Fourth Prince Yinzhen was a few months older than Muxue. The education of an imperial prince was entirely different from that of a princess. Like the other princes, after his early schooling began, he spent his entire day busy with his studies, lessons, archery practice, and horsemanship. As he grew older, he took on official duties, becoming incredibly busy. Furthermore, since they were raised by their respective birth mothers and the Fourth Princess was naturally quiet, she rarely made any noise in the palace. Therefore, although the Fourth Prince and the Fourth Princess were siblings, they were not close, only exchanging a few polite pleasantries during palace festivals.
It wasn't until that shout of "Get out!" that his impression of this sister finally ceased to be faint. Good heavens, he had truly thought she was as submissive and obedient as the Third Princess.
The Fourth Prince stood where he was, expressionless, and then he saw the Fourth Princess actually turn her head away and let out a small laugh.
"What is so funny?" he asked with a frown.
"I have made a fool of myself before Fourth Brother," Muxue said, trying to suppress the corners of her mouth. "I apologize; I thought it was the consort coming over, and I was just teasing him."
"A couple should live in harmony; even if it's the consort, you should speak to him properly."
Muxue nodded perfunctorily. "Mm-hm, you're right."
"Enough, come out and have some snacks together."
The night sky was clear and the stars were brilliant. They simply spread a blanket on the open ground between several large tents, set up a table, and casually had some snacks.
Before departing, Muxue had specially prepared some snacks for the road, and now was the perfect time to bring them out for everyone to taste.
Considering the long journey and how one might lose their appetite during the bumpy ride, she had specially ordered the Imperial Kitchen to prepare something flavorful, such as a small jar of Paojiao Fengzhao. As soon as it was opened, a rich, sour, and spicy aroma wafted out.
Dorji was used to her snacks and knew that nothing she made was ever bad. He immediately took the lead and grabbed a chicken foot to eat.
The Fifth Prince's nose twitched. Smelling the aroma, he felt a bit tempted as well. After witnessing the Fourth Princess and her husband start eating, he also reached out immediately.
"This is delicious, quite appetizing," the Fifth Prince affirmed while gnawing on a chicken foot. He hadn't had much of an appetite earlier, finding the palace pastries too cloying. He didn't expect to find these Paojiao Fengzhao so savory.
Only the Fourth Prince sat upright, not touching the Paojiao Fengzhao.
Muxue asked, "Would Fourth Brother like to try some?"
The Fourth Prince shook his head. His eating habits followed those of his Khan Father. His Khan Father insisted on "consuming only one flavor per meal"—if he ate chicken, he ate only chicken; if he ate mutton, he ate only mutton, and the rest of the dishes were given away. The Fourth Prince followed this example and rarely ate snacks or sweets. Moreover, eating these chicken feet didn't look particularly elegant; it was unseemly.
The Fifth Prince refused to let him off, picking one up and stuffing it toward his mouth, noisily saying, "Have one, just have one. This is the first time Fourth Sister has shared a snack; Fourth Brother should at least give her some face and take a bite."
Old Five's loud voice made his head ache. The Fourth Prince had no choice but to take a chicken foot and try it.
…It actually tasted quite good.
And so, he gnawed on it in silence.
Watching from the side, Muxue felt like laughing again seeing the Fourth Prince sitting so upright while gnawing on a chicken foot.
After eating something spicy, she wanted something sweet. Muxue brought out her modified version of nut Shaqima. Although Shaqima already existed in this era, it was generally like a sacrificial pastry—made in large pieces and loaded with heavy sugar. It might be a delicacy for people who usually ate little sugar, but for Muxue, it was a bit too sweet. She had instructed the Imperial Kitchen to make the Shaqima very small, bite-sized, and with less sugar so it wouldn't be too cloying.
The snacks whetted their appetites, and finally, they urgently called the Imperial Kitchen tent to prepare a hot pot. Several plates of mutton and pork were sliced and served with green vegetables to be cooked in the pot. She also had the tea tent bring out two jars of Songlin Wengtou Chunjiu, pouring it into cups for each of them to taste.
Amidst the fragrant steam of the brass hot pot, the relationship between the few of them grew a bit closer.
The Fifth Prince clamored, "When we travel a bit further and reach a river, I'll definitely net some large fish and stew them in an iron pot to eat."
"You can even do that?" Muxue's eyes widened.
"Of course. When Khan Father returned from his campaigns, he even remembered to catch fish for the Crown Prince. We aren't on a military march; netting some fish or hunting a bit on the road won't take much time." The Fifth Prince looked at Dorji. "Your horsemanship is excellent. When the time comes, you'll have to show off for my Fourth Sister and hunt a few deer or wild boars so we can have a barbecue."
Dorji nodded. "Fine, I'll remember that."
He turned to ask Muxue, "Do you prefer venison or wild boar?"
His posture suggested that he would hunt whatever she liked. Muxue thought for a moment. "I feel like wild rabbit might be more fragrant."
The Fifth Prince laughed. "Fourth Sister, using his horse and archery skills to catch a rabbit—that truly is like using a butcher's knife for an ox to kill a chicken."
Dorji also smiled. "As long as the Princess likes it, venison cannot compare to rabbit."
During their idle chatter, Muxue inadvertently noticed a person on a slightly higher piece of ground ahead, looking at the stars through a Wangyuanjing. She couldn't help but be curious.
"Who is that person looking at the stars?"
The others looked in the direction she was pointing. The Fourth Prince said, "That is Zhang Cheng. He's likely observing the celestial phenomena again."
"We have such a person in our party?" Muxue asked.
The Fourth Prince nodded. "Khan Father permitted it. He is taking this opportunity to map out the Mobei Yutu."
Hearing the words Mobei Yutu, Muxue's heart stirred. It would be good for her to have a map in her hands as well.
She said intentionally, "I wonder what he's holding to look at the stars. Call him over so I can have a look as well."
"That is a Wangyuanjing, a Western gadget," the Fifth Prince explained while signaling a eunuch to call the man over.
Before long, Zhang Cheng came running over. Dressed in clothes common in the Qing Dynasty and possessing such an unremarkable name, Muxue had originally thought he was an official from the Astronomical Bureau. But when he looked up, he had a high nose and blue eyes.
He was actually a Westerner!
Muxue was suddenly a bit excited.
The Fourth Prince, seeing her expression, thought she was a bit afraid. Putting down his wine cup, he said, "Don't be afraid. He is a missionary from the West."
The Fifth Prince chimed in, "Ah, I forgot. Before you were married, you probably never saw him. It's fine; he even taught Khan Father the principles of geometry."
Muxue smiled, indicating she was fine.
It wasn't fear at all; she was actually a bit excited! Seeing a foreigner gave her a sense that the village finally had internet access and she was reconnecting with the world.
She stared intently at Zhang Cheng and asked, "Which country are you from?"
"Respected Princess, I am from the nation of Falanxi."
"Then, who is the Emperor there?"
"Our way of saying it is a bit different from the Qing court. It could probably be said to be Emperor Louis XIV."
Muxue asked in Manchu, and Zhang Cheng also answered in Manchu.
She praised, "This Westerner has learned the language very well."
The Fifth Prince said in the Mongolian language, "He is quite skilled with languages. He can speak Manchu and Chinese, and he even knows the Luocha language. Last time Tong Guojiu went to negotiate with Luocha, he specifically brought him along."
He suddenly remembered something and said to Dorji, "Hey, didn't you say you wanted to learn Chinese? This Westerner has a way with learning languages; he can teach you."
Dorji chuckled. He did want to learn Chinese, but he wanted the Fourth Princess to teach him. He didn't want to follow the Fifth Prince's suggestion and instead turned to ask Zhang Cheng, "You also went to Luocha?"
"I did. It was by traveling through your Mobei lands that we went there," Zhang Cheng switched to the Mongolian language. "On that occasion, I also had the honor of meeting your grand-uncle, the Great Lama."
As Muxue listened, she began to calculate silently in her mind. Luocha… that meant Russia, right? Then the negotiations with Russia during the Kangxi era—was that roughly the time of the Nibuchu Treaty?
Afraid of getting things mixed up, she pressed, "Negotiations? Negotiating what?"
The Fourth Prince said simply, "Those Luocha people are maddened; they always want to occupy some borderlands. Khan Father sent people there to settle the boundaries."
In that case, this was a man fluent in multiple languages, familiar with the terrain of Mobei, knowledgeable about the situations in Falanxi and Russia, and who also served as a teacher of astronomy, geography, and mathematics.
Muxue suddenly felt like Liu Xuande looking at Zhuge Kongming.
She could certainly use this man to make sense of the current world situation.