Wang Yingxue had orchestrated the marriage swap between the Dou sisters. Even if the Wang family was heartbroken over their daughter, they could no longer protect her. So when the Dou family proposed that Wang Yingxue return to Zhending with the Second Madam next spring, the Wang family could only nod in agreement. Consequently, Wang Yingxue was moved to the back room of the main courtyard, personally “attended to” by Gaosheng’s wife. No outsiders were allowed near, and it was announced that Wang Yingxue was ill from overwork and needed rest. Her return to Zhending with the Second Madam to “recuperate” thus seemed natural.
So when Dou Ming saw Wang Yingxue leaning against the window frame, staring blankly outside, she didn’t rush forward to embrace her mother and sob loudly, nor did she seek to right the wrongs by pleading with the Dou family elders. Instead, her eyes moistened slightly, and she hesitated to speak.
Wang Yingxue knew that her daughter had never thought highly of her, viewing her as a complete failure who had even lost the power to manage the household to the Dou family.
But she didn’t take offense.
What was there to fuss about with her daughter?
She had already done what she could and given her daughter all she could give.
Wang Yingxue smiled faintly and invited Dou Ming to sit on the kang bed, asking a young maid to wash some fruit for her daughter.
Dou Ming looked at the newly available autumn pears, of which the Marquis of Jining’s household had bought a few jin for Madam Tian and her to taste. After a long silence, she said softly, “Sister… she’s been betrothed to Duke Ying’s household. Did you know?”
“I’ve already heard,” Wang Yingxue replied, peeling a pear for Dou Ming with a cold smile. “Your father can’t wait for the whole world to know that Dou Zhao is getting married. Even if I didn’t want to know, I couldn’t avoid those servants prattling in my ear!” She continued, “Although Duke Ying’s household is illustrious, the Marquis of Jining’s household is not far behind. You should just focus on living your own life well. This is all the help I can give you.
From now on, you’ll have to rely on yourself. When you’re free, visit your maternal grandmother’s family often—with your maternal grandfather backing you, even your eldest sister-in-law won’t dare to slight you. In your spare time, come see your father—he has never shortchanged you financially. With his support, big and small, you can save the income from your dowry. With these two things, the Wei family won’t be able to touch you at all. As for the Dou family, they’ve never truly treated you as a daughter, so just be polite with them.”
Dou Ming frowned involuntarily.
Her mother probably thought that Duke Ying’s household was similar to the Marquis of Jining’s household.
Even if there were differences between the two families, it was just a matter of rank and salary.
Before she married into the Marquis of Jining’s household, she had thought the same. It was only after marrying that she discovered that a marquis’s household wasn’t necessarily wealthier than an earl’s, and an earl’s household wasn’t necessarily more powerful than a hereditary Jinyiwei official.
Even now, she hadn’t fully grasped these intricacies.
Unlike official families where rank was clear-cut, and even the most hardworking jinshi couldn’t match the smooth promotion path of a two-board jinshi, where one’s prospects were known just by hearing their background.
The affairs of noble families were far more complicated!
“How can the Marquis of Jining’s household be compared to the Duke Ying’s household?” Dou Ming said displeased. “Look at sister’s betrothal gifts, a full twenty thousand taels of silver. Father said, ‘A man carries, a woman leads,’ so he must give sister at least ten thousand taels of silver as her dowry…”
Wang Yingxue scoffed, “Don’t you know how much silver your sister has? What difference does ten thousand taels more or less make to her? If Duke Ying’s household is more illustrious than the Marquis of Jining’s, and the Marquis’s household initially found Dou Zhao’s background lacking when you married into the Wei family in her place, don’t you find it strange that the Duke’s household would choose your sister and set a wedding date so quickly? I suspect that Duke Ying’s household might be all glitter and no substance. Perhaps these betrothal gifts are just odds and ends cobbled together from their ancestors’ leftovers, all to trick your father out of his silver! Just wait and see, there will be plenty of times for Dou Zhao to cry and your father to regret in the future!”
Thinking of the rumors about Song Mo, Dou Ming fell silent.
Wang Yingxue, observing her daughter’s expression, knew she had guessed correctly. Her tone softened as she said, “Don’t think your mother is a fool. I know the Dou family is scheming against me, but aren’t I also scheming against them?”
Dou Ming was stunned.
Wang Yingxue handed the peeled pear to Dou Ming, who took it absent-mindedly. Wang Yingxue picked another pear and began peeling it, saying, “Ever since I learned about Fifth Uncle competing with your maternal grandfather for the position of Cabinet Elder, I understood that the Dou family would stop at nothing to scheme against your maternal grandfather. When Mrs. Cai agreed to help, I guessed that your Fifth Aunt probably knew about it, but so what? Didn’t I still manage to marry you off to the Marquis of Jining’s household smoothly? Could they possibly divorce me?”
“If it’s back to Zhending, then so be it. I’ve long wanted to leave the capital. Rather than being the wife of a Hanlin Academy Reader-in-Waiting in name only, I’d rather return to the countryside estate, carefree and unrestrained. You and Dou Zhao are both married off, your father can’t possibly let the family line end here. No matter whom your father takes as a concubine to bear a son, would he dare not acknowledge me as the legal mother? What do I have to fear?”
Wang Yingxue spoke with an air of indifference, but the intense dissatisfaction revealed in her brow betrayed her true feelings.
Dou Ming felt a pang in her heart and lowered her head, mechanically eating the pear.
Seeing her daughter’s lack of interest and thinking about her imminent return to Zhending, which would make it difficult to see her married daughter again, Wang Yingxue changed the subject, asking, “Does the Marquis treat you well?”
Dou Ming’s face reddened slightly, but she tried to appear nonchalant as she nodded and simply said, “It’s fine.”
Wang Yingxue smiled knowingly, her eyes and brow corners filled with wrinkles, looking even worse than her grandmother’s complexion.
Dou Ming couldn’t help but turn her face away.
To become a famous official, one must first gain fame.
In early summer, Ji Yong, recommended by his uncle, had gained the appreciation of Yu Li, the head of the Hanlin Academy. He was now working with Yu Li and several other great scholars from the academy to compile the “Great Teachings of Literature and Culture,” which would be prefaced by the Emperor himself.
Although the Hanlin Academy’s offices were spacious, they were ancient. The locust trees in front of the buildings formed a canopy, enveloping the entire wing in shade. This made the academy’s rooms gloomy and damp all year round, even in the crisp autumn season.
The actual writing of the book was naturally done by the great scholars. Ji Yong’s role was merely to help with researching references. Nevertheless, when the book was completed, his name would appear in a small corner of the first volume, causing both envy and jealousy among the other jinshi, tanhua, and shujishi in the Hanlin Academy who had toiled for countless years.
When Cai Guyuan invited his colleagues for drinks, he deliberately left out Ji Yong.
“An advisor to the prefect of my hometown has come to the capital on business and specifically came to pay his respects,” he said loudly, glancing sideways at Ji Yong who was walking by with a stack of books. “It’s hard to refuse such sincerity, so I had to reluctantly agree. If any of you gentlemen don’t have urgent matters after work, why not join me at the Zuixian Tower for a lively gathering?”
Zuixian Tower was a famous place in the capital for squandering money.
Some were tempted by the invitation.
Usually, Ji Yong would pretend not to understand and follow along just to annoy Cai Guyuan. He would then engage in a war of words with Cai until the latter was either speechless with anger or stormed off in a huff.
Cai Guyuan, having figured out Ji Yong’s temperament, had specifically invited Liang Wuen, the eldest son of Liang Jifen.
Liang Wuen had a stutter and disliked those who were too glib and relentless in arguments. His stutter was due to Madam Liang’s failure to treat him promptly to save money for Liang Jifen’s exam expenses. Among the children, Liang Wuen was the best at studying. Although he had passed the jinshi exam, his stutter prevented him from taking office. Liang Jifen felt extremely guilty about this eldest son and let him manage family affairs. He often consulted his son on official matters as well, making Liang Wuen essentially Liang Jifen’s advisor.
Liang Jifen kept a low profile and hadn’t been Prime Minister for long, so not many people knew about this.
But those who did know invariably sought to curry favor with Liang Wuen and always succeeded.
Most importantly, Liang Wuen’s greatest pleasure was pretending to be a down-and-out scholar…
This time, he was determined to teach Ji Yong a lesson!
With this in mind, Cai Guyuan’s voice grew even louder: “In the past, when we went to Zuixian Tower, it was always friends treating. This time, it’s someone else’s treat. The wine will taste different in our mouths. Gentlemen, don’t stand on ceremony with me!”
This air of a poor scholar eager for a free meal was one of the main reasons Ji Yong looked down on Cai Guyuan.
Cai Guyuan was certain Ji Yong would take the bait.
To his surprise, Ji Yong hurried past him, not only ignoring his words but also maintaining an expressionless face as if he hadn’t heard anything at all.
Cai Guyuan’s mouth hung open for a long time.
Ji Yong’s mind, however, was in turmoil.
Ever since three days ago when his great-grandfather had called him to the study and informed him that Dou Zhao was now betrothed to Song Yantang, the heir of Duke Ying, his mind had gone blank. He moved like a puppet, doing whatever he was told, and still hadn’t recovered.
How could Dou Zhao be marrying Song Yantang?
With his illustrious background, Song Yantang wasn’t even in the same league as them. How could he suddenly be engaged to Dou Zhao?
And what was Dou Zhao thinking?
At that moment, he had jumped up, ready to rush to Jing’an Temple Lane to demand answers, but his great-grandfather had stopped him.
“Jianming, you should see this as a test for you,” his great-grandfather had said, his expression solemn, his plain Daoist robe giving him an otherworldly air. “Why did we fail in this matter? Is there a way to remedy it? If not, how should we use this opportunity to gain the greatest benefit for our family? If there is, what methods can we use? Instead of rushing to the Dou family to demand answers as you’re doing now. Tell me, what good would come from you going to the Dou family to question them?”
He didn’t know what good would come of it, he just felt as if a piece of his heart had been carved out, burning with pain. He wanted to go and get a clear answer, to ask why Song Mo, who was prettier and more delicate than a woman, was acceptable, but he wasn’t.
Ji Yong said nothing and pushed past Old Master Ji, heading for the door.
But he was held back by the attendants at Old Master Ji’s side.
Old Master Ji looked at him coldly, his tone filled with undisguised disappointment: “Keep the Sixteenth Young Master here. Without my word, no one is to let him out.” He added, “You have already failed. Even if you can’t accept the consequences of failure, you should at least maintain the dignity of one who has lost.”
The study door slammed shut with a “bang.”
He cradled his head in his hands and slumped onto a small stool in the study.