In the room of the fourth Prince at Xingde Palace.
Zhao Yao saw that the fourth Prince had already packed up his belongings, looking ready to depart at any moment.
"Fourth Brother, are you sure you can immediately go to your fief after being conferred as a prince?" He sensed his brother’s eagerness, "You see the Third Brother hasn’t gone to his fief yet, maybe you’ll have to postpone for a few years too."
"I won’t. I will go to the fief after I marry." The fourth Prince had no intention of staying in the capital. If it weren’t for the marriage delaying him for a month, he would have planned to leave for his fief the day after being conferred as a prince.
"Oh right, Fourth Brother, you still have to get married." Zhao Yao had forgotten about that. After being conferred as a prince, the fourth Prince could not immediately leave for his fief as he still had to marry. The wedding was set for a month later, and after that, he would take his new wife to his fief. "I totally forgot about that." He needed to quickly prepare a wedding gift for his brother.
The fourth Prince glanced helplessly at Zhao Yao.
Standing by the side, Wei Mian chuckled and said, "Your Highness the Tenth, how could you forget about His Highness’s wedding?"
Zhao Yao shrugged and said, "It’s not my wedding, of course, I would forget."
The fourth Prince reached out and gently pinched Zhao Yao’s cheek, laughing softly, "You’re far from getting married yourself."
"Fourth Brother, by the time I get married, your son might be as old as I am now."
"Perhaps." The fourth Prince ruffled Zhao Yao’s hair, smiling warmly, "By then, I’ll bring my child to your wedding banquet."
"Sure." Zhao Yao laughed, "Fourth Brother, you are so good-looking, my little nephew will surely be beautiful too."
The fourth Prince looked at Zhao Yao but said nothing.
Zhao Yao felt a bit puzzled under the fourth Prince’s gaze. Nervously, he asked carefully, "Fourth Brother, why are you looking at me like that? It’s making me uneasy." He had a bad feeling, thinking his brother might leave him with a pile of assignments or books to study before he departed.
Before leaving for his fief, the person the fourth Prince was most reluctant to part from and worried about was Zhao Yao, not Princess Li.
The fourth Prince beckoned Zhao Yao over, and he obediently came forward.
"Fourth Brother, what’s up?"
The fourth Prince took Zhao Yao’s small hands in his, and with a very earnest expression, said, "Tenth Brother, after I leave, you must behave, alright?"
Zhao Yao held the fourth Prince’s hands tightly, his expression equally serious, "Fourth Brother, I’m always well-behaved."
"Yes, Tenth Brother is the most obedient child." The fourth Prince looked into Zhao Yao’s clear and pure eyes, his own face reflected in them. "Wei Mian, go and call Dou Le."
Zhao Yao thought the name was quite amusing. Follow current novᴇls on 𝕟𝕠𝕧𝕖𝕝⁂𝕗𝕚𝕣𝕖⁂𝕟𝕖𝕥
"Fourth Brother, who is Dou Le? I’ve never heard of this person before." There didn’t seem to be anyone named Dou Le around his brother.
"Dou Le is from my mother’s palace. In the future, if I’m not around and you have any trouble or get bullied, you can find him," the fourth Prince seriously instructed, "or, if you wish to write to me, you can also find Dou Le."
Zhao Yao was a bit confused but also understood very well that Dou Le was someone his brother left for him.
"Dou Le is very clever and capable. If you seek him, he will help you handle things, understand?"
Zhao Yao obediently nodded, "Understood."
"If anything major comes up, you can go to my mother. She will assist you." Princess Li couldn’t accompany the fourth Prince to his fief unless the Emperor passed away and the new Emperor ascended to the throne. Only then would Princess Li be able to follow the fourth Prince to his fief to enjoy her later years. "Repeat what I just told you."
Zhao Yao obediently repeated the two things the fourth Prince had instructed him.
The fourth Prince was relieved to see that Zhao Yao had remembered.
"On your rest days, you can go with your cousins to the Li Family or the Imperial College."
"Fourth Brother, what should I do at the Li Family or the Imperial College in your absence?" Zhao Yao deliberately asked this because he knew very well that the fourth Prince wanted him to go there for his own good, for the Li Family to protect him.
"Go to the Li Family or the Imperial College to read." The fourth Prince tapped Zhao Yao’s little nose, pretending to be stern, "When I’m not around, you must study hard and not slack off."
The fourth Prince poked Zhao Yao’s cheek, "Remember?"
Zhao Yao said a bit dejectedly, "Understood."
The fourth Prince gave him other instructions as well.
At this moment, Wei Mian brought in a eunuch with a very pleasing demeanor.