Song Mo nodded and said, “I happen to have business in the fields of Daxing tomorrow. Please send a message to Chen Qu Shui!”
Everyone in the room was taken aback. Just moments ago, they had been discussing a visit to the Third Prince Consort, Shi Suilan, and now, in the blink of an eye, Song Mo had changed his mind.
Liao Bifeng, new to the group, felt he hadn’t yet grasped Song Mo’s temperament. He glanced at Yan Chaoqing, who was quietly sipping tea with his eyes lowered and decided to remain silent.
Chen He promptly withdrew.
Liao Bifeng continued the previous topic, “Although Duke has intentions to take a new wife, the Young Master has reached the age of understanding, and the Second Master has also passed his childhood. A respectable family may not be willing to marry their daughter into our family; a less reputable family would not serve the purpose of a strategic alliance, which is unhelpful in the current situation. The Duke’s recent rejection of the proposal to marry the daughter of Peng Feng, the Commander of Xuanzhou Wei, in favor of the younger sister of the Marquis of Changxing, reveals his intentions. It would be a good idea for the Young Master to visit Shi Suilan, letting the Shi family know that the Young Master has great ambitions. Given the Shi family’s usual approach, they are unlikely to agree to the Duke’s proposal.”
Yan Chaoqing slightly nodded in agreement, adding, “The Shi family has always prioritized profit over sentiment, preferring to ally with powerful families. Otherwise, Shi Suilan would not have married a princess. The Duke’s desire to marry into the Shi family stems from this. The Young Master’s strategy is excellent—if the Shi family feels they cannot gain anything from this marriage, or worse, that it might offend the Young Master, they will certainly refuse the proposal.”
In the officialdom, there is a saying that one should not underestimate the youth, as young people possess limitless potential; one day, they might rise to prominence. Moreover, with Song Mo’s current momentum, if Shi Ruolan agreed to marry her sister to Song Yichun, it would mean taking a firm stand against Song Mo, leaving no room for negotiation.
Song Mo remained silent, appearing somewhat distracted.
Liao Bifeng assumed Song Mo was troubled by Song Yichun’s marriage prospects. Considering the conflict between Song Mo and Song Yichun, he leaned slightly and offered, “Young Master, without a matriarch managing the household, the Duke’s intention to take a new wife is entirely reasonable and cannot be obstructed. However, if you were to marry, the situation would be different—the Duke’s wife would be a secondary wife, while the Young Master’s wife would be the primary one.
One would hold the position of elder, and the other, the legitimate wife. The internal affairs of the Duke’s residence would depend on whose status is more prominent.” He glanced at Yan Chaoqing and softly reiterated their earlier discussion, “The younger sister of the Marquis of Yan’an, Wang Qinghuai, and the second daughter of the Lu family, the maternal family of the Grand Matriarch… not to mention Princess Jingyi, born of Empress Wan, are all of marriageable age. The Young Master will be out of mourning in January next year; it’s the perfect time to make plans!”
Song Mo scoffed, “My father is probably thinking the same thing.”
Liao Bifeng smiled without speaking.
Song Mo replied, “Let’s put this matter aside for now. He should face some obstacles at the Shi family first.” He appeared unwilling to discuss it further.
Despite his words, as long as the Shi family did not explicitly reject the Duke, this marriage could still happen.
Liao Bifeng quickly asked, “What about the Third Prince Consort?”
“Let’s schedule it for the day after tomorrow!” Song Mo said casually.
Isn’t that a bit late? Liao Bifeng was about to persuade Song Mo further when he felt a tug on his sleeve and heard Yan Chaoqing’s voice, “In that case, we should take our leave. The Young Master should also rest, as you need to head to Daxing early tomorrow.”
Song Mo responded with a simple “Mm.”
Yan Chaoqing and Liao Bifeng stood to bid farewell.
Once outside the main courtyard, Liao Bifeng quickly asked Yan Chaoqing, “Who is Chen Qu Shui? Why does the Young Master treat him with such courtesy? From the Young Master’s tone, it seems he works for someone else. Why didn’t he invite him over?”
Yan Chaoqing found it difficult to answer. To explain who Chen Qu Shui was, he would have to mention Miss Dou Si… The Young Master was most concerned about involving Miss Dou Si. However, he couldn’t leave Liao Bifeng in the dark about Chen Qu Shui’s identity—Liao Bifeng was now the Young Master’s aide, and if he remained uninformed, he might draw incorrect conclusions and cause trouble.
Miss Dou Si was about to marry, and even if the Young Master had a good relationship with Wei Tingyu, they couldn’t maintain their current level of interaction.
How the Young Master knew Miss Dou Si could be explained later when the opportunity arose.
Yan Chaoqing quickly formulated a response: “Chen Qu Shui, whose given name is Bo, was once an aide to Zhang Kai, the former governor of Fujian, who fled the city. He later returned to his hometown, Zhen Ding, and secured a position in the Dou family’s seventh branch, where he was highly regarded by Lord Dou, helping to look after Lord Dou’s legitimate daughter left in Zhen Ding. When the Young Master encountered trouble, he happened to be in the capital and, having received the favor of Duke Ding, assisted the Young Master. Since the Dou family sheltered him during his misfortunes, he felt indebted and chose not to resign, thus remaining with the Dou family. Now that he has come to the capital, the Young Master certainly wants to extend his hospitality.”
Liao Bifeng sensed a flaw in Yan Chaoqing’s explanation. If that were the case, the Young Master should be more concerned about how Chen Qu Shui was faring in the Dou family. However, from the Young Master’s tone, it seemed he was more interested in the marriage of that young lady.
As these thoughts crossed his mind, Song Mo’s contemplative expression lingered in Liao Bifeng’s mind.
He felt a stir of curiosity. Could it be that the Young Master…?
But he quickly suppressed that thought. He hadn’t shared the ordeal with the Young Master, and it would take time to gain the acknowledgment of the Young Master and his trusted aides.
There was no rush; he would eventually find out.
Liao Bifeng smiled and asked Yan Chaoqing about Song Mo’s trip to Daxing, “Should I accompany you?”
“Let’s see how the Young Master arranges it!” Yan Chaoqing, having sensed Song Mo’s intentions, thought that if any rumors were to spread, it would be disastrous. He was determined not to let Liao Bifeng tag along, so he spoke with a hint of evasion, “After all, Chen Qu Shui is here to assist others. We’ll see if he can get away!”
Liao Bifeng replied with an “Mm,” shifting the topic and instructing his servant to pay attention to any invitations from Chen Qu Shui.
The next afternoon, the servant reported back, “I haven’t seen any invitation from someone named Chen Qu Shui.”
Could it be that Chen Qu Shui declined the Young Master’s kind offer? Liao Bifeng couldn’t help but mutter to himself.
However, Chen Qu Shui had already arrived at the fields in Daxing. There was no way he would respond to Song Mo’s invitation in his name; that would expose him right under the Duke’s nose.
Since he couldn’t refuse Song Mo’s invitation, he decided to meet him directly.
When Song Mo saw him, he was quite pleased and invited him to enjoy some tea.
After a few pleasantries, the conversation shifted to Dou Zhao’s marriage.
Chen Qu Shui admired Dou Zhao’s ability to recognize talent. Back when they were in the fields, Dou Zhao had cautiously, even somewhat reverently, sent Song Mo off. At the time, Chen Qu Shui had been somewhat dismissive, but subsequent events had proven Dou Zhao’s wisdom.
He felt it was entirely necessary to maintain a certain distance from Song Mo and had no intention of revealing his true purpose.
“The dowry for the Fourth Miss was nearly prepared when the Grand Matriarch returned last time; they are just waiting for the groom to finish mourning before setting a date,” Chen Qu Shui said. “Aunt Cui asked us to consult with the Seventh Lord about whether the young lady will marry from Zhen Ding or the capital. Who should be invited as the officiant? What customs do the prominent families in the capital have for marrying off their daughters? Is there anything that needs to be added or removed from the young lady’s side…? There are so many details to discuss that it would take a quarter of an hour, not to mention the arrangements that need to be made.” He smiled wryly, looking helpless, and lamented, “Getting married is truly a troublesome affair!”
“Is it?” Song Mo suddenly felt a pang of disappointment.
After Dou Zhao marries, her heart will be occupied with Wei Tingyu… When he visits her again, even if she is open and Wei Tingyu is indifferent, it might still be somewhat inappropriate!
He suddenly felt a sense of loss, his interest waning, and thought he should indeed visit the Third Prince Consort’s residence…
Meanwhile, Ji Yong, who learned that Chen Qu Shui had arrived in the capital, was quite excited. He asked his companion, “Is the news reliable?”
“Reliable!” the companion patted his chest and replied, “He’s staying at the Fourth Miss’s ink shop and visited several of the Dou family’s elders a few days ago. We discovered him today while he was visiting friends in Daxing.”
Ji Yong was very interested and asked, “Have you found out the identity of Chen Qu Shui’s friends?”
“We have,” the companion said. “This person’s surname is Yan, given name Yun, courtesy name Chaoqing. He is the aide to the Duke’s heir.”
Ji Yong was quite surprised. “The aide to the Duke’s heir… that must be someone he met in Fujian…” He recalled the rumors he had heard about the Duke’s residence a few days ago and pondered, “Do you know what Chen Qu Shui is doing in the capital?”
“I heard he is discussing the marriage of the Fourth Miss with the Seventh Lord of the Dou family,” the companion replied. “The Marquis of Jining will finish mourning in two months.”
Ji Yong couldn’t help but curl his lip. “Is Dou Zhao preparing to marry this Wei fellow?”
The companion broke into a sweat and quickly said, “This marriage was arranged since the Fourth Miss was young. If she doesn’t marry the Marquis of Jining, who else could she marry? Isn’t the Dou family using this as an excuse to reject the He family’s proposal?”
Ji Yong, however, continued to speak to himself, “I always feel that Dou Zhao marrying this Wei fellow is a loss…”
Saying this made him feel quite uncomfortable as if he saw dust settling on Dou Zhao’s originally pristine attire. Until that dust was swept away, it felt like a thorn in his heart.
He patted his clothing and said, “Let’s go meet Chen Qu Shui.”
“Is that appropriate?” the companion jumped up and blocked Ji Yong’s way. “Mr. Chen is here to discuss the Fourth Miss’s marriage. If you go to see him, what will you say…?” If the Young Master were to act rashly and ruin this matter, it would be disastrous!
Before he could finish, Ji Yong shot him a disdainful glance. “I’m Dou Zhao’s cousin. Is it wrong for me to show concern for her marriage?”
What kind of cousin was that?
“Fine, fine, fine!” the companion said, feeling overwhelmed. “But asking the Grand Matriarch should yield similar results, right? Mr. Chen came here and visited the Grand Matriarch first. The Fourth Miss grew up with the Grand Matriarch, so she might know more than Chen Qu Shui…”
Before he could inform the Grand Matriarch, he was determined to stop Ji Yong first.