During lunch, Consort De did not allow Li Chenjiao to stand while serving, probably considering that Li Chenjiao was pregnant. Consort De simply had Li Chenjiao sit down to eat with her. Nara was also pulled down to sit by Consort Cheng.
The lunch was quite enjoyable. The imperial kitchen's cooking was naturally excellent, and there were no taboos during the meal, so the occasional conversations were quite amusing.
However, Li Chenjiao restrained herself somewhat and slowed down her eating pace.
Nara's pregnancy has now reached three months. Today, she learned that Consort De had invited Consort Cheng to come and take a look at the character of this newly acquired concubine in the Fourth Prince's residence.
Nara didn't really need to come, but she had been feeling really bored being confined to the Fourth Detention Center in Ganxi by Seventh Master since her recent good fortune, so today was a good excuse to come and get some fresh air.
Upon seeing Li Chenjiao, he found her to be kinder than Fourth Sister-in-law. He sighed inwardly, no wonder this Consort Li was granted the title of Consort even before the child in her womb was born.
So when Nara brought up the topic of both of them being happy, Li Chenjiao was surprised for a moment, but she still readily accepted the conversation.
When Li Chenjiao first saw Nara, images flashed through her mind, and she knew that Nara was carrying a princess.
Judging from the images in her mind, the little princess in Nara's belly was not very healthy after she was born.
Li Chenjiao paused for a moment, and then spoke to Nara Shi as Consort Cheng rose to bid farewell to Consort De.
"Recently, I've often heard the imperial physicians say that I should move around more to have more strength during childbirth and make it easier. After today's experience, I feel that what the imperial physicians said is very true."
Nara laughed heartily upon hearing this: "Who says otherwise? Who said that when you encounter happiness you can't leave or run around? Being confined all day long would be so boring."
Nara's words truly came from the bottom of his heart.
Li Chenjiao smiled and agreed, then greeted Consort Cheng and Lady Nara and saw them off. At this point, only Consort De and Li Chenjiao remained in the hall.
Li Chenjiao remained seated properly at the lower end of the table.
With her eyes slightly lowered, she naturally couldn't see Consort De's expression.
"How has the fourth prince been these days?" Consort De asked.
I never expected that Consort De would ask about this first, but upon closer inspection, the question was indeed very clever.
As someone in the Fourth Prince's harem, Li Chenjiao should naturally know about his current situation, which can be seen as a sign that she cares about him.
However, how to answer in a way that doesn't seem like Li Chenjiao is spying on the Fourth Master requires some explanation.
Li Chenjiao paused for two seconds, then quickly replied with a smile, "When Fourth Master returned to the manor a few days ago, he had lost some weight, but he has recovered somewhat these days. However, he is tired from his daily official duties, and he still looks somewhat haggard when he comes to my place occasionally. I can only try to think more about food, and I think I would need Your Majesty's guidance on other things."
What Li Chenjiao said are things that can be seen in everyday life, but they can only be seen by paying attention.
Consort De hummed in agreement: "What can I teach you? The Fourth Prince has such a temper. You're pregnant, and the other wives in the household are also pregnant, so neither of you should be overworked."
These words were, of course, a euphemism by Consort De. To put it bluntly, Consort De was subtly telling Li Chenjiao not to think about managing the household affairs.
Li Chenjiao replied calmly, "Your Majesty is right. With Consort Wu helping the Fujin in the household, I did indeed take a break from work."
Regardless of whether Consort De knew that Consort Wu was also in charge of the household affairs, Li Chenjiao had to say this, at least to let Consort De know that she had no interest in managing the household.
Consort De was genuinely unaware of this matter. Since Granny Xu returned to serve her, she hadn't been very clear about the affairs of the household.
The Fujin (principal wife) had only been pregnant for three months and was also resting, so Consort De had also stopped the Fujin from coming to the palace. Therefore, she was not really aware of the matter of Consort Wu assisting in managing the household.
Consort De remained expressionless, and said slowly, "It's good that you're pregnant, it's less of a worry. You're a good child."
Phrases like "You're a good child" were just clichés to Consort De, and naturally, there was always a follow-up to them.
"Whether the Fourth Prince's harem can be peaceful from now on depends on your joint efforts with the Fujin. However, the Fujin is the primary Fujin after all. If there is anything, you can come to me and discuss it, but in the mansion, you must still respect the Fujin."
The didactic tone in Consort De's words was quite obvious, and Li Chenjiao was naturally not so unwise as to refute Consort De; she remained smiling.
"Your Majesty is right. I am merely a concubine, and naturally I would not overstep the bounds of the main wife."
Li Chenjiao has always been too lazy to comment on those in positions of power, as it's not worth offending them.
Li Chenjiao was too smooth; after a "heart-to-heart talk" with Consort De, she made no mistakes whatsoever.
After Consort De had Zhao Mama send Li Chenjiao away, she suddenly thought of something. Someone like Li Chenjiao could be described as having no desires or wants.
At least Consort De didn't glean anything from the conversation.
However, Li was attentive to the fourth son and did not covet power in the inner quarters, so she could also be a confidante to him.
It's okay to put in a little more effort.
Therefore, Consort De was willing to reward Li Shi generously.
When Li Chenjiao came out of Yonghe Palace, it was Zhao Mama who led her out, and behind her were servants carrying the gifts bestowed by Consort De.
When Qiu Hu helped Li Chenjiao out of Yonghe Palace, the two exchanged a glance and breathed a sigh of relief.
As the master and servant walked along the path they had come from, they were met by a nobleman approaching through the snow.
The umbrella handle was obscured by the servant beside her, giving her an air of disrespect. However, Li Chenjiao and her servant could see that the person holding the umbrella was a familiar face, Su Peisheng.
"Why is Fourth Master here?" This question came from Zhao Mama, who was standing nearby.
Today, Fourth Master was dressed in a dark blue python robe embroidered with dark cloud patterns. His gyrfalcon cloak, dampened by the wind and snow as he walked, added a touch of chill to his air. His sword-like eyebrows reached his temples, and his eyes were slightly upturned, making his charm undeniable.
Li Chenjiao suddenly smiled, not a forced smile she had shown at Yonghe Palace, but a genuine smile.
Like the brightest splash of color in winter, it's hard for anyone to look away.
From a distance, Li Chenjiao waited until the Fourth Master approached before gracefully bowing to him.
"Is Your Highness also here to pay respects to Her Highness?" Li Chenjiao asked after the Fourth Prince had waived the formalities.
The fact that Fourth Master appeared here at this time makes it hard not to think that he came specifically to pick up Li Chenjiao or something similar.
With Zhao Mama, who was serving Consort De, still nearby, Li Chenjiao naturally couldn't allow such a misunderstanding to occur.
However, Fourth Master really did come specifically to pick up Li Chenjiao.
He wasn't worried about Li Chenjiao being made difficult, as his mother wasn't that kind of person. It was just that the snow was heavy today, and the Fourth Prince was worried that Li Chenjiao might slip and fall in the snow.
Fourth Prince, is no one sweeping the snow in the palace?
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