Blossom

“How do you watch the house? Can’t even handle such a small matter—do none of you want to stay anymore?” Song Han berated Qi Xia and the others, who knelt trembling on the ground in fear.

The cat, however, meowed and leaped onto Song Han’s foot, rubbing affectionately against his leg.

Not wanting to be used as an excuse for his outburst, Dou Zhao smiled and said, “Alright, alright, no need to lose your temper. I didn’t know you kept a cat in your inner chamber—no one mentioned it before—so I was quite startled.” She pointed at the cat and added, “Why choose such a color? It’s rather unsettling. If you like keeping cats, I’ll have someone pick out a few white or gray ones for you tomorrow. They’ll be prettier and won’t suddenly dart out to scare people like today.”

Song Han chuckled awkwardly but bent down to pick up the cat, cradling it in his arms. “What brings you here, sister-in-law? I study the qin with my tutor every afternoon. If you need anything, just send someone—it’s no trouble to delay for a while.”

He smoothly changed the subject, avoiding any mention of the cat, a subtle way of declining her offer.

Dou Zhao glanced at the cat a few more times and smiled. “The midwife advised me to walk more. I’ve been circling the Hall of Cultivating Will every day, and even the finest scenery becomes dull. So I thought I’d see what your maids are up to.” She then brought up his qin lessons. “I heard your tutor once studied under Du Jianian of the Imperial Academy. He must be quite scholarly?”

“He’s a Recommended Man from the Renzhi year and shares a hometown with Lord Du,” Song Han replied, handing the cat to Qi Xia before sitting with Dou Zhao by the window on the heated brick bed. “Lord Du was too busy to take students, so he recommended this tutor instead. He has a gentle temperament, skilled not only in music but also in calligraphy and painting. I’ve learned a great deal from him.”

“That’s wonderful!” Dou Zhao made small talk, noticing how Qi Xia carefully handed the cat to the same young maid who had earlier knelt before her, shaking like a leaf. The maid retreated as if cradling a rare treasure.

How interesting!

She shot Ruo Zhu a glance, sipped her tea, and after exchanging a few more pleasantries with Song Han, rose to leave. “...The midwife insists I walk at least two hours daily, so I shouldn’t linger here. I’ll visit again when I have time.”

Song Han stood and respectfully escorted Dou Zhao out of the main courtyard.

Dou Zhao paused on the steps, watching the young maids feed the birds.

Ruo Zhu hurried over.

“Madam,” she whispered, “after you left, the Second Master had the maid who tended the cat dragged away and beaten twenty strokes with the paddle. Qi Xia and the others also had their monthly allowances docked.”

The maid was only twelve or thirteen—she’d be ruined.

Dou Zhao’s expression darkened.

Ruo Zhu stood with bowed head and folded hands.

After a long silence, Dou Zhao said, “Go check on that maid. See if we can spare her life and send her to the farmstead.”

Ruo Zhu replied deferentially, “Yes, Madam.”

Dou Zhao then asked, “Does the Second Master enjoy keeping cats? I wasn’t aware. Aside from cats, what other hobbies does he have?”

Ruo Zhu grew uneasy. “Apart from that cat, the Second Master keeps four orioles, a pair of parrots, a pair of mynas, and two turtles in his quarters. He’s never shown particular favoritism toward any of them.”

If so, why protect only the cat?Dou Zhao felt that Ruo Zhu was still a bit lazy and couldn't help but miss Su Xin's good qualities.

In the evening, she discussed with Song Mo: "Who would keep a black cat with blue-green eyes? Just thinking about it makes me uneasy. If Second Master isn't particularly fond of it, perhaps we should give it to someone else to raise?"

Song Mo replied, "When my mother was alive, she loved keeping Persian cats, especially black ones with blue-green eyes." His expression darkened slightly as he sighed, "Unfortunately, when the family had that incident, those cats all disappeared. I sent people to look for them several times but couldn't find them. Later, with so many family matters to attend to, I didn’t have time to worry about them anymore."

Dou Zhao leaned against Song Mo's shoulder and asked, "Could that cat be one left behind by your mother?"

"How could that be?" Song Mo fanned Dou Zhao gently and smiled. "If that cat were one of my mother’s, he would have told me long ago. He wouldn’t keep it secretly like this."

Could it be a tool to manipulate emotions?

After living together as brothers for over a decade, they shared too many memories. It seemed her strategy of "boiling a frog in warm water" was working.

Dou Zhao smiled faintly.

Song Mo then said, "Don’t worry about this matter. I’ll talk to Song Han tomorrow and ask him to send the cat to be raised elsewhere. Once we have children at home, cats and dogs can be unpredictable—children love them, but if they scratch or bite, it’ll be troublesome."

Was it because the cat was raised by Song Han?

Dou Zhao nodded with a bright smile.

The next day, Song Mo indeed spoke to Song Han about it. Song Han was very surprised but obediently sent the cat to the farmstead. The process went so smoothly that Dou Zhao was taken aback. Even more surprising was that Song Han followed her suggestion and brought back a pair of gray tabby house cats to raise indoors.

When Gu Yu found out, he was quite disdainful of Dou Zhao. "Do you know how much that Persian cat is worth? Even nobles in the palace have to wait for a chance to raise one. And here you are, wasting such a treasure."

Dou Zhao wasn’t bothered and laughed, "How about I have someone send the cat to your place?"

Gu Yu scoffed, "I wouldn’t raise such delicate little things! They’re too fragile, and if they die, it’s still a life."

Dou Zhao suddenly felt a sense of kinship with him.

This was also why she rarely kept cats or dogs.

Still, she couldn’t resist teasing Gu Yu: "Who knew our little tyrant had such a compassionate heart!"

Gu Yu’s face instantly flushed red. "Cats and dogs are far more loyal than people," he retorted.

Hearing this, Dou Zhao’s heart softened. She bantered with him for a long while, thoroughly enjoying herself.

When Song Mo returned and saw them getting along so harmoniously, he couldn’t help but smile. After changing clothes, he joined them and asked Dou Zhao to instruct the Old Women in the kitchen to prepare a few of Gu Yu’s favorite dishes—he wanted to keep Gu Yu for dinner.Gu Yu frowned and pleaded with Song Mo, "Brother, could you speak to my aunt for me? The Emperor recently assigned me to the Standard Bearer Guard, but my aunt rejected it outright. She said I'm still too young and not steady enough, insisting I stay home and gain more experience under Grandfather's guidance for a couple more years. You're only a few months older than me, yet you're already a third-rank military officer. Meanwhile, I'm just idling at home—even Feng Zhi has joined the Five Armies Battalion now. I'm too embarrassed to show my face outside. My uncle gave the same excuse as my aunt, and I can't very well go to Grandfather to plead my case—that woman would surely gloat and spread it everywhere. After much thought, I can only ask you to put in a good word for me with my aunt."

Both Song Mo and Dou Zhao knew the real reason was Gu Yu's notorious reputation. Empress Wan feared he would do more harm than good and preferred to keep him idle until the Liao Wang matter was settled. No matter who pleaded on Gu Yu's behalf, Empress Wan wouldn't let him take office.

In truth, both Empress Wan and Liao Wang cared deeply for Gu Yu. In their previous lives, after Liao Wang ascended the throne, Gu Yu—barely twenty—was appointed as the Commander-in-chief of the Five Armies Commandery and concurrently Metropolitan Commander of the Standard Bearer Guard. His prominence in the court was unmatched at the time.

Of course, Song Mo knew none of this. He had his own way of handling Gu Yu.

"At the end of the day, you're just suffering from the reputation of being the 'Little Tyrant of the Capital,'" Song Mo said with a laugh. "Don't take it to heart. Didn't the Empress say you lack 'steadiness'? Do a few steady things to prove her wrong, and she won't stand in your way anymore."

Gu Yu perked up immediately. "What should I do, then?"

Song Mo replied, "I've acquired a shipyard in Tianjin and am short of someone to manage it. How about you take charge? Once you return, everyone will see you in a new light."

"What?!" Gu Yu was dismayed. "You want me to be your steward?"

"No wonder the Empress doesn't trust you," Song Mo retorted. "You aim high but can't handle the basics—how can you accomplish anything? Don't be fooled by my current success. When I was twelve, I was already reconciling accounts with the chief managers of Guangdong's Thirteen Hongs. Without that experience, do you think those seasoned managers would have respected me?"

Gu Yu squirmed in his seat, silent.

The idea of starting as a steward was a hard pill to swallow.

Dou Zhao chimed in, "A true man must be adaptable. If you can't endure a little hardship, how can you achieve great things?"

In truth, Gu Yu had lived a life of luxury in their past lives, never suffering a day. If he knew they were just coaxing him, would he glare at them in anger and never speak to them again?

Dou Zhao pondered this silently.

Suddenly, Gu Yu sprang to his feet, paced the room a few times, then stopped with determination. Through gritted teeth, he declared, "Fine! I'll go to Tianjin! I refuse to believe such a small task can defeat me!"

Dou Zhao quickly praised him.

Gu Yu rolled his eyes. "Don't think I don't know you're just tricking me into doing your dirty work. But since the Capital is boring anyway, I might as well go for a change of scenery."

Song Mo and Dou Zhao burst into laughter.

Gu Yu promptly forgot about Song Mo's scheming and grinned. "I heard there are exotic treasures overseas. Why don't we build a big ship and sail around for a while?"Song Mo was both amused and exasperated. "The construction techniques for those large seafaring vessels are all controlled by the Ministry of Works," he said. "Ordinary people can't even get a glimpse of them, let alone privately build one—it's against regulations."

Gu Yu reluctantly nodded in agreement, though his expression betrayed his eagerness.

Song Mo sighed as he looked at Dou Zhao.

Sending this carefree fellow to Tianjin—was it the right decision or not?

Song Mo had originally intended to speak with the Earl of Yunyang, but unexpectedly, the merchant convoy from Liaodong arrived in the capital the very next day.

Jiang Sunbai not only sent Song Mo two large chests of furs but also a letter of greetings.

Song Mo courteously received the chief merchant of the convoy, with Liao Bifeng accompanying them for a meal at the Duke of Yingguo's Mansion. He himself, however, waited until the lanterns were lit before taking the letter back to his study. He had Wuyi and the others guard the outside while he remained alone in the study for a long time without emerging.

Dou Zhao grew concerned and went to the study.

The study was brightly lit. Song Mo sat upright at the desk, staring blankly at the octagonal palace lantern on it.

On the desk, apart from an opened letter, there was also a copy of A Thousand Verses of Poetry .