The Fourth Prince never thought that letting women from the inner palace get involved in the affairs of the court was anything honorable.
He never asked or ordered his wife to do anything to help him make connections with powerful officials. As long as his wife didn't offend the Emperor, it didn't matter.
They could know the situation of the previous dynasty, but they didn't necessarily need women to strategize.
It wasn't because of any so-called rule that the empress's family shouldn't interfere in politics.
In the Fourth Prince's mind, most women are equally wise.
Sometimes, even the Fourth Prince would ask Li Chenjiao some questions indirectly. The Fourth Prince was not the kind of person who only believed in himself and couldn't listen to what others said.
What the Fourth Master was thinking was that the woman's maternal clan was involved, and the saying that "one prospers, all prosper; one suffers, all suffer" was definitely not an exaggeration.
The Fourth Prince's desire for a peaceful backyard was something he had always longed for.
When Fourth Master arrived at the East Courtyard, his anger had subsided somewhat.
But then she worried that Li Chenjiao might overthink it, since someone like Li Si'er never said a nice thing.
Someone as delicate as Li Shi could manage to appease the Second Princess, but dealing with someone as difficult as Li Si'er—
After thinking for a moment, the image of Li Chenjiao sobbing inexplicably popped into the Fourth Master's mind.
His heart also felt a pang.
If Li Chenjiao knew what the Fourth Master was thinking at this moment, she would definitely nod quickly after a moment of stunned silence.
Yes, yes, she's the most delicate.
When the Fourth Prince arrived at the East Courtyard, the first people to notice him were the two maids standing at the door and Granny Lin, who was arranging for the oilcloth to be placed there because she was worried that it would rain that night.
The Fourth Master made a gesture, and Granny Lin bowed respectfully without uttering a sound.
Upon seeing this, the maids simply curtsied.
As the Fourth Master approached, he looked at Granny Lin and asked, "Where is your master?"
Lin Mama bowed and said, "Replying to Fourth Master, the mistress is inside with the Second Princess."
Fourth Master didn't seem to be in a hurry to go in. After listening to what Granny Lin said, he asked again, "What has your master done since he came back?"
Today is the first day of the month, and Li Chenjiao only went out of the East Courtyard once when she went to the main courtyard to pay her respects. Lin Mama also learned from the two maids why her mistress was late today.
When she heard the Fourth Master ask this question, she quickly understood that he was showing concern for his master.
"When the master returned and had lunch, it was already late. As usual, he accompanied the second princess for a nap. He woke up around 3 PM and then talked with Qiu Hu and the others in the inner room. He accidentally got his clothes wet and took a bath."
As for what kind of accident it was, Granny Lin naturally knew. Besides, given her mistress's cleanliness, even if her clothes weren't soiled, she probably wouldn't tolerate being covered in the smell of ink.
When Fourth Master heard from Granny Lin that Li Chenjiao had accidentally wet her clothes, his heart tightened.
Subconsciously, I thought of Li Chenjiao after she woke up and everything that happened in the main courtyard. The image of Li Chenjiao constantly shedding tears involuntarily flashed into my mind.
Fourth Master waved his hand: "You all serve your master carefully."
The maid and Granny Lin both agreed.
The commotion likely alerted Li Chenjiao inside, as the Fourth Master caught a glimpse of figures through the latticed window.
"Who's outside? Granny, is the Fourth Master here?"
Lin Mama turned her head, ready to see the Fourth Master's expression before replying, but she caught sight of him already walking inside.
Li Chenjiao didn't like preparing gifts for the Fourth Prince's birthday at night. Right now, she was lazily leaning against the soft couch reading a storybook. She hadn't read a new storybook for a while.
When Fourth Master lifted the curtain and came in, Li Chenjiao had just yawned, and there were still tears in the corners of her eyes.
Fourth Master quickened his pace and sat down directly in front of Li Chenjiao. The small couch was naturally quite cramped for the two of them.
Li Chenjiao was still confused: "Master? Why are you here? Have you had dinner yet? Is it cold outside? Why didn't you bring your cloak? Be careful not to catch a cold."
Before Fourth Master had even sat down, Li Chenjiao launched into a long string of words.
These were all words spoken by Li Chenjiao without thinking. She has always been very caring towards people, whether it was the Fourth Master or the maids and confidants around her.
Before Fourth Master could even open his mouth, he suddenly didn't know where to begin after hearing Li Chenjiao's string of words, and could only stammer out, "Not much was eaten in the kitchen for dinner."
Since Fourth Master had said so, Li Chenjiao naturally understood what he meant very quickly.
She straightened up with bright eyes: "I'm hungry too, let's have wontons for supper. Mrs. He made some today, and I was planning to have them for breakfast tomorrow."
Li Chenjiao blurted out "I," but Fourth Master obviously didn't notice this at the moment.
He simply nodded slightly: "You make the decision."
Li Chenjiao sensed something was amiss when Fourth Master said that. She shrank back and asked cautiously.
"But—is there anything I have done wrong in serving you?"
As she spoke, she moved further in to make room for Fourth Master.
Fourth Master was left speechless, both amused and exasperated by Li Chenjiao's question.
"I heard Li Si'er is here today?"
Fourth Master simply asked directly.
Li Chenjiao then understood that the Fourth Master wanted to ask about Li Si'er's visit to the mansion today.
She stole a glance at Fourth Master's expression, only saying things that everyone already knew, and kept all her other attitudes and evaluations of Li Si'er to herself.
Li Chenjiao was deciding her words based on Fourth Master's attitude towards Longkodo.
As for her own attitude towards Li Si'er, she'll keep it to herself for now.
After hearing this, the Fourth Prince simply snorted coldly: "She also knows that the Princess Consort is recuperating."
Upon hearing this, Li Chenjiao blinked and quickly understood the Fourth Master's attitude towards Li Si'er.
Indeed, given Fourth Master's personality, it's perfectly reasonable for him to look down on someone like Li Si'er.
Fourth Master is upright and respects rules, but he is extremely protective of his own in private. He is the kind of person who respects rules but is not rigid, and does not take the rules to heart.
Li Chenjiao was resting her chin on her hand when she heard Fourth Master ask, "Did she give you any trouble?"
That's not a good answer.
In the end, Li Chenjiao chose to tell the truth over playing the victim.
"Since their minds are not on me, they naturally won't make things difficult for me."
Upon hearing Li Chenjiao's words, Fourth Master stared intently at her and asked again, "Really?"
Li Chenjiao felt a little uncomfortable being stared at, thinking to herself, "When did Fourth Master become so talkative?" But she could only nod again.
"Of course, there isn't a single lie in it."
After humming in agreement, Fourth Master withdrew his gaze: "There's no need to be polite if we run into each other again in the future."
These words gave Li Chenjiao confidence.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com