"But—the eldest prince is still young." The girl murmured, still feeling a pang of pity.
The eldest prince didn't just start learning to write from Lady Wu today; he had started several days ago. But as the maid said, the eldest prince is still so young, how could he learn so quickly?
Their own princess was so strict when it came to teaching the eldest prince; they had all seen it during the day. If the eldest prince didn't write well, he would be punished with a beating.
The board was made of wood by the servants at Wu's behest long ago; it was small and didn't hurt much when it hit a person.
Wu gave her a cold look.
The girl was frightened by that look.
Wu Shi was not usually a strict person; in fact, she was quite gentle most of the time. So when Wu Shi suddenly showed such an indifferent expression, the maid was naturally startled.
Wu quickly composed herself: "The eldest prince is indeed still young, but the second and third princes are also young. As the days go by, the eldest prince is growing up, and the second and third princes will grow up later. Time waits for no one."
The girl immediately fell silent, but she couldn't help feeling uneasy.
Wu Shi didn't want to hear any more, so she waved her hand, unwilling to say anything more.
The maid naturally understood that Madam Wu was sleepy, and dared not say anything more to disturb her. She quickly curtsied and quietly withdrew.
Now, let's talk about Fourth Master leaving from the South Courtyard.
Su Peisheng dared not offend the Fourth Master, but there were some things he had to ask: "Master, shall we go back to the front courtyard now or—"
Su Peisheng was just about to say that the candlelight in the east courtyard was still on.
Fourth Master waved his hand: "Go back to the front yard."
During the day, the Fourth Prince went to the main courtyard to visit his wife, and in the evening he went to the south courtyard to see the eldest prince. It would be fine if he didn't stay overnight in the south courtyard, but if he turned around and went to Li Shi's place in the east courtyard, what would the people in the back courtyard think?
Putting everything else aside, even for the sake of the eldest prince, the fourth prince wouldn't have done that.
He could occasionally disrespect his wife as a warning, but today Wu Shi in the South Courtyard hadn't done anything wrong; in the end, he was just implicated by the main wife.
The Fourth Master frowned slightly: "How's the matter I asked you to handle?"
Su Peisheng stepped forward half a step and whispered, "Reporting to Master, I have sent people to inquire about the captains of the Lower Five Banners, but they are either of questionable backgrounds or lack knowledge and skills. I'm afraid they are—"
Fourth Master lowered his eyes, not showing much surprise: "This matter should be put on the agenda. If there are none in the Lower Five Banners, then look in the Han Banners. Those who failed the imperial examinations in previous years, and those unknown school teachers, as long as they have real talent and learning, I will give them important positions."
Su Peisheng naturally understood his master's meaning and hurriedly agreed.
It's not just for their own master; right now, their master is anxious, and it's naturally partly because of the eldest prince.
Su Peisheng remained silent, understanding that his master needed to think, so he silently walked forward a few steps and took the palace lantern from Fulu's hand.
When they arrived at the front yard, Fourth Master was clearly still somewhat tired.
Hot water had been prepared long ago, and after taking a bath, Fourth Master remembered something.
"Tomorrow, I'll have the kitchen prepare a bowl of mutton soup and some mutton skewers. Once they're ready, I'll send them to the East Courtyard immediately."
Li Chenjiao had never mentioned wanting to eat mutton to the Fourth Master, but he vaguely heard her mention it once when he went to the East Courtyard today.
Fourth Master understood Li Chenjiao's concerns.
The women in the back courtyard had to serve their masters. Mutton was gamey and could easily cause internal heat if eaten in large quantities. It would be inconvenient for the women in the back courtyard to have the gamey smell on them while serving their masters.
For example, the Fourth Prince never saw any strongly flavored food on the main wife's dining table.
The Fourth Master suddenly remembered this and naturally thought the mutton tasted quite good.
However, during his trip north, Fourth Master ate quite a lot, so it was inevitable that he would get internal heat. In the end, he had to drink Coptis chinensis tea to relieve the heat.
Thinking of this, the Fourth Prince instructed, "Have the kitchen prepare it."
Su Peisheng naturally understood his master's meaning.
However, the Fourth Prince probably won't have time to go to the backyard these next few days. He's already visited all the places he needed to today, and he'll be going to the palace tomorrow.
The Fourth Prince pressed his finger to his brow: "Tomorrow you go and see the eldest princess yourself, and then take my token to the Imperial Hospital to invite an imperial physician to take her pulse."
Fourth Master cared deeply for the children.
Su Peisheng quietly raised his eyes, but after a long while, he still didn't mention the Third Prince, who had been ignored by the Fourth Prince.
The First Prince and the Second Prince had both displeased the Fourth Prince for various reasons. The Fourth Prince was already indifferent to the Third Prince, and mentioning him now might only make him more unhappy.
Su Peisheng ultimately did not mention the Third Prince.
The Fourth Prince had quite a few things to do today. The kitchen prepared ginger soup, which he drank and then checked some official documents before finally going to sleep.
The next day, around four in the morning, Su Peisheng went to the outer room to check everything: the hot water for the master's washing, the clothes to be worn to the palace, and the corresponding sachets, pouches, and jade pendants. He made sure there were no mistakes.
Before dawn, Fourth Master inside got up.
The Fourth Prince had already left the mansion before Chenshi (7-9 AM).
Meanwhile, Li Chenjiao was still fast asleep in her dream.
In that sense, the servants in the front courtyard have it harder. In the east courtyard, since Li Chenjiao, the mistress, gets up late, the servants also get up late.
Li Chenjiao woke up groggily when the sun was high in the sky and suddenly smelled the aroma of roasting meat.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
