Blossom

The Crown Prince's words reminded Song Mo of something.

He asked the Crown Prince, "Has the cause of death of Liao Wang's eldest son been determined?"

"It has," the Crown Prince replied with frustration. "His Majesty personally sent someone to investigate. It turns out that after Prince Liao's Residence learned that the fifth brother was in the Capital attending to His Majesty's illness, they realized their schemes had been exposed. Unable to gather any news about the fifth brother and seeing many of his former followers flee while the remaining ones lost their loyalty, the Princess of Liao even committed suicide by hanging. My nephew, overwhelmed by shock and fear, fell gravely ill. The chief steward of Prince Liao's Residence, fearing His Majesty's wrath, decided to delay reporting the illness and death to the Capital for a few days. Who would have thought that this delay would lead to the current situation?" He added bitterly, "It's all because of these vile people."

Could he deal with one, or even ten? But how could he possibly handle hundreds, thousands?

At this thought, the Crown Prince slumped into the Grand Preceptor's Chair and waved dismissively at Cui Yijun. "You may withdraw first. I still have matters to discuss with Yantang. If his place isn’t safe, then nowhere in the world is."

Cui Yijun glanced at Song Mo with a smile, but as he turned away, his expression darkened.

Song Yantang truly lived up to his ancestors, who had once been adopted by the imperial family. Even though he had only recently aligned himself with the Crown Prince, the favor he received was extraordinary!

Song Mo couldn’t care less about Cui Yijun’s thoughts.

In the past, even with Wang Yuan entrenched in the Palace of Heavenly Purity for decades, Song Mo had managed to plant his own people there. Now that Cui Yijun had only just moved into the palace, trying to outmaneuver him would be futile—Song Mo could easily join forces with Wang Yuan to sideline him.

However, the Emperor was like the setting sun. Even if Wang Yuan wished to peacefully guard the imperial tombs in the future, he would need to stay vigilant. This was the perfect opportunity for Song Mo to place a few more of his men in the Palace of Heavenly Purity...

Lost in thought, Song Mo took a sip of tea before asking the Crown Prince with concern, "What happened?"

After a moment’s hesitation, the Crown Prince lowered his voice. "I wanted Cui Yijun to pass a message to Wang Yuan, but he said it would be unwise to involve Wang Yuan, lest His Majesty misunderstand that I was manipulating his eunuchs, deepening his distrust of me. Do you think I should still send word to Wang Yuan?"

Song Mo couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

Having weathered hardships, the Crown Prince was no longer as meek as before—he was learning to strategize.

"I believe Chief Eunuch Cui makes a valid point," Song Mo said. "Not only should you minimize contact with those close to His Majesty, but you must also make a clear stance: anyone who dares to bring His Majesty’s affairs to you should be beaten to death on the spot."

The Crown Prince nodded thoughtfully.

The room fell into complete silence.

Suddenly, voices rose outside.

Frowning, Song Mo called out sharply, "Wuyi! Who’s making noise out there? Such disregard for rules—inform Madam at once and summon a broker to sell them all off."

Wuyi hesitated, unlike his usual prompt obedience.

Curious, the Crown Prince asked, "Is there something urgent delaying you?"

Even Wuyi, who had survived the upheavals of the Duke of Yingguo's Mansion, trembled under the Crown Prince’s questioning. He dropped to his knees, stammering, "It’s the Young Lord... He ordered us to keep watch on the Yunyang Earl’s residence. Today, they suddenly moved all of Young Master Gu’s belongings to their secluded courtyard in Daxing. Young Master Gu might be in trouble... He’s still in Tianjin overseeing the shipment for our Young Lord...""Gu Yu?" The Crown Prince, who had been overwhelmed with work lately, murmured the name, then gave Song Mo a bitter smile. "You're truly a loyal friend, still standing up for Gu Yu even in such dire circumstances."

Song Mo quickly rose to his feet. "Your Highness, please forgive my offense—"

The Crown Prince waved his hand, cutting him off. "I was just thinking how fortunate Gu Yu is to have a friend like you." He sighed deeply and turned to Wuyi. "Go and inform the Yunyang Bo's household. The Empress treated the Shen family well in the past—do they think I lack even the magnanimity of a woman? Tell them not to shift with the wind and make things difficult for Gu Yu." He added, "You alone might not be enough. I'll have Cui Yijun accompany you."

Song Mo promptly expressed gratitude on Gu Yu's behalf, while Wuyi kowtowed nine times before withdrawing.

The Crown Prince sighed. "In this world, there are many who add flowers to brocade, but few who offer fuel in snowy weather."

Song Mo could only console him. "Though few, they do exist. Please set your mind at ease—things will improve day by day."

After this conversation, the Crown Prince felt considerably lighter in spirit.

Song Mo then ventured, "Have you considered arranging a marriage for Gu Yu?"

The Crown Prince was taken aback but soon gave the matter serious thought. With the passing of the Empress and Liao Wang's eldest son, he needed to display profound grief while also showing favor to Gu Yu, whom the Empress had treated as her own child. This was indeed an excellent idea!

His excitement grew. "And Princess Jingyi—her previous betrothal to the Xingguo Duke's family fell through, and she remains unmarried. With the Empress gone, she must be anxious, with no one to care for her fate. If I discuss this with the Emperor and have him personally select a good match for her, it might lift his spirits. This is a perfect topic..." The more he considered it, the more he appreciated Song Mo's suggestion.

Seeing events unfold as he had hoped, Song Mo smiled faintly. "Speaking of Princess Jingyi, what if Gu Yu were to marry Princess Jingtai?"

The Crown Prince blinked. "Marry a princess?"

"This is my thought," Song Mo explained. "If we arrange a marriage for Gu Yu, a family of too high status might refuse, while one too low would seem insincere. Why not have him marry a princess? He could then inherit the Yunyang Bo title and live as a comfortable noble, which would also reassure Lady Shufei."

Lady Shufei was a shrewd and influential figure in the palace. By arranging Princess Jingtai's marriage, her intelligence would surely prompt her to speak well of him before the Emperor.

The Crown Prince eagerly agreed. "Excellent! Let's proceed this way. I'll return to the palace immediately, first to console His Majesty, then discuss Princess Jingyi's situation and marriage, and finally bring up Princess Jingtai..."

Demonstrating such fraternal affection would surely please the Emperor.

With that, the Crown Prince rose and departed as hastily as he had arrived.

Song Mo exhaled in relief and returned home, embracing Dou Zhao with a smile. "It was you who had Wuyi deliver that message to me, wasn't it?"

The Duke of Yingguo's mansion was no shabby household, and the Hall of Cultivating Will had strict rules. Even if the Yunyang Bo's family had removed Gu Yu's belongings—let alone if they were hunting him—it would be unthinkable for anyone to barge in with reports during the Crown Prince's visit.

Dou Zhao smiled knowingly. "If you brought up Gu Yu's matter directly, it would seem too deliberate. But if you didn't, once the Crown Prince began rectifying official affairs, Gu Yu might suffer. We had to take the risk."Song Mo laughed heartily and said, "We truly are kindred spirits, thinking alike. However, the Crown Prince is currently in high spirits and won’t think of this matter for a while. But given time, he’s bound to find it odd. Wuyi can’t stay in the mansion any longer."

He called Wuyi in and asked, "Would you rather join the military garrison or the yamen?"

Joining the garrison would mean entering military service, binding his descendants to military households for generations. Going to the yamen would only allow him to become a constable—though hereditary, his son would need the capability to succeed him.

Neither option seemed ideal to him.

He hesitated and looked up at Dou Zhao.

Dou Zhao gave him an encouraging nod and teased with a smile, "Opportunity knocks but once. You’d better make up your mind quickly."

Reassured, Wuyi said, "I’d like to follow Zhao Liangbi and go into trade!"

Both Song Mo and Dou Zhao were surprised. However, since Dou Zhao had many business ventures, it wouldn’t be bad for Wuyi to stay and become a shopkeeper under Zhao Liangbi. In ten or eight years, the Crown Prince wouldn’t even recognize him.

"Fine!" Song Mo chuckled. "Go find Zhao Liangbi then."

Overjoyed, Wuyi kowtowed to Song Mo before withdrawing.

Dou Zhao smiled and said, "Since you’re making a show of reorganizing internal affairs, shouldn’t you also deal with the people on Duke Yichun’s side?"

Song Mo couldn’t help but laugh again. "So this was your real intention all along?"

Dou Zhao merely smiled without responding.

Song Yichun’s injuries had long healed, but he could no longer speak. Having also lost his position as Commander-in-chief of the Five Armies Commandery, he remained bedridden under the pretext of illness. Song Mo assigned Lü Zheng and his wife to attend to his daily needs. Lü Zheng, who had served Song Yichun since childhood, remained loyal and diligent. His wife, however, harbored resentment over Song Yichun’s past neglect of Lü Zheng and constantly whispered complaints into her husband’s ear. Only after Lü Zheng beat her did she stop. But she blamed Song Yichun for this and grew careless in her duties—laundry and meals became haphazard. As a man, Lü Zheng was already overwhelmed by Song Yichun’s inexplicable temper tantrums and the disarray in Cassia Fragrance Courtyard, leaving little attention for such details. Even when he occasionally noticed and reprimanded her, she would apologize earnestly, only to resume her neglect afterward. The subordinates followed her example.

Compounding the problem, Song Yichun couldn’t speak and believed Lü Zheng should instinctively recognize his discomfort, so he vented his frustrations on him. To pacify him, Lü Zheng spent even more time and energy on Song Yichun, further neglecting daily affairs. The servants grew increasingly lax, and Cassia Fragrance Courtyard descended into chaos, filled with resentment and complaints, making it a place no one wanted to enter.

Song Mo tasked Yan Chaoqing with handling the matter.

Within days, many people in The Duke of England's Mansion were either dismissed or sold off.

Upon hearing this, the Crown Prince remarked to the Crown Princess, "It seems the Duke of England's Mansion must be left to Song Yantang to manage."

Song Yichun’s incompetence was somewhat notorious within certain circles.

The Crown Princess replied, "It should have been this way long ago. Had it not been for Song Yantang’s unwavering loyalty, the palace coup would have been disastrous."

Both remembered how Dou Zhao and her child had been abducted by Liao Wang’s men during that time.

The Crown Prince nodded. "Send gifts over every now and then. After all, the Duke of England's Mansion has always maintained close ties with the palace.""I understand," the Crown Princess said with a smile, presenting a basket of peaches from the Marquis Changxing's recent tribute to the Duke of England's Mansion.

"Peaches at this time of year?" Dou Zhao was pleasantly surprised and naturally sent some to the Dou family and Jiang Yan.

Upon hearing this, Marquis Changxing's expression darkened.

He had long been aware of the Crown Prince's visit to Song Mo.

Had he not only failed to outmaneuver the Old Duke of England but now couldn't even compete with Song Mo?

He invited Cui Yijun for tea.

Cui Yijun politely declined with a smile: "This servant cannot leave the palace without imperial orders. I appreciate Marquis Changxing's kindness."

He had no intention of getting involved in these matters.

After all, Song Mo and Wang Yuan were old acquaintances.

If he tried to move against Song Mo, even exhausting all his strength might not guarantee success. Yet if Song Mo wanted to act against him, a single word to Wang Yuan would suffice.

That old dog Wang Yuan was probably just waiting for an excuse to pounce on him!