
Yin nodded and said something that resolved Qingyan's oversight.
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