With the imperial decree of Emperor Kangxi announcing the marriage, the Eighth Prince has been enjoying great success lately, with a constant stream of people offering their congratulations.

Although Li Tiao is currently with the Fourth Prince in the Fourth Third Palace, it is still a prince's residence, and she can still feel everyone's admiration for the Eighth Prince.

At the same time, the Fourth Prince's expression grew increasingly unpleasant.

Although both were in the Fourth Prince's residence, and Li Tiao was still the Fourth Prince's concubine, she rarely saw him unless she made a point of it.

Therefore, the Fourth Prince's mood doesn't actually affect Li Tiao much.

But he was the master, and when he was in a bad mood, all the palace maids, eunuchs, and nannies serving him were trembling with fear, which also made Li Tiao feel the Fourth Prince's bad mood.

Left with no other choice, Li Tiao deliberately pretended to run into the Fourth Prince, who was returning to the Princes' quarters, at the courtyard gate.

"Greetings to the master."

The Fourth Prince was taken aback at first, then glanced at Li Tiao with a slightly cold look, and said, "Get up."

He then walked forward with his hands behind his back, showing no intention of speaking to Li Tiao.

Li Tiao paused for a moment, then quickly caught up: "Master, it's still very hot today. What would you like to eat for lunch? I'll have someone prepare it."

"Have someone prepare it? What are you going to do?" The Fourth Prince finally said a few more words, but it was all to pick a fight.

Although she was annoyed, Li Tiao still followed behind him with a smile on her face: "This servant can prepare it, but my cooking skills are not good enough. I'm afraid it will disappoint your palate. If you..."

"What if I give you silver?"

Hearing the Fourth Prince suddenly interrupt her, Li Tiao was stunned and a little confused, but thinking about the travel expenses for running away, Li Tiao was still a little excited: "How could this servant want your money?"

However, if you insist on giving me money, I will reluctantly accept it... How about this, sir, tell me what you would like to eat, and I will learn from the kitchen staff so that you can taste my cooking..."

"Heh, it seems that as long as you're given money, you'll do anything I ask. In that case, it seems that your second brother can give you even more!"

Li Tiao stared dumbfounded at the Fourth Prince's angry figure as he strode away. What did this have to do with the Crown Prince?

The fact that she was the Eighth Prince's spy was already a thorn in the Fourth Prince's side. If he were to misunderstand her relationship with the Crown Prince, that would be disastrous.

So Li Tiao, regardless of whether the Fourth Prince was angry or not, patiently followed him to his study once again.

"My lord, what did you mean by that? This servant and the Crown Prince... I only got to know the Crown Prince that day when I went to Yuqing Palace with you. Apart from that, I have had no other interaction with the Crown Prince."

"Yeah?"

The Fourth Prince's indifferent attitude made Li Tiao extremely uneasy: "Of course, Your Highness, you trust me."

"But Second Brother knows that you have calculated for Eighth Brother, and that you once told Eighth Brother that his future wife is from the Guo Luo Luo clan."

The simple sentence startled Li Tiao so much that she took several steps back, terrified: "Crown Prince...Crown Prince...how did you know?"

"You're asking about Grandpa?"

The mocking tone sent a chill down Li Tiao's spine.

“My lord, I swear to heaven that I have never said these things to the Crown Prince, and apart from that time I went to Yuqing Palace with you, I have never seen the Crown Prince again.”

Li Tiao waited anxiously for the Fourth Prince, but he remained silent, looking at her with a half-smile, as if scrutinizing her or warning her, saying that she had better not lied to him, otherwise he would make her wish she were dead!

Confused and uneasy, Li Tiao had many things to say in her defense, but the Fourth Prince's attitude made her afraid to say anything.

After thinking it over for a long time, Li Tiao decided that even if she didn't explain it clearly, she should at least find out where all this nonsense came from.

"My lord, may I ask you a question? How does the Crown Prince know that I once lied to the Eighth Prince?"

The Fourth Prince frowned, and his eyelids twitched because of Li Tiao's words. He stood up from behind the desk, slowly walked to Li Tiao, and raised his hand to pinch Li Tiao's chin: "I must say, your face is truly unforgettable."

"And her figure..."

The Fourth Prince's gaze swept over Li Tiao from head to toe, making her feel extremely uncomfortable. She instinctively tried to look away, but the moment she moved, the Fourth Prince tightened his grip on her chin.

"Graceful and elegant... the words used to describe the goddess Luo are not an exaggeration to describe you."

So it's hard to say whether my second brother was attracted to you because of your figure and looks, or because you really can tell fortunes."

It felt like there was wind around her neck, and this wind went straight into Li Tiao's head. She couldn't think anymore because her head, hanging around her neck, started to rattle, as if it could be chopped off at any moment.

"Sir, this joke isn't funny." Li Tiao's voice trembled.

The Fourth Prince abruptly released Li Tiao, turned around, composed himself, and felt a little annoyed. Although the Crown Prince's attitude had indeed angered the Fourth Prince, his reaction had been a bit excessive.

This Li Tiao... is nothing but a fake young lady, and a replacement who is always thinking of running away.

With a cold snort, the Fourth Prince turned his back to Li Tiao and waved his hand at her: "Get lost."

Li Tiao's unease grew rapidly. There were so many things she wanted to know, but the Fourth Prince's attitude made her too timid to ask any further questions.

She was afraid that if she said another word, the Fourth Prince might strangle her.

Returning to her courtyard with trepidation, Li Tiao's mind was filled with the Fourth Prince's words: "The Crown Prince actually knows that I can predict the future?"

Who... exactly told the Crown Prince this?

The Fourth Prince is definitely out of the question, so how about the Eighth Prince?

Thinking of this, Li Tiao felt that even if she were to die, she should die knowing the truth, so she prepared to go and ask the Eighth Prince for clarification.

"Master, it's time for dinner. Where are you going?" Hongye chased after Li Tiao.

"Go find the Eighth Prince!"

Hearing this, Hongye was startled and quickly looked around before rushing to Li Tiao and spreading her arms to block her.

"Master, please... keep your voice down. It's not good for you if someone hears you."

Li Tiao was truly furious. Although she regretted saying so much nonsense to the Eighth Prince, the Eighth Prince was just too inconsiderate!

“Hongye, since you are my man, I must have given you a lot of instructions. You can tell me when I go to see the Eighth Prince.”

Hongye said awkwardly, "Master, that's not what I meant. What I meant was that even if you were going to find the Eighth Prince, you shouldn't do it so openly... Also, just now you asked me to wait outside and tell you when the master came back so that you could bump into him. At that time, I saw the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince going to the small garden of the princes' residence together."

Following Hongye's words, Li Tiao looked towards the small garden. Before she could ask anything, she heard Hongye explain:

“My lady, I noticed that the Eighth Prince and the Ninth Prince seemed to be talking about something they couldn’t let anyone know. They looked rather furtive and even seemed to be arguing.”