CH 19

Chapter 19: Delivering medicine

Yinyou felt something was wrong, very wrong.

Because Yinzhen’s expression had not changed since school was over. Although Yinzhen didn’t have many expressions on his face, he wasn’t this expressionless. Yinyou thought about it carefully. In the afternoon, the fourth brother’s arrows were very accurate, and he rode his horse very steadily. The third brother didn’t have the guts to provoke him directly and the eighth elder brother had been practicing next to him this afternoon, and it was impossible for him to fight with the fourth elder brother at a distance of several feet.

Sure enough, it was the boy’s rebellious period. Yinyou understood immediately, and asked with the patience of an uncle, “Fourth brother, what’s wrong with you?”.

Yinzhen looked up at Yinyou, put his hands behind his back, and slowly let out a few words, “I’m fine”. It was just his tone of voice. How to say it, it was very cold.

Was it okay to speak like this? Yinyou sighed, this kid was really awkward. He stretched out his hand and tugged Yinzhen’s sleeve, “Fourth brother, are you worried about your errand?”

Yinzhen looked at the white hand and didn’t know what to say for a while.

“Or, if there is something making you unhappy, I will listen to you.” Yinyou’s eyes were full of worry. 

The corners of Yinzhen’s mouth twitched, feeling extremely ashamed. He didn’t want the other brothers to get too close to the seventh brother. Such a mentality really made him feel shocked and unsightly.

“I'm fine, seventh brother, don’t worry.” How could he let the other party know this kind of thinking, otherwise, where would he put the seventh brother’s trust and worry? How could he repay the seventh brother’s trust with his own unbearable thoughts? And if the seventh brother knew about it, how would he feel? Would he feel disgusted? Maybe frightened?

There were only two paths he could take; one was not to speak, and the other was to keep a distance from Yinyou. If the final result was to end in estrangement and being disgusted, in this life there was no need to be respectful between brothers. If he kept silent about his thoughts, then at least he would still be the fourth brother Yinyou respects, trusts, and loves.

Yinzhen’s complexion and eyes changed several times, and Yinyou suddenly thought of the draft girls that the third brother mentioned at noon and how they were close to going out of the palace to build a mansion. Could it be… was the fourth brother thinking about girls?

“Appetite and lust are only natural” [1], the fourth brother had grown up. Yinyou understood and also felt lucky. Fortunately, he was a prince in this life, unlike in his previous life, if he wanted to find a girl, he needed to have a house, a car, and savings. The only thing he needed in this life was how to let the emperor give him fewer women. Although he was a man, he didn’t like the rule of «three wives and four concubines». Even if he currently couldn’t be monogamous as the prince, he should let fewer women into his mansion. At least he must be worthy of the little conscience he had left since entering the palace.

[1] 食色性也 shísèxìngyě. Appetite and lust are only natural (Mencius 6A:4). / By nature we desire food and sex.

“Fourth brother, let’s go to Yonghe Palace together.” He still respected the child’s thoughts, so he didn’t ask, and changed the subject.

Yinzhen glanced at Yinyou, and nodded, but didn’t say a word.

The two brothers walked along the palace road, all the way quietly, and as they passed the pear orchard, Yinyou found that the pear blossoms in it were blooming white, looking really beautiful. Yinyou’s footsteps paused, and then he continued to walk forward with Yinzhen.

Concubine De had been favored by Kangxi for the past two years, so when she saw Yinzhen, she had a smile all over her face, and after chatting for a while, she said, “Fourth brother, did the emperor send you to do errands?”

“Yes, E-Niang,” Yinzhen replied with a serious face.

Concubine De was also used to Yinzhen, so she didn't show any displeasure, “Your Huang Ama told you to learn how to do things and you must not be sloppy, if something goes wrong, afraid E-Niang and your younger brother will also be punished.” It was extremely difficult for her to climb all the way to the Imperial Concubine position.

Hearing this, Yinzhen was completely indifferent, but he still said with a wooden face, “I will follow E-Niang’s instruction.”

Concubine De nodded, “Your fourteenth younger brother stayed in the room alone, Er Niang is worried, you can leave now”.

Yinzhen looked up at Concubine De’s smiling face, lowered his eyelids, got up, and saluted her, “Erchen retires. ”

After leaving the inner room and standing in the yard for a while, Yinzhen felt that the sullenness in his heart had dissipated a lot.

“This servant greets the fourth elder brother,” a eunuch walked by, holding a bowl of medicine.

Yinzhen nodded, “Who’s sick?”

“Back to the fourth elder brother, Concubine Cheng suffered from a cold two days ago.” The eunuch knew that the seventh elder brother and the fourth elder brother had a good relationship, and did not hide it. “It is much better today, but there’s still a cough.” 

“Please take care of Cheng E-Niang.” A trace of concern appeared on Yinzhen's face.

”This servant thanks the fourth elder brother on behalf of the Mistress.” The little eunuch knelt down upon hearing this.

“Alright, you go,” Yinzhen asked him to get up, and saw Yinyou walking out of the room in the west wing frowning.

“Seventh brother,” Yinzhen said worriedly.

“Fourth brother,” Yinyou waved back the eunuch who brought the medicine and walked side by side with Yinzhen to the outside of Yonghe Palace.

“Cheng E-Niang will be all right, don’t worry,” Yinzhen patted his head, “I got a copybook from a famous calligraphy two days ago, and I will ask someone to bring it to you later.”

“Thank you, fourth brother,” Yinzhen said. You know that Concubine Cheng will be promoted to Consort and titled «Cheng» (成 chéng: to prosper) in the future, but Concubine Cheng had been coughing badly recently, presumably because of the cold weather and the arrival of spring. As the self who robbed her son’s body and received her love, he still had some guilty conscience for this woman after all.

Yinzhen went back to his yard and asked Xiao Luzi to find some medicine for coughing. After thinking for a while, he said, “You go and deliver them to the seventh brother and just say these are medicines for coughing.” 

The first reason was that he was no longer a child, and second, it was not a special day to send things to the concubines in the harem. As a result, he couldn’t send them directly or he would become suspicious of trying to win over the concubines in tha harem, and this crime was taboo for a prince.

Yinyou looked at the bottles and cans on the table and stretched out his hand to hold a long-necked bottle. Seeing his master sitting silently for a long time, Fu Duo felt uneasy and didn’t know what was going on.

“Send these medicines to E-Niang”. Yinyou loosened the thin porcelain bottle and put it back in its original place. “Besides, tell the servants around her to shut the doors and windows at night, and don’t light incense these days. Don’t let them go to her house with flowers or anything. If a slave can’t remember, give them a good scolding.”

“Yes,” Fu Duo put away the medicine bottles one by one and then led a eunuch out the door.

Yinyou sighed, got up, and said, “Come, let me change my clothes.”

“Master, do you want to light the incense from the fourth brother?”.

Yinyou was slightly taken aback, “Didn’t the incense that the fourth brother sent back last time run out?”.

“The fourth brother remembered and sent someone to replenish it”. The little maid thought to herself that this fourth elder brother was really kind to her master.

“Understood, let’s light the one delivered by the fourth brother,” Yinyou asked a eunuch to change his clothes, but he still felt a little uncomfortable in his heart, this was commonly known as an uneasy conscience.

The fourth elder brother was really kind to him.

Before Yinyou had time to lie down, he heard the voice of a servant from outside, “Master, the eighth brother asked someone to bring medicine for coughing.”

Yinyou sat up silently and lifted the quilt. After the maid dressed him, he went out to the front hall and watched the little eunuch with various vials in a tray handed it to him.

“Thank the eighth brother for me,” Yinyou said after rewarding the little eunuch.

Looking at the pile of medicine bottles in front of him, he felt that it seemed a little cold tonight.

After a stick of incense. [10 min.]

“Master, the third brother asked someone to deliver medicine.”

After the two sticks of incense. [20 min.]

“Master, the Crown Prince sent someone to bring medicine.”

After another pair of sticks of incense. [30 min.]

“Master, the fifth brother sent someone to bring medicine”.

...

“Master, the thirteenth brother sent someone to deliver medicine.”

Why was thirteenth joining in the fun too?!

Yinyou looked at all kinds of bottles and vials on the table and asked the eunuch next to him to put them away with a blank expression.

Sure enough, the palace’s modus operandi was to ruin it whenever he felt moved or emotional. Yinyou realized this truth once again today.

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▲ Footnotes   

[1] 食色性也 shísèxìngyě. Appetite and lust are only natural (Mencius 6A:4). / By nature we desire food and sex.