Blossom

Dou Zhao was naturally unaware of Dou Ming's many petty thoughts. Given Dou Ming's attitude toward her, she had no intention of forcing warmth where none was reciprocated or making things awkward for herself. Of course, even if she had known about Dou Ming's little schemes, she wouldn’t have paid them much mind. She had plenty of other people to entertain—those who would truly matter in her future life.

By the time they left the palace, it was already past dusk, and the setting sun bathed the world in a golden glow.

Song Mo accompanied Dou Zhao in the sedan chair, chatting and laughing as they returned to the mansion.

Yan Chaoqing was waiting for Song Mo in the study.

Both Dou Zhao and Song Mo were surprised.

Yan Chaoqing smiled and said, "A letter arrived from the eldest maternal aunt in Haozhou. She mentioned that the wedding of the twelfth cousin is set for the twenty-second of this month. The fourth aunt, along with the thirteenth and fourteenth cousins, will accompany the twelfth cousin to the Capital. She asks you to arrange a residence for the twelfth cousin’s bridal departure." With that, he handed a letter to Song Mo.

Dou Zhao was completely puzzled.

Instead of reading the letter immediately, Song Mo explained to her, "The twelfth cousin is the eldest daughter of the third uncle. She was betrothed to Wu Zijie, the eldest son of Wu Liang, the Vice Director of the Standard Bearer Guard, before the incident with my eldest uncle. After the incident, the Jiang Family was quickly demoted and sent back to Haozhou, and for a time, the marriages of my cousins were neglected. Unexpectedly, once the twelfth cousin’s mourning period ended, the Wu Family sent someone to discuss the wedding. This must be for the bridal procession."

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but feel respect for the Wu Family. "Then you must do your best to support this."

Though the Jiang Family had fallen from grace, they still had the powerful connection of the Duke of Yingguo’s household. With this, the twelfth young lady of the Jiang Family could still have a dignified wedding.

Yan Chaoqing smiled wryly. "I’m afraid Madam will be disappointed—the eldest maternal aunt said that since the Wu Family has shown such righteousness, they cannot be ungrateful. Thus, for this wedding, neither the Jiang nor the Wu Family will make a grand display. She simply asks the Young Lord to arrange a quiet residence to avoid unnecessary complications. The eldest maternal aunt also mentioned that she sent a letter to the Duke. However, regarding the fourth aunt’s arrival in the Capital, everything is entrusted to the Young Lord, so the Duke need not trouble himself."

When Song Mo and Song Yichun had their falling out, Madam Mei was still alive, and Song Mo had kept it hidden from the Haozhou relatives. After Madam Mei passed away, though Song Mo never explicitly mentioned it to them, they had heard bits and pieces. Since then, they had always contacted Song Mo directly before notifying Song Yichun, maintaining a polite but distant courtesy.

Song Mo agreed. "Let’s follow the eldest maternal aunt’s wishes and arrange a quiet residence for the fourth aunt and the cousins." He instructed Yan Chaoqing, "Leave this matter to Liao Bifeng."

Lately, Yan Chaoqing had been helping Song Mo with affairs at the Imperial Hospital. He acknowledged the order with a smile and withdrew.

Song Mo then said, "Tomorrow, summon the silversmith."

Given the Jiang Family’s current circumstances, while Wu Liang might not mind, others in the Wu Family might not be so accommodating. Some tangible dowry items would be straightforward and practical, easily convertible to silver in emergencies.

Understanding Song Mo’s deep affection for the Jiang Family, Dou Zhao not only commissioned four sets of red gold jewelry from the silversmith for the twelfth young lady but also added a pair of jadeite bracelets, a pair of Hetian jade hairpins, a South Sea pearl jewelry set, and twenty bolts of assorted damasks and brocades.

Jin Gui and Yin Gui gasped in astonishment.

Gan Lu, however, scoffed at their lack of sophistication and asked Dou Zhao, "Should we also prepare some antiques or calligraphy? To avoid appearing too shallow."Dou Zhao smiled and said, "Since the Jiang Family renovates their ancestral home in Haozhou every year, there must still be some valuable items left there. Rather than preparing antiques or calligraphy for the Twelfth Miss, it would be better to gift her something more modern."

Gan Lu chuckled sheepishly.

Chen Jia requested an audience.

He had news so quickly!

Dou Zhao was delighted and received him in the Small Flower Hall.

"No matter how many times the Li Family moves, they can't abandon their registered residence," Chen Jia explained in detail. "I first checked the Li Family's household registration at the Shuntian Prefecture Office and found it still registered there. Their taxes and levies are paid by the old neighbor who bought their ancestral home, which shows the two families maintain contact. Following our Imperial Bodyguard's usual methods, we could simply arrest and interrogate someone to uncover the Li Family's whereabouts. But since Madam only wishes to know their current situation, such forceful measures wouldn't be appropriate. So I stationed my personal attendant to keep watch on their house."

Dou Zhao couldn't help but smile at this.

Clearly, entrusting this matter to Chen Jia had been the right decision.

An ordinary person might think of this approach but wouldn't have the means to check official records at Shuntian Prefecture.

"Earlier, Master Duan mentioned that Li Tiaoniang's brother, Li Liang, is a scholar. So I checked Li Liang's academic records at Shuntian Prefecture School," Chen Jia continued. "He began taking the examinations in the Wushen year, attempting four consecutive times without passing the Prefectural Examination, until he gave up five years ago. The Professor at the school remembered him quite well and, upon learning I was a distant relative, called over a Successful Candidate who had once taken the exams with Li Liang. According to this scholar, Li Liang was a gloomy man who spoke little, kept to himself, and was rather frugal. The scholar wasn't very familiar with Li Liang's circumstances, only knowing that although he was a Capital native, he didn't live in the Capital itself but somewhere nearby—though no one knew exactly where."

"Next, I checked the Li Family's landholdings in Shuntian Prefecture."

"The Li Family's farmland is in Langfang, managed by an old family servant. Every year on the sixth day of the twelfth lunar month, Li Liang would come to collect rent and discuss matters. The rest of the time, even the old servant couldn't find him."

"However, the Li Family's situation has worsened in recent years. Their two hundred acres of fertile land have dwindled to just over ten acres, and Li Liang hasn't come to collect rent for the past two years."

Dou Zhao frowned slightly.

It seemed the Li Family was hiding from something.

She recalled Duan Gongyi's words: "In the first couple of years, people came asking where the Li Family had gone." This made her even more curious about their current situation.

"So, all leads have gone cold," Dou Zhao mused. "We can only wait for Li Liang to appear on his own?"

At this, Chen Jia smiled, his ordinary features suddenly becoming lively and radiant. "Just as Madam says. At the time, I also felt this approach was too passive, so I devised a plan." He glanced cautiously at Dou Zhao and lowered his voice. "I had someone pose as a steward from The Duke of England's Mansion and inquire about the Li Family's whereabouts at the farmstead. The old servant remained very calm, insisting he knew nothing. But three days after my man left, our agents—who had hidden nearby without food or drink for three days and two nights—saw the old servant ride out on a donkey."

"I sent seven or eight teams to follow him."

"He twisted and turned until the fifth day, when he finally took the post road to the Capital."

"And once he reached the Capital—well, that's our Imperial Bodyguard's territory.""My people followed him and quickly found Li Liang."

Dou Zhao perked up and hurriedly asked, "Where is the Li family living now?"

Chen Jia smiled. "Turns out the Li family is currently living in Comb Alley, not far from WanMing Temple."

Dou Zhao raised an eyebrow.

She knew that place.

Because the entire street sold combs, the alley behind it was called Comb Alley. When Zhao Zhangru was in the Capital, she had even gone with Zhao Zhangru to buy many combs there.

"I didn't expect that either," Chen Jia said, unsurprised by this outcome. But seeing Dou Zhao's astonishment, he feigned surprise to accommodate her feelings. "Though Comb Alley and the Li family's old residence on Second Lane are at opposite ends—one south, one north—they're only separated by two main streets. I never thought Li Liang would live there."

"Perhaps because that place holds the most sentiment for him," Dou Zhao said. "Isn't that why people say 'falling leaves return to their roots' in old age?"

"Exactly as Madam says," Chen Jia chuckled. "The Li family has moved several times over the years. Likely because their scholarly pursuits came to nothing, they returned to the Capital five years ago."

Dou Zhao nodded slightly. "What's their current situation? Is Li Liang's mother still alive? With most of their farmland sold, how does the family survive now?"

Chen Jia replied, "Li Liang's mother passed away four years ago. He now works as an accountant for a North-South Goods Store, going by the name Li Xun. Every year after the New Year, he travels south with the store's second manager and doesn't return until winter. His wife and children live with him in the south. The only ones left in Comb Alley are a widowed cousin who sought refuge with him years ago and her daughter, keeping house for him."

"A widowed cousin?"

Dou Zhao's heart skipped a beat. "Did you look into this cousin's background?"

Chen Jia coughed lightly, his expression slightly awkward. "According to the neighbors, this widowed cousin has a somewhat... questionable reputation. They suspect she's either Li Liang's concubine or his mistress. Ever since Li Liang's mother died, his wife and children have stayed in the south with him and never reappeared. Li Liang is rarely home, and at first, the widow was somewhat restrained. But over the past two years, she's grown bolder—she once hosted a merchant from the northwest for several days. This spring, that merchant returned. Perhaps Li Liang heard something, because he came home right after the merchant arrived. If the merchant hadn't fled quickly, he would've been caught red-handed."

"Even so, they had a huge fight. Li Liang apparently resorted to violence, beating the widow badly enough that she had to buy medicinal wine for bruises."

"My man spent a night on their roof and observed that although they didn't share a bed, Li Liang entered and left the widow's room without any hesitation—far too casually for a proper widowed cousin and her cousin-in-law."

Dou Zhao frowned. "Doesn't Li Liang's cousin care at all about her own daughter?"

Chen Jia said, "The cousin's daughter married into Baoding last autumn. It was an arranged marriage from childhood to a distant nephew of the Li family. Li Liang personally escorted her to the wedding. The cousin's increasing boldness likely stems from her daughter already being married off."Everything sounded perfectly normal, yet Dou Zhao felt a vague unease in her heart.

She asked, "How old is Chen Jia's cousin? And how old is the daughter she brought with her?"

Chen Jia replied, "Li Liang's cousin is quite stunning in appearance, looking no more than twenty-five or twenty-six. But her daughter was already fourteen when she got married, so I suppose the cousin must be at least twenty-eight or twenty-nine..."