Blossom

In the imperial examinations, whether an essay catches the favor of the examiners depends significantly on the quality of one's calligraphy. And to produce excellent calligraphy, one must have fine ink and inkstones.

Dou Shiheng stared at the dragon-and-phoenix inksticks in the sandalwood box, his beard bristling with anger. "You sly fox, Wanyuan! Hiding such fine ink instead of sharing it—are you afraid I’d ask you for some?"

After all, he had two sons preparing for the exams.

Dou Shiying chuckled sheepishly. "It just slipped my mind. I’ll find a way to get you a few more sticks of good ink later."

Dou Shiheng’s expression softened slightly.

Meanwhile, Dou Dechang whispered to Song Mo, "What’s the latest on that matter?"

"With the New Year festivities, I haven’t run into Wang Ge yet," Song Mo replied. "After the Lantern Festival, I’ll go to the palace to find him. Anyway, with the official seals locked away during this period, Fan Shichou can’t do much even if he wanted to."

Dou Dechang nodded.

Dou Shiheng barked at them, "What kind of men whisper like that? Speak up if you have something to say! This is no way for scholars to behave!"

As the youngest son with a naturally lively disposition, Dou Dechang had never been intimidated by his father. Taking advantage of the relaxed atmosphere at Jing'an Temple Alley—where Dou Shiying was famously indulgent with children—he quipped, "What if I said I wanted to go with Fourth Brother-in-law to explore Qianfo Temple Alley? Should I announce that out loud?"

"You shameless brat!" Dou Shiheng’s eyes bulged like copper bells. "Do you want to be put under house arrest?"

Dou Shiying and Song Mo couldn’t help but laugh.

Thanks to Dou Dechang’s antics, the mood in the study lightened considerably.

When men gathered, they either talked about women or politics. With the younger generation present, the former topic was off-limits, leaving only the latter.

Seizing the moment, Song Mo asked about Dai Jian: "...I heard he came from humble origins, so he’s particularly fixated on money. Is that true?"

As someone outside the scholarly circle, Song Mo naturally knew little about such matters. But since he showed curiosity and they had time to spare, Dou Shiying saw it as an opportunity to enlighten the younger men.

"Who says Dai Jian is obsessed with money?" Dou Shiying replied without hesitation. "The real penny-pincher is Chancellor Yao, who comes from an aristocratic family—he’s a master of calculations. After six years as Minister of Revenue, even the Emperor secretly borrowed silver from the ministry. Rumor has it even the maids who sweep their floors know arithmetic. Every household expense is meticulously recorded. If future historians want to compile records on commodities and finances, they wouldn’t need other references—just grab the Yao family’s ledgers to know the prices of the era!"

He burst into hearty laughter.Dou Shiheng, fearing they might misunderstand, quickly interjected, "Don't listen to his nonsense. Grand Secretary Yao is someone who spends where it's necessary, saving the state treasury money, yet he’s generous in helping relatives, friends, colleagues, and old acquaintances. Keeping accounts is just his habit. As for background, Grand Secretary Dai’s family at least owned some fertile land, so there was no issue funding his education and official career. In contrast, Grand Secretary Liang lost his father early and relied on his widowed mother’s meager earnings from washing clothes to scrape together enough for his tuition. Though naturally gifted, his path to the imperial examinations was rocky, intermittent, and he didn’t pass the provincial exam until nearly thirty. After several years as an esteemed Hanlin scholar, he finally entered the Grand Secretariat. First suppressed by Zeng Yifen, then by Ye Shipei, he was like a voiceless puppet. Once in power, he had to repay old favors, support relatives and friends, and secure his descendants’ futures—how could he not value money?"

There were many scholars like Liang Jifen.

Dou Shiheng spoke with a sigh.

Dou Shiying, however, dismissed it. "His love for money is human nature. But I can’t stand how he acts both greedy and aloof. Every time he sees Grand Secretary Yao, it’s as if Yao owes him hundreds of taels. He even assumes newly successful scholars from wealthy families either bought their way in or rode on their ancestors’ coattails, rarely crediting genuine talent. That’s going too far."

Even Dou Shiheng couldn’t deny this.

He fell silent.

Song Mo inwardly shook his head.

The conversation had veered so far off track it was almost unrecognizable.

"It seems even Grand Secretaries are just ordinary people," he said with a laugh, steering the topic back. "Among the Grand Secretaries, Grand Secretary Mu comes from a relatively wealthy family, right?"

"Yes," Dou Shiheng nodded. "Not just Mu, but Grand Secretary He also hails from a prominent clan. Dai Jian, though less well-off, isn’t short on money either..."

Dou Shiying cut in, "So whenever the Grand Secretaries gather, our Chief Grand Secretary Liang must feel quite uncomfortable!"

Dou Dechang burst into laughter, earning another scolding from Dou Shiheng.

Song Mo pondered silently.

In that case, neither Dai Jian nor Mu Chuan would clash with the Kuang Family over money.

He stroked his chin.

The situation had grown more complex and intriguing!

Who, then, was the hidden hand behind it all?

※※※※※

Wei Tingyu didn’t appear at Jing'an Temple Alley until lunchtime.

Dou Ming, still in her confinement period after the miscarriage, was considered ritually impure and couldn’t visit others. Wei Tingyu used the excuse of needing to care for her, drank a cup of tea in the hall, and left.

Dou Shiying was also cold toward Wei Tingyu, instructing Gaoxing to see him out before retreating to his study.

Thinking of the Wei Family’s troubles, Dou Shiheng’s expression darkened, casting a gloom over the study.

Dou Dechang broke the tension by complaining, "Uncle, when are we eating? I only had half a bowl of porridge this morning," lifting the mood again.

Dou Shiying chuckled and ordered the servants to serve the meal.

Midway through, Dou Bochang and Dou Jichang arrived with their wives and children from Huai Shu Alley.

Delighted, Dou Shiying exclaimed, "What brings you here?"

Both Dou Bochang and Dou Jichang’s parents-in-law lived in the Capital.Dou Bochang laughed and said, "We already went to pay New Year's respects to my in-laws yesterday. Thinking it's Brother-in-law Wei and Fourth Sister's first time returning to her maiden home for the New Year, we came over to join the fun. Otherwise, Brother-in-law Wei wouldn't even have enough players if he wanted to play mahjong."

Dou Shiying grinned from ear to ear and immediately instructed the maids to prepare another feast.

However, Dou Bochang and Dou Jichang said they had already eaten lunch at home: "...Had we known earlier, we would've come to Seventh Uncle's house for a meal."

But how could Dou Shiying let them sit idly by? After some polite back-and-forth, another table of food and wine was arranged.

Meanwhile, the inner quarters became livelier with the laughter and chatter of children, adding to the festive New Year atmosphere.

Sixth Aunt and Aunt sat by the heated kang chatting about household matters, while Cai Shi pulled Dou Zhao aside and whispered, "It's a good thing you didn't go that day. I've seen shameless people before, but none as brazen as the Wei family—trying to take their daughter-in-law's dowry with such self-righteous justification. That Wei Tingzhen is supposed to be the lineage wife of a distinguished family, yet she speaks and acts so unreasonably. No wonder her mother-in-law looks down on her and favors Shi Shi and Madam Feng, her other daughters-in-law."

The Dou family hadn't told Dou Zhao about Dou Ming's miscarriage because Dou Zhao was pregnant, and the two sisters had a strained relationship. They didn’t want to upset Dou Ming further or trouble Dou Zhao. However, when Guo Shi and Cai Shi, representing the Dou family's womenfolk, went to visit Dou Ming, Sixth Aunt still had them deliver some medicinal herbs in Dou Zhao's name. Dou Zhao only learned about this when she ran into Sixth Aunt earlier, and she had no idea what had happened when Guo Shi and Cai Shi visited the Wei family.

In her past life, her dowry hadn't been great either, yet the Wei family had never laid claim to it. How was it that in this life, Tian Shi and the Wei family had become almost unrecognizable to her?

Dou Zhao frowned and asked, "What exactly happened?"

Cai Shi then recounted the whole affair like a storyteller: how Tian Shi had been dissatisfied with Dou Ming, how Wei Tingyu had sided with Wei Tingzhen to pressure Dou Ming into handing over her dowry, and how the Wang family had turned a blind eye to Dou Ming's plight...

Dou Zhao was astonished. "How could the Wang family ignore Dou Ming's situation?"

Seeing that Sixth Aunt and the others were engrossed in their conversation and no one was paying attention, Cai Shi lowered her voice further. "I heard that the Wang family's Second Madam was unhappy about Seventh Aunt living with them for so long and egged on Second Master Wang to quarrel with the old madam several times. The Wang family's Eldest Madam didn’t intervene, so the old madam, in a fit of anger, took Seventh Aunt to live in their secluded courtyard in the capital's outskirts. Not many in the capital know about this. When Fifth Granddaughter sent a letter to Willow Leaf Lane, it fell into the hands of the Wang family's Second Madam, who suppressed it. It wasn’t until the old madam returned to the capital for New Year's and sent someone to visit Fifth Granddaughter that the truth came out. But by then, it was too late. Seeing no response from Willow Leaf Lane, Wei Tingzhen humiliated Fifth Granddaughter severely and even sold two of her most trusted first-rank maids. Fifth Granddaughter’s people have been searching through the Wang family for over half a month, but there’s been no trace of them. Now, everyone in the Wei household knows their madam and eldest daughter are locked in a power struggle, and no one dares to serve in Fifth Granddaughter’s quarters!"“What’s the situation now?” Dou Ming’s dowry was even larger than Dou Zhao’s had been back then. The thought of it falling into the Wei Family’s hands made Dou Zhao feel as though she had swallowed a fly. “Did Fifth Aunt not argue with the Wei Family at all?”

“Of course she did!” Cai Shi, afraid Dou Zhao might misunderstand the Huai Shu Alley branch, quickly explained. “Wei Tingyu used Dou Ming’s miscarriage as an excuse to invite Seventh Uncle to the Marquis of Jining’s Mansion. Who knew it was actually to discuss Fifth Granddaughter’s dowry? Seventh Uncle was so furious he gritted his teeth. If my mother-in-law hadn’t arrived in time, the two families would have quarreled openly and torn all pretense of civility… Now the matter has been left unresolved, with talks postponed until after the New Year. But from the Wei Family’s tone, they’re demanding either that Fifth Granddaughter hand over her dowry to the Dou family for safekeeping or face divorce. Seventh Uncle was so enraged he couldn’t even attend his official duties for several days…”

Hearing that her father had fallen ill from anger, Dou Zhao thought she would remain calm, but in reality, it felt as though a knife had been plunged into her chest, the pain so sharp she could barely speak.

“You all—” she couldn’t help but scold, “how could you keep such an important matter from me? Father already has no one to attend to him. If we don’t return to care for him, he’ll be even more alone!”

“Fourth Granddaughter, please don’t be angry,” Cai Shi hastily defended. “Seventh Uncle specifically instructed us not to tell you, fearing you’d be upset and it might affect the baby…”