Blossom

Dou Zhao often encountered Song Han whenever she visited Fourth Madam Jiang's residence.

He would either chat with Jiang Xiexiu or assist Jiang Xieying with tasks, getting along well with the Jiang sisters. Even Fourth Madam Jiang couldn't help but remark, "After not seeing him for years, Tianen has grown up and become much more sensible."

Dou Zhao smiled faintly.

Song Yichun sent Huang Qing to deliver dowry gifts for Jiang Lizhu.

Song Han remained in the recessed space behind the main hall, drinking tea, and did not come out.

Fourth Madam Jiang thought of how Song Yichun had treated Song Mo after Jiang Shi's death and remained silent.

Dou Zhao certainly wouldn’t interfere in such matters either.

Huang Qing exchanged a few polite words before taking his leave.

Fourth Madam Jiang instructed the steward to see him out.

Jiang Xiexiu, however, picked up the gift list placed on the square table, glanced at it, then raised her head with a cold laugh.

Fourth Madam Jiang frowned slightly and called out in a warning tone, "Xiexiu."

Jiang Xiexiu bit her lip, bowed to Fourth Madam Jiang, and retreated.

Dou Zhao was puzzled.

Fourth Madam Jiang thought for a moment and handed the gift list to Dou Zhao.

It was blatantly just a silver note for a thousand taels.

Even if the Jiang family had fallen so low that they needed the Song family’s silver to marry off their daughter, he should have at least sent a few items to mask the gesture.

Song Yichun was clearly stepping on the Jiang family to polish his own reputation.

Dou Zhao raised an eyebrow and said with a smile, "As you know, since my mother-in-law passed away, there hasn’t been anyone managing affairs in the Duke’s household. I suspect the Duke simply instructed how much silver to send, and the steward misunderstood, delivering the silver directly. Fourth Aunt, don’t take it to heart. The amount isn’t too much nor too little, but carrying it around is rather inconvenient. Why not exchange it for gold and let Cousin Twelve take it with her? It won’t draw attention and can still serve as a respectable display."

Fourth Madam Jiang knew Dou Zhao was trying to comfort her, but she still felt a pang of bitterness. She responded with a few polite words and sent the silver note to Jiang Lizhu for her to see.

Suddenly, Song Han rushed out.

He snatched the silver note, his face pale, and exclaimed loudly, "Fourth Aunt! I’ll go talk to Father!"

Fourth Madam Jiang hurriedly had someone stop him, saying, "Your father meant well. With this thousand taels, I won’t need to prepare pin money for your Cousin Twelve, which eases my immediate worries. Don’t act rashly over hearsay!"

Song Han clenched the silver note, silent, but tears welled in his eyes.

Fourth Madam Jiang quickly called Jiang Xiexiu out and asked her to accompany Song Han to the recessed space to continue drinking tea.

Seeing that Fourth Madam Jiang’s preparations were nearly complete, Dou Zhao inquired about the details of the pre-wedding banquet and felt reassured. As it was nearing dinnertime, she sent word to Song Mo, telling him not to come fetch her, as she planned to return with Song Han.

Fourth Madam Jiang invited them to stay for dinner.

Dou Zhao politely declined, "You’re busy here, and I still have a few matters to discuss with the stewardesses. Once you’ve finished with this busy period, I’ll send an invitation for you and your daughters to visit us properly."

Hearing this, Fourth Madam Jiang, aware that Dou Zhao managed the household affairs of the Duke of Yingguo’s mansion, didn’t press further and smilingly saw her off.

Song Han bowed to Dou Zhao and said, "Good sister-in-law, I have nothing to do. I’d like to stay here and keep Fourth Aunt company."

Dou Zhao naturally didn’t stop him, smilingly reminding him not to "cause mischief" before leaving with her maids and old women for the Duke of Yingguo’s mansion.

Song Han didn’t return until late in the evening.The next day, Dou Zhao heard that Song Han had been given twenty strokes of the paddle by Song Yichun for skipping school and was now lying in bed, unable to move.

Shocked, Dou Zhao went to find Song Mo.

Upon hearing this, Song Mo frowned, thought for a moment, and then headed to Cassia Fragrance Courtyard.

After a heated exchange between father and son, Song Yichun exempted Song Han from his studies for ten days.

Dou Zhao and Song Mo went together to see Song Han.

Before Song Mo could even speak, Song Han pouted and pleaded, "Brother, I didn’t mean to skip school on purpose. I just wanted to talk more with Fourth Aunt Jiang, but Father wouldn’t let me." Lying face down on the bed from the beating, he carefully tugged at Song Mo’s sleeve. "Brother, don’t scold me anymore. Fourth Aunt said that after Cousin Twelve returns from her bridal visit in three days, they’ll go back to Haozhou, and who knows when we’ll see each other again. Before, I could visit Uncle’s house whenever I wanted. No matter how much Grandmother doted on Cousin Xiexiu, she would always play with me when I called her. But now, even when Cousin Xiexiu is free, she has to make decorative knots and only chats with me for a bit before sending me off to play alone..."

"You still shouldn’t skip school!" Song Mo said, though his tone softened considerably. "You could have told me beforehand. Even if you couldn’t find me right away, you could have told your sister-in-law!"

Song Han glanced sheepishly at Dou Zhao and mumbled an apology. "Sister-in-law is carrying my nephew. I didn’t want to bother her..."

Song Mo sighed. "Don’t do this again!"

Song Han nodded, smiling shyly at Dou Zhao.

And so, the matter was settled.

The next day, despite being unable to get out of bed from the beating, Song Han was secretly carried by pages to visit Fourth Madam Jiang again.

When Ruo Zhu reported this to Dou Zhao, she laughed and said, "Since he went secretly, let’s pretend we don’t know."

Gaoxing’s wife hurried in and said, "Madam, someone from Jing'an Temple Alley told me something, and after thinking it over, I felt I should inform you."

Dou Zhao was surprised. She knew her father often sent people to ask Gaoxing’s wife about her, and the Gaoxing family frequently visited Gaosheng’s family in Jing'an Temple Alley. If anything happened there, Gaoxing’s wife would surely be the first to know.

She straightened up nervously. "Did something happen to Seventh Master?"

If it were an official matter, Song Mo would have known already and would have handled it for her father. She was more worried about her father causing a personal scandal.

"No, no!" Gaoxing’s wife quickly waved her hands. "It’s not about Seventh Master—it’s about Fifth Granddaughter’s husband. I heard from Little Three that Fifth Granddaughter’s husband was sued and faced a lawsuit. Out of respect for the Young Lord, the other party only demanded compensation in silver. But because of this, Fifth Granddaughter’s husband was too embarrassed to return to his post and resigned. A few days ago, Fifth Granddaughter stormed into Jing'an Temple Alley, demanding that Seventh Master plead with the Young Lord on her husband’s behalf. Seventh Master refused and even scolded her. Fifth Granddaughter left in tears and went to Willow Leaf Alley. I thought I should warn you in case the Wang Family comes looking for you."

Little Three was Gaosheng’s third son.

The Wang Family had always prided themselves on their connections. They’d probably rather spend money and pull strings to seek help from the Duke of Dongping than come to her.Dou Zhao smiled and said, "I understand." Then she added, "How is Father now? Is he sulking at home?"

Gaoxing's wife replied with a smile, "My uncle invited Sixth Master over to have a drink with Seventh Master, and Seventh Master cheered up afterward."

That's good.

Dou Zhao smiled and had someone reward Gaoxing's wife with two taels of silver, but in her heart, she wondered what kind of trouble Wei Tingyu had gotten into this time. He was so ashamed that he even abandoned his official post. In her previous life, he had idled away his entire life, and now in this life, he turned out to be someone who couldn’t even keep his own position.

When Song Mo returned that evening, she mentioned the matter to him.

"I already knew about it," Song Mo said. "It’s nothing serious—the shop operating under his name was selling inferior goods. As it turned out, the other party had connections with the Seventh Prince, so they weren’t intimidated and directly accused the Marquis of Jining. Originally, it wasn’t a big deal; a word to the Seventh Prince would have settled it. But as you know, the Marquis is rather careless in handling affairs. Meanwhile, I’m making arrangements in the Five Cities Garrison. Rather than letting him flounder around there under the pretense of being my brother-in-law, it’s better to have him stay home for now. Once things stabilize, we can find him another position."

He spoke solemnly, but for some reason, Dou Zhao vaguely sensed something amiss. Yet she couldn’t quite put her finger on what it was.

Seeing her silence, Song Mo grew even more wary of Wei Tingyu.

Dou Zhao and Dou Ming were at odds, so logically, if Wei Tingyu was in trouble, Dou Zhao should either be secretly pleased or at least not look so grave.

He couldn’t help but ponder: if Dou Zhao asked him to find Wei Tingyu a position, where could he assign him that would keep him far away while still sounding respectable and prestigious?

To his surprise, Dou Zhao showed no intention of pleading for Wei Tingyu. Instead, she said, "You’d better stay out of their family’s affairs. It’s all thankless work and will only earn you resentment. If the Wei Family has any issues, Dou Ming will turn to the Wang Family for help. Otherwise, Father wouldn’t have outright refused Dou Ming’s request."

Song Mo fell silent for a moment.

"I understand," he nodded, though his eyes flickered as if a small flame had ignited within them.

Dou Zhao was taken aback.

Belatedly, it occurred to her that in others’ eyes, she and Wei Tingyu had been betrothed since childhood. If not for Dou Ming’s interference, she and Wei Tingyu would have been the married couple.

Could it be that Song Mo had always been lukewarm toward Wei Tingyu because of this?

But Song Mo had always acted as if he looked down on everyone...

Dou Zhao felt a little embarrassed by this thought.

Song Mo stepped forward and gently embraced her, saying, "I’ll take half a day off tomorrow. Let’s go shopping on East Street in the afternoon. Our twelfth cousin is getting married, and you’ll need some decent jewelry for the banquet."

What was this?

A reward for not speaking up for Wei Tingyu?

Dou Zhao found it both amusing and exasperating.

She had plenty of unworn jewelry in her box already!

But Dou Zhao wisely said nothing and happily accompanied Song Mo to the silver shop, selecting a few expensive pieces to keep him in good spirits.Contrary to Dou Zhao's expectations, the Wang Family not only failed to stand up for Wei Tingyu, but it was said that Madam Xu Wang even scolded Dou Ming, saying how could someone like Wei Tingyu, who couldn't even keep his position, expect the Wang Family to speak on his behalf? How could the Wang Family possibly make such a request, and so on.

Dou Ming ran back home in tears.

These words were spread by the old women who had accompanied Dou Ming to the Wang Family and eventually reached Wei Tingzhen's ears.

Another round of quarrels ensued in the Wei Family.

When Dou Zhao heard about it, she merely smiled.

In her previous life, Dou Ming had every advantage—time, place, and people—yet still lived a life that provoked universal condemnation. In this life, without the Wang Family's protection, it would be a miracle if she could manage to live a prosperous life!

Dou Zhao instructed Ruo Zhu, "Tomorrow, when I go to the Jiang Family for the wedding banquet, I'll wear the kingfisher-feather and pearl hairpin that the heir sent the other day."

Ruo Zhu cheerfully acknowledged the order.

Just then, Ruo Chi came in to report, "Madam, the fourth aunt from the Jiang Family has arrived."

Dou Zhao glanced at the twilight-filled sky and asked in surprise, "At this hour?"