Dou Shiying had never considered this possibility before. After all, Wang Yingxue was still alive, while Zhao Guqiu had passed away over a decade ago.

He excitedly slapped his thigh and exclaimed, “That’s a great idea! Let’s do it!” After finishing dinner, he immediately went to Huaishu Alley.

When the Fifth Madam heard about it, she said, “My sister-in-law and I had thought about this before, but we didn’t feel it was appropriate to bring it up. Who would have thought that Seventh Uncle would figure it out on his own?”

Dou Shizhu also smiled and said, “He’s been acting more methodically these days compared to before.”

The Fifth Madam nodded, looking at the silver strands appearing in her husband’s sideburns. She said with concern, “If things go smoothly for them, you’ll have less to worry about.”

Dou Shizhu smiled gently at his wife and handed her an ink stick. “Here, help me grind some ink. I’m going to write a letter to Second Brother to add an entry to the family genealogy.”

The Fifth Madam smiled and responded with a “Yes,” rolling up her sleeves to quietly help her husband grind the ink.

Meanwhile, Dou Zhao, who had returned home, gave Song Mo a good “reward.” Amidst his joy, Song Mo felt a bit uneasy and asked, “Did something happen?”

Dou Zhao was both amused and exasperated. She glanced at him sideways and said, “What could have happened?”

Song Mo chuckled, not wanting to miss out on his “benefits.” He embraced the half-naked Dou Zhao and whispered, “I want to enter you from behind.”

As he spoke, his manhood was already pressing hard against the inside of Dou Zhao’s thigh.

Dou Zhao was startled by how quickly he had become aroused again. She looked at him askance and said, “Haven’t you had enough chaos already?”

She didn’t realize that her face was flushed like a red cloud at that moment, and her sidelong glance was as alluring as dew-kissed crabapple blossoms. Her charm and allure were indescribable, further stoking Song Mo’s passion.

“We can have them come in and clean up later,” Song Mo said as his hand grasped her ample bosom, pressing Dou Zhao down onto the bed.

Aroused once again by his touch, Dou Zhao simply closed her eyes and let him have his way.

The next morning, the wet nurse brought Young Master Yuan over for feeding.

Dou Zhao was so embarrassed that she could hardly look at Yuan’s face. Trying to maintain her composure, she instructed the wet nurse, “You feed him this morning!”

The wet nurse retreated in confusion.

Ganlu, who was attending nearby, thought of the bedding stained with various marks that had been changed, and guessed what had happened. Her face also began to flush.

Only Song Mo, the instigator, remained calm, slowly sipping his porridge.

But as soon as he walked out the door, the corners of his mouth turned up in a smile.

Young Master Yuan reluctantly drank a few mouthfuls of the wet nurse’s milk, but before an hour had passed, he was crying and nuzzling towards Dou Zhao’s bosom.

The time had been too short for Dou Zhao’s body to recover, so Yuan only ate half his fill. Within half an hour, he was fussing again, completely disrupting his usual routine.

Dou Zhao blushed privately, doting on her son. She let him eat whenever he wanted, resulting in Yuan constantly clinging to her embrace. When Ruo Zhu came to report that Jiang Yan had seemed absent-minded lately, Dou Zhao had no choice but to carry Yuan with her to the Bishui Pavilion.

Upon closer inspection, Jiang Yan did indeed look thinner than before.

Dou Zhao let her play with Yuan and asked, “Do you have something on your mind?”

Jiang Yan was silent for a moment, then said softly, “I want to go to the Great Xiangguo Temple to offer incense…”

Dou Zhao found this a bit strange, but when she asked further, Jiang Yan blushed and remained silent. Thinking that Jiang Yan was about to be married and might have some thoughts she was too embarrassed to express, Dou Zhao smiled and agreed, arranging for a carriage and attendants for the trip.

Jiang Yan shyly thanked Dou Zhao and timidly asked, “Could I invite Twelfth Sister to come along?”

“Having her accompany you would be perfect,” Dou Zhao said. She had originally planned to go herself, but since Jiang Yan had a close friend to go with, Dou Zhao was happy to let her go. She encouraged Jiang Yan to write an invitation to Jiang Lizhu.

Jiang Lizhu had been married to the Wu family for over half a year. Though the couple was loving and life was going well, for some reason, she had not yet shown signs of pregnancy. Although her mother-in-law comforted her, saying these things couldn’t be rushed, Jiang Lizhu still felt anxious. She had been considering going to offer incense to Guanyin Bodhisattva when she received Jiang Yan’s invitation, which she gladly accepted.

Madam Wu, having gone from being a daughter-in-law to a mother-in-law herself, understood Jiang Lizhu’s feelings well. She instructed servants to prepare incense and candles and saw Jiang Lizhu off to the carriage.

Song Mo also hoped that Jiang Yan could have a friend to socialize with. When he learned she was going to the Great Xiangguo Temple to offer incense, he had someone give her 100 taels of silver for incense money.

Jiang Yan tried to decline.

Song Mo’s face immediately turned ashen.

Dou Zhao quickly gave Jiang Yan a meaningful look.

Jiang Yan belatedly realized she had made a mistake and hurriedly accepted the silver, thanking Song Mo before retreating in a fluster.

Song Mo couldn’t help but rub his temples.

Dou Zhao laughed and held out her palm to him, saying coyly, “The jeweler’s manager is bringing Yan-mei’s wedding jewelry today. I want to have a pearl headdress made!”

Song Mo laughed and pulled Dou Zhao onto his lap, nibbling her ear as he said, “Everything I have is yours, how could I deny you a pearl headdress? Let’s not just make a pearl headdress—I’ll have a hundred-treasure necklace made for you, how about that?”

“Who wears a hundred-treasure necklace on a regular day?” Dou Zhao argued with him. “You just don’t want to let me have my way.”

Song Mo’s hand slipped inside her collar, teasing, “Let me have a taste, and we’ll make both the pearl headdress and the hundred-treasure necklace…”

Dou Zhao admitted defeat and jumped up from his lap.

Song Mo laughed heartily, feeling very pleased. He pulled her back, not letting her leave.

As the couple was still entangled, Wu Yi reported from behind the quilted door curtain, “Young Master, Geng Li is here.”

Song Mo released Dou Zhao and gently kissed her cheek, saying softly, “I’ll be right back.”

Dou Zhao obediently helped straighten his clothes and saw him out of the inner chamber, standing at the door until Song Mo’s figure disappeared from the main courtyard before turning back inside.

Although Song Mo had maintained his composure, she had felt his body stiffen slightly when he heard the name “Geng Li.”

She summoned Liu Zhang, the servant boy left behind by Du Wei, and asked if he knew who Geng Li was.

The more one knew, the more one understood Dou Zhao’s place in Song Mo’s heart, and the more wary one became of her.

Liu Zhang’s teeth chattered as he answered, “This lowly one knows. He is the Prince of Liao’s top advisor.”

Dou Zhao was stunned. She dismissed Liu Zhang and sat uneasily on the large kang by the window, waiting for Song Mo to return.

Now that he had become Commander-in-Chief, the Prince of Liao had finally extended his reach to Song Mo.

Was this perhaps heaven’s arrangement? Was the Prince of Liao’s ascension to the throne also heaven’s will?

Dou Zhao pondered silently, not even noticing when tea spilled onto her skirt.

The maids rushed forward to attend to her.

Song Mo returned, his expression calm but with a hint of amusement in his eyes.

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but feel curious.

After Dou Zhao had changed her clothes and the servants had withdrawn, Song Mo smiled and said, “Guess why Geng Li came to see me?”

Guessing that his conversation with Geng Li must have gone well, Dou Zhao teased, “Could it be that he came to bring you gifts?”

“Not quite, but you’re not far off,” Song Mo winked at her. “Geng Li came on behalf of the Prince of Liao to see me, seeking to marry Ah Yan as his official wife.”

Dou Zhao was shocked and blurted out, “As his officially recognized wife?”

Song Mo nodded and said, “If we agree to this marriage, he will immediately submit a memorial to request imperial approval. Geng Li even brought the memorial with him.”

This news was too sudden. Dou Zhao’s heart was in turmoil, and she barely managed to suppress the words “No way” from escaping her lips. She asked Song Mo with concern, “What do you plan to do?”

Song Mo said, “Naturally, I will politely decline!” His expression turned a bit cold as he continued, “Ah Yan has suffered enough. I have no intention of letting her marry far away.”

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but blush at her momentary wavering earlier.

She asked, “What about Chen Jia and Yan-mei’s marriage?”

Song Mo frowned and said through gritted teeth, “That lucky bastard.”

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but smile.

Wu Yi ran in, panic-stricken, “Young Master, Madam, something terrible has happened! The young miss was kidnapped on her way to the Great Xiangguo Temple!”

Song Mo stood up abruptly and demanded harshly, “What did you say? Where’s Zhu Yicheng?”

Dou Zhao also stood up in a fluster.

Zhu Yicheng had accompanied them today.

The Great Xiangguo Temple was one of the most prosperous Buddhist temples in the capital, with a constant stream of worshippers every day. Who would dare to abduct someone in such a heavily guarded area of the capital?

She looked towards Song Mo.

Song Mo was already striding out, issuing stern orders to Wu Yi as he walked, “Call for Xia Lian immediately! Prepare my horse!”

Wu Yi responded with a “Yes” and ran out urgently.

Dou Zhao called out “Yan Tang” and said, “Have Duan Gongyi go with you as well!”

Song Mo nodded and hurried out of the main courtyard.

Dou Zhao felt uneasy and followed him.

She arrived just in time to see Song Mo leap onto his horse and pull on the reins, shouting at Wu Yi, “Bring me my bow!”

Xia Lian, Duan Gongyi, and others were already fully equipped and waiting.

Dou Zhao was terrified.

In her previous life, Song Mo had killed the Crown Prince with a single arrow.

She instinctively ran forward and grabbed Song Mo’s robe, anxiously saying, “Yan-mei is a girl. You can’t let this become public knowledge.”

Song Mo’s brow was furrowed with murderous intent, but after a moment’s thought, he nodded.

Dou Zhao breathed a sigh of relief.

Wu Yi came carrying Song Mo’s bow.

The sound of rapid hoofbeats came from outside the gate.

Everyone turned to look.

They saw Chen Jia, pale-faced, running in from the main gate.

Seeing the scene in the courtyard, he was momentarily stunned, but quickly became agitated.

He cupped his fists toward Song Mo and said, “Young Master, let me go with you!”

Song Mo, sitting high on his horse, looked down at Chen Jia with eyes cold as ice, saying nothing for a long moment.

Chen Jia was bewildered.

Song Mo said coldly, “Just now, the Prince of Liao sent someone to propose marriage to Ah Yan as his wife. I had barely finished politely refusing when Ah Yan was kidnapped. Do you still want to come with me?”

The color drained from Chen Jia’s face, leaving him even paler than before.

He slowly knelt before Song Mo, solemnly kowtowing three times, and said firmly, “Young Master, please take me with you!”

Song Mo’s lips curled into a smile as he spurred his horse out of the manor.

Xia Lian and the others followed with a clatter.

Left behind were Dou Zhao, surrounded by maids, and Chen Jia, kneeling alone in the middle of the courtyard.

Dou Zhao’s eyes welled up with tears as she said softly to Chen Jia, “Be careful. Weapons don’t have eyes.”

Chen Jia cupped his fists and bowed to Dou Zhao before running out of Duke Ying’s manor.

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but look up at the sky, letting out a long sigh. The corners of her mouth turned up in a gratified smile.