Blossom

Song Mo was unaware that his fearsome reputation had made both He Yu and Wang Qinghuai wary.

He slowly walked out of Qianfo Temple Alley and bid farewell to Wei Tingyu at the temple gate.

Wei Tingyu had already recovered from his initial shock.

He was deeply grateful to Song Mo but also extremely disheartened. He asked Song Mo, "Ji Jianming—why would he do such a thing?"

Husband and wife are one. Ji Yong was Dou Zhao's cousin—what good would tarnishing his reputation do for Dou Zhao? What good would it do for the Dou family? And what good would it do for Ji Yong himself?

There was much to ponder in this.

Wei Tingyu wasn’t someone who overanalyzed people or situations, but he wasn’t foolish either.

After a long silence, Song Mo replied softly, "I don’t know either."

His tone was filled with melancholy.

Wei Tingyu’s expression darkened.

If even Song Mo didn’t know… what could be done?

He scratched his head anxiously.

If Ji Yong spread this matter, and his mother found out, she might be furious enough to die of anger.

And his sister… she despised such messy affairs the most.

The thought made him frantic. He wanted to see his sister immediately and ask for her advice.

Watching Song Mo and Gu Yu’s carriage disappear into the crowd, Wei Tingyu immediately took his own carriage to the Jingguo Duke’s Mansion.

Wei Tingzhen wasn’t home.

She had gone to the Great Xiangguo Temple.

The temple was bustling with people—devotees coming to listen to sermons, as well as vendors hawking incense, candles, and snacks from their baskets.

With her guards clearing the way, Wei Tingzhen barely managed to squeeze inside.

The spacious side hall was already about seventy to eighty percent full, mostly with noblewomen adorned in pearls and jade.

Her sister-in-law—the eldest paternal aunt of the Jingguo Duke’s Mansion, Madam Zhang—had secured a seat in the front row. Her personal maid stood nearby, looking around. When she spotted Wei Tingzhen entering, she whispered something to Madam Zhang, who then stood up and nodded at Wei Tingzhen before sending the maid to invite her over.

Wei Tingzhen nodded but didn’t hurry over. Instead, she greeted familiar ladies while scanning the room.

Soon, she noticed Wang Yingxue chatting with another woman in the southern part of the side hall.

Relieved, Wei Tingzhen finally followed the maid to Madam Zhang’s side.

"Sister-in-law, why are you so late?" Madam Zhang smiled. "Earlier, I ran into the Dowager of the Marquis Changxing’s household. If not for the Countess of Yunyang pulling her away—"

The Dowager of the Marquis Changxing’s household was just over forty, not particularly old. However, since her husband had passed early, her eldest son had inherited the title and, being politically astute, had won the emperor’s favor. Moreover, one of her sons had married a princess, making the family highly regarded among the Capital’s Families of High Officials.

Wei Tingzhen thanked her with a smile and began discussing the Marquis Changxing’s family affairs with her sister-in-law: "Their sixteenth young lady must be of marriageable age now, right?"

Madam Zhang pursed her lips in amusement, then glanced around to ensure no one was paying attention to them before whispering to Wei Tingzhen, "The Duke of Yingguo wants to arrange a marriage with their family…"

Though surprised, Wei Tingzhen felt it was only natural given their equal social standing. Moreover, since Wei Tingyu had gained Song Mo’s favor and been involved in the canal dredging project, she felt a close connection to the Duke of Yingguo’s household and was naturally concerned about their affairs: "But the heir of the Duke of Yingguo’s Mansion hasn’t completed his mourning period yet, has he? Isn’t it too early to discuss marriage? And isn’t the sixteenth young lady older than the heir…?"“What are you thinking?” Zhang Shi chuckled softly. “It’s the Duke of Yingguo who wants to marry the Shi family’s sixteenth young lady!”

Wei Tingzhen was startled. “So, the two families are planning to ally through marriage?”

Although the Duke of Yingguo was much older than the sixteenth young lady, he was a proper duke and had influence before the Emperor, making him a decent match.

“How could that be?” Zhang Shi whispered. “The Duke of Yingguo’s heir—what kind of man is he? He wouldn’t even blink after killing someone! If the Shi family married their daughter to him, she’d have no support if she bore a daughter, and even if she bore a son, it would depend on the heir’s mood. One misstep, and she might offend him. Why would the Shi family do such a thankless task? The sixteenth young lady is the beloved youngest daughter of the Dowager Marchioness of Changxing—how could she bear to see her daughter suffer? The Shi family politely declined the Duke of Yingguo’s proposal. That’s why the Dowager Marchioness is so distressed. If they marry their daughter to a higher-ranking family, which could rival the Duke of Yingguo’s Mansion or the Marquis of Changxing’s household? If they marry her to a lower-ranking family, who would dare take her after the Duke’s proposal? From what Countess of Yunyang hinted, the Shi family originally intended to marry their daughter to the Duke of Yingguo’s heir. What a twist of fate…”

Wei Tingzhen thought of Wei Tingyu.

If not for the engagement with the Dou family, the Wei family might have had a chance to ally with the Shi family!

She sighed softly.

The urgent matter now was to dissolve the engagement between the Wei and Dou families. Once that was done, what noble young lady couldn’t they marry?

Wei Tingyu absentmindedly chatted with Zhang Shi about trivial matters.

A few clear chimes rang from the side hall.

Everyone fell silent.

The abbot of the Great Xiangguo Temple, clad in bright red robes, entered with a radiant face.

“Thank you all for coming to the Great Xiangguo Temple to listen to the Dharma.” After a brief introduction, the abbot began vividly recounting stories of kindness from the Buddhist scriptures.

The audience listened attentively.

Half an hour later, the first Dharma session concluded.

As usual, the abbot sat down to drink tea.

Some women gathered around to speak with him, while others took the opportunity to visit the restroom or whisper among themselves.

From afar, Wei Tingzhen greeted Wang Yingxue, who sat in the southern part of the side hall: “…I didn’t expect to meet my in-law here!”

Ears perked up among the women in the side hall.

Wang Yingxue nodded, then glanced at an elderly woman beside her, dressed plainly with graying hair, and smiled. “I accompanied my mother to listen to the Dharma.”

So she had brought Madam Xu Wang along!

Wei Tingzhen felt reassured and approached with a smile to greet Madam Xu Wang.

Madam Xu Wang chuckled warmly, holding Wei Tingzhen’s hand with an air of seniority and urging her to visit often.

Wang Yingxue then introduced another woman beside her to Wei Tingzhen: “This is our Fifth Madam.”

Madam Fan, wife of Dou Shishu?

Wei Tingzhen took a closer look—it was the woman who had been speaking with Wang Yingxue earlier.

She couldn’t help but grin.

This Wang Shi was truly resourceful!

Though she hadn’t managed to enlist Madam Fan to play along in this charade, dragging her into the scene was still quite a feat.

No wonder she had been elevated to principal wife.

Wei Tingzhen quickly bowed to Madam Fan with a smile.

This display of familial recognition immediately drew many eyes.

Exactly what Wei Tingzhen wanted—her smile widened.Madam Fan returned the greeting with dignified grace, warmly yet appropriately acknowledging Wei Tingzhen. She introduced the ladies around her: "This is the wife of Grand Secretary of the Inner Cabinet Lord Liang, this is the wife of the Vice Minister of Personnel Lord Lin, and this is the wife of the Vice Minister of Justice Lord Wang..."

Grand Secretary of the Inner Cabinet?

So this must be Liang Jifang's wife!

Even Madam Liang showed such respect to Madam Fan, greeting her with equal warmth.

Wei Tingzhen couldn't help but marvel inwardly—Madam Fan moved in circles with the wives of high-ranking officials. This was truly the bearing of an elite family!

If only Dou Zhao were Dou Shishu's daughter.

After exchanging pleasantries with the ladies, Wei Tingzhen gradually steered the conversation toward Madam Xu Wang as previously discussed with Wang Yingxue: "What brings you to Great Xiangguo Temple today? When I visited your daughter-in-law's residence recently, I heard you were unwell. Have you recovered? What was the ailment? Shall I recommend an Imperial Physician?"

"Thank you for your concern, dear aunt," Madam Xu Wang replied modestly. "Just old age and the summer heat aggravating chronic conditions—nothing worth mentioning." She sighed softly before confessing, "Truth be told, apart from listening to Buddhist teachings, I came to request the abbot's blessing for an heirloom."

This piqued everyone's curiosity.

Glancing at her visibly uncomfortable daughter, Madam Xu lowered her voice: "Yingxue isn't getting any younger yet has only borne a daughter. Recently, using her father's name card, I consulted a Daoist Master from Dragon Tiger Mountain. He said someone in the household has conflicting birth characters with hers, and matters would improve after that person marries. He even gave Yingxue a secret prescription. Still uneasy, I thought to seek additional blessings from the abbot here—this way, we'd have greater assurance."

Fifth Madam Fan of the Dou family paled slightly.

The only Dou maiden approaching marriageable age was Dou Zhao.

What were the Wang mother and daughter implying?

Alarm bells ringing, Madam Fan quickly smiled at Madam Xu: "Since you rarely venture out and coincidentally encounter this temple's Dharma assembly, securing the abbot's blessing would be most auspicious. While His Reverence rests, shall I accompany you to inquire?" Her frosty glare at Wang Yingxue carried unmistakable warning as she rose to assist Madam Xu toward the abbot.

Madam Xu waved off the offer politely: "I've already made arrangements with His Reverence."

The surrounding ladies immediately besieged Madam Xu with questions about fertility secrets, leaving Madam Fan stranded.

Frustration burned within Madam Fan.

Oblivious to the implicit warning, Wang Yingxue flushed and called "Mother!" before apologetically smiling at Madam Lin and others: "My mother simply tries desperate remedies. At my age, bearing children is hardly the priority! Marrying off my eldest daughter well and finding a good match for the younger one would content me." Playfully nudging her mother, she whispered, "Please don't interfere in this matter?"Madam Xu Wang's face immediately darkened as she said displeasedly, "Are you saying the Daoist Master from Dragon Tiger Mountain was wrong? She had barely been born two years when she caused the death of her own birth mother, followed by her grandfather's passing. And just after her engagement was settled, her father-in-law suddenly died of a violent illness. You and your husband only survived because you were living far away in the Capital..."

A woman who had been sitting silently beside Madam Xu Wang suddenly exclaimed, "Oh? Could this be your family's Fourth Young Miss? If I recall correctly, your Fourth Young Miss lost her birth mother to illness at age two, and her grandfather passed when she was nine." She then turned to Wei Tingzhen, "Wasn't the Fourth Young Miss engaged to Madam's younger brother?"

Madam Fan nearly fainted.

Upon closer inspection, she recognized the woman as the wife of Zheng An, the Director of the Ministry of War's Bureau of Military Appointments - Madam Zheng, who had always been on good terms with the Wang Family. It became immediately clear that Madam Zheng had been enlisted by the Wang Family to deliberately echo Wang Yingxue's words.