Blossom

The arrival of Xia Lian and his men left no suspense in the already perilous situation—two of the seven intruders who had stormed the Hall of Cultivating Will were dead, while the rest had been captured alive.

Yan Chaoqing’s expression was icy enough to freeze a man to death.

After confirming that Dou Zhao was unharmed, he immediately requested to borrow the kitchen shed from her: “...The situation is suspicious, and any delay may lead to further complications. I beg Madam’s permission to interrogate the captives at once.”

Dou Zhao also believed swift action was necessary. She instructed Mrs. Luyi to lead Master Yan and Xia Lian’s group to the kitchen shed while directing the maids to clean up the courtyard.

A few agonized screams soon came from the shed, only to be abruptly muffled as if something had silenced them.

Mrs. Luyi emerged from the corner leading to the small kitchen, her face pale and her expression terrified.

Dou Zhao was inwardly alarmed and whispered to Su Xin, “If they end up killing someone, who would dare work in the kitchen shed after this?”

Su Xin replied, “Then I’ll go remind Master Yan.”

Dou Zhao nodded.

A young maid hurried in to report, “Madam, Steward Lü is here.”

The flames from the Hall of Cultivating Will had also been noticed by those in the Duke of England's Mansion. However, for them, the fire in the outer courtyard was more pressing. With Tao Qizhong absent, Lü Zheng, who had been tasked with overseeing the mansion’s affairs, hesitated when he saw the Hall of Cultivating Will’s guards abandon their half-dismantled rooms and rush toward the hall. After some thought, he decided to check on the situation and offer his condolences.

Dou Zhao, too, wanted to know whether the Duke of England's Mansion had any involvement in the incident.

She received Lü Zheng in the main hall.

Accompanied by only two pages, Lü Zheng had already seen two unfamiliar corpses in the front passageway of the Hall of Cultivating Will and a pile of water-drenched firewood in the main courtyard. A shrewd man—otherwise, he wouldn’t have become Song Yichun’s confidant—Lü Zheng quickly realized that someone had taken advantage of the chaos to attack the hall, forcing Dou Zhao and her people to fight for their lives while setting fires to signal for help.

But whose idea had it been?

Not only clever but quick-witted.

Still, where had these intruders come from? How had they breached the Hall of Cultivating Will? Were there inside collaborators? Had all the attackers been captured? If only some were caught, where were the others now?

The thought sent a chill down Lü Zheng’s spine.

With such a major incident occurring in the household, the Young Lord would surely return soon.

If the Young Lord suspected the Duke had a hand in this and flew into a rage, who could—or would dare—stop him in the Duke’s absence?

But since he had already entered the Hall of Cultivating Will, he had no choice but to feign ignorance and steel himself to ask Dou Zhao with feigned surprise, “Madam, what exactly happened here?”

I was about to ask you the same thing, and here you are questioning me instead.

Dou Zhao silently grumbled before recounting the events to Lü Zheng. She skimmed over details like who had suggested setting fires or dousing people with boiling water, offering no elaboration.Lü Zheng broke into a cold sweat and immediately knelt before Dou Zhao, urgently saying, "Madam, we truly never expected such chaos to occur—it’s entirely the fault of us servants! We were solely focused on putting out the fire, allowing the thieves to slip in unnoticed. I wonder what Master Yan has managed to extract from those thieves during interrogation? Did they confess how many of them there are in total? My greatest fear is that more thieves might still be hiding in the shadows, waiting to strike when we lower our guard..."

It was clear these thieves had entered through The Duke of England's Mansion, and with Tao Qizhong absent, the responsibility fell temporarily on him as the steward.

Though Lü Zheng wore an expression of surprise, Dou Zhao caught a flicker of panic in his eyes, deepening her suspicions. Her tone remained gentle as she said, "Master Yan hasn’t reported anything yet. Regarding the affairs of the mansion, I’m afraid we’ll still have to trouble Mr. Tao and Steward Lü."

Since Lü Zheng had spoken this way, regardless of whether Song Yichun was involved, matters outside the Hall of Cultivating Will could be left for them to handle.

As they spoke, Tao Qizhong returned with reinforcements borrowed from the Five Cities Garrison to assist in extinguishing the fire. Upon hearing that the Hall of Cultivating Will had inexplicably caught fire, that Master Yan and the others had all rushed there, and that the eastern side houses were also ablaze, he paled. The maids and servants living in those side houses, worried about their children and belongings, had lost focus on firefighting, with many sneaking back to secure their families and possessions—throwing the entire Duke of England's Mansion into chaos. After hastily instructing the deputy commander who had come to help, Tao Qizhong hurried to the Hall of Cultivating Will with his attendants.

Everyone knew the Duke and the Young Lord were at odds. With the Young Lord away, if anything were to happen to his wife, the public would inevitably suspect the Duke’s involvement. Though the Duke disliked his son, he would never do something so blatantly damaging to his reputation. If things went awry, they would be left holding the bag, guilty by association.

On the way, a trusted subordinate who had remained in the mansion briefed Tao Qizhong on the situation at the Hall of Cultivating Will.

Tao Qizhong inwardly groaned.

When he arrived, Yan Chaoqing was also there to see Dou Zhao. Seizing Yan Chaoqing like a lifeline, he asked, "Brother Yan, Brother Yan, what on earth is going on?"

Without pausing, Yan Chaoqing strode toward the main hall and replied, "I was just about to report to Madam. You may as well come along and hear it too."

Tao Qizhong’s heart sank, his face turning slightly ashen as he followed Yan Chaoqing into the hall.

"Madam, it’s a group of bandits from Cangzhou," Yan Chaoqing explained, the situation having taken an unexpected turn. "They could no longer stay in Cangzhou and came to the Capital to lie low. They spotted a chest of silver notes among your dowry and targeted your possessions. They colluded with some local idlers in the Capital and hired two wandering swordsmen to orchestrate the jailbreak and the fire in the stables..."

Dou Zhao was stunned speechless.

Lü Zheng, however, exhaled in relief.

Since it was the Young Lord’s wife’s dowry that had caused the trouble, surely they were no longer to blame!

But just as he relaxed, Yan Chaoqing added, "According to their confessions, twenty-six people infiltrated the mansion in total. So far, we’ve only apprehended seven. The whereabouts of the others remain unknown. Mr. Tao, we’ll need your guidance on how to proceed."

Tao Qizhong felt no regret.If I had known it would come to this, I should have listened to Yan Chaoqing—sacrifice the pawn to save the king—and simply torn down a couple of side houses in the east to stop the fire from spreading... The stables could have burned down and been rebuilt. But now, with intruders breaking in, the responsibility falls entirely on me. And there are still nineteen people unaccounted for...

He felt like an ant on a hot griddle.

"At least the Five Cities Garrison dispatched a division from the Eastern City Military Command," he said, his face dark as storm clouds. "I’ll arrange for men to hunt down the intruders." Then, recalling that the Hall of Cultivating Will had several highly skilled, meticulous, and vigilant guards, he added, "But we can’t just let those Eastern City Military Command soldiers roam freely around the mansion. Master Yan, could you lend me a few men to accompany them?"

"Absolutely not!" Yan Chaoqing refused outright. "Until those intruders are found, all guards must remain at the Hall of Cultivating Will to protect Madam’s safety."

Tao Qizhong opened his mouth but ultimately said nothing, leaving dejectedly with Lü Zheng.

Yan Chaoqing saw an opportunity in this situation.

Thinking of Dou Zhao’s decisive actions when she confronted Song Mo and her composed demeanor just now, he tactfully explained, "Madam’s safety is our top priority. The Duke of England's Mansion is too vast. If I were to withhold resources and an intruder were hiding in the inner quarters, it would be far too dangerous!"

His words sparked an idea in Dou Zhao. She smiled and said, "When those intruders killed the Duke of England's Mansion guards before, no one believed it—they said it was the Young Lord’s doing. Now intruders are besieging the Hall of Cultivating Will... What a coincidence!"

Her words lit up Yan Chaoqing’s eyes. "I’ll handle this matter immediately!" he declared.

Dou Zhao smiled. "Thank you for your efforts, Master Yan."

Yan Chaoqing bowed respectfully and withdrew.

Xia Lian, waiting outside, hurriedly asked, "What did Madam say?"

Looking at the two intruders who had been easily captured—their faces nearly scorched—he felt Dou Zhao was the very image of the heroic women from operas and admired her greatly.

When Yan Chaoqing relayed Dou Zhao’s intentions, Xia Lian couldn’t help but raise his thumb in admiration. "With Madam by his side, the Young Lord is truly like a tiger with wings!"

Yan Chaoqing nodded in agreement, smiling.

The two stood under the eaves, discussing the Hall of Cultivating Will’s defenses for the coming days.

Just then, Song Han arrived with two pages in tow.

"I heard there was a fire at Sister-in-law’s place. Is she all right?" he asked anxiously. "I came as soon as I heard the news."

Yan Chaoqing and Xia Lian quickly bowed to Song Han, while a maid went to inform Dou Zhao.

Dou Zhao stepped out to greet him. "Why has the Second Young Master come at such a time?" She scolded Song Han’s page, "Don’t you know intruders have broken into the mansion? Nineteen are still missing. If anything happens to the Second Young Master, I’ll have your hide!"

The page paled and knelt trembling on the ground.

Song Han was also startled by Dou Zhao’s words. He tugged at Xia Lian’s sleeve. "Guard Xia, is this true?"

Xia Lian replied gently, "It’s true. Some intruders are still at large. The Second Young Master really shouldn’t have come to the Hall of Cultivating Will now."

Song Han was at a loss.

Dou Zhao quickly instructed Xia Lian, "Escort the Second Young Master back to the upper courtyard."Xia Lian respectfully acknowledged the order and accompanied Song Han out of the Hall of Cultivating Will.

Dou Zhao watched Song Han’s retreating figure until it disappeared from sight before returning to the inner chamber. She called for Gan Lu and said, “With such a big fire, I doubt anyone in the mansion can sleep. Go and invite Da Taitai and First Madam over. Tell them I have something to discuss.” She then quietly gave Su Xin a few more instructions.

Gan Lu went to summon Da Taitai and Dong Shi.

Upon seeing the heavily guarded Hall of Cultivating Will, both women let out a sigh of relief. Da Taitai, in particular, wore a tearful expression as she grumbled, “Where did these bandits come from? Don’t they have eyes to see where they’re causing trouble? They must be desperate for silver…”

Dou Zhao held a teacup, sipping leisurely, allowing Da Taitai to vent her frustration without interruption.

Her calm demeanor inexplicably sent a shiver of unease through Dong Shi. She tugged lightly at Da Taitai’s sleeve, silently reminding her that Dou Zhao wasn’t interested and that she should speak less.