Blossom

Bie Suxin met Chen Xiaofeng at the gatehouse of the Dou family's outer courtyard.

Chen Xiaofeng asked dejectedly, "Have you really pledged yourself to Fourth Miss Dou?"

Bie Suxin laughed. "Would I lie about something like this?"

Chen Xiaofeng remained silent for a long while.

Bie Suxin said, "If you have nothing else to discuss, I’ll take my leave. I’ve been learning etiquette from Sixth Madam of the Eastern Residence these days." Then she added, "The Dou family is full of gossip, and there are many long-serving servants here. Since my sister and I entered the household at this age, we already stand out. If people hear us addressing each other as martial siblings, they’ll only grow more curious about us. From now on, I’ll call you Elder Brother Chen." She asked, "When are you planning to leave the pass with Crippled Chen? If anything happens at home, your mother can send word to us. Fourth Miss Dou is very kind—we can spare some time to visit your mother."

Hearing this, Chen Xiaofeng felt even more ashamed. "I only agreed to follow Crippled Chen beyond the pass because he offered good pay—I wanted to help support you two. But now that you’ve found a place for yourselves, and my mother doesn’t want me to leave home, I’ve already turned him down."

Bie Suxin gave a noncommittal "Oh."

A commotion arose near the main gate.

Both Chen Xiaofeng and Bie Suxin turned to look.

They saw two dust-covered black carriages with flat roofs stop at the entrance of Western Dou. Steward Du An lifted the curtain and helped a man in his fifties alight.

The man was of average height, with a fair, beardless face. He wore a sapphire-blue Straight Robe embroidered with floral patterns, exuding the refined air of a scholar.

He raised his head to examine the Dou family’s gate. Du An introduced, "This is our master’s ancestral home. Please, Mr. Song!"

The man addressed as Mr. Song smiled and followed Du An inside.

Meanwhile, Dou Zhao had already received word that Dou Shiying’s newly hired private tutor, Mr. Song, had arrived.

Dou Zhao instructed Gaoxing (Happy) to settle Mr. Song in.

Gaoxing was Gaosheng’s younger brother. When Dou Shiying left for the Capital, Gaosheng had accompanied him to attend to his needs. Originally, Du An—who had once served Dou Duo—was to oversee household affairs in his absence. However, Wang Yingxue, finding Du An meticulous and reliable, wanted him to go to the Capital as well and proposed that Du An’s cousin, Du Ning, take over as chief steward. The household was full of servants, and Du An’s promotion was due to his prior service under Dou Duo. Dou Shiying, indifferent to such matters, agreed without a second thought.

Before Dou Shiying had even departed, Dou Zhao used the excuse that her farmstead needed stewards to transfer several of Wang Yingxue’s loyal stewards there, replacing them with new appointees. After Dou Shiying left, Dou Zhao further sidelined Du Ning by assigning all tasks to Gaoxing, who managed the gatehouse. Before long, she dismissed the transferred stewards, claiming they were incompetent in farmstead affairs, leaving them idle at home.

Even the lowliest sweepers in the Dou household understood what was happening, but none dared speak up—they simply treated Dou Zhao with even greater deference.

Du Ning, too, dared not confront Dou Zhao directly. Only when drunk would he curse Gaoxing: "What kind of trash is he? Can’t even read an account book, yet he’s chief steward? He’ll make people laugh their teeth out!"Upon hearing this, Dou Zhao sent out a message: "If I say someone is capable, they are—incapable or not. If I say someone is incapable, they aren’t—capable or not!" This sent shivers down the spines of everyone in Western Dou, and soon, someone deliberately relayed these words to the Eastern household. Second Madam frowned upon hearing it and privately remarked that Dou Zhao had grown arrogant. Originally intending to lend her a hand, Second Madam now chose to remain silent on the sidelines. When this was reported back to Dou Zhao, she pretended not to hear it. Instead, she privately instructed Gaoxing (Happy) on how to prioritize tasks and delegate minor ones. Gaoxing followed her instructions meticulously. Though his approach was rigid, over a year passed without any major mistakes, which even drew a surprised "Huh?" from Second Madam.

Gaoxing returned in less than half an incense stick’s time.

"Fourth Miss," he reported respectfully, "Steward Du has returned, and Mr. Song is with him."

Dou Zhao raised an eyebrow.

What was Du An doing back?

She asked Gaoxing, "Did you return on your own, or did Steward Du tell you not to interfere?"

Gaoxing answered honestly, "I couldn’t be of help and thought I should inform you, so I came back."

Dou Zhao said, "In that case, pass down my orders: no one is to interfere with Mr. Song’s affairs."

Gaoxing understood what "not interfere" meant but hesitated. "But Mr. Song is the private tutor Seventh Master hired for you. What if he gets driven away like that Jiang Yougong?"

"What does that have to do with us?" Dou Zhao asked curiously. "Isn’t Du An the one hosting Mr. Song? If Mr. Song leaves, shouldn’t my father hold Du An accountable?"

Gaoxing thought it over and found her reasoning sound. With a simple smile, he relayed her orders.

Immediately, Du An found himself without even someone to hand him a handkerchief.

Furious, he summoned Du Ning and berated him harshly.

Du Ning said aggrievedly, "I told you long ago you should stay with the Dou family..."

"Bullshit!" Du An snapped. "No matter how formidable Fourth Miss is, she’ll marry off in a few years. Even if I fawn over her, Seventh Master will always favor Gaosheng, who grew up serving him." He sighed. "If Fourth Miss were a son, I wouldn’t hesitate—I’d just curry her favor and live comfortably."

"But if you offend Fourth Miss, she might dismiss you whenever she remembers. If you offend the Madam, you could still beg Fourth Miss for a position at her farmstead or shop..."

If Fourth Miss hadn’t inherited half of Western Dou’s assets, would she still be this domineering?

Du An sighed inwardly and fell silent for a long moment.

Du Ning cautiously asked, "What should we do about this?"

Du An glared at him. "What should we do? Find some people to handle the current mess first." He added, "The Madam sent me back for urgent business. Don’t worry about household affairs for now—just follow my orders. If we succeed, you’ll be the real steward of Western Dou." By the end, his words were almost gritted through his teeth.

Du Ning nodded repeatedly and called over his wife, niece, and nephew—all servants in the Dou household—to help.Mr. Song, accustomed to working in wealthy households, had brought along his clan nephew Song Yan to attend to him. Seeing the situation, he couldn’t help but regret his decision and said to his nephew, “At first, I was told there was a young lady at home who wanted to learn poetry, music, calligraphy, and painting for leisure. Who knew the family dynamics would be so complicated? Ah, if not for needing a favor from Lord He, why would I have come here to be a private tutor?”

Song Yan, only fifteen or sixteen years old, was remarkably composed. He comforted Mr. Song with a smile, “Uncle, there’s no need to be disheartened. Just focus on teaching the young lady. Surely they won’t shortchange us on food and clothing. At worst, we’ll finish this year’s teaching and not return next year. That would still fulfill our obligation to Lord He.”

Mr. Song nodded.

Song Yan and Du An’s nephew helped carry the luggage.

By dinnertime, Dou Shibang, at Dou Zhao’s request, hosted a welcoming meal for Mr. Song: “Since the Seventh Elder is away, please forgive any shortcomings, Mr. Song.” He then invited the Song uncle and nephew to Jingfuchun for the meal.

As a result, Du An was left without dinner, infuriating him so much that he grabbed Gaoxing (Happy) by the collar, ready to strike.

Others nearby quickly intervened to separate them.

To make matters worse, Gaoxing naively added, “The household meals are strictly accounted for. Since you didn’t report to Fourth Miss upon returning, she didn’t know and thus gave no orders. The kitchen couldn’t prepare anything. You should go and pay your respects to Fourth Miss first!”

With so much leftover food thrown away daily in the Dou family, was there really no portion to spare for him?

Du An’s face turned purple with rage, but he couldn’t utter a word. Remembering his mistress’s instructions before leaving, he had no choice but to obediently go and greet Dou Zhao.

However, the old women at the Second Gate stopped him outside, offering a forced smile, “Steward Du, the young lady is older now, not like before. It’s no longer appropriate for you to enter the inner courtyard. If you have any matters, we can relay them for you.”

He waited for two hours without even a stool to sit on, his legs numb from standing, before a young maid finally came with a message: “It’s getting late. Fourth Miss asks Steward Du to come back first thing tomorrow morning.”

Unable to hold back, Du An asked, “What was Fourth Miss doing just now?”

The maid smiled coyly, “Fourth Miss was pruning flowers!”

This only infuriated Du An further.

Dou Zhao couldn’t be bothered with Du An. She had Gan Lu and the others quickly make several scented sachets, then went to Daci Temple to seek “All Wishes Fulfilled” charms for Dou Zhengchang, Dou Dechang, Dou Qiguang, Dou Qitai, and Wu Shan, who were all taking the children’s exams this year. She placed the charms in the sachets and sent them over.

Dou Zhengchang and the others had their maids convey words of gratitude, but Wu Shan sent back a box of white fan surfaces with lotus leaf plum designs: “In a few days when the flowers bloom, Fourth Sister can paint a few fan surfaces to gift.”

Dou Zhao smiled, her interest piqued.

After Mr. Song finished explaining the passage from Mencius: Wan Zhang I — “In taking a wife, one must inform one’s parents” — she asked him, “I once learned flower-and-bird painting from my elders and would like to paint some fan surfaces. Could you teach me, sir?”

Apart from the initial discord on the first day, the Dou household had been peaceful, and Dou Zhao was diligent in her studies, which pleased Mr. Song.

He smiled and said, “First, draft your sketches, and I’ll review them for you.”

Dou Zhao happily agreed.Mr. Song, whose given name was Huai and courtesy name Yumin, was well-versed in miscellaneous studies and rather easygoing in nature. Perhaps because he was from the Jiangnan region, he never treated Dou Zhao dismissively for being a girl. Whenever Dou Zhao had questions, he would often cite classics and expound at length, which she found utterly fascinating—so much so that she'd sometimes forget her original question. These days, with the spring breeze caressing their faces, he even taught Dou Zhao how to make a kite. When Dou Zhao took the initiative to learn something like now, his enthusiasm soared even higher.

Upon returning home, Dou Zhao found some fan painting albums to practice copying.

News came from the county school that Dou Zhengchang, Dou Dechang, Dou Qiguang, Dou Qitai, and Wu Shan had all passed the county-level examination. By April, they had also passed the prefectural-level examination. In June, everyone except Dou Qitai passed the prefectural examination, with Wu Shan achieving the highest honor as the Top Scholar.

The reputation of the Dou Family School soared.

Wu Tai Tai brought Wu Ya all the way back from the Capital specifically for this occasion.

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I feel the following content should be divided into a new volume, but after several attempts, I failed. So, I have no choice but to continue writing like this.

(>_<)

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