The Fourth Prince lowered his head and took a sip of tea to cleanse the greasy taste in his mouth: "This year, Father Emperor has also gone on a southern tour. It is a time of great turmoil in the capital, so there is no need to hold a grand celebration for the Dragon Boat Festival. The Princess Consort in the mansion can keep everything simple."

This means that the Fourth Prince will not return to the mansion during the Dragon Boat Festival.

The princess was in no good mood at all, but she still had to maintain her gentle and virtuous demeanor: "It's just that there's no one in charge of things on the estate."

The Fourth Prince put down his teacup: "That's easy. We'll arrange for Granny Xu to stay at the estate for a while. What do you think, Madam?"

The Fourth Prince's words were like striking a snake at its vital point, directly hitting the Fujin's heart.

Didn't your wife complain that Granny Xu was interfering with your household management? Then I'll send Granny Xu to the estate. That way, there will be someone in charge at the estate, and you won't have any worries about the household.

But since I've made these arrangements for you, my wife, please don't make any other requests.

Upon hearing this, the princess was speechless.

Power is tempting, and the loss of control over the household in those few months last year was a huge blow to the Fujin. At least the backyard of the mansion could not be said to be completely under her control.

The princess couldn't bring herself to refuse.

Ulanara maintained a polite smile: "In that case, I will give Xu Mama a proper instruction later, and tell her to manage things well at the estate. Oh, and there's also Consort Wu. I've calculated that Consort Wu is now five months pregnant. Shouldn't we let Consort Wu return to the manor to rest and recuperate?"

The Fourth Prince was truly impatient with his wife's antics: "Everything is fine at the estate. The imperial physician said that it would actually be beneficial for Wu's pregnancy to be taken care of at the estate, so Your Highness may simply let Wu give birth there."

The princess's face turned pale instantly, and she naturally assumed that the fourth prince was worried about her because of Song Gege's previous childbirth.

She only regretted that the people below hadn't handled things cleanly enough.

Now I have to think of an excuse again.

However, the Fourth Master did not give her a chance to say anything more.

"There are still matters to attend to at the estate, so I'll head back now."

When the Princess Consort saw the Fourth Prince off and left the main courtyard, she was still somewhat dazed.

In the year or so since she entered the household, she has indeed gradually taken control of the household as her mother had said, but many things do not seem to be going as she expected.

Whether it was the Fourth Prince's favor or his offspring.

It seems that things are no longer what they used to be.

Last year, during her wedding, the Fourth Prince clearly respected her greatly and never allowed Madam Song to offend her.

They would also often come to the main courtyard to stay overnight.

When exactly did all this change?

The princess couldn't figure out where things had gone wrong.

She sat in the spot where the Fourth Master had just been sitting, biting her lip, finally showing some helplessness.

Until Yu Ru called to her from outside the screen: "Fujin".

The princess subconsciously straightened her back, wiped her eyes, and regained her usual composure: "What is it?"

Yu Ru then walked around the screen and came in to report: "After Fourth Master left the main courtyard, he was invited away by Liu Xu from Consort Song's courtyard, and he has already left—"

Upon hearing this, the princess sneered, "I'm not the only one who can't sit still in this backyard."

Yu Ru pursed her lips and finished speaking: "But just now, it seems there's some noise coming from Song Gege's courtyard, like people packing their trunks—"

The princess nearly cried out, "What did you say?"

Just then, the voice of a second-class maid from the main courtyard came from outside: "Madam, Eunuch Su from the front courtyard has come to deliver a message."

The princess gritted her teeth, already guessing what Su Peisheng was trying to say: "Please."

He was practically gritting his teeth.

Su Peisheng lowered his head as soon as he entered the room, clearly aware that his wife was not in a good mood at the moment, so he spoke fluently.

"Reporting to Madam. The master has arranged for Consort Song and the eldest consort to go to the estate later. He has instructed Madam to make the arrangements so that they can go with Granny Xu."

Now, only the Fujin (principal wife) and Xie Gege (princess Xie), who had only recently entered the mansion, remain in the entire household.

The Princess Consort can now hold onto the power of managing the household with peace of mind.

The Fujin couldn't understand why the Fourth Prince would suddenly allow Song Shi and the eldest princess to live on the estate.

The eldest princess's body couldn't withstand the bumpy ride.

However, Su Peisheng did not give the Fujin a chance to find the Fourth Prince. After bowing, he withdrew directly.

——

At the manor, around dinner time, Li Chenjiao heard the familiar sounds of chests being moved outside.

However, the Qiaoyun Courtyard where Song Gege lived was far from Li Chenjiao's Xinlutang, but very close to the Dongfeng Courtyard behind it.

In Li Chenjiao's memory, both of these courtyards were very close to the garden on the estate.

Li Chenjiao was surprised to learn that Song Gege and the eldest princess had also moved to the estate. She was also curious about which expert had given Song Gege guidance.

As for why Song Gege was able to persuade the Fourth Prince, it's not hard to guess.

Most of them are closely related to the eldest princess.

The reason why the Fourth Prince was able to persuade the eldest princess was probably related to her recuperation.

It's definitely more comfortable to be on the estate than to be cooped up in the mansion.

But the fact that Song Gege made this move at this time is, well, not something Song Gege would normally do.

Li Chenjiao was very clear about Song Gege's attitude towards the eldest princess. From the time when the eldest princess was brought to the front yard last year, and the attitude of the eldest princess's wet nurse, it was not difficult to guess Song Gege's attitude towards the eldest princess.

Li Chenjiao rested her chin on her hand and sighed, "These carefree days are going to be over again."

There's no reason why Song Gege would beg Fourth Master to come to the estate.

Sure enough, the Fourth Prince only came to Li Chenjiao's place for dinner. Before he had even finished eating, Song Gege's servant from Qiaoyun Courtyard came and said that the eldest princess was vomiting a lot of milk.

Li Chenjiao put down her chopsticks and spoke before Fourth Master could say anything.

"In that case, Fourth Master should really go and see the First Princess at Consort Song's place. Perhaps the bumpy journey today must have been tough on her—"

The maid who came to invite the Fourth Master from Song Gege's courtyard was none other than Liu Xu, the head maid. Upon hearing Li Chenjiao's voice, she couldn't help but look up in surprise.

But Li Chenjiao frowned, her face full of worry: "Although I have never given birth, I feel sorry for her. Master, shall I accompany you to see the eldest princess?"

The worry on Li Chenjiao's face was genuine. This wasn't the first time Song Shi had used the eldest princess as a pawn. Li Chenjiao was truly disgusted by Song Shi's behavior, but at the same time, she felt sorry for the eldest princess.

Of course, the main reason she said this today was to prevent Song from continuing to use the eldest princess as an excuse to steal her away.

Princess Wu was the type to know when to stop, but Madam Song was not.

Li Chenjiao wasn't going to indulge her once or twice.

This time, Li Chenjiao is determined to nip it all in the bud.