The marble in his palm was round and translucent, and he didn't know what was inside it. It was something that Qiu Hu had never seen before.
Whose marbles are like this? They look like Western toys, which is quite unusual.
Qiu Hu quickly handed it to Li Chenjiao.
Li Chenjiao glanced at him and said, "Cheng Shi, please continue."
Madam Cheng quietly raised her eyes. She had been so focused on the eldest prince that she hadn't really paid any attention to the marbles. Now, she naturally noticed something unusual.
She paused for a moment, then replied, "Unexpectedly, as soon as I arrived, I saw this beast trying to get close to the First Prince. I was only trying to protect the First Prince, so I took action. I know this will offend the Consort, but the First Prince is the priority. Please, Consort, keep your mouth shut."
Cheng's words were quite logical and reasonable.
Li Chenjiao nodded slightly: "Please get up. I'll ask you again, how did it get those scratches?"
Madam Cheng looked troubled, but the eldest prince, who was standing to the side, couldn't hold back any longer: "I want, I want, I want a dog..."
The eldest prince's speech was slurred, and he could barely speak clearly.
Upon hearing this, Lady Cheng spoke up: "To Consort Cheng, perhaps it was... perhaps the First Prince accidentally scratched it when the dog approached. The First Prince is still young and it was unintentional. Please, Consort Cheng, do not blame him."
Cheng was good at reading people's expressions. Hearing that Li Chenjiao's tone was off, she quickly changed her address for Dongli from "that beast" to "that dog".
However, Li Chenjiao still didn't like what Cheng said.
She noticed that Cheng Shi was very proper and reasonable when she was talking to her earlier, but why did she become so biased and protective of the eldest prince when the topic turned to him?
Li Chenjiao sighed slightly, but her words were anything but polite: "You just said you saw my dog trying to get close to the First Prince, but now I hear it's the First Prince who wants my dog?"
As she spoke, she rolled up her sleeves again: "Cheng, since you have spoken, it is time for my servant to speak as well. Dongsheng, tell me everything you have seen and heard."
Dongsheng was much taller now than when he first arrived at the East Courtyard. He bowed very respectfully as he replied, "Reporting to Consort Dongsheng, as usual, I took Dongli out for a walk. Indeed, as Granny Cheng said, I first saw the First Prince following the marbles, and I also heard the sound of the marbles rolling over the pebbles, but—"
"But what happened next was not as Granny Cheng said. The eldest prince came forward first to try to get close to Dongli, but Dongli didn't like to get close to strangers, so I pulled Dongli away first."
"But the eldest prince is the master. This servant can stop Dongli but not the eldest prince. It was inevitable that the eldest prince would get close to and bump into Dongli. Dongli was frightened, but this servant still held her back and did not hurt the eldest prince in the slightest."
Dongsheng spoke slowly, but his voice still trembled with emotion.
Ever since he arrived at the East Courtyard, he has been taking care of Dongli and Shizi. However, Shizi is often lazy, and cats and dogs are different; they don't need to be walked all the time. Dongsheng has always been closer to Dongli, and he even often shares some of his food with her.
Dongsheng had already heard Cheng Shi use veiled language to say that Dongli wanted to offend the First Prince, and he also heard Cheng Shi calling him a beast from one end to the other. He was already very indignant.
When he answered this time, he still reported the truth, but he couldn't help feeling lingering fear, afraid that Dongli would suffer the same fate.
The fate of that Pekingese dog from last time is still fresh in my mind.
Dongsheng couldn't bear to think about it, but fortunately, Dongli, though lively, was docile and never offended the eldest prince.
But Dongsheng couldn't bear to look at Dongli lying on the ground, looking so pitiful, and her dirty, disheveled fur—
Even the usually clean Frozen Pear couldn't help but let out a soft cry.
Li Chenjiao watched as the frozen pear rubbed against her feet, and her heart sank.
She looked up again and asked, "Mr. Cheng, do you have any objections?"
Madam Cheng wanted to say something more, but the eldest prince, who was standing to the side, had already begun to complain. He grabbed Madam Cheng's sleeve and started crying because he was unhappy that he couldn't touch the frozen pears.
"I want a dog...I want a dog...ah, ah, ah..."
The eldest prince was so anxious he was almost crying, and when he couldn't speak clearly, he just kept yelling "Ah ah!"
Li Chenjiao chuckled softly: "It seems you don't need to say anything more. Cheng, if my beloved dog had hurt the First Prince, I would have been in deep trouble no matter what I did—you should be glad."
Madam Cheng had already felt a lingering fear, but in her heart, he was nothing more than a beast. The eldest prince was the eldest son of the family, and he should obediently offer up whatever he wanted. It was just that the beast was blind.
However, these words could not be spoken. With Lady Wu absent, Lady Cheng was ultimately just a servant and naturally dared not challenge the concubine.
And in today's incident, the eldest prince was indeed unharmed, but the dog didn't want the eldest prince to touch it and was kicked and scratched several times by him.
Ultimately, Cheng was still somewhat apprehensive, as she was in the wrong.
Furthermore, the concubine's use of the word "beloved dog" when she spoke just now struck a chord with everyone.
Even a dog in front of a noble person is more precious than a person. The wet nurse is just a servant after all. If she really offends the concubine, there are plenty of ways to punish her.
Cheng knew very well that if things really got out of hand, Wu Gege would never offend the concubine for her sake, and in the end, she would have to sacrifice the pawn to save the pawn.
Cheng closed her eyes and knelt down heavily to pay her respects: "Today's events were all due to my negligence. I disturbed the concubine's beloved dog, and I deserve to die ten thousand times over."
Li Chenjiao chuckled: "You make it sound like I look down on you. Granny Cheng, you are the wet nurse by the First Prince's side. I can't bear the thought of dying for you. After the royal physician examines my beloved dog, if anything happens to it, I will send someone to make you apologize. Let's skip it for now."
As Li Chenjiao spoke, she gave Lüju another look.
The little girl was stunned for a moment, not quite understanding what Li Chenjiao meant. After a while, she quickly realized what she meant and ran off to find the family doctor.
Li Chenjiao watched as Madam Cheng shakily got up: "It's getting late, let's take the eldest prince back soon."
After saying this, Li Chenjiao turned around and left, taking Qiu Hu's hand in hers.
As soon as she turned around, her face showed a look of annoyance and impatience.
That's why she doesn't like to bring the Second Princess to stroll in the garden; there's never a moment of peace.
Li Chenjiao followed Qiu Hu's hand and took the marble from Qiu Hu's hand.
"For no reason at all—"
In a flash, Li Chenjiao suddenly thought of something.
These marbles don't look like ordinary items, but they're mostly something that young boys like to play with.
There are currently only three princes in the manor.
They were all very young; the eldest prince had just turned one year old, while the second and third princes were only a few months old.
But that didn't stop the empresses from bestowing all sorts of little trinkets as gifts.
Li Chenjiao received many silk flowers and beaded flowers as gifts from the Empress to the Second Princess.
Li Chenjiao lowered her eyes and suddenly clenched the marbles in her palm.
What a brilliant move, killing two birds with one stone: sowing discord.
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