Li Chenjiao patted her chest, and seeing this, Lin Mama quietly withdrew. She was also secretly worried, wondering how much of the conversation between master and servant had the Fourth Master overheard.
Li Chenjiao wasn't flustered at all. She turned around and said, "You smell so good, Master. Did you use the soap that was recently sent by the Imperial Household Department?"
Fourth Master sat down casually next to the dressing table, then suddenly raised his hand and lightly fanned himself: "You reek of alcohol."
These were always the words Li Chenjiao said to the Fourth Master.
Li Chenjiao was both amused and exasperated upon hearing this. Not knowing how to react, she simply put her hands on her hips and asked, "Does Your Highness find me unworthy?"
She was always the best at turning the tables, and no matter what the Fourth Master said, she could always retort with a question, leaving him speechless as always.
Fourth Master didn't say anything to her, but just leaned back in his armchair without any decorum, tilting his head back and raising his hand to cover his face, as if he was sleepy or didn't want to talk to Li Chenjiao.
Li Chenjiao stood up, and as she passed by the Fourth Master, she suddenly shook his drooping braid. She didn't dare to laugh, but quickened her pace and went to the outer room.
After a long, cooped-up day in the palace, neither of them felt sleepy, and they ended up laughing at each other again.
After all that fuss, Li Chenjiao felt a terrible headache at the thought of having to get up early the next morning. She turned her head and saw that Fourth Master was still awake. Li Chenjiao leaned her face on his shoulder and found a comfortable position.
Well, it's still warmer with Fourth Master around.
She will be able to wake up as soon as Fourth Master gets up tomorrow.
One of the advantages of having the Fourth Prince sleeping beside you in winter is this:
The 42nd year of Kangxi's reign arrived silently. Originally, Li Chenjiao had planned to have a lively celebration with her maids after returning from the palace on New Year's Eve, since it was a once-a-year occasion and a good omen for welcoming the new year.
Unexpectedly, after staying in the palace for three consecutive days, Li Chenjiao watched fireworks in the palace on New Year's Eve. Because she was too close to the Fujin (consort), she felt dizzy for half a day. When she returned home at night, she went to sleep before even staying up to welcome the New Year.
Because it was inconvenient to invite the imperial physician during the New Year holiday, Li Chenjiao herself had no other problems except for some chest tightness, but she was really not in good spirits, so she went to sleep first.
The next morning, I had to go to the palace again, and unlike the previous days, I had to wear auspicious clothes to enter the palace, which was even more troublesome than the previous days.
Li Chenjiao didn't expect that there would be an acquaintance in the carriage when she got on.
Not only was Li Chenjiao familiar with it, but the Second Princess was even more familiar with it.
"Granny! Granny!" the little girl called out excitedly, while obediently greeting her.
Zhong Mama stood up: "The master said that the concubine was not feeling well last night, so he asked me to come and take a look at her."
This was naturally not something the maids reported; they hadn't had a chance to report it yet. Without Li Chenjiao's instructions, the maids and servants in the East Courtyard wouldn't dare to act on their own.
So... this is what Fourth Master discovered himself?
Li Chenjiao's heart clenched. She had seen the Fourth Master once last night when she got off the carriage and returned to the manor, but he hadn't gone anywhere that night; he had just rested in the front yard.
"Fourth Master really has sharp eyes," Li Chenjiao concluded.
However, the arrival of Granny Zhong saved Li Chenjiao the trouble of finding a way to invite the imperial physician. She guessed in her heart that it might be related to the Fujin, but she naturally couldn't tell Granny Zhong about it. She was also curious about what Granny Zhong would say.
The carriage bumped along occasionally after it set off, so it took Granny Zhong quite a while to take Li Chenjiao's pulse. After taking both of Li Chenjiao's pulses, Granny Zhong pondered for a moment.
"It seems that the concubine has accidentally come into contact with something that has had a slight impact. After I return to the manor, I will prescribe a few calming and tranquilizing prescriptions and she will be fine."
Li Chenjiao frowned upon hearing this and pressed, "Won't that have any effect on your health?"
Granny Zhong was silent for a while, as if she had encountered a thorny problem: "This servant is not sure either. This servant has studied medicine in the palace for many years and does not know what spices the concubine has been exposed to these past few days... It's just that we can't tell anything from the concubine's pulse for the time being."
Li Chenjiao's discomfort was mostly due to some inexplicable influence, which she herself was unclear about.
Hearing what Granny Zhong said, she sighed softly, "It's good that it didn't cause any trouble."
She didn't want to press Zhong Mama for an answer.
She roughly understood what Granny Zhong meant. She guessed that because she didn't have much contact with the Fujin (the wife's mother), there weren't many obstacles. However, she suspected that something had recently appeared around the Fujin, and it wasn't a good thing...
But logically speaking, if contact between everyone causes some kind of hindrance, then this could really be quite harmful...
Li Chenjiao found it hard to believe that such a thing existed in the world...
But she couldn't figure it out for the time being, so she didn't ask any more questions and then let go of the little girl's ear.
"Talk to Granny." Li Chenjiao straightened the silk flower on the little girl's head.
During the New Year holidays, the children in the manor are exempt from school. They get a break from the Lunar New Year until after the Lantern Festival.
At the start of the new year, Consort De said that the Fourth Prince did not need to go to the palace. Among all the children in the household, the Fourth Prince was the youngest and had just learned to walk. There were many things to do in the first month of the year, so Consort De, being considerate, decided to exempt him from the trip.
Today, only the Second Princess accompanied Li Chenjiao into the palace.
Li Chenjiao was unaware of the grand celebrations and sacrifices held ahead; in any case, she followed Consort De and the Fujin to Cining Palace.
Upon arriving at Cining Palace, Li Chenjiao heard everyone speaking Manchu. She could understand the simpler parts, but couldn't understand the more obscure and complex ones, so she just smiled and pretended to understand.
Today, everyone's conversation revolves around His Majesty's fiftieth birthday.
Li Chenjiao then realized that the Emperor's 50th birthday was in the first month of the lunar calendar this year, so it seemed that the beginning of the year would be quite lively.
The concubines naturally discussed the birthday gifts they had prepared for the Emperor, and then secretly inquired about the birthday gifts they had prepared for the princes.
Consort De was a low-key person, and after a whole morning, Li Chenjiao eventually found out what the four consorts had prepared, except for what Consort De had prepared.
I wonder what Fourth Master has prepared?
As they talked, the group inexplicably started asking about the Crown Prince's health again.
"How is the Crown Prince's health progressing?" Someone asked, one of the four concubines.
The Crown Princess, of the Guarjia clan, is very thin now. The Crown Prince is recuperating, so these external social obligations have fallen on her shoulders.
"The same as always." She was clearly used to this kind of answer, and she didn't look at anyone when she spoke, which made her seem somewhat indifferent.
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