In terms of riding and archery, the thirteenth and fourteenth princes were better than Yinzhen. However, this time they were just out for fun and no one was really competing. The thirteenth prince was only half a horse's length behind Yinzhen.
The fourteenth prince, on the other hand, seemed to have lost his mind, running ahead and howling.
This prompted several other children to follow suit, and soon the whole place was filled with howling and wailing.
Wanhe moved the pastries closer to Changning and said with a smile, "They finally got out, and they're having so much fun."
Changning let out a long sigh of relief, breathing in the fresh air of the suburbs, which somehow felt much fresher than the air inside the manor.
She chimed in, "It's always a bit stifling in the mansion."
Among the children, Feng Sheng'e ran the fastest, followed closely by Hong Hui. Although Hong Hui was getting older, his body was still weaker than that of ordinary people. His current speed was already a result of his strong will.
Hongchun was just like his father; he struggled with his studies, but he was quite good at riding and archery, and he also had some strength. He cheerfully shouted from the front, "Hongyan! Hongyan! Come and chase me!"
Seeing her son having fun, Wanhe felt relieved.
As they chatted, the conversation turned to matters concerning the manor.
“The master treats me worse now than before, but with Hongchun around, there’s still some affection between us.” As Wanhe said this, her gaze was fixed on Hongchun, who was riding a horse.
Changning couldn't detect any sadness in her voice, only hearing her whisper, "The Fujin is stubborn. She loves the Fourteenth Prince but keeps it all to herself and goes against him. Sometimes, I feel sorry for her. It's good that things are like this now, and she has a child."
Changning understood that the Fourteenth Prince's wife, Wanyan, had a personality just like a modern elementary school student; if she liked you, she would pull your braid.
Changning was genuinely surprised by Wanhe's clear-headedness. It turned out that she didn't care about the Fourteenth Prince at all; she saw through everything and wasn't saddened.
The same was true for the Ussuri clan on the other side.
She was young and entered the household late, and had no feelings for the Thirteenth Prince. However, the Thirteenth Prince's wife, Zhao Jiayun, took care of her because of her young age.
Yun Chun asked her to come to the manor this time. She said it was to help her relax and get some fresh air, so that she wouldn't get too cooped up at such a young age.
Wusu felt a mix of emotions; she just felt that the Fujin (principal wife) should stay with the Thirteenth Prince and be happy together.
Wanhe looked at Changning, who was rubbing her belly and eating fruit, and smiled: "I envy you, sister. You are so lucky to have Fourth Brother doting on you. And your children are so well-behaved and clever."
Changning didn't want the atmosphere to become somber, so she pretended to be annoyed: "Don't even mention it, these little devils are born to cause trouble. They're always making a ruckus in the yard. Now that they've all been brought out, the manor is finally quiet."
Wanhe laughed: "If you don't want these demon stars, then I'll take them back to the manor. Don't cry, sister!"
"Don't cry, don't cry!"
After laughing and joking for a while, mindful of Changning's pregnancy, the three of them returned to their room in the warm pavilion to continue their conversation.
Among the riders ahead, Meng Guqing rode a robust and powerful Mongolian horse, a rare sight in the capital. With the whistling wind in her ears, she felt a sense of freedom, as if she had returned to the grasslands.
She was initially obsessed with romantic love, but it didn't end well. Stubbornly insisting on spending her whole life with him, she left Abu and Eji to marry in the distant capital just to spite Amur.
It wasn't until his mother passed away that Meng Guqing realized how naive and inconsiderate he had been, how he hadn't thought things through at all.
The capital city is nice, but the grasslands suit her better.
Meng Guqing wants a divorce.
She didn't plan to tell Changning about this, as Changning was pregnant and she didn't want to trouble her. Meng Guqing planned to talk to the Fourth Master directly after returning to the manor.
For this horseback riding and hunting trip, Yinzhen prepared more than fifty foxes and rabbits, hoping to toughen up his sons and nephews.
Who knew that Hutu also shot a fat rabbit, which was kicking its legs when it was picked up!
The girl wasn't afraid at all; on the contrary, she was very excited and showed it to her father like a treasure, her little face held high.
Yinzhen couldn't help but chuckle, and was genuinely surprised by her boldness, so he praised her profusely. However, he was not very good at sweet-talking, so Hutuli was dissatisfied and turned to go find her mother.
Changning's words were much more pleasant to hear than Yinzhen's.
"Our Hutuli is amazing! To be able to shoot a rabbit at such a young age is simply divine strength!"
"Hutuli is the true warrior of our Great Qing! From now on, your mother and brothers will need your protection!"
Hutuli patted his chest proudly: "Of course! I'll protect Mother from now on!"
Then she asked, "Mom, should we braise this rabbit or make it spicy?"
Changning sighed, "Daughter, you have such a sweet face, you shouldn't be thinking about how cute and fluffy little white rabbits are, and how you want to raise one."
Her eyes darted around, and she put on a dramatic act, deliberately raising her voice to accuse, "Bunny is so cute, how can you eat a bunny?"
Hutu was speechless, giving off a "What's wrong with you now, Mother?" look.
Changning coughed lightly, suddenly realizing he was making a stupid mistake.
"Then let's go with the spicy one."
The boys also achieved great success.
Feng Sheng'e hunted a fiery red fox, its color pure and vibrant, and he thought of making a glove for his mother.
Fei Yanga was just there for fun, clapping his hands excitedly as he watched his brother hunt a fox.
Honghui also caught a few rabbits and seemed quite happy.
The eldest son of the Thirteenth Prince, Hongchang, was born to a member of the Guarjia clan. He was a bit timid by nature and did not win anything in the horse race this time. However, he did not cry or make a fuss, for fear of embarrassing the Thirteenth Prince.
The Thirteenth Prince didn't say anything, but simply patted Hongchang's thin shoulder, looking relaxed. This relieved Hongchang.
His birth mother had made a mistake and was stripped of her title as a secondary consort. She was kept locked up and he rarely saw her, usually living with his primary consort in her main courtyard. His primary consort treated him well, but he longed to be closer to his father.
As for Hongchun, he was just like his father, always busy playing. He took Hongchang to catch insects, but they didn't catch anything. When they came back, the Fourteenth Prince flicked his forehead.
Hongchun let out a "woof" and rubbed his head. His father had really hit him hard; he felt that a bump was definitely going to form on his head!
"Father! Why did you flick me?"
Fourteen, though lacking in manners himself, was unwilling to see his son so irresponsible, so he sternly reprimanded him.
"You said you were going hunting, what did you do there?"
"Catch bugs! Fourth Uncle said he's taking us bird hunting tomorrow, so we need to catch some bugs as bait, right?"
Huh? Bird catching?
Fourteen indicates that he is very interested.
The dinner was quite plentiful, mostly featuring local specialties.
For example, the big carp from the pond were specially made into a sweet and sour sauce that children love.
There's also the spicy rabbit meat that Hutu specifically requested.
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