After much deliberation, Li Chenjiao decided to wait and see and did not rush to visit the front yard.
The front courtyard was crowded with people. The Fourteenth Prince was still there, and so was the Princess Consort. Song Gege was not allowed to enter the front courtyard, but she left her maid Liu Xu there to wait for news.
A nourishing chicken soup was sent to Madam Wu, but Madam Wu herself did not come; however, her maidservant stayed behind as well.
Neither Lady Bai nor Lady Niohuru made any move. After all, Lady Niohuru had just twisted her ankle, so it was not appropriate for her to wander around at the moment. Lady Bai, on the other hand, had heard that there was no movement from the side consort in the east courtyard, so she wisely refrained from going to the front courtyard either.
Xu was also recovering from an injury.
The only one left in the backyard was Liu, who had entered the front yard. She had followed the Fujin into the front yard and had always stayed by the Fujin's side.
Clearly, the Fujin (principal wife) had deliberately arranged for Liu to act as a go-between to attend to the Fourth Prince during his illness.
When she received the news that the Fourth Master had fallen off his horse on his way back to the manor, she panicked.
Upon receiving the news, the Fujin hurriedly rushed to the front courtyard. Only after being reminded by Granny Qian did she go to the back courtyard to summon Liu Shi.
However, at this moment, no one in the front courtyard had time to attend to the Fujin and the others. The Fourth Prince was surrounded by a group of imperial physicians, so the household physicians had no say in the matter.
The Fourth Prince was still asleep, the Fourteenth Prince was waiting outside, and the Princess Consort and others were waiting in the corridor. Fu Lu brought out a solid wood chair for the Princess Consort to sit on.
However, Liu, who followed, obviously did not receive the same treatment.
Seeing that the Fourth Prince was unlikely to wake up anytime soon, the Fujin asked her maid, Qian, to check on the Second Prince. However, the Second Prince was already fast asleep, and with Zhong Mama waiting nearby, Qian Mama didn't get much of a chance to look at him, let alone the Fujin.
As night deepened, the Fourth Prince still hadn't woken up, while the Fourteenth Prince, waiting in the inner room, had been urged on several times by Haha Zhuzi beside him.
The palace gates will be locked soon, and it probably won't be easy to get back to the palace then.
However, the Fourteenth Prince clearly had no intention of returning to the palace at this moment. His face was unusually gloomy, making him look even more like the Fourth Prince.
Today, the Fourteenth Prince was supposed to go out of the palace with the Fourth Prince to the Fourth Prince's estate in the suburbs to retrieve the foal that the Fourth Prince had prepared for him.
Unexpectedly, something went wrong halfway through. The Fourth Prince wouldn't have been injured so badly originally. He was delayed because he reminded the Fourteenth Prince before falling off his horse, so the Fourteenth Prince still feels guilty about it.
Although the Fourteenth Prince had grown distant from his Fourth Brother in the past two years because the Fourth Brother had moved out of the mansion, he still harbored a deep affection for the Fourth Prince.
The Fourteenth Prince was in a terrible predicament. When he went outside and saw a large group of people, he stood with his hands behind his back, looking extremely flustered. Despite his young age, he already possessed an imposing and dignified aura.
"Why are you still here, Fourth Sister-in-law? It's getting late, and Fourth Brother probably won't wake up for a while. You should go home soon."
Although the Fourteenth Prince didn't know much about the situation in the backyard of his Fourth Brother's residence, he had never been able to stand his Fourth Sister-in-law's pretentious and affected attitude.
When he arrived, he heard a child crying. After asking around, he learned that his fourth brother's second son had moved to the front yard at some point.
Even the burly Fourteenth Prince could tell that there must be something strange or suspicious about this.
Since his fourth brother has not yet woken up, he naturally prioritizes his fourth brother's recovery.
Therefore, the Fourteenth Prince did not show much kindness to his wife.
The Fourteenth Prince's expression made the Princess Consort wonder if the Fourth Prince and the Fourteenth Prince had said something, otherwise why would the Fourteenth Prince treat her like this?
The more she couldn't help but mutter these thoughts to herself, the more accommodating she became when facing the Fourteenth Prince.
"It's getting late, and the palace gates will be locked soon. I'll have someone escort you back to the palace, Fourteenth Brother. I'll look after the Prince here." The Princess Consort's tone softened involuntarily.
Upon hearing this, the Fourteenth Prince couldn't help but glare angrily at his wife: "What are you saying, Fourth Sister-in-law? Fourth Brother is my elder brother. How can I, as his younger brother, simply return home when he is unwell? What does Fourth Sister-in-law take our brotherly bond for?"
The Fourteenth Prince spoke at a very loud volume, and the maids and servants who were gathered in the corridor immediately turned their attention to him.
The Fujin hesitated for two seconds, thinking to herself that during the New Year holidays, when you two brothers went to the palace for more than half a month, you didn't exchange more than three words. Now, however, you're acting like brothers, making it seem like she, as the sister-in-law and Fujin, is caught in the middle.
Supported by Madam Liu, the Fujin felt even more embarrassed. She reluctantly replied, "In that case, I'll have someone prepare a guest room. Fourteenth Brother, you can stay here tonight."
The Fourteenth Prince was somewhat satisfied upon hearing this: "Fourth Sister-in-law, don't worry. I have already sent someone to report to Father Emperor, and Father Emperor has also granted me permission to stay here with you tonight."
While the Fourteenth Prince was speaking, his eyes kept glancing into the inner room, clearly still very concerned about the Fourth Prince who was still unconscious inside.
Later, the Fourteenth Prince was getting tired of waiting. However, the dinner prepared by the kitchen in the front courtyard had long since gone cold. In the end, the Fourteenth Prince was so hungry that he ate most of the chicken soup that Lady Wu had sent earlier.
The Fourteenth Prince was completely satisfied with his meal and even praised the chefs in the Fourth Prince's residence, saying that their skills were no worse than those in the Imperial Kitchen.
Later, the Fourteenth Prince seemed to feel bad, so he had Haha Zhuzi, who was beside him, give some silver to Ju Xiang, who was originally carrying the chicken soup box.
Ju Xiang was a little dazed when Haha Zhuzi, who was standing next to the Fourteenth Prince, took the food box from her hand. At the same time, she was also stuffed with a small bag of loose silver...
Her face flushed red, realizing she had messed up the task, but now she was caught in a dilemma: whether to thank the emperor or not.
The princess witnessed all of this, and despite her best efforts to suppress the smile, she couldn't help but smile.
The Fourteenth Prince, who had been so rude and arrogant to her just moments before, didn't seem so annoying now.
However, after laughing, the princess quickly realized that she was also a little hungry.
She had originally planned to have Wang Jinzhong invite the Fourth Master to the main courtyard after he returned to the mansion, but upon learning that he was injured, she rushed to the front courtyard in a panic. She didn't have time to have dinner, and didn't even have time to drink a sip of tea.
The princess, being of noble birth and pampered, soon felt dizzy even while sitting down...
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