"You mean the Fourth Master sent that ebony and osmanthus makeup box, a gift from His Majesty, to the East Courtyard last night?"
The princess's voice trembled slightly as she spoke, clearly indicating that she was extremely angry and resentful.
Yu Ru nodded, her face also showing great seriousness: "Yes, although the servants in the garden saw clearly in the dead of night, there is absolutely no mistake."
Yu Ru spoke with absolute certainty.
Although Yu Ru felt that it was not advisable for the Fujin to quarrel with the man in the East Courtyard at the moment, the man in the East Courtyard was currently being favored too much, which made people wary.
Now that the Fujin (principal wife) has a better understanding of the inner workings of the East Courtyard, and Yu Ru is also aware of how comfortable the woman in the East Courtyard is, she feels far more apprehensive than she shows.
The Fujin gripped the corner of the table, her palms rubbing red and stinging in waves: "Fine, let her go north with the Fourth Prince for now. If she really does become pregnant, then it's not too late to take action."
The Princess Consort is naturally wary of the East Courtyard.
If a woman who is favored has a son, everyone has selfish desires. Who knows if the woman in the east courtyard will develop other thoughts in the future?
The Fujin (principal wife) had no desire to see the day when Lady Li of the East Courtyard would become pregnant or even give birth to a prince.
After a long while, the princess sighed and said, "Never mind, help me go see the second prince."
The Princess Consort had recently heard many things from the imperial physician, but she couldn't help but wonder if it was because of her past actions against the eldest princess and against Xie Shi during childbirth—
And so this is how God punished her.
The princess consort couldn't help but feel lingering fear whenever she thought about it, but she hid it very well, burying it all deep in her heart.
However, he couldn't help but hesitate when it came to taking action against the sons and daughters of the household.
Never mind, let's wait and see how things develop next spring after the new bride moves in.
——
Fourth Master was busy for several days in a row, and it wasn't until the sixth day of the tenth month that he finally had time to go into the backyard.
The people in the backyard didn't need to guess; they were most likely going to stay overnight in the east courtyard.
Sure enough, that night, the Fourth Master went straight to the East Courtyard after entering the backyard. However, not long after arriving at the East Courtyard, Su Peisheng, who was by the Fourth Master's side, went to the main courtyard, seemingly to deliver something.
Those in the East Courtyard knew best what had been sent, especially the people serving Fourth Master and Li Chenjiao in the inner room.
When the Fourth Prince arrived, Li Chenjiao had just woken up. Over the past two days, she had been sorting through the various pieces of jewelry she had received over the years since she entered the manor. Some were gifts from the concubines in the palace, but most of them were gifts from the Fourth Prince. Of course, there were also gifts from the First Wife during festivals.
When Fourth Master arrived, Li Chenjiao had just woken up and was looking at the items again when she came across one of the hairpins: a jade hairpin with a red pomegranate, green stone leaves, and pearl stamens.
Li Chenjiao had never worn that hairpin, but the maids had taken good care of it, and it still looked beautiful and dazzling. It was clearly a fine piece of jewelry made by a skilled craftsman.
Li Chenjiao still remembered that it was a gift from the Fujin (principal wife) during her first year in the household. At that time, Song Shi gave birth to the eldest princess of the household, and the Fujin was the happiest person in the whole household. Even the rewards during the New Year were much more generous.
Li Chenjiao even personally inserted the hairpin into her hair for the Fourth Prince to see: "Your Highness, take a look, does it suit my clothes today?"
The Fourth Master looked him over from top to bottom and said succinctly, "Not bad."
Li Chenjiao smiled and followed the Fourth Prince's words: "It was a gift from the Princess Consort before. It is because the Princess Consort cherishes it."
She said that once, then turned to talk to the two maids about other jewelry, as if it were nothing out of the ordinary.
When it was time for dinner, Li Chenjiao saw Qiu Hu nod slightly to her as he served the food.
Li Chenjiao also gave a soft "hmm".
Qiu Hu didn't stay long. She and Qiu Ci quickly left, leaving only Lv Zhu to serve the dishes. However, the East Courtyard rarely needed a maid to serve the dishes.
Fourth Master lowered his head and took a sip of hot soup, glancing at Li Chenjiao who was eating with relish. He naturally understood long ago.
The Fourth Prince has been visiting the East Courtyard more frequently lately, which inevitably makes him a target of attention from the people in the back courtyard, especially the Fujin (wife) in the main courtyard.
Today, the Fourth Prince sent a reward to the main wife from the East Courtyard. No matter what, it will give the Princess Consort something to think about.
However, these were all just what the Fourth Prince was thinking. Li Chenjiao's intentions today were far more than that.
Two maids were talking in the corridor. Qiu Ci asked why her mistress was suddenly speaking well of the Fujin. Qiu Hu replied, "You know that our mistress has always respected the Fujin."
These were just casual words exchanged between the two of them.
After Qiu Ci finished speaking, she stood up and said she was going to check the hot water in the small kitchen. Qiu Hu said she would go check it too, and the two of them went together.
Once they were out of sight, Qiu Ci lowered her voice and muttered, "I hope she doesn't do anything foolish."
"Last time, when Master suddenly decided to take frozen pears to the garden, how did those inexplicable marbles appear so quickly? At that time, we suspected that there was someone with ulterior motives in the East Courtyard. Now let's see who will take the bait."
In contrast, Akiho was much calmer.
Qiu Ci hummed in agreement: "Don't worry, I've already asked Xiao Luzi to keep watch outside the east courtyard. Fortunately, there aren't many mosquitoes at this time of year, otherwise he would have suffered."
The two girls exchanged a smile.
No matter what, faithfully serving your master and guarding the East Courtyard is far better than getting upset about all that other nonsense.
Besides, if someone truly betrays their master, then they should be thoroughly purged and expelled.
Both girls had very firm gazes.
For the past two years, the East Courtyard has been as secure as an iron barrel. Even when the master gave birth to the Second Princess and some more people were added to serve her, there was no chaos or mishaps.
How long has it been since the Imperial Household Department selected servants for the master? Qiu Hu and Qiu Ci were the two maids who had already been inspected by the master. Now, they have actually managed to turn a blind eye to the situation and betray their master. This naturally makes the two maids very angry.
At this moment, they are naturally waiting for the person behind them to reveal their true colors.
That night, the Fourth Master stayed overnight in the East Courtyard. The East Courtyard called for water twice during the night, probably because the Fourth Master had just finished his work. Throughout the night, the Fourth Master seemed to have inexhaustible energy.
The next day, Li Chenjiao woke up even later. When she woke up and yawned, there were still faint red marks on her wrists, which made the two maids who helped her with her makeup blush.
She cleared her throat before speaking, but her voice was still a little hoarse.
"Tell me, who secretly went out of the east courtyard last night?"
Yesterday, the two head maids, Qiu Hu and Qiu Ci, were on night watch. One of them was on watch for the first half of the night, and the other for the second half. However, both of them had moments when they 'dozed off'.
This was obviously an opportunity given on purpose.
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