Blossom

Dou Zhao watched as Sixth Aunt left. Fifth Uncle was the Vice Minister of Personnel. If he requested leave, who would he ask?

Of course, it would be his direct superior, the Minister of Personnel and his mentor, Zeng Yifen.

Ha!

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but laugh.

She wondered if Wang Xingyi, upon hearing this news, would rush back to the Capital to explain to Zeng Yifen—who was also his mentor—why Fifth Uncle had requested leave.

Tuo Niang, seeing Dou Zhao suddenly burst into laughter for no apparent reason, called out in surprise, "Miss!"

"It’s nothing, nothing," Dou Zhao replied, laughing even more heartily. She tugged at Cai Shu’s arm. "Cai Shu, I want to go home! I want to see Father!"

"But Sixth Madam instructed us to wait for her return before sending you back," Cai Shu said hesitantly.

Dou Zhao ignored her and insisted on going back immediately.

She was a child now—being noisy and willful was perfectly normal.

Cai Shu had no choice but to send a young maid to ask Ji Shi for instructions.

Ji Shi was in the flower hall.

She glanced at Second Madam sitting in the host’s seat, then at Lan Ge’er, Da Taitai (The Eldest Madam), and Second Aunt sitting across from her, feeling a subtle unease.

Meanwhile, Second Aunt, facing Dou Shishu, Dou Shiyang, Third Madam, Dou Shiheng, and Ji Shi, was seething with anger.

What kind of discussion was this? The three brothers—Third, Fifth, and Sixth—born of the same mother, had already made their decisions. The other three branches were being forced into this without any prior knowledge of why Second Madam had summoned them. How could they even discuss anything?

She understood the saying, "When the nest is overturned, no egg remains unbroken." But being compelled to clean up the mess for the Western Branch left her furious. If she objected, given Fifth Uncle’s temperament, he would surely have a slew of arguments ready. Could she out-debate him? One misstep, and she might leave everyone with the impression that she was self-serving and shirked responsibility. As the Lineage Wife of the Dou family, how could she maintain any authority in the future?

Second Aunt shot a glance at Da Taitai.

Da Taitai’s face was pale, her eyes swollen, yet her expression was calm.

After serving as Lineage Wife for over a decade and now widowed with young children, she had her own plans.

Among the uncles and brothers, Fifth Uncle Dou Shishu had the brightest future. Lan Ge’er would need his support later—they absolutely could not afford to clash with him.

When the eldest master was alive, he had served in the south for many years, and they had accumulated considerable savings. Even if half of the Eastern Branch’s assets were given to Shou Gu, and the remaining half divided equally among the six branches, they could still live comfortably for two or three generations with frugality. Why stir up trouble over money?

As long as they had people, wealth would follow!

But the Second Branch had the most sons. If she proposed equal division among the six branches, the Second Branch would likely oppose it.

Fortunately, she was no longer the Lineage Wife—these matters were no longer her responsibility.

Da Taitai pressed her lips tightly together.

Second Aunt was consumed with resentment.

If she had known it would come to this, she should never have listened to Second Madam and followed her husband to his post.In order to ensure her sons could study well and to avoid being labeled as "unfilial," she kept her fourth son in Zhen Ding. Now, the eldest son, Dou Wenmao, was studying and gaining experience in the Capital with his father. The second son, Dou Yuchang, the third son, Dou Xiuchang, and the fourth son, Dou Guangchang—who was fifth among his cousins—were all attending the Family School. Wenmao was already past thirty but had only achieved the rank of Successful Candidate in the Imperial Examination. Yuchang was a good student, but he still fell far short of his two uncles, Dou Shiheng and Dou Shiying. As for Xiuchang, there was no need to mention him—he had married early and fathered several sons, yet his studies were even worse than his own son Zhi Ge'er. Guangchang was only slightly better than Xiuchang...

Thinking of this, she steeled herself and smiled, "What does Fourth Brother say?"

The fourth master of the Dou family, Dou Shizhu, had stalled at the rank of Recommended Man. A few years ago, he finally gave up his dreams of passing the imperial examinations and, upon Dou Shishu's recommendation, became a Chief Steward in the household of the eldest imperial prince, the Prince of Xinyang, who had been enfeoffed in Xinyang. It was said he had won the prince's favor, and two years ago, his entire family moved to Xinyang.

Dou Shishu hesitated for a long time before pulling a letter from his sleeve and signaling a maid to hand it to Second Madam. "This is Fourth Brother's reply to me. I originally thought it might be inappropriate, so I didn’t present it earlier..."

Second Madam cursed Dou Shishu a hundred times in her heart.

Xinyang was thousands of miles from the Capital. The moment I bring it up, you produce Fourth Brother’s letter... If you didn’t scheme this in advance, I’ll smash my head against this hall floor!

But in her heart, she knew the tide had turned.

Fourth Brother had long been in cahoots with Fifth Brother...

She didn’t even need to read the letter to know what it said.

Still, she couldn’t resist opening it.

Sure enough, Dou Shizhu not only agreed with Dou Shishu’s proposal for the distribution of the East Estate’s property but also suggested that Shou Gu’s dowry be split equally among the six families.

Second Madam simply handed the letter to The Eldest Madam.

The Eldest Madam’s lips curled into a faint smile as she read it.

Second Madam sighed inwardly when she heard The Eldest Madam say, "Fourth Uncle and I think alike. I believe we should proceed as he suggests. This isn’t just about one family—it concerns Fifth Uncle’s future and the rise or fall of the Dou family."

"I didn’t present Fourth Brother’s letter earlier because I feared my sisters-in-law might misunderstand," Dou Shishu quickly added with a smile. "If we’re being honest, this situation arose because I didn’t handle things properly. I appreciate my sisters-in-law’s kindness. Since this was my decision, I’ll take responsibility for it. There’s no need to drag everyone else into it."

Just as Second Madam was about to speak, Second Madam interjected with a smile, "He discussed this with me, and I agreed. There’s no need to argue further—it’s settled." With that, Second Madam made the final decision and instructed Liu Mama, "Go tell Steward Dou to invite the Old Master of the West Estate. Tell him I have urgent matters to discuss." Then she turned to Dou Shibang and said, "You’ve always managed the affairs of both households. Take some time in the coming days to organize the accounts. When the Zhao Family arrives, we’ll discuss which properties to allocate under Shou Gu’s name."

Dou Shibang quickly stood and respectfully acknowledged the order.

The young maid who had been sent to seek Ji Shi’s instructions took one look at the situation and didn’t dare approach. She ran back, saying she couldn’t get close to Sixth Madam. Cai Shu had no choice but to keep comforting Dou Zhao.

Just then, Nanny Liu came out to relay a message and, seeing the scene, asked with a smile, "What’s going on here?"Caishu quickly recounted the incident to Liu Mama.

Nanny Liu was Second Madam’s personal old servant, and even Dou Shishu had to show her some respect. Normally, she would have just asked a few concerned questions and left it at that, never taking the matter upon herself. But considering what had just happened in the flower hall and her understanding of the Dou family’s Fifth Master, she knew that whatever Fifth Master Dou set his mind to, he would accomplish. Thus, the status of this Fourth Miss from the western residence suddenly soared in her estimation, reaching a level that could not be ignored.

She couldn’t help but smile and say, “I’ve been tasked by the Dowager to invite Steward Dou to the western residence. Why not have Steward Dou escort you there? Just leave a message for Sixth Madam. Blood is thicker than water—how could she not miss her own kin? No wonder Fourth Miss insists on going back.”

With Nanny Liu’s words, Caishu grew bolder. After instructing the young maids beside her, she and Tuo Niang accompanied Dou Zhao back to the western residence.

Gaosheng was directing the pages to move Dou Shiying’s trunks.

Seeing Dou Zhao return, he hurried forward to greet her.

Dou Zhao asked him, “Where is my father?”

Gaoxing (Happy) replied with a smile, “Seventh Master has gone to Qi Xia Courtyard.”

Dou Zhao turned to leave but paused in thought. She had Haitang stay with Caishu while she took Tuo Niang to Qi Xia Courtyard.

From a distance, she spotted Madam Pang standing arrogantly in the courtyard, ordering maids and old women to serve tea and water.

Dou Zhao detoured toward Dou Shiying’s study.

The side gate of Qi Xia Courtyard’s backyard was diagonally opposite Dou Shiying’s study.

The gate was slightly ajar, unattended.

She entered Qi Xia Courtyard without hindrance.

The backyard of Qi Xia Courtyard was planted with several magnolia trees. When they bloomed, their brilliance resembled brocaded clouds, hence the courtyard’s name.

Dou Zhao listened to her father and Wang Yingxue speaking in the heated room behind the inner chamber.

“...I’m just an ordinary man, selfishly wanting to live happily and forget the past,” her father said. “But every time I see you, I’m reminded of how Gu Qiu died, and it feels like a knife twisting in my heart... Yingxue, let’s both start anew!”

Wang Yingxue froze. “What... what do you mean?”

“Yingxue, don’t you understand?” Dou Shiying looked at her with a complicated expression, murmuring, “If we’re together, apart from status, I can give you nothing else...”

Dou Zhao in the heated room clenched her teeth in anger.

What did he mean by starting anew?

What did he mean by giving nothing but status?

For a woman, what could be more important than giving her status?

She couldn’t bear to listen any longer and stormed out of the heated room, heading straight to the main courtyard of Qi Xia Courtyard.

Madam Pang was pressed against the window lattice like a gecko, eavesdropping, while her maid kept watch nearby.

The Dou family’s servants stood far off under the eaves and corners of the corridors, their expressions filled with disdain.

Dou Zhao stood quietly, watching Madam Pang with a faint, mocking smile.

Suddenly, Madam Pang’s maid noticed Dou Zhao.

Her face flushed red, and she tugged frantically at Madam Pang’s sleeve. “Second Madam, Second Madam...”

“Quiet!” Madam Pang snapped impatiently. “I can’t hear when you talk!”

“No,” the maid stammered, nearly in tears under Dou Zhao’s gaze. “It’s Fourth Miss... the Dou family’s Fourth Miss is here...”

“Who?” Madam Pang turned and immediately spotted Dou Zhao standing nearby."Oh, so it's the Fourth Young Miss!" She nonchalantly patted her clothes and adjusted her hair, smiling, "Fourth Young Miss, what brings you here? Who accompanied you?"

In both past and present lives, Dou Zhao had always admired her ability to talk to herself as if nothing was amiss.

Hearing the commotion, someone rushed out from inside the room.

"Shou Gu?" Dou Shiying gaped at his daughter in astonishment. "How did you get here? Weren't you at Sixth Aunt's place? Who brought you here?" As he spoke, he looked around and spotted Tuo Niang. His expression darkened, and he was about to reprimand her when Dou Zhao interjected, "It was Cai Shu who accompanied me." With that, she turned to leave. "I'll be returning later with Steward Dou's carriage!"

She couldn't bear to stay in this place for another moment.

"Slow down!" Dou Shiying called after his daughter. "I'll go with you to pay respects to Grandfather..."

Wang Yingxue, who had followed them out, stood on the steps, watching the figures of Dou Shi and his daughter grow smaller and smaller until they gradually disappeared from her sight.