Wei Tingzhen suddenly felt anxious and flustered.
She asked the elderly maid, “Did the person from the Dou family say anything else?”
“That person, I’m not sure if they were honest or just slow-witted, answered only one out of every three questions,” the maid replied. “Even this bit of information slipped out unintentionally, and I happened to overhear it.”
Wei Tingzhen grew increasingly worried and consulted her mother about the matter.
Lady Tian was also surprised. “This doesn’t seem right,” she said. “The Dou family wouldn’t fail to prepare a dowry for Dou Zhao. Moreover, she should have her savings left by Lady Zhao. Why would she come to the capital asking for a dowry just before her wedding?”
“That’s why I find this situation so peculiar!” Wei Tingzhen’s suspicions grew after hearing her mother’s thoughts. “I think we should send someone to investigate this matter thoroughly.”
“Is that appropriate?” Lady Tian hesitated. “Even if the Dou family’s dowry is substantial, it’s none of our business…”
“Mother!” Wei Tingzhen interrupted, feeling a headache coming on. “Inquiring about Dou Zhao’s dowry doesn’t necessarily mean we want to claim it. Who wouldn’t want to add flowers to brocade? If Dou Zhao brings a larger dowry, she’ll be more financially comfortable. Wouldn’t that mean you could provide less for her? If she can leave some assets for your grandchildren, won’t their lives be better off? Our family is small, while the Dou family has many descendants. If Dou Zhao maintains a close relationship with her natal family, wouldn’t that mean more support for our brother? If she’s distant from her natal family, this marriage becomes pointless for both sides. What’s the use in that?”
Convinced by her daughter’s arguments, Lady Tian said, “Well then, go ahead and investigate.”
Wei Tingzhen responded with a somewhat dejected “Yes” and sent Nanny Jin to look into Dou Zhao’s affairs.
Hong Gu returned nervously to the stationery shop. As soon as she entered, she pulled Chen Qushui aside to talk. “I said exactly what you instructed… But what if the Wei family misunderstands and thinks our young miss has no dowry? What if they reject her because of it?”
Before Hong Gu could finish, Chen Qushui’s face hardened. “What nonsense are you talking about? Are you suggesting that if our young miss has a dowry, the Wei family will joyfully welcome her, but without one, they’ll call off the engagement? If the Wei family is that kind of household, it’s better not to marry into it at all! I sent you there to test the Wei family’s true nature. Men fear choosing the wrong career, women fear marrying the wrong man.
The Seventh Master doesn’t concern himself with anything, and the Seventh Mistress is even worse, being confused about even her own daughter’s affairs. We can’t rely on them at all. If we don’t keep an eye out for our young miss, won’t she suffer greatly in the future? Now that we know the Wei family’s attitude, we can devise a strategy. We can’t let our young miss be mistreated, can we?”
This righteous speech made Hong Gu feel the weight of her responsibility. She voluntarily reported to Chen Qushui, ” Madam Wei seemed to be a very kind person. She was quite polite to me. It was her maid who had needles in her eyes when looking at people. She was the one who probed me.”
“You see? This test revealed so much!” Chen Qushui declared righteously. “Our young miss’s future mother-in-law is a kind person, but her maid dares to probe you. This shows that Madam Wei is lax in managing her subordinates and is easily swayed. It’s a case of ‘The King of Hell is easy to see, but the little demons are hard to deal with.’ When our young miss marries into their family, if she wants to win her mother-in-law’s favor, the first thing she’ll need to do is appease the people around Madam Wei.”
Hong Gu found Chen Qushui’s words very reasonable and nodded continuously.
Thinking of how Dou Zhao was used to having her way at home, and now after marriage, she would not only have to mind Madam Wei’s moods but also those of her servants, Hong Gu felt sorry for Dou Zhao. She choked up and said, “Mr. Chen, this is too unfair for our young miss!”
“Ah!” Chen Qushui sighed. “Why do you think a girl is called a ‘treasure’ at home but becomes a ‘humble wife’ after marriage?” Then he consoled Hong Gu, “Isn’t this the path every woman must tread?”
After a moment of silence, Hong Gu asked softly, “What should I do next?” She appeared ready to cooperate with Chen Qushui’s plans.
Chen Qushui nodded inwardly and said, “Tomorrow, we’ll go pay our respects to the Seventh Master together. Then we’ll discuss our young miss’s dowry with him. Although half of the Western Dou family’s assets are in our young miss’s name, if we bring everything to the Wei family at once, who knows what might happen? You’ve seen that Madam Wei isn’t capable of managing affairs. There’s a saying, ‘It’s easy to share hardships but difficult to share prosperity.’ If the Wei family sets their sights on our young miss’s assets, it could harm her! We need to ask the Seventh Master’s opinion on how to handle the dowry. After that, you can move freely around the capital—it’s a rare chance to visit Beijing! If anyone asks you anything, just answer truthfully. Just don’t tell anyone what we and the Seventh Master have discussed.”
Hong Gu felt relieved, and her entire demeanor brightened.
She had lived most of her life without ever deceiving anyone or telling lies. She had agreed to say those things in front of the Wei family at Chen Qushui’s request because their trip to Beijing was indeed about discussing the Fourth Miss’s dowry with the Seventh Master.
“Mr. Chen, please rest assured. I understand that a servant shouldn’t spread the master’s words carelessly,” Hong Gu hurriedly promised Chen Qushui. “Except for Madam Cui, I won’t tell anyone else, no matter who asks.”
Chen Qushui nodded approvingly.
The next day, he went with Hong Gu to Jing’an Temple Alley.
Jing’an Temple Alley truly lived up to its name of “peaceful and quiet.”
Snow-white walls, lush green trees, and a tranquil alley exuded a natural, ancient charm cultivated over the years. People who entered the alley unconsciously lightened their footsteps and steadied their breathing.
Dou Shiying received Chen Qushui and Hong Gu in his study.
Upon learning of their purpose, he scratched his head and asked, “What does Shou Gu say?”
Chen Qushui counted to ten in his mind before speaking. “The Fourth Miss intends that, apart from the items left to her by Lady Zhao, everything else should remain under the management of the Third Master Dou. After the marriage, further arrangements can be made based on the son-in-law’s wishes.”
The husband is heaven, the wife is earth. If the couple lives in harmony, such a large amount of property, far exceeding an ordinary family’s dowry, should naturally be entrusted to the husband’s management. If Wei Tingyu doesn’t show enough respect to Dou Zhao, she needn’t give him a face.
Dou Shiying understood the implication of Chen Qushui’s words. He said frankly, “Then let’s proceed according to the Fourth Miss’s wishes.”
This was within Dou Zhao and Chen Qushui’s expectations. Chen Qushui smiled and said “Yes,” then handed Dou Zhao’s dowry list to Dou Shiying. “This is what the Aunt wrote during the Miss’s coming-of-age ceremony. Madam Cui added a few items, and so did the Sixth Madam. Please take a look and see if there’s anything you’d like to add or remove.”
Dou Shiying glanced at it briefly before returning it to Chen Qushui. “Since the Aunt, Madam Cui, and the Sixth Madam have all reviewed it, there shouldn’t be any mistakes. You can prepare according to this list.” He paused slightly, then continued, “I have a few flower-and-bird paintings here that Shou Gu would surely like. Let’s include them in her dowry as well!”
Items collected by Dou Shiying were undoubtedly of high quality.
Chen Qushui hurriedly thanked Dou Shiying on Dou Zhao’s behalf.
Dou Shiying felt he deserved this courtesy and accepted it graciously. He instructed Chen Qushui, “As for the family’s share of the dowry and such, you can discuss that with the Sixth Madam when the time comes.” Then he invited Chen Qushui and Hong Gu to stay at his home, saying, “How can you stay at the shop? That won’t do!”
“Since the young miss is getting married, we need to quickly sort out the shop’s accounts,” Chen Qushui respectfully explained with a smile. “Hong Gu has also been entrusted by Madam Cui to buy some nice things to add to the young miss’s trousseau, so staying at the shop is more convenient for coming and going. In a few days, when we’ve mostly finished our tasks, we’ll come to trouble the Seventh Master again.”
Dou Shiying wasn’t one to fuss over minor details. Finding Chen Qushui’s explanation reasonable, he inquired about the family’s situation.
Hong Gu answered all his questions one by one.
As lunchtime approached, Chen Qushui stood up to take his leave. “We need to hurry to Cat Alley. The young miss also instructed me to bring some things for the Sixth Madam.”
In Dou Shiying’s mind, Dou Shiheng’s home was no different from his own.
“Alright then!” He didn’t mind and instructed them, “Since Shou Gu is marrying into a Beijing family, you should also pay a visit to the Fifth Master’s place on her behalf.”
Chen Qushui was secretly delighted and respectfully agreed.
Dou Shiying asked Gao Sheng to see the two out.
However, Chen Qushui firmly stopped Gao Sheng at the door. “We’re family, so let’s not stand on ceremony. I won’t be formal with you, and you shouldn’t be formal with me. Otherwise, it would be treating me like an outsider.”
They were indeed family.
Gao Sheng smiled and stopped, watching Chen Qushui and Hong Gu leave.
Chen Qushui and Hong Gu had a simple lunch at a small restaurant next to Jing’an Temple, then went to Cat Alley.
The Sixth Madam held Hong Gu’s hand tightly, asking about every detail of Dou Zhao’s daily meals before inquiring about Hong Gu’s purpose in coming to Beijing.
Hong Gu only mentioned that she came to discuss Dou Zhao’s dowry matters with Dou Shiying, saying nothing else.
The Sixth Madam understood the implication. After chatting idly with Hong Gu for a while, a servant from the outer courtyard came on Chen Qushui’s behalf to summon Hong Gu.
Hong Gu stood up to take her leave. “The Seventh Master instructed us to pay our respects to the Fifth Master on behalf of the young miss.”
“You should indeed go and familiarize yourselves with the place,” the Sixth Madam personally escorted Hong Gu to the second gate, asking what gifts they had prepared.
“For the Fifth Master, we have a jade lion paperweight, and for the Fifth Madam, a string of nanmu wood prayer beads…” Chen Qushui reported the gift list to the Sixth Madam.
Seeing that the preparations were complete and thoughtful, the Sixth Madam felt reassured. She gave them some additional advice and asked Madam Wang to see them out.
Chen Qushui and Hong Gu then went to Locust Tree Alley where Dou Shizhu resided.
Dou Shiheng wasn’t home. The Fifth Madam was surprised to hear that a servant from Madam Cui’s household had come to pay respects.
After some thought, she received Hong Gu in the flower hall.
Hong Gu had heard about this Fifth Madam before. She was the daughter of Fan Junming, the chief examiner when the Fifth Master took the provincial examination. Not only did she come from an official family, but she was also clever and capable, serving as the Fifth Master’s competent helper. However, Hong Gu had never met her before, and people generally believed in the saying “A wife’s status depends on her husband.” Now that Dou Shizhu was a cabinet minister, Hong Gu was trembling with fear when she met the Fifth Madam, not daring to even raise her head, let alone speak much.
Upon learning that Hong Gu was merely paying a courtesy visit on behalf of Dou Zhao, the Fifth Madam felt somewhat relieved.
Since Dou Shizhu had entered the cabinet, their household had become a hub of activity, mostly filled with people seeking favors. Although she had never met this Fourth Miss of the Dou family, her reputation preceded her. Every move Dou Zhao made would stir up waves, and the Fifth Madam truly feared that Dou Zhao might have some request for her help. Her mother-in-law, the Second Madam, had instructed her that all matters concerning Dou Zhao must be decided by the Second Madam herself. As Dou Shiheng’s wife, she naturally understood the reasons behind this.