Blossom

Song Mo nodded and said, "I happen to have business at the farmstead in Daxing tomorrow. Send a post to Chen Qushui."

Everyone in the room was taken aback.

Just moments ago, they had been discussing paying a visit to the third princess's consort, Shi Chonglan. How had Song Mo changed his mind so quickly?

Liao Bifeng, being new here, felt he hadn't yet grasped Song Mo's temperament. He glanced at Yan Chaoqing, who was silently sipping tea with lowered eyelids, and decided not to speak either.

Chen He acknowledged the order and withdrew.

Liao Bifeng resumed the earlier topic: "Although the Duke has intentions to remarry, the Young Lord is already of age, and the second young master has outgrown childhood. Families of good standing may be reluctant to marry their daughters into this situation, while those of lesser status wouldn't serve the purpose of forming a beneficial alliance. The Duke's recent rejection of the daughter of Peng Feng, the Metropolitan Commander of Xuanzhou Guard, in favor of seeking the younger sister of Marquis Changxing, shows his intentions. If the Young Lord takes this opportunity to visit Shi Chonglan and lets the Shi family know of his ambitions, given their usual conduct, they likely won't agree to the Duke's proposal. It's a sound strategy."

Yan Chaoqing nodded slightly in agreement. "The Shi family has always prioritized profit over sentiment, favoring alliances with powerful and noble families. Otherwise, Shi Chonglan wouldn't have married a princess. The Duke's interest in a Shi family daughter stems from the same motive. The Young Lord's plan is excellent—if the Shi family perceives no gain from this marriage and might even offend the Young Lord, they certainly won't agree to it."

In official circles, there's a saying: "Never underestimate a young man," meaning youths hold boundless potential. Who knows when one might rise to prominence? Moreover, with Song Mo's meteoric rise, if Shi Ruilan consented to marry her sister to Song Yichun, she would irrevocably position herself against Song Mo.

Song Mo remained silent, seemingly distracted.

Liao Bifeng assumed Song Mo was troubled by his father's remarriage plans, considering the discord between them. He leaned forward slightly and offered advice: "Young Lord, with no one managing the household in the residence, it's only natural for the Duke to remarry. No one can stop that. But if you were to marry, the situation would change—the new Duchess would be a stepmother, while your wife would be the primary spouse. One holds seniority, the other legitimacy. The question of who controls the household would then depend on whose status is more illustrious." Here, he glanced at Yan Chaoqing again and softly added their prearranged suggestion: "The younger sister of Wang Qinghuai, Marquis of Yan'an, the second daughter of the Sun family from the Dowager's maternal relatives... and Princess Jingyi, born of Empress Wan, are all of marriageable age. The Young Lord will complete his mourning period next January. It's the perfect time to make arrangements."

Song Mo scoffed. "I suspect my father has the same idea, doesn't he?"

Liao Bifeng smiled without answering.

But Song Mo continued, "Let’s set this aside for now. It’s good for him to face rejection from the Shi family first." His tone suggested he didn’t wish to discuss it further.

Even so, unless the Shi family explicitly refused the Duke of Yingguo, this marriage could still happen.

Liao Bifeng pressed, "What about the third princess's consort, then?"

"Arrange it for the day after tomorrow," Song Mo replied indifferently.

Would that be too late?Liao Bifeng was about to persuade Song Mo further when he felt someone tugging at his sleeve. Then, he heard Yan Chaoqing's voice: "In that case, we shall take our leave first. The Young Lord should rest well before heading to Daxing early tomorrow morning."

Song Mo gave a faint "Hmm."

Yan Chaoqing and Liao Bifeng stood up to bid farewell.

Once they left the main courtyard, Liao Bifeng immediately lowered his voice and asked Yan Chaoqing, "Who is this Chen Qushui? The Young Lord treated him with such courtesy. From the Young Lord's tone, it seems he serves as an adviser in some household—why not invite him over?"

Yan Chaoqing found it difficult to answer.

To explain who Chen Qushui was, he would have to mention Miss Dou the Fourth... Clearly, the Young Lord was most concerned about avoiding any involvement of Miss Dou the Fourth. Yet, he couldn’t leave Liao Bifeng completely in the dark—now that Liao Bifeng was the Young Lord's adviser, remaining ignorant of such matters could lead to misjudgments and complications.

Miss Dou the Fourth was about to marry soon. Even if the Young Lord and Wei Tingyu had a falling out, their interactions couldn’t continue as they were now.

As for how the Young Lord came to know Miss Dou the Fourth, that could be explained to Liao Bifeng another time.

Yan Chaoqing quickly formulated a response: "Chen Qushui, also known as Bo, was once an adviser to Zhang Kai, the Fujian governor who abandoned his city and fled. Later, he returned to his hometown, Zhen Ding, and took up a position as an accountant for the seventh branch of the Dou family in Beilou. He earned Dou-sama’s trust and was tasked with overseeing Dou-sama’s eldest daughter, who remained in Zhen Ding. When the Young Lord faced trouble, Chen happened to be in the Capital. Having once received the Duke Ding’s favor, he assisted the Young Lord. Out of gratitude for the Dou family sheltering him during his hardships, he refused to resign and stayed with them. Since he’s now in the Capital, the Young Lord naturally wishes to extend hospitality."

Yet Liao Bifeng sensed inconsistencies in Yan Chaoqing’s words.

If that were truly the case, the Young Lord should have been more concerned about Chen Qushui’s well-being in the Dou family. But from the Young Lord’s tone, he seemed far more preoccupied with the young lady’s impending marriage.

At this thought, Song Mo’s pensive expression surfaced in Liao Bifeng’s mind.

A flicker of realization stirred within him.

Could the Young Lord...?

But he quickly suppressed the notion.

He hadn’t endured the same trials alongside the Young Lord. Gaining the trust of the Young Lord and his inner circle would take time.

There was no rush—sooner or later, he would uncover the truth.

Liao Bifeng smiled and shifted the topic to Song Mo’s upcoming trip to the Daxing farmstead: "Should I accompany him?"

"That depends on the Young Lord’s arrangements," Yan Chaoqing replied, already discerning Song Mo’s intentions. Aware of the risks if rumors spread, he resolved to keep Liao Bifeng from tagging along and spoke evasively. "Chen Qushui is still employed by someone else—we’ll see if he can spare the time first."

Liao Bifeng murmured an acknowledgment and changed the subject. Upon returning, he instructed his personal pages to watch for any visiting cards from Chen Qushui.

The next afternoon, the pages reported: "No visiting card from anyone named Chen Qushui."

Had Chen Qushui declined the Young Lord’s goodwill?

Liao Bifeng couldn’t help but wonder.

Meanwhile, Chen Qushui had already arrived at the Daxing farmstead.

Why would he send a reply under his own name? That would only expose himself to the Duke of Yingguo’s scrutiny.Since Song Mo's invitation couldn't be refused, Chen Qushui decided to meet him directly.

Song Mo was in high spirits when they met and invited him to enjoy some tea.

However, after just a few pleasantries, the conversation turned to Dou Zhao's marriage.

Chen Qushui admired Dou Zhao's ability to judge character the most.

Back at the farmstead, when Dou Zhao had cautiously—almost reverently—seen Song Mo off, Chen Qushui had been somewhat dismissive. But later events had proven Dou Zhao's wisdom.

He believed maintaining a certain distance from Song Mo was entirely necessary, so he had no intention of revealing his true purpose for the visit.

"Last time when the madam returned, Miss Dou the Fourth's dowry was almost ready. We were just waiting for the groom to complete his mourning period to set the date," Chen Qushui said. "Consort Cui sent us to ask Seventh Master whether the young lady should marry from Zhen Ding or the Capital, who should be the woman of complete blessings, what customs noble families in the Capital follow for daughters' weddings, and if there's anything else the young lady needs to add or remove... The list goes on and would take at least half an hour to recount, let alone actually arrange." He smiled wryly, looking helpless as he sighed, "Getting married is truly a troublesome affair!"

"Is that so?" Song Mo suddenly felt a pang of loss.

After Dou Zhao married, her heart and words would be filled with Wei Tingyu... Even if she remained open-hearted and Wei Tingyu didn't mind, his visits to her would likely become inappropriate.

This realization left him dispirited and disinterested. Perhaps he should go to the Third Princess's residence instead...

Meanwhile, Ji Yong was extremely excited upon learning Chen Qushui had come to the Capital. He asked Zi Xi, "Is the information reliable?"

"Absolutely!" Zi Xi patted his chest confidently. "He's staying at Miss Dou the Fourth's stationery shop and visited several Dou family masters a couple days ago. We spotted him today when he went to Daxing to visit a friend."

Ji Yong was greatly intrigued. "Did you find out the identity of Chen Qushui's friend?"

"Yes," Zi Xi replied. "The man's surname is Yan, given name Yun, courtesy name Zhaoqing. He's an adviser to the Young Lord of the Duke of England's Mansion."

Ji Yong was surprised. "An adviser to the Duke of England's heir... They must have met in Fujian..." Remembering recent rumors about the Duke of England's household, he mused, "Do you know why Chen Qushui came to the Capital?"

"I heard it's to discuss Miss Dou the Fourth's marriage with Seventh Master of the Dou family," Zi Xi said. "The Marquis of Jining will complete his mourning period in two months."

Ji Yong couldn't help curling his lip. "Is Dou Zhao really going to marry this Wei fellow?"

Zi Xi broke into a sweat and hurriedly said, "This marriage was arranged since Miss Dou the Fourth's childhood. If she doesn't marry the Marquis of Jining, who else could she marry? Didn't the Dou family reject the He family's proposal precisely for this reason?"

But Ji Yong continued as if talking to himself, "I always feel it's such a waste for Dou Zhao to marry this Wei..."

The more he thought about it, the more uncomfortable he became—like seeing dust settle on Dou Zhao's pristine clothes. Unless he brushed off that dust, the thought would keep pricking at him like a splinter.

He patted his own clothes and said, "Let's go meet Chen Qushui.""This, this isn't appropriate, is it?" Zi Xi jumped up and blocked Ji Yong's path. "Mr. Chen came to discuss Miss Dou the Fourth's marriage arrangements. If you go see Mr. Chen, what would you even say..." If the young master were to "champion the weak" again and ruin this matter, that would be disastrous!

Before he could finish speaking, Ji Yong shot him a disdainful glance. "I'm Dou Zhao's cousin. Can't I show some concern about her marriage?"

What kind of cousin was this supposed to be!

"Fine, fine, fine!" Zi Xi felt dizzy upon hearing this and said, "But wouldn't asking the aunt be just as good? Mr. Chen went to visit the aunt as soon as he arrived, and Miss Dou the Fourth was raised by the aunt since childhood. There might be things the aunt knows more about than Chen Qushui..."

Before reporting to the madam, he absolutely had to stop Ji Yong first.