Blossom

The Dou family sent several maids to accompany the carriage, and Wei Tingzhen escorted Tian Shi back to the Marquis of Jining's Mansion.

Wei Tingyu, who had received the news, was already waiting at the Hanging Flower Gate.

"How could Mother suddenly faint?" He hurried forward in quick strides, lifting the carriage curtain to ask Wei Tingzhen, "Is it serious? What did the physician say?"

Since the Dou family's maids were still by the carriage, Tian Shi had no choice but to continue pretending to be unconscious.

Wei Tingzhen, however, sneered several times and said, "Ask your wife about that!"

What did this have to do with Dou Ming?

Wei Tingyu was stunned.

Wei Tingzhen, seeing this, grew even more furious. She pushed Wei Tingyu aside and, supported by her personal maid, stepped down from the carriage.

The Wei family's maids quickly brought over a sedan chair.

Wei Tingzhen directed the maids to carry Tian Shi onto the sedan chair, dismissed the Dou family's attendants, and then, along with Granny Jin and others, escorted the sedan chair through the Hanging Flower Gate. From start to finish, she didn’t even glance at Wei Tingyu, treating him as if he were a stranger.

Wei Tingyu felt an indescribable ache in his heart.

Silently, he followed Wei Tingzhen into the eastern wing. While she settled Tian Shi, he sat with his head bowed on the Grand Preceptor's Chair in the main hall of the wing, waiting for her to emerge.

Seeing her brother in such a pitiful state, Wei Tingzhen felt both angry and helpless. She recounted the incident at Huai Shu Alley with added exaggeration and said, "Mother is fine now. What worries her most is you. Go and see her!" She added, "If you could control your wife, how could Mother have suffered such humiliation at the hands of the Dou family?"

Wei Tingyu turned purple with rage and immediately turned to leave.

Wei Tingzhen quickly grabbed him and asked, "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to divorce Dou Ming!" Wei Tingyu roared furiously. "I'd rather remain alone for the rest of my life than stay with such a venomous woman!"

"Nonsense!" Wei Tingzhen shouted. "Do you know who the Dou family is? Do you think you can just divorce Dou Ming on a whim? If you divorce her, what will become of Mother? I thought you had matured after getting married, but you're still acting like a child!"

Since this matter involved Tian Shi, bringing it up would inevitably drag her into it.

Wei Tingyu hung his head, silent and dejected.

Seeing this, Wei Tingzhen softened her voice. "Don’t worry too much. Mother said she would personally teach her manners. As long as she listens, there’s still hope."

What else could be done?

Wei Tingyu was filled with regret.

Wei Tingzhen took his hand. "Enough of this unpleasant talk. Let’s go see Mother and keep her company."

Wei Tingyu nodded and followed Wei Tingzhen into the wing.

Meanwhile, Dou Ming, who was resting in Tian Shi's inner chamber, heard the commotion and immediately sent Zhou Momo to investigate. Upon learning that Tian Shi and Wei Tingzhen had gone to Huai Shu Alley to reprimand her but ended up being berated by the Dou family and fainting, she trembled with rage and shrieked, "I must have been blind! I thought my mother-in-law was kind and virtuous, but she’s nothing more than a scorpion in disguise, pretending to be benevolent—far more disgusting than those who openly speak ill!" She then asked, "Where is the Marquis? Has my sister-in-law dragged him away again for some personal talk?"Dou Ming had a maid discreetly inform Wei Tingyu's page about her miscarriage. As expected, Wei Tingyu came without holding any grudges. Not only did he consult with the physician about the medication, but he also personally inspected the prescribed herbs before having Zhou Momo brew them. His attentive demeanor provided some comfort to her, who had just lost her child.

Yet this warmth lasted less than half an hour before Wei Tingyu was called away by a page and never returned.

Zhou Momo consoled her, "Madam, your health is fragile right now. Don’t trouble yourself with these matters. No matter how much the Dowager and the paternal aunt scheme, the fact remains they caused you to lose your young master. The Dou family won’t let them act recklessly."

Still seething, Dou Ming instructed Zhou Momo, "Find a way to send word to Willow Leaf Alley and inform my maternal grandmother about what happened."

Zhou Momo also felt the Wei family had gone too far and nodded in agreement, quietly arranging for someone to deliver the message to Willow Leaf Alley.

Meanwhile, far away in the Duke of Yingguo's Mansion in the eastern part of the city, Dou Zhao remained completely unaware of the events unfolding at the Marquis of Jining's residence.

Song Mo had been counting the days of her pregnancy. As soon as three months passed, he invited Wang Benju, the Imperial Physician most skilled in gynecology from the Imperial Hospital, to examine Dou Zhao. Unsurprisingly, the diagnosis confirmed a pregnancy pulse. Before Wang Benju had even left, Song Mo dispatched messengers to Jing'an Temple Alley and Cat's Alley to announce the joyous news. By the time the prescribed herbal medicine for stabilizing the pregnancy was being brewed, Dou Shiying arrived with bundles of tonics, drank himself into a stupor with Song Mo, and even patted Song Mo’s shoulder while handing him a stack of silver notes. He urged Song Mo to take good care of Dou Zhao, avoid upsetting her, and even if he found it hard to sleep alone, not to fool around at home—there were plenty of private residences near the Thousand Buddha Temple area. The priority was ensuring the child was safely delivered.

Dou Zhao was both amused and exasperated.

That evening, when Song Mo returned, he washed up and leaned against the headboard to read as usual.

She draped herself over his shoulder, wrapping her arms around his waist, and asked, "I heard there are many private residences near Thousand Buddha Temple?"

Those little rascals only knew how to curry favor with Dou Zhao. No sooner had he spoken to someone than they relayed his words to her, leaving the Hall of Cultivating Will with no secrets from her.

Song Mo grumbled inwardly but was fully aware—it was all because he had spoiled them. Yet he didn’t feel annoyed; instead, he found it amusing.

His eyes were fixed on the book, but his mind was entirely on his waist—Dou Zhao’s delicate, jade-like hands, slightly cool, caressed his waist, occasionally drifting downward and pausing, as if hesitating whether to go further.

"Of course!" he replied absentmindedly. "And they’re all like Zhao Zishu—selling dog meat as mutton, each with its own unique flair. It’s quite the place to pass the time."

Dou Zhao nibbled his ear and whispered, "Do you want to go?"

"Of course!" Song Mo set down his book and said earnestly, "Any man would want to go!"

For some reason, even though this was just playful banter between spouses and Dou Zhao was certain Song Mo wouldn’t visit such places, hearing him say it still made her uncomfortable. She even felt a pang of dejection as she lay back and asked, "Is Zhao Zishu the top courtesan there?"Just like knowing what new dishes the Drunken Immortal Tower has added or which courtyards in the Thousand Buddha Temple Lane are the most popular, these were things every dashing young gentleman in the Capital should be able to rattle off. Although Song Mo rarely set foot in the Thousand Buddha Temple Lane, he had heard about the distinctive features of its most renowned courtyards. He had intended to banter and joke with Dou Zhao about them, but when he turned to her, he caught a fleeting hint of awkwardness in her eyes, and her smile wasn’t as sweet as before.

Could it be that Dou Zhao was jealous?

This thought suddenly barged into his mind.

He immediately dismissed the idea.

Dou Zhao had always been generous—why would she be jealous over something so trivial?

Even as he thought this, his gaze lingered on her.

Her expression... no matter how he looked at it, carried a trace of disappointment, lacking the earlier cheerfulness...

Back when Song Mo lived at his uncle’s house, he had detested the way his female cousins would act coy and reserved, their minds wandering off after just a few words, all sorts of petty jealousies making them utterly unlikable. But when it came to Dou Zhao, his heart felt like a Purple Clay Pot on a small red clay stove, bubbling and gurgling with joy.

Leaning on his elbow, he bent closer to her and said with deliberate thoughtfulness, "I don’t know—I’ve never been. But my father-in-law gave me ten thousand silver notes. I figure, just for the sake of that money, I can’t go. Otherwise, wouldn’t I just be a freeloader?"

Since when had this guy become so glib?

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but burst into laughter, giving Song Mo a playful punch.

But suddenly, Song Mo felt an intense itch, and down below, he was standing at attention, stiff to the point of discomfort.

He couldn’t help but sigh softly.

No wonder people said love is blind. No matter what Dou Zhao did, in his eyes, it became utterly charming.

There were still seven months until Dou Zhao’s delivery—should he move to the study to sleep?

Song Mo was lost in his dilemma when Dou Zhao, noticing his sudden silence and wistful expression, asked with a smile, "What’s wrong now?"

Hearing Dou Zhao’s clear, melodious voice, Song Mo felt like he was worrying over nothing.

Even if he couldn’t do anything, wasn’t it just as joyful to laugh, joke, and play around with her like this?

He asked Dou Zhao, "Do you think it’ll be a boy or a girl?"

"Whatever child the Bodhisattva gives us, that’s the child we’ll have. What’s the point of guessing?" Dou Zhao replied with a laugh.

"But we’ll need to pick a name, won’t we?" Song Mo, however, was full of anticipation. "If we pick a boy’s name and it turns out to be a girl, wouldn’t she blame us for the rest of her life?"

"Then let’s pick one boy’s name and one girl’s name," Dou Zhao said. "That way, it doesn’t matter whether it’s a boy or a girl."

"The due date is next July, right? It’ll still be quite hot during the day then. We should stock up on more ice this year so the baby doesn’t get heat rash."

"Alright! I’ll talk to the Affairs Office about it tomorrow!"

The couple murmured sweet nothings to each other, the kind of talk that would make anyone chuckle, yet they spoke with utmost seriousness, continuing until the third watch of the night before finally drifting off to sleep.

Like Song Mo and Dou Zhao, the Duke of Yingguo, Song Yichun, and Second Master Song Han also kept their lamps burning late into the night.

If Song Mo had a son, his position as heir would become even more secure.Even if it's a daughter, it proves that Song Mo is capable of fathering children. Without a legitimate heir, he could still have a son by a concubine.

Could he just let it go like this?

Even if he was willing to stop, would Song Mo?

Song Yichun tossed and turned in bed.

Meanwhile, Song Han was copying the Lotus Sutra by lamplight.

His chief maid, Qi Xia, urged him, "It's so late, Second Master. You should rest early. You can continue copying tomorrow."

But Song Han said, "Go pour me a cup of hot tea," showing no intention of stopping.

Qi Xia had been personally chosen for Song Han by Song Yichun, and Song Han usually treated her with courtesy. Over time, Qi Xia had grown somewhat casual around him. Hearing his refusal, she playfully reached for his brush, laughing, "Second Master, just listen to your servant this once! You still have to study with the tutor early tomorrow. If you stay up too late, you’ll be drowsy, and the Duke will scold you again if he finds out—"

"Wretched slave!" Without warning, Song Han kicked Qi Xia. "Who’s the master here—you or me? Can’t I even order you around? Do you want me to replace you tomorrow?"

Had there been an outsider present, they would have noticed that Song Han’s kicking posture was identical to Song Yichun’s.

Qi Xia had never dreamed Song Han could show such a vicious expression.

Shivering, she immediately knelt and kowtowed. "This servant deserves death! Please spare me this once, Second Master. I’ll go make your tea right away."

Song Han gave a cold hum of acknowledgment.

Qi Xia scrambled out of the study in a panic, only to realize her lower abdomen was throbbing with sharp pain.