The news that the Fourth Prince had left the capital to accompany the Emperor on official business quickly spread throughout the household. The Princess Consort also sent word that since the Fourth Prince was not currently in the residence, everyone should behave themselves and not let anything happen. If any trouble was caused, the Princess Consort would not show any mercy.

More than half a month had passed in the first month of the lunar calendar, and the Second Prince had lost a lot of weight. Since the Fourth Prince was not at home, the Princess Consort simply asked the Second Prince for another half month's leave.

Now, nothing is more important to the Fujin than the health of the Second Prince.

As a result, one less person entered the school in the front courtyard, leaving only the Third Prince and the First and Second Princesses.

A few days later, the Third Prince also fell ill. It was said that he had caught a cold. His wife sent someone to check on him and also had the imperial physician examine him. It was indeed a case of catching a cold.

Now things are much better. Mr. Dai in the front yard has even more free time. Occasionally, the two princesses would come home from school and listen to Mr. Dai's lectures, so Dai Duo wasn't completely idle.

Whether the Third Prince was truly ill or feigning it, the First Wife was absolutely satisfied.

Madam Xu was sensible enough to know that the Second Prince's illness prevented him from attending school in the front courtyard, which would hinder his studies and make the Third Prince stand out. Knowing that this would displease the Princess Consort, she simply did not allow the Third Prince to attend school either.

Everyone naturally understood these intricacies. The Fourth Prince was still young, so Li Chenjiao had nothing to worry about. She simply stayed in the East Courtyard every day, listening to the little girl talk about what Granny Zhong had taught her. When the little girl was studying in the front courtyard, she would tease the Fourth Prince.

The Fourth Prince was amused so much that he started talking more every day. Oh, he just mumbled something unintelligible to Li Chenjiao, but she continued to tease him anyway.

It was cold in the first month of the lunar calendar, and it wasn't until the second month that Li Chenjiao remembered that the Second Prince's birthday was coming up soon, and in the blink of an eye, the Fourth Prince would be two years old.

However, since the Fourth Prince is not at home, it seems unlikely that a grand celebration will be held.

"Let's wait until we get to the main courtyard and hear what the Princess Consort has to say," Li Chenjiao said, wrapping her cloak tighter around herself, carrying a hot water bottle, and heading towards the main courtyard with Green Plum and Green Bamboo by her side.

Today is the first day of the second lunar month.

It was cold this year, and when Li Chenjiao arrived at the main courtyard, the hot water bottle in her arms seemed to have gone cold. After sitting down, she gently warmed her hands and looked around to see that everyone had arrived.

While Song was talking to Bai Jia, she saw Li Chenjiao come in and looked her up and down: "The fabric of your clothes looks fresh, Consort Li."

Madam Song always paid close attention to the fabrics of the clothes and jewelry worn by everyone and their complexion.

Li Chenjiao took a sip of hot tea to calm herself down: "It was delivered from the sewing shop, and the designs are indeed novel."

She didn't actually think so, but she didn't want to hear Song's questioning, so she just went along with what Song said.

Madam Song muttered something to herself, then turned to Madam Xu and asked, "I heard that the Third Prince has been ill lately? He's been sick for several days now, is he still not fully recovered? You must be careful while you're taking care of him."

Wu remained unmoved, only her brow twitched slightly when Song mentioned the prince.

Before Madam Xu could answer, the Fujin (principal wife) came out from the head of the table.

As soon as the Fujin came out, Li Chenjiao held her breath for a moment. She pinched her palm with her fair fingertips to clear her mind slightly. Only after the Fujin said that she should not stand on ceremony and should take a seat did she slowly drink a sip of tea.

It's so pungent, it's really choking.

It smelled of some kind of spice, but it was pungent and made you feel dizzy.

The princess's complexion improved day by day: "It's been a while since I've seen you all. How are you all doing?"

Madam Song spoke bluntly: "With the master not at home, things can't get much better no matter how nice they are..."

The princess glanced at her but didn't take offense: "You're becoming more and more reckless with your words. You're the one who gave birth to the eldest princess, you should be more composed."

Wu twitched the corner of her mouth but remained silent.

Seeing that Song Shi remained silent, the Fujin took the initiative to ask Li Chenjiao, "How are the Second Princess and the Fourth Prince doing? The weather has been cold lately, and the Fourth Prince is the youngest of them all, so he needs to be extra careful."

Li Chenjiao replied calmly, naturally noticing the radiant smile on the Fujin's face.

Everyone in the mansion knows that the Fourth Prince is the most disciplined person. Originally, there was an eldest prince to stand in front of him, but now it's different. The Second Prince is truly the eldest son and the legitimate heir, and there is no way to overstep the rules and etiquette.

The princess consort was then less worried about the third and fourth princes.

The current wife seems to speak very kindly and gently, and she does indeed have a rather amiable appearance.

When Li Chenjiao came out of the main courtyard, she was still a little dazed. A gust of cold wind blew, and she subconsciously squinted.

It would be nice if things could stay like this forever.

She had just gathered her cloak and was heading back to the east courtyard when she saw Wang Jinzhong, who was serving the main wife, rushing over in a hurry.

When Wang Jinzhong saw Li Chenjiao, he didn't even bow, and went straight to the main courtyard.

Xiao Luzi called out, but ultimately failed to stop the person.

Neither Green Plum nor Green Bamboo uttered a sound of indignation; they simply turned around and stared at Wang Jinzhong's back.

That's really quite unruly.

Li Chenjiao didn't turn around. She raised her hand to press her brow, then handed the hot water bottle in her hand to Lüzhu, and said to Lümei, "Go back to the main courtyard and tell Yuru, who is by the Fujin's side, that Wang Jinzhong just tripped and fell in front of me. Ask him to make sure no one else gets hurt."

Green Plum immediately understood and hurriedly went to carry out the order.

It doesn't matter whether Wang Jinzhong saw Li Chenjiao or not. The point is that they've only just left the main courtyard, and everyone's eyes are on them. If Li Chenjiao really doesn't react at all, wouldn't that be like sticking her face out to be slapped?

Li Chenjiao's words could be seen as a reminder to the Fujin (the wife of the deceased).

Xiao Luzi thought of another point: "But judging from Xiao Luzi's appearance, he came from the stables, so he's coming back from outside."

The implication is that something bad has happened outside.

Li Chenjiao hummed in agreement: "Let's go back first."

Li Chenjiao wasn't that curious about what was happening outside, but she still waved her hand.

Xiao Luzi then understood.

When evening came and dinner was being served, Xiao Luzi came to report.

It's clear that this news is really hard to get.

"I heard that the Crown Prince beat up Prince Ping, Narse." Xiao Luzi had just returned from outside the mansion, panting heavily.

Li Chenjiao didn't know about Prince Ping; she only understood one thing from what she heard.

The Crown Prince hit someone, and that person was a Prince of the County.

Wow!