King Yan’s Mansion was, in fact, a slightly smaller palace with stringent rules. The empresses and concubines in the capital practically never left the palace for the rest of their lives, and the same was true for the female family members in the Palace of King Yan. They had only a small degree of freedom. With King Yan’s acquiescence, Yin Hui could go out every month to take care of her dowry business.
Yin Hui had her reasons for going out. While Concubine Guo and Ji Xianxian were pampered and Concubine Xu, Xu Qingwan, and others adhered to etiquette and disdained presumptuous behavior, who truly enjoyed being confined in a luxurious cage? Therefore, as soon as news spread that King Yan was planning to take everyone to the paddock for autumn hunting, the noblewomen and maidservants in the palace’s harem were all filled with excitement, creating a festive atmosphere. They couldn’t wait to go out and have some fun.
Xiao Heng still didn’t fully grasp these matters; he only observed his mother chatting and laughing with the maids as they packed various boxes. He was particularly fond of these boxes, and he enjoyed helping with the packing. When Jinzhan neatly folded a dress, he would gleefully mess it up. And when Yinzhan placed several pieces of jewelry into a box, he would slip his small toy inside. While others worked diligently, he was playfully creating mischief. Despite Yin Hui scolding him, the little one continued to smile joyfully.
In the evening, Wei Luo ventured into the backyard and discovered an inconspicuous box placed in the second room. He wondered about its purpose, but to his surprise, the colored satin within the box shifted, and Xiao Heng’s little head popped out.
Wei Luo nearly couldn’t contain his smile as he approached to retrieve his son. However, his son pushed away his hand, preferring to stay in the box.
Yin Hui explained to Wei Luo, “He has been causing a ruckus all day because he enjoys playing with boxes. So, I placed one outside for him.”
The box stood as tall as Xiao Heng’s shoulders, and the little guy alternated between standing up and sitting down.
There were handles on both sides of the box. Wei Luo instructed his son to sit down and then lifted the box with the handles.
He carried the box around as if it were a sedan chair. When Wei Luo eventually set the box down, his son didn’t want to stop; he yearned for more.
Yin Hui sat on the couch, observing Wei Luo as he accompanied their son around the room several times before Xiao Heng finally emerged.
In both lifetimes, it was only when he was with Xiao Heng that Wei Luo seemed like a genuinely alive and heartfelt person.
However, Xiao Heng had only been able to do that for a while. When Xiao Heng went to study, Wei Luo became a strict father and started to strictly teach Xiao Heng’s literature and martial arts.
All the courtyards packed their stuff. On July eighteenth, when the sky was slightly bright, the masters of the three generations of the palace boarded the carriage one after another.
The Pine Forest Paddock was located in Rehe County, a county under Beijing Prefecture. There were endless grasslands, dense forests that stretch for thousands of miles, and meandering rivers. It was once a hunting place for Emperor Liao . King Yan was a martial artist, and after he arrived at Beijing Mansion to inspect it, he thought it was a good place, so he ordered people to rebuild the pine forest paddock so that he could come here for horse racing and hunting in the future.
The vassal king was not allowed to leave the fief without authorization, but he could travel freely within the fief.
It was just that it takes six or seven days to go from Pingcheng to the paddock.
At noon that day, the chariots and horses stopped to rest at a post station, and the female relatives took their children to eat.
In hushed tones, Ji Xianxian lamented to Yin Hui, “Enduring these daily carriage journeys feels suffocating, and my entire body aches with discomfort.”
For some reason, Ji Xianxian clearly despised Yin Hui’s background, but liked to tell her these trivial things. Xu Qingwan could only provoke her.
Yin Hui said with a smile, “Second Sister-in-law, endure for a few more days, and you will be fine when we reach the paddock.”
She remembered that when she went to the paddock in her previous life, Ji Xianxian played around like a bird out of its cage, and was still reluctant to leave when they had to go back.
While the journey remained arduous and rugged, Yin Hui willingly endured it for the anticipated month of enjoyment and respite. In her new life, she had every intention of indulging herself, rejecting the mundane routine of daily tea-drinking and flower-admiring with Xu Qingwan.
Following their meal, everyone took advantage of the brief interlude before their departure to stroll around the courtyard, limbering up their muscles and stretching their limbs.
Wei Ying approached Yin Hui with a cheerful expression and said, “Sister-in-law, I noticed you’ve brought Feixue along. How about we go horse racing together when the time comes?”
Feixue was the name of Yin Hui’s white horse.
Yin Hui replied with a smile, “Alright, dear sister. Just remember not to forget me once we reach the paddock.”
King Yan had a soft spot for Wei Ying, to the point where he didn’t object to Ji Xianxian riding a horse; Yin Hui accompanied her. When Wei Ying wanted to race, King Yan didn’t raise any objections.
Perhaps the father-in-law understood that they lived under constraints most of the time, and he conveniently turned a blind eye to their conduct in the paddock.
Ji Xianxian chimed in, “I also acquired a horse; let’s compete together.”
Although she didn’t know how to ride a horse, after marrying into King Yan’s mansion, Ji Xianxian saw that Wei Ying had learned to ride and decided to ask Wei Yan for a beautiful horse. Now, her horse-riding lessons would finally come in handy.