Before mid-November, a heavy snow fell in the Forbidden City, turning everything white overnight.
Back in the manor, the Princess Consort was also pondering that the letter from the manor should have been delivered by now.
The princess leisurely flipped through the account books, while the charcoal fire in the room burned brightly, making it very warm.
"Judging by the days, the letter from the manor should have reached Fourth Master by now. I'm quite curious how he will react to Li Shi's letter."
The princess spoke in a flat tone, but it wasn't hard to detect the amusement in her voice.
Yu Ru, who was grinding ink for the Fujin, paused slightly, and inevitably recalled the way the Fujin opened the letter when the East Courtyard delivered it that day.
Naturally, one can also recall the few lines from that letter.
Yu Ru subconsciously said, "Consort Li is too audacious and has really offended the master. I'm afraid that when the letter reaches the Fourth Prince, he will be furious."
The Princess Consort chuckled: "Furious? It's a pity I can't witness it. The women in this inner courtyard, each one of them relies on their own favor to become the only one, but they don't even consider that there's no such thing as being the only one. They carefully exhaust their own favor, and in the end, who knows what kind of fate awaits them."
Yu Ru agreed, and then asked, "I wonder how well Princess Bai Jia is serving Fourth Master?"
Yu Ru was only a first-class maid in the main courtyard, yet she dared to gossip about Bai Jia Shi, naturally because Bai Jia Shi was neither favored nor had any children to rely on.
The princess scoffed upon hearing this: "Whether or not the Fourth Prince favors Bai Jia, someone else will eventually gain favor. Just wait and see."
Yu Ru naturally thought the same thing, but she couldn't help feeling a little uneasy when she responded.
"By the way, did Green Orchid send a message?"
Yu Ru continued grinding ink without stopping, and at the same time, she said, "Recently, since the master has not been in the manor, things have quieted down in the other courtyard. Green Orchid really can't find any free time, and most of the time she has no opportunity. However, the weather has been cold lately, and I heard that the East Courtyard has started using charcoal fires. I heard that there are some problems with it, but there has been no news about it for the past few days."
Regardless of what Green Orchid was like, the Fujin only wanted to find something to hold against the one in the East Courtyard.
"No rush. The master is not at home right now. I just wanted to give Li a good beating before he returned. But seeing how Li is courting death, I don't want to get my hands dirty."
The Fujin (principal wife) opened the letter from the East Courtyard with a clear conscience, but now she only finds the letter particularly ridiculous.
However, the Fujin (principal wife) is still somewhat hesitant about whether to take action against Lady Li in the East Courtyard.
The wife was conflicted. In principle, Li had no sons and no real power; all she had was the favor that the Fourth Prince could withdraw from at any time.
However, the Fujin (wife of the emperor) couldn't bear to see Li Shi (wife of the emperor) living a good life, and she had been eagerly waiting for Li Shi to fall out of favor for who knows how long.
She had hoped for the day when Lady Wu entered the mansion, and she had hoped for the day when Lady Xie entered the mansion, but she never saw the day when Lady Li would fall out of favor.
The princess raised her hand, gently rubbing the dark circles under her eyes with her fingertips: "Alright, tell Lülan to keep an eye on things. If nothing happens, tell her not to come back to report."
The Fujin (principal wife) was unusually merciful; as long as Li hadn't given birth to a prince, she wouldn't rush to take action against Li.
Right now, while the Fourth Master is away from the mansion, the most important thing is to gradually strip Wu Shi of her power in managing the household.
Now that she has reached this point, the Fujin (wife) has come to understand the principle that the more she does, the more mistakes she makes.
She couldn't help but notice the Fourth Master's recent distance from her; the letters he sent back were also in a businesslike tone, even colder than before.
The princess suppressed a smile: "These days—are getting harder and harder to bear."
Yu Ru could only comfort the Fujin: "Fujin has misunderstood. Fujin has the Second Prince. Among all the princes, Fujin is not as good as you. The Eighth Fujin and the First Fujin are probably very envious."
The princess sighed with relief: "It's a pity that the second prince is not well. Oh well, I'm not in the mood to look at the account books anymore. I'll have the nanny keep an eye on things later, and I'll go see the second prince. Oh, by the way, I'll have Wang Jinzhong go to the palace to present the summons later. I'll go to the palace tomorrow to pay my respects to Your Majesty."
People are never satisfied. It's good that the second prince was born, but the princess consort also hoped that it would be even better if the second prince was born healthy.
Since I have nothing better to do, I might as well go to the palace to curry favor with the Empress.
Yu Ru helped the Fujin up and answered them one by one: "The latter part of the month is the day when the Seventh Prince and the Seventh Fujin move out of the mansion."
The princess paused slightly: "I almost forgot about that. My seventh brother and sister-in-law have moved out of the palace, so I reckon it will be Guo Luoluo soon. I'd like to see who goes to her residence then."
The news that the Ninth Prince had been granted the title of Beile and the Tenth Prince had been granted the title of Dunjunwang had not yet reached the capital.
No one knew who the Tenth Prince's wife was.
While the Fujin (principal wife) was deep in thought in the main courtyard, Li Chenjiao in the east courtyard didn't want to think at all.
In winter, Li Chenjiao became even less inclined to go outside.
At this time of year, she loves to stay cozy in the warm charcoal fire inside the house. However, lately she has been craving wine again. She knows she can't hold her liquor well, but she's been longing for the peach blossom wine that her two maids make in the spring.
During the half-month absence of the Fourth Master, Li Chenjiao had seen the snow for several days, but she had no time to miss him at all.
Li Chenjiao didn't need to care about what was happening outside. She only knew that when the Fourth Master sent a message back, she vaguely learned about the commotion outside.
However, Li Chenjiao didn't care at all.
However, this time the Fourth Master did not send a message back to the manor. Li Chenjiao was still surprised when she heard Fulu from the front courtyard deliver the message.
Li Chenjiao watched as the maid saw Fulu off, and smiled: "It seems there's quite a bit of trouble going north. Go and find out what's going on outside."
Naturally, only Xiao Luzi could take on this task.
This matter is easy to investigate, since the news of the Tenth Prince's demotion has already spread like wildfire throughout the capital.
When Xiao Luzi came to report, Li Chenjiao was stunned again. Xiao Luzi could only find out that the Ninth Prince had been granted the title of Beile, the Tenth Prince had been granted the title of Dunjunwang, and that the Ninth Prince and the Tenth Prince were betrothed.
When Li Chenjiao went to the palace last Mid-Autumn Festival, she overheard someone say that Consort Yi was interested in marrying the Ninth Prince, who seemed to be the Dong E clan member chosen by the current Emperor.
Li Chenjiao couldn't figure it out, and could only connect it to the Tenth Prince's marriage.
There's not much to lament about; most princes of the imperial family are destined for such arranged marriages.
Li Chenjiao pondered for a while, but she never imagined that it was because the Fourth Prince had discovered that the letter she wrote to him had been opened by the Fujin (principal wife).
Li Chenjiao was enjoying her leisure time when she suddenly heard Qiu Hu quietly come in and say that Consort Li Jia from Yuqing Palace had sent a letter.
Consort Li Jia was also cautious. Qiu Hu first reported that it was secretly sent by someone from the gatehouse, and that it was sent by Li Chenjiao's family. However, one look at the envelope revealed that it was just an excuse.
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