It was late at night when the Fujin returned to the mansion. Before the Fujin left, the Consort De did not say when she would bring the girl into the mansion.
However, the Fujin (wife of the emperor) understood Consort De's temperament to some extent. Consort De had previously said that she would wait until after the New Year to bring new concubines into the mansion. There were still two months until the New Year, so there was probably no rush.
It can only be said that the Fujin (wife of the Fujin) was quite adept at figuring out Consort De's thoughts.
After the Fujin returned to the main courtyard, she finally had time to listen to the maid's report on the situation in the mansion during her half-day absence. Yu Ru had been punished and was too weak to serve her even if she wanted to. The one who gave the report was a second-class maid from the main courtyard.
"After the Fujin entered the palace, the eldest princess was sent to the front courtyard as instructed by the master. Song Gege was confined to her quarters and there was no news of her movements. She only sent her wet nurse to the front courtyard to deliver some of the eldest princess's personal clothing. After the wet nurse entered the front courtyard, the fourth prince kept her to take care of the eldest princess."
The princess watched the young eunuch fiddling with the charcoal fire in the room. Since returning from the palace, she had felt her hands and feet were terribly cold. She listened slowly to the maid's reply, and there was nothing unexpected about it.
"what else?"
The maid stole a glance at the Fujin, hesitated for a long time, and finally dared not hide the truth: "Not long after the Fujin entered the palace, the front courtyard invited Consort Li, and Consort Li is still in the front courtyard now."
Upon hearing this, the Princess Consort abruptly looked up, nearly exclaiming, "What? Lady Li—"
When the princess entered the palace, she wore nail guards according to regulations, but she took them off when she heard the maid's reply. Now, hearing the maid say that Li Shi was still in the front courtyard, she dug her nails into her flesh.
Sensing the princess's anger, the maid knelt down with a thud: "Princess, please calm down, please calm down."
The Fujin rarely lost her composure, and it was only at this moment that she belatedly realized that she had crossed the Fourth Prince's bottom line by touching the eldest princess, since the Fourth Prince had never allowed anyone to stay overnight in the front courtyard.
Even the Fujin (princess's wife) never did.
After an unknown amount of time, the Fujin slowly opened her eyes amidst the crackling of the charcoal fire: "Have someone keep an eye on the front yard to see if Li Shi really stays there tonight." Even at this point, the Fujin still found it hard to believe.
The maidservant agreed and quietly withdrew when the princess gave no further instructions.
The room was empty. The princess took a handkerchief from the small couch and slowly wiped away the bloodstains between her nail polish. Her two crimson lips were tightly pursed, as if she were extremely disgusted. The princess threw the handkerchief into the charcoal brazier and stared at the flames engulfing everything without blinking.
She won't regret what she did; she might regret not having handled it cleanly enough when she gave the orders.
As for Li Shi, she's just a vixen; there will be plenty of opportunities to deal with her. Right now, we need to make proper arrangements for Xu Mama, who was sent by Consort De.
When the news of the Princess Consort's return to the mansion arrived, Li Chenjiao was coaxing the eldest princess to sleep.
The eldest princess was too young, and the imperial physicians dared not prescribe medicine for her indiscriminately. They could only prescribe a mild tonic for the wet nurse to drink.
Ultimately, if a child were healthier, even a slight cold wouldn't cause them as much suffering as the eldest princess. It was only because of her premature birth that even a common cold was enough to make people worry.
Li Chenjiao had come to see the eldest princess after dinner, but before she even entered the house, she heard the eldest princess crying like a kitten.
Whether it was Li Chenjiao's inexplicable ability or not, the eldest princess calmed down as soon as she entered the inner room. Qiu Hu tried to stop Li Chenjiao from hugging the eldest princess.
Everyone knows that the eldest princess is not doing well right now. Qiu Hu is really afraid that if her princess gets involved, it could cause trouble that is hard to explain. Didn't you see how wary the wet nurse next to her was when her princess was holding the eldest princess?
The Fourth Prince wasn't busy with official duties. He spent the last half day consulting with the Imperial Physician and two imperial physicians invited by the Imperial Hospital. The general consensus was that if the eldest princess could survive this winter, she would overcome this ordeal.
Li Chenjiao came to check on the eldest princess because she saw that the fourth master was worried.
Holding the eldest princess in her arms, as light as cotton wool, Li Chenjiao waited until the eldest princess fell asleep, and sighed silently in her heart.
I wonder if her unusual abilities will have any effect on the eldest princess.
Li Chenjiao didn't believe in this at first, but holding the eldest princess in her arms, she couldn't help but feel sorry for her.
After the eldest princess fell asleep quickly, Li Chenjiao heard a slight noise outside. Holding the eldest princess, she turned to her side and looked up. Seeing that it was the Fourth Prince, she silently said, "The eldest princess is asleep."
The candlelight on the couch was dim, and the Fourth Master could not hide his fatigue. However, he was taken aback when he saw a hint of gentleness on Li Chenjiao's usually beautiful but somewhat sharp face in the candlelight.
After a long while, the Fourth Prince came to his senses and gave the wet nurse a look.
The wet nurse skillfully stepped forward and took the eldest princess from Li Chenjiao's arms. The eldest princess was already fast asleep, and this slight movement did not wake her, making people feel even more sorry for her.
Li Chenjiao stayed a while longer before waving her hand to let Qiu Hu leave the inner room. After they went around the screen to the outer room, Li Chenjiao asked softly, "Has Fourth Master had dinner yet?"
Fourth Master remained silent, a sense of comfort finally settling in a certain part of his heart.
Not hearing a reply, Li Chenjiao said gently, "This servant is a little hungry right now. Please, Your Highness, make the effort to have some midnight snack with this servant." It was not hard to discern her earnestness and concern in her words.
Fourth Master knew perfectly well that Li Chenjiao was accommodating him. He paused for a moment and said, "Go to the study."
Li Chenjiao then turned to Su Peisheng: "Please trouble Eunuch Su to ask the kitchen to make two bowls of shredded chicken noodles. Are there any fresh chestnuts available at this time of year? Tell them to make a pot of chestnut chicken soup. If it's too rushed tonight, you can make it tomorrow. Also, tell the kitchen to prepare two appetizers."
Since it's a late-night snack, there aren't that many fancy dishes.
Su Peisheng naturally understood Li Chenjiao's meaning, and respectfully agreed before heading to the kitchen in the front courtyard.
After this experience, Su Peisheng understood better than anyone that Li Gege held a different position in the Fourth Prince's heart than others.
Li Chenjiao didn't eat much for dinner. She's always had a big appetite, and this bowl of shredded chicken noodles for supper was enough to satisfy her.
She had already learned from Qiu Hu that the Fujin had returned, and she had no intention of staying overnight in the front courtyard at this time, so she said very softly, "It's late, this servant will go back first."
Fourth Master finished his bowl of chicken noodles before Li Chenjiao. He was leaning against the edge of the couch with his eyes closed, resting. Hearing the sound, he opened his eyes, stared at Li Chenjiao for a while, and said first, "You've had a hard day."
Li Chenjiao didn't really feel tired today. She just looked after the eldest princess and comforted the fourth master. It was nothing tiring.
However, she didn't feign denial, but simply said, "If you have any orders, please send someone to my courtyard. You should rest early tonight."
Fourth Master grunted in agreement and instructed Su Peisheng to escort Li Chenjiao back, as it was already quite late at night.
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