"Your Majesty, on the very night Li Tiao entered the palace, one of your daughters died, and then Yun Hui also died. There are rumors that her birth chart is incompatible with the palace."

This was a rumor that Li Tiao had spread, but wasn't it supposed to only circulate within the small circle of the princes? How did Consort De find out about it too?

However, as the Fourth Prince just said, it was Emperor Kangxi's decree that she would enter the palace to become his concubine.

When Li Tiao had Liu Mama spread these rumors, she didn't think much of it.

Nowadays, Li Tiao herself wouldn't dare say those words again, because saying them would be questioning Emperor Kangxi.

But Consort De seemed to think that she was not dying quickly enough, and she even spoke to Emperor Kangxi like that.

As expected, Kangxi slammed his fist on the table in a fit of rage: "Consort De, are you questioning my senility?"

"Your Majesty, I dare not, Your Majesty only..."

"You dare not? I have not seen you dare not, I have seen you become even more brazen!" Kangxi was truly furious this time: "The fourth prince is not the only one in the palace whose son is not raised by his mother, but you are the only one who treats his son like an enemy!"

"Your Majesty, my feelings for the Fourth Prince are beyond doubt, I..."

"Enough! I don't want to listen to your nonsense anymore! Incompatible horoscopes? How could you even come up with that?" Kangxi said angrily. "Since you dislike the Fourth Prince so much, it's best if you see him less often in the future."

The fourth prince is not young anymore and has a wife; it is no longer appropriate for him to live in the princes' quarters. I hereby instruct the Imperial Household Department to provide him with his own residence!

Li Tiao was so surprised that her mouth remained open for a long time!

Is this a sign of things finally taking a turn for the better?

At the same time, she subconsciously touched her face. Back then, Li Tiao thought her face wasn't big, so she wouldn't have dared to have such a wish.

But now, Emperor Kangxi has actually given the Fourth Prince a separate residence because he and the palace are incompatible according to their birth charts.

"Your Majesty..."

Kangxi didn't even glance at Consort De again. "Guards! Summon the people from the Imperial Household Department to come see me!"

Li Tiao had no time to appreciate Consort De's ashen face. Before she could even look at the Fourth Prince, she heard him express his gratitude: "Your subject thanks Your Majesty for your grace."

After hesitating for a moment, Li Tiao followed the Fourth Prince in bowing to Master Kang to express her gratitude.

“We are father and son, there’s no need to be so polite. You’re not young anymore. Before, you didn’t have any servants, so it was fine for you to stay in the prince’s quarters temporarily. Now that you have servants, you were originally given a separate residence when you got married. This was my oversight.”

Although today is..., as the saying goes, there's no better day than today, right?

It may look a bit casual, but it's definitely not sloppy.

These lengthy words were meant to appease the Fourth Prince, telling him that although he had said he would give him a separate residence out of spite, a king's word is law, and he would never go back on his word.

The Fourth Prince expressed his gratitude once again.

After that, Kangxi made the Fourth Prince and Li Tiao kneel down to pay their respects.

After all, it's not necessary for the Fourth Prince to be present when discussing the location of the Fourth Prince's residence with the Imperial Household Department.

As for Consort De, Li Tiao thought that if she was smart, she probably wouldn't cause any more trouble for the Fourth Prince for the time being.

After leaving the Qianqing Palace, Li Tiao suppressed her excitement at being one step closer to leaving the Forbidden City. Thinking about how the Fourth Prince had defended her against Consort De in front of Master Kang, Li Tiao decided she should be more polite.

"Master, thank you."

The Fourth Prince raised an eyebrow and glanced sideways at Li Tiao, as if asking her why she was thanking him.

"You spoke up for me just now, otherwise I really wouldn't know how to respond to His Majesty."

Noticing Li Tiao's deliberately suppressed excitement, the Fourth Prince knew that Li Tiao's excitement and joy were different from his own excitement at finally being granted a separate residence.

He narrowed his eyes: "Whether your birth chart is incompatible with this palace, I don't know, but since you followed me, everything has become much smoother."

So never think about running away; this is how Li Tiao understood the meaning behind the Fourth Prince's words.

Li Tiao panicked and grabbed the Fourth Prince: "Your Highness, what do you mean by that? Although the incompatibility of our birth dates is just a rumor, there is some truth to it. For example, one of your sisters died the night I entered the palace, and Yun Hui also..."

"I have long wanted to get rid of Yunhui. Your appearance has helped me. If it weren't for you, I probably wouldn't have been separated from my father so quickly."

Li Tiao stood there, stunned!

Am I... blessed with good luck? No, no, I'd rather not have this kind of good fortune.

"Master, this servant actually..."

"This is the first time I've ever seen people vying to be a jinx."

Li Tiao was stunned and speechless, unable to tell whether the Fourth Prince's words were a compliment or a taunt.

Li Tiao was somewhat moved when the Fourth Prince spoke up for her.

However, looking at the Fourth Prince's calm and composed back now, one can't help but want to put a sack over his head and beat him up.

That's infuriating!

You shouldn't hit someone in the face, but the Fourth Prince didn't give him any face. His sarcastic remarks were still fresh and unconventional, but Li Tiao only dared to silently complain about the Fourth Prince in her heart.

While Li Tiao was silently cursing the Fourth Prince, Consort De also came out of the Qianqing Palace. When she met Li Tiao, she still felt indignant and mocked her, "I really underestimated you."

"Your Majesty flatters me." Li Tiao took Consort De's words as a compliment and accepted them without batting an eye.

"Heh, Li Tiao, you better not let me catch you doing anything wrong, or I won't let you off the hook."

Li Tiao didn't want to get into a fight, nor did she want to engage in a verbal battle with Consort De. After all, Consort De was a high-ranking concubine, while she was just an unfavored concubine. The difference in their status was too great.

But to everyone's surprise, Consort De was still persistent. Li Tiao may be timid, but that doesn't mean she has no temper.

"Your Majesty, please forgive my boldness, but the words you said to the Emperor earlier about the incompatibility of horoscopes were spread by someone on my behalf."

“You…” It was clear that Consort De was very surprised.

"Your Majesty, I don't know why you insist on picking a fight with me, but I am very grateful to you because my thoughts are the same as yours."

Li Tiao really didn't want to always be seen as a potential enemy by Consort De, so she simply voiced her thoughts, thinking she might as well try anything.

Consort De's eyes darted around, showing a hint of interest: "You mean you don't want to be with the Fourth Prince?"

Li Tiao nodded: "I guess so."

"But you already had someone you liked before the talent show?" Consort De asked again.

Li Tiao paused for a moment before cautiously replying, "Your Majesty, you don't need to try to trick me like that. I didn't have anyone I liked before the selection, but that doesn't mean I didn't want to be with the Fourth Prince, does it?"

Making a private engagement before the talent show is a big taboo at this time, and Li Tiao didn't want to give anyone any leverage over her. In fact, Li Tiao didn't have anyone she liked.

"So it's simply that you don't like the fourth brother?"

Li Tiao: "Who says you have to like someone just because they're a prince?"

Seeing Consort De smiling, Li Tiao's heart suddenly skipped a beat, but then she thought that she hadn't said anything improper, so she didn't take it seriously.

But Consort De then smiled and said, "Fourth Prince, did you hear that? The person you're so eager to protect doesn't care about you at all. Don't you think this is retribution?"