The princess dragged herself back to the mansion. The rain gradually subsided, but it was still drizzling.

The Princess Consort had someone escort Su Peisheng back to the main courtyard. As soon as she returned, a maid reported that the Second Prince had a fever. The Princess Consort was anxious and couldn't help but scold him.

"How have you all been taking care of him? You knew the weather was getting colder these days, so why did you let the Second Prince get sick?"

The nannies also had their own unspeakable suffering. Every time the Second Prince changed seasons, he would fall ill one after another. This had been the case for more than a year. The Princess Consort treated the Second Prince like a precious gem. She was afraid that he would get too much sun when the weather was sunny and too cold when the weather was cold. So, all year round, she could not let the Second Prince go outside to see the sun.

How can a child be properly raised if they're constantly bundled up like that?

Look at Song Gege's eldest daughter. She was also born with a weak constitution. I heard that when she was born, the imperial physicians said she wouldn't live past three months. But look at her now, she's grown into a lively and well-behaved little girl. Apart from being a bit thin, she's a lovely and beautiful little girl.

During the Mid-Autumn Festival, when the children of the manor went to the palace to see the Empress, the Empress rewarded them handsomely for their dedication in serving the eldest princess. As a result, Wang Shi served even more diligently.

Unlike them, who appear glamorous from the outside, serving the pampered sons of the noble family, yet live in constant fear that the Second Prince might fall ill again one day—

The nannies had no choice but to serve her even more diligently.

After finally seeing that the Second Prince had fallen asleep, the Fujin asked how the preparations in the Qing Courtyard were going. Granny Qian had personally inspected the place and reported back, which finally satisfied the Fujin.

Before she could even catch her breath, she heard a report from outside that Liu Gege had arrived.

The Fujin was currently preoccupied with the Second Prince's affairs and had no time to see Liu Shi. She waved her hand dismissively, as if shooing away a fly: "She just got back and instead of taking care of herself, she's rushing here to see me. Let her go back."

The little girl went out.

While massaging the shoulders of the Fujin to relieve her discomfort, Yu Ru said softly, "The mistress has just returned. I heard that the one in the east invited the imperial physician at noon."

The princess was surprised for half a second upon hearing this, and slightly raised her half-closed eyes: "What's wrong with her now?"

Yu Ru shook her head slightly, hesitated for half a second, and said, "I don't know anything else, but I do know that the imperial physician is Zhou Taiyi, a renowned gynecologist from the Imperial Hospital."

Upon hearing this, the Princess Consort's lips trembled slightly, and she exchanged a glance with Yu Ru: "Could it be—"

Yu Ru comforted her, "We don't know yet. This servant has already sent someone to ask Lü Lan. Perhaps the concubine herself is hoping for an heir and has invited Physician Zhou to prescribe medicine to help with conception. Consort Wu from the south hasn't been keeping a low profile lately."

The Fujin was not reassured by these words. She rubbed her forehead and said, "Who knows if Li Shi was pregnant when she came back after being by the Fourth Prince's side for the past few months? I reckon it's almost certain—there had been no sign of pregnancy for a whole year, and she got pregnant after just one trip?"

The Fujin (principal wife) only now thought of calling Liu over for questioning, but she had just driven Liu away, so it was naturally inappropriate to invite Liu back now, as it would be difficult for the Fujin to save face.

The Fujin even thought that Liu might have come to tell her about Li's good fortune.

The princess felt a headache coming on and could only say, "We'll know everything by the time of the banquet."

If Li is indeed pregnant, it's not good news at all.

A concubine with a son is different from a concubine without a son.

Fortunately, even after the child in Li's belly was born, she would still be two years younger than her second son. Two years, no more, no less, and a layer of melancholy crept into the Fujin's eyes.

As the princess consort pondered her plan, she seemed to hear the Second Prince crying. She subconsciously stood up and went to the side room to look at the Second Prince, whose face was flushed from illness. Even with her little finger covered by a nail guard, she couldn't help but dig it into the soft flesh of her palm.

The gradually deepening stinging pain brought the princess to her senses.

——

The commotion inside the main courtyard was gradually concealed by the rain, and no one outside knew what was happening.

Li Chenjiao woke up in the east courtyard and played with the second princess for a while. The little girl was really not afraid of strangers. Although she was a little shy around Li Chenjiao at first, it was not out of fear, but out of embarrassment.

Although the little girl wasn't shy, she was clearly overwhelmed by her mother Li Chenjiao's enthusiasm, her face turning as red as a pomegranate. Li Chenjiao felt even more like she wanted to wring the little girl into a ball and carry her with her at all times.

Even by dinnertime, the rain was still coming in bursts, which was the worst kind of weather.

The air was both hot and humid, making it hard to decide whether to wear summer or autumn clothes. The bluestone slabs were also difficult to walk on after the rain, so Li Chenjiao simply changed into wooden clogs, which made walking easier and prevented her from getting her shoes and socks wet and catching a chill.

As for clothing, Li Chenjiao chose a brocade qipao in autumn chrysanthemum color with a crab holding an osmanthus flower and a dark pattern of rolled chrysanthemum petals, in keeping with the season.

The sewing shop rushed to deliver it today, saying they were waiting for Li Chenjiao to come back.

Although Li Chenjiao has not been at home for the past few months, she has received her monthly allowance and seasonal clothing allowance without any shortage.

After changing her clothes, Li Chenjiao touched her belly and chuckled, "Look at me, I've gotten fatter again."

Qiu Hu disagreed, saying, "Your Highness is in the later stages of your pregnancy. After traveling for more than a month, you've clearly lost weight. There's still a lot of work to be done for dinner at the Qing Courtyard. Green Bamboo in the small kitchen has made chicken porridge. Please have some to tide you over."

Li Chenjiao took off another jade bracelet from her wrist, clearly finding it a bit cumbersome. Following Qiu Hu's advice, she ate a bowl of chicken porridge and also had some dried meat mixed in.

After she finished eating, she wiped her mouth and praised, "Green Bamboo's skills have improved again. Remember to reward her."

It was getting late, and Li Chenjiao became affectionate with the Second Princess again, making Aman giggle. However, she did not take the Second Princess with her to the banquet at the Qing Courtyard.

Firstly, it's because of the weather, and secondly, the Second Princess isn't eating well at the Qing Courtyard either, and who knows what everyone there will say, so let's skip it.

Before leaving, Li Chenjiao gave Chen Mama and the others some final instructions. She only took Qiu Hu and Lin Mama with her, along with a small servant to carry a lantern, and then headed towards Taiqing Courtyard.

As soon as Li Chenjiao stepped out of the East Courtyard, she felt the chill in the wind. She pulled her clothes tighter and soon a hand warmer was stuffed into her hand by Qiuhu.

Li Chen smiled and said no more words of praise; this girl was always the most considerate.

Li Chenjiao left the courtyard and headed from the garden to the Qingyuan Courtyard. When she passed by the garden, she saw fallen flowers all over the ground and sighed. However, she did not expect that someone was more romantic than her and was picking up fallen flowers in the rain with an umbrella.

The figure was slender, and in the wind and rain, she had the air of a willow swaying in the breeze.

Li Chenjiao paused, then smiled enigmatically.