Blossom

Wei Tingyu looked full of guilt, stammering without a word, yet his eyes flicked toward Wei Tingzhen.

Gao Shi, whose sore spot had just been jabbed by Wei Tingzhen, was seething with rage.

While others would rather demolish ten temples than ruin a single marriage, this Wei Tingzhen was nothing but a troublemaker, determined to stir up chaos in her natal family and ruin Mingjier’s marriage.

Suppressing her fury, she spoke slowly to Wei Tingyu, "Matters of the elders are not for us juniors to comment on. As for how you and Mingjier live your lives, tell me—where has Mingjier wronged you? Has she failed in filial piety toward her in-laws? Has she disrespected her sister-in-law? Or has she been jealous and petty, failing to bear you an heir? How can you hold against Mingjier things that happened before she was even born? This is utterly unfair to her! Need I remind you, this marriage was of your own choosing?"

Fifth Madam grew anxious.

This Da Taitai of the Wang family was indeed upright but sorely lacking in quick wit.

By speaking this way, wasn’t she practically admitting that Dou Ming was an illegitimate child?

She hurriedly shot Cai Shi a meaningful glance.

But Cai Shi was staring dumbfounded at Dou Ming, looking utterly astonished.

She had only vaguely heard before that Wang Shi had bullied others with her influence, forcing the seventh uncle to elevate her to principal wife. Never had she imagined there was such a scandal before Wang Shi was legitimized!

No wonder Dou Zhao was so wealthy—half of the seventh uncle’s fortune!

Just how much money was that?

Lost in her calculations, she completely missed the glance her mother-in-law had thrown her way.

Fifth Madam sighed helplessly to herself.

She couldn’t blame Cai Shi for her reaction.

The events of those years brought shame to both the Dou and Wang families, and neither side wished to speak of them. Who would willingly bring it up to the younger generation?

Ji Shi had always stood firmly on Zhao Guqiu’s side, and Gao Mingzhu likely didn’t even know Wang Yingxue had been elevated to principal wife. Now, the only one who could step forward to counter Wei Tingzhen was Madam Pang.

She turned her gaze toward Pang Yulou.

But Pang Yulou appeared thirsty, sipping her tea in small, deliberate sips, her head lowered for a long while.

Fifth Madam was a seasoned player in social circles—how could Pang Yulou’s little act escape her notice? Yet even if she knew Pang Yulou intended to stay out of it, what could she do? She had no choice but to step into the fray herself. Since Gao Shi had played the stern role, she had to take on the softer approach. Firmly, she declared, "Our family married off our daughter with a generous dowry. The married-off paternal aunt eats and dresses from her own means—is that wrong? If you’re demanding the Dou family manage Mingjier’s dowry simply because of our seventh sister-in-law’s past, the Dou family will never agree! If you’re dissatisfied, above there’s Shuntian Prefecture, below there’s the Court of Judicial Review—one is in the neighboring district, the other on the Ministry of Justice’s street, their gates wide open. Feel free to sue the Dou family!"

"Just as well, the Dou family also has grievances we’d like to air somewhere."

"The Marquis of Jining’s Mansion and our family’s fourth paternal aunt were betrothed since childhood—who in Zhen Ding doesn’t know this? To this day, people in Zhen Ding still think our fourth paternal aunt married into the Marquis of Jining’s Mansion. The Marquis of Jining and our fourth paternal aunt had a perfectly good marriage, yet you jumped around, tearing it apart!"

Fifth Madam might as well not have brought it up—mentioning it only stoked Wei Tingzhen’s fury.If it weren’t for Wang Shi setting a trap for her brother to fall into, half of the Western Dou’s properties under Dou Zhao’s name would have long belonged to the Wei Family. How could her brother have ended up stuck with a fallen family like Dou Ming’s?

Wei Tingzhen’s face darkened as she stood up, ready to argue with Fifth Madam.

Fifth Madam sneered, cutting her off before she could speak: “Madam Wei, don’t you dare pin this mess on our Dou family. Who was it that arranged to meet our Seventh Madam at the Great Xiangguo Temple to discuss withdrawing from the marriage? Who was it that, despite being engaged to the elder sister, secretly met the younger sister in the monastery? And who was it that stood in the way when our Dou family came to take Mingjier back? Madam Wei, do you really think a few words from your lips can turn black into white and white into black? Should I invite Madam Zheng, wife of the Ministry of War’s Appointments Officer, to testify? Should I summon the attendants who served the marquis personally but were sent to the farmstead before his wedding to recount what really happened? Or should I dig out the marriage certificate from the Shuntian Prefecture’s records and show it to the Duchess of Jingguo?”

Her rapid-fire accusations made the veins on Wei Tingzhen’s forehead bulge.

This old hag knew everything but had kept silent all this time.

No wonder people said scholars were all scoundrels.

“Fine, let’s talk! Do you think I’m afraid of you?” Wei Tingzhen retorted mockingly. “A man who reforms is worth his weight in gold, but a woman tainted with scandal deserves to be drowned in the lake!”

“Oh?” Fifth Madam looked at Wei Tingzhen with disdain, as if she were an ignorant fool. “No wonder you’re so brazen—you’ve never even seen the law, have you? Spouting such peasant nonsense. No wonder the Wei Family has fallen so low these years, leaving you unable to hold your head up in front of your mother-in-law.”

Her words struck a nerve. Wei Tingzhen leaped up to argue, but Wei Tingyu stopped her.

“Sister,” he whispered, ashamed and anxious, “please, say no more. If this goes to court in Shuntian Prefecture or the Court of Judicial Review, I won’t escape punishment. At the very least, I’d face a hundred lashes.”

Wei Tingzhen froze, suddenly recalling that defaming a respectable family was indeed punishable by a hundred lashes.

“Sister, Minister Dou now oversees the Ministry of Justice. We can’t win a legal battle against them,” Wei Tingyu added quietly. “Why don’t we just let this go?” He had always been afraid of women’s quarrels, and Fifth Madam’s ferocious glare unnerved him. “It’s unreasonable for the Dou family to manage Mingjier’s dowry anyway. Why don’t we negotiate with them and just forbid Mingjier from visiting Wang Shi in the future?”

His pleading tone nearly made Wei Tingzhen faint in frustration.

After everything, he was begging for mercy now?

Had all their efforts been for nothing? And now they’d offended both the Dou and Wang families for no reason?

How could she have such a brother?

Unable to contain her fury, Wei Tingzhen slapped him on the shoulder and hissed, “Are you even a man? Is this how you handle things? You agreed to everything before—now you’re backing out? What do you take me for? Do you even care about my dignity?”Wei Tingyu was truly caught between a rock and a hard place.

Clutching his shoulder, he whispered, "Then... then what should we do? If it were anyone else, we could just pay the fine for a hundred lashes. But we're dealing with the Dou family in this lawsuit—they'll definitely find a way to make me endure those hundred lashes. And this matter could even be framed as seduction or illicit relations... In the end, only our reputation would suffer. We can't win against the Dou family in court..."

Wei Tingyu was on the verge of losing his mind.

Was this really her brother?

Not only failing to support her but also dragging her down?

Unfortunately, the Resting Chamber was currently occupied only by the women of the Dou and Wang families, along with Wei Tingzhen, her sister, and Dou Ming. Everyone's attention was fixed on the siblings, and though they spoke softly, their words were clearly heard by all.

Gao Shi couldn't help but feel a surge of delight.

If the Wei family was willing to back down, this matter would be easily resolved.

She quickly turned to Fifth Madam and said, "Madam, once we become family, we are one. Some things need not be so strictly divided. I think we should let this matter rest. From now on, Fifth Granddaughter and her husband can close their doors and live harmoniously. After all, we outsiders only wish for their happiness—what grievances can't be set aside?" She then asked Ji Shi, "Don't you agree?"

Ji Shi nodded with a smile.

Their original intention had been to intimidate Wei Tingyu. Now that their goal was achieved, it was time to smooth things over.

She smiled at Wei Tingyu and said, "Marquis, why don't you apologize to Mingjier? She just suffered a miscarriage and hasn't fully recovered. To endure such hardship on top of that—who knows how much pain she's in? As a magnanimous man, you shouldn't hold it against her!" As she spoke, she subtly tugged at the sleeve of Cai Shi, who was seated beside her, signaling her to mediate.

Cai Shi, snapping back to attention, promptly stood up with a smile. Half-supporting, half-pushing the still-sobbing Mingjier toward Wei Tingyu, she said, "Hurry and apologize to the Marquis! Despite all your fuss, he hasn't held it against you. That shows how much he cares for you. You mustn't provoke his anger like this in the future."

Dou Ming, her eyes swollen and red, stole a timid glance at Wei Tingyu. That fragile look instantly struck a chord in his heart.

Wei Tingyu's face flushed crimson as he murmured sheepishly, "Yes... it was my fault..."

Wei Tingzhen, her teeth grinding audibly in fury, shoved her brother aside and coldly interjected, "Wait! If you want this matter settled, you'll have to agree to a few conditions first!"

With the Wei family's arrogance on the verge of crumbling, how could Fifth Madam let it go so easily?

"There are no conditions to discuss here!" she retorted immediately. "For the past half-year, out of respect for how well the Marquis has treated Mingjier, we've tolerated what we could and overlooked what we could. Yet in others' eyes, this was seen as timidity and weakness. There are limits to what one can endure! Either we let this slide for the Marquis's sake, or we do as the eldest aunt suggests and take this to court!"

Wei Tingzhen, though blustering, refused to yield. "To court it is, then!"Wei Tingyu hurriedly said, "Fifth Madam, my sister didn’t mean anything else. She just hopes Mingjier won’t return to her maternal home in the future." As he spoke, his gaze turned tenderly toward Dou Ming. "Every time Mingjier comes back from her maternal home, she’s unhappy for quite a while... I just want to live peacefully, not in constant quarrels day after day..."

The Dou family, having built their influence over generations, was now at the height of their prosperity and splendor. Yet the Wei family actually wanted Dou Ming to never return to her maternal home again?

If Dou Ming suffered grievances in her marital home, who would she turn to for justice? Who would stand up for her?

The Marquis of Jining had initially appeared to be a man of talent and upright conduct, but when faced with a real issue, it became clear he was utterly indecisive and lacking in judgment.

Thankfully, Dou Zhao hadn’t married him—otherwise, the Dou family would have lost a powerful ally like Song Yantang.

Fifth Madam nearly let a mocking expression show when she heard Dou Ming murmur softly, "If I don’t see my mother, will this matter be dropped and never mentioned again?"