Blossom

Zeng Wu returned with an uncertain expression: "Duke, they are indeed going through the accounts at the Hall of Cultivating Will—and have been all along. It's said to be all about Madam's dowry additions."

Song Yichun's head buzzed, and it took him a long moment to regain his composure.

"How is that possible?" He jumped up in shock, but before he could finish his sentence, he froze. "That would be an enormous dowry addition..."

"Duke," Tao Qizhong hurried in, looking deeply troubled. Unaware of the tension in the room, he frowned and said, "I heard the Dou family has added more to Madam's dowry. Logically, the list of additions should be given to you, yet the Dou family handed everything over to the Young Lord instead, even sending their third master to handle the transfer with him... This is utterly unreasonable!"

Song Yichun's eyes lit up.

Why hadn’t he thought of that earlier?

He was Song Mo's father and Dou Shi's father-in-law. If the Dou family was adding to her dowry, how could they bypass him? Without proper acknowledgment, even if the Song family forcibly seized Dou Shi's dowry, she would have no choice but to swallow her grievances—after all, the additions hadn’t been formally declared.

"Go and summon the Young Lord at once," he ordered. Over the past two years, Song Mo had turned the Hall of Cultivating Will into an impenetrable fortress. Whether openly or covertly, it was nearly impossible to gather reliable information from there. Sometimes, they were even fed misleading details. While Song Yichun had considered investing more effort into surveillance, the lack of a capable overseer and the exorbitant cost—likely half his annual income—had deterred him. The thought alone pained him. "I’ll question him myself. How dare he conceal this? Doesn’t he fear I might refuse to acknowledge these additions?"

Tao Qizhong nodded subtly.

This matter was too significant.

Even if the Dou family had been unaware of the rift between the Duke and the Young Lord before Madam’s marriage, they surely knew now. Yet they had still contributed a substantial sum to her dowry. What did it mean?

Were they aiding the Young Lord to suppress the Duke? Or signaling that Madam had the backing of the Dou Family of the Northern Mansion?

With the Emperor’s support already secured by the Young Lord, if he also gained the allegiance of officials through Grand Secretary Dou, the Duke’s future would be bleak.

But upon reflection, this didn’t make sense.

If the Dou family had such intentions, Grand Secretary Dou could have simply approached the Duke directly. Why go to the trouble of spending real silver to bolster Madam’s status?

It was a baffling situation.

Perhaps confronting the Young Lord directly would shed some light—the Dou family wasn’t foolish enough to hand over money without seeking either reputation or profit.

Meanwhile, Zeng Wu stood dumbfounded, lost in thought. Just how much wealth did Madam possess?

How had the Young Lord managed to marry someone seemingly made of gold and silver?

No wonder Madam was so generous with her rewards.

How much advantage did those serving her gain?

Each of the three men was lost in his own thoughts.

For a moment, the main hall of Cassia Fragrance Courtyard fell silent, save for the howling of the north wind outside.

Soon, Song Mo arrived.

But he wasn’t alone.

Accompanying him was Lu Shi, the second master of the Lu family—son of Ningde Princess.

Song Yichun was stunned.Lu Shi smiled and said, "The preparations for the wedding of my nephew and his wife were rather rushed. The Dou family had long prepared some properties for the bride, but they couldn’t be listed on the dowry inventory in time. This time, they specially sent the third master of the Dou family to deliver the properties under the bride’s name. My nephew personally went to my residence to invite me as a witness."

Song Yichun felt a surge of anger rising in his chest.

When had Lu Shi arrived?

Why didn’t he know anything about it?

So this little brat had planned everything, setting a trap just waiting for him to step into it!

No wonder the Dou family dared to move the silver into the Hall of Cultivating Will!

He couldn’t help but shoot a dark glance at Tao Qizhong.

Tao Qizhong was utterly bewildered.

Where had Lu Shi come from?

There hadn’t been the slightest hint of this.

Since when had the Young Lord become so formidable, quietly inviting Ningde Princess’s son to the mansion as a guest? And judging by the situation, this wasn’t a spur-of-the-moment decision but something planned for days...

Tao Qizhong suddenly felt a pang of melancholy, as if a hero had met his twilight.

Meanwhile, Zeng Wu instinctively hunched his shoulders and cautiously took a step back, hoping he wouldn’t become the first target of the Duke’s temper when it flared.

Song Yichun turned to look at his son, who stood gracefully beside him with a faint smile. His eyelids twitched, and after a long pause, he gritted his teeth and said, "What exactly has the Dou family added for Dou Shi? Yantang even went out of his way to invite you as a witness—does he think I’d covet my daughter-in-law’s dowry?" As he spoke, his cold gaze swept over Song Mo, clearly expressing his displeasure with the matter.

Lu Shi chuckled. "Cousin, you wouldn’t believe it—even I was astounded when I saw the dowry the Dou family prepared for the bride. No wonder they wanted us elders to step in as witnesses."

Song Yichun froze and turned to Song Mo.

Song Mo stood quietly to the side, his demeanor restrained yet elegant as the moonlight.

Song Yichun’s heart trembled again.

Then Lu Shi’s amused voice reached his ears: "My nephew had the chief manager of his Guangdong Thirteen Hongs lead six or seven seasoned accountants from the Hall of Cultivating Will to audit the accounts. After four or five days, they’d only managed to go through half of them. You can imagine just how many properties are under the bride’s name. If they were all listed on the dowry inventory, it would fill several volumes. I daresay her dowry might be the most extravagant in our dynasty." He sighed. "Back then, just one chest of silver notes was enough to lure desperate men to break into the Duke of England’s Mansion at night. If I were in their shoes, I’d also quietly send someone to add to the bride’s dowry, just like the Dou family..."

"What did you say?" Song Yichun felt his temples throbbing, and the voices around him seemed distant and unclear. "Six or seven people, four or five days of auditing, and only half done...?"

"Indeed!" Lu Shi’s voice echoed faintly in his ears. "These properties were registered under the bride’s name over a decade ago, and all the profits from these years belong to her as well. Reconciling all these earnings took time..."

How much silver was that?

That unfilial son Song Mo was someone who could turn one tael into two—how could he not know how many properties were under Dou Shi’s name?

No wonder he hadn’t said a word when he brought up this marriage.

He must have known Dou Shi long ago and had always intended to marry her!

Song Yichun saw stars before his eyes.

He’d been fooled!

He’d been utterly fooled!I could have easily handled Song Mo's marriage, but I fell into his trap.

And even handed him a mountain of gold myself!

I personally gave Song Mo the silver to raise his martial retainers, to buy people's loyalty, to fund his spies when I couldn't even afford my own—only for him to turn it all against me… I might as well have sharpened the blade for that unfilial son to cut my own throat!

Is there anyone in this world more foolish than me?

Song Yichun felt a sweetness rise in his chest, his vision darkened, and he collapsed weakly.

"Duke, Duke…" Tao Qizhong and Zeng Zi rushed to his side in panic.

The guards stationed outside the door burst in at the commotion.

Song Mo stood motionless.

Lu Han, however, frowned.

Later that evening, he returned to the princess’ residence and whispered to Ningde Princess, who had been waiting for him, "I think the rumors aren’t unfounded! What kind of father secretly stations guards at the door just to meet his own son? That poor child Tianci is in a dire situation."

Ningde Princess sighed. "This is their family matter—we shouldn’t interfere. Tianci is a clever boy. Judging by his actions these past days, he knows what he’s doing." She paused briefly before asking her son, "What have Han’s wife and Qin’s wife been up to lately? They should visit the Hall of Cultivating Will more often. The Duke of Yingguo’s mansion only has Tianci’s wife as the sole lady of the household, and she’s a newlywed. She must feel overwhelmed at times. As her sisters-in-law, they ought to take care of her more."

Lu Han and Lu Qin were Lu Shi’s two sons.

The Emperor had always been wary of factionalism, so Ningde Princess, to avoid suspicion, had long restrained her family from socializing too freely. The Lu family rarely paid visits to others.

Lu Shi stared at his mother in astonishment.

Ningde Princess couldn’t help but sigh again.

Her son had been disciplined into being too honest. What would become of this large family after she was gone?

Exhausted, she leaned back against the large bolster and said, "Just follow my arrangements. Since Tianci has invited you this time, do your best to help him." Then she inquired about the Duke of Yingguo: "…How is he now?"

Lu Shi obediently refrained from further questions and replied respectfully, "The imperial physician has examined him and diagnosed pent-up frustration. A few doses of medicine and some rest should suffice."

"Perhaps the cure for his heart lies in mending his heart," Ningde Princess said, unconvinced by the physician’s assessment. "His narrow-mindedness, coupled with his age, might leave lasting damage."

Lu Shi thought of how Song Yichun had been so enraged upon hearing of his daughter-in-law’s lavish dowry that he vomited blood. He didn’t know how to comment and could only murmur an agreement.

Ningde Princess then asked about Dou Zhao: "How much dowry did the Dou family actually give her? Did you see clearly—were the accountants just slow, or was there truly that much to tally?"

Lu Shi smiled wryly. "The accountants have been working day and night for several days. From what I saw, the assets they’ve already accounted for surpass even our family’s holdings…"

"Oh!" Ningde Princess immediately straightened, her expression turning grave. "How could that be?"

Lu Shi had no answer.

Ningde Princess fell into deep thought.

Lu Shi held his breath, not daring to disturb her.

After a long silence, Ningde Princess turned to him and said, "It’s late. You have to go to the Hall of Cultivating Will tomorrow—rest early."Lu Shi quietly retreated.

The red lanterns on the veranda swayed unsteadily in the wind, while the dense tree shadows thrashed wildly in the howling north wind, as if ready to devour someone.

He stared blankly at the bright North Star in the azure sky.

With Song Yichun falling ill, it was uncertain when he would recover.

Tianci and Tianci's wife would likely have to attend to his sickbed.

He wondered if Song Yichun would make things difficult for the two youngsters.

Tianci's wife would fare better—without a mother-in-law, the worst she'd face was brewing more bowls of medicine. But Tianci would probably endure some hardship.