Dou Zhao instructed Su Xin, “If Mr. Tao returns, please let me know.”

Ordinary people would typically react to such a situation in one of two ways: either they would rise in anger, determined to fight to the death to clear their name, or they would be filled with trepidation, choosing to avoid the issue altogether, content to be like a blind person eating glutinous rice balls, as long as they were aware of the situation.

She needed to assess how Tao Qi would choose to respond.

Su Xin smiled and replied, “Understood.”

At that moment, a young maid entered and reported, “The eldest aunt, the sixth aunt, the tenth aunt, and the eleventh aunt have come to see you.”

Dou Zhao suddenly remembered that today marked the ninth day since her marriage. According to tradition, the bride’s family would bring food to visit the newlywed daughter, showing their concern.

“Please invite them to the flower hall,” Dou Zhao instructed the maid. As she changed into her visiting attire with the help of Gan Lu, she asked Su Xin, “Is there still no news from the heir?”

Song Mo had entered the palace on the afternoon of August 27, promising to return after two nights of duty, yet he had not left the palace by today.

Dou Zhao felt a wave of worry wash over her.

Song Mo marrying her was a blow to the royal family’s pride. Although this misstep had been cleverly shifted onto Song Yichun, who could guarantee that the emperor wouldn’t take out his anger on her?

She immediately ordered Wu Yi to gather information.

When Wu Yi returned, he reported, “The palace gates are heavily guarded. I saw Bao Liu, a servant from the Duke of Guang’en’s residence, who often follows Young Master Dong. He was also inquiring about Young Master Dong’s whereabouts but was stopped at the gate. Bao Liu tried to use Young Master Dong’s title as the Deputy Commander of the Jinwu Guard to gain entry, but it was useless. He had to request to see Lord Shao Wenji, the Commander of the Jinwu Guard.

The guard on duty just laughed coldly, saying they were from the Shenshu Camp and didn’t recognize any Lord Shao, only knowing Lord Wang. He even asked Bao Liu if he wanted to meet their Commander, Lord Wang. Bao Liu was furious and left in embarrassment. Seeing this, a servant, fearing it would tarnish the heir’s reputation, didn’t dare to approach and instead took a shortcut to catch up with Bao Liu, pretending to run into him. That’s how he learned that since the heir entered the palace, the Jinwu Guard and the Qishou Guard had not rotated duty; they were all stationed inside the palace.”

Dou Zhao sighed in relief and asked Wu Yi, “Does the heir often encounter such situations?”

Wu Yi scratched his head and replied, “I was only assigned to serve the heir three years ago. I don’t know how things were before, but since I’ve been with him, this is the second time.”

Dou Zhao’s heart tightened again upon hearing this.

Two incidents in three years indicated that this was not a common occurrence.

She asked Wu Yi, “When was the last time this happened?”

Wu Yi recalled, “It was just before the heir’s wedding.” He thought for a moment and added, “Around mid-August, after the emperor returned from the summer palace.”

Dou Zhao immediately realized the implication.

The emperor might be ill!

In her previous life, she had been far removed from the centers of power and had only heard the sudden news of the emperor’s illness. The Liao Wang, being filial, had requested to return to the capital to attend to the emperor, but Liang Jifen had rejected the request. It was only with the crown prince’s intercession that the Liao Wang was allowed to return. Then came the palace coup… They had all been dumbfounded, too terrified to breathe, as the entire Fugui Fang had closed its doors to guests, with scarce traffic and an eerie silence, resembling a deserted city.

After Liao Wang ascended the throne, rumors circulated in Fugui Fang that the emperor had merely caught a cold and was not seriously ill and that he had been harmed by Liao Wang.

Now it seemed those rumors were unfounded.

The emperor was indeed unwell.

Could this be one of the reasons the Liao Wang dared to seize the throne?

What illness did the emperor have?

In her previous life, the emperor had passed away ten months after the Liao Wang ascended the throne.

Dou Zhao furrowed her brow.

Since Yan Chaoqing was Song Mo’s chief advisor, he must know something.

Should she wait for Song Mo to return to ask him about the emperor’s condition, or should she go to Yan Chaoqing now to inquire?

Just as Dou Zhao hesitated, a young servant entered and reported, “A gentleman from the Shenshu Camp, sent by the heir, has brought a letter for you.”

Dou Zhao quickly said, “Please invite Mr. Yan to meet our guest.”

The servant complied and left.

After about the time it takes to burn an incense stick, Yan Chaoqing entered with the letter.

Dou Zhao hurriedly opened it.

It was a letter assuring her of his safety.

It stated that there were matters in the palace, and he might not return for a few days, urging her not to worry and to take care of herself. If anything arose, she should consult Mr. Yan.

The fact that he could send a letter indicated that Song Mo had a degree of freedom.

A heavy weight lifted from Dou Zhao’s heart.

Noticing that Yan Chaoqing was waiting patiently beside her, she realized he was awaiting her instructions. After a moment of thought, she smiled and shared a few important points from the letter.

Yan Chaoqing’s expression relaxed, and he comforted Dou Zhao, “It’s likely that the emperor’s illness has flared up again. The empress is worried about leaks, which is why the guards have been ordered not to rotate or change shifts.”

Dou Zhao wiped her forehead, pondering whether Duke Ying’s residence was too close to the imperial power or if the Jining Marquis’s residence was too far. Even Yan Chaoqing knew about the emperor’s illness…

Previously, she had only heard of the Song family’s prominence, but she hadn’t realized it extended to this extent.

Should she reevaluate some matters?

The reason why Duke Zhongyi received such a posthumous title was that he had devoted himself to guiding the crown prince’s studies. Since Song Mo had studied under Duke Zhongyi since childhood, he should be quite familiar with the crown prince.

Dou Zhao found herself standing before the long table in the hall.

She approached the sandalwood ruyi, a gift from the crown prince when she married Song Mo.

Aside from that, the royal family had not bestowed any other rewards.

What kind of person was the crown prince?

In her memory, the crown prince had always been a vague name.

In her previous life, what had Song Mo thought when he aimed his bow at the crown prince?

Could this matter be related to the death of Duke Dingguo?

Dou Zhao’s mind was in turmoil; she had never longed for Song Mo’s return more than at this moment.

Now that nine days had passed since their marriage, she couldn’t help but inquire about Song Mo’s whereabouts again.

Dou Zhao never hid anything from Su Xin, who naturally understood her concerns. Hearing her question, Su Xin’s expression dimmed slightly as she replied softly, “There’s still no news.”

After a moment of silence, she headed to the flower hall.

The elders from the Yao family had arrived.

Dou Wenchang’s wife, the eldest lady of the Dou family, was twenty-five years older than Dou Zhao and had already passed her forties. The sixth lady, Guo, and the tenth lady, Cai, were both in their flower years, while the eleventh lady, Han, was in her prime.

When Dou Zhao entered the flower hall, Guo smiled and rose from her seat to greet her, while Dou’s eldest lady and Han also stood up.

Dou Zhao hurriedly stepped forward to support Han, saying, “You’re expecting now, so sit down quickly! Be careful not to strain yourself.”

Cai, who had walked over, laughed and teased Dou Zhao, “You’ve only been married a few days, and you’re already talking about ‘not straining yourself’!” The playful tone was quite pronounced.

Unfortunately, the eldest lady and Dou Zhao were not familiar with each other, and she held herself as the eldest daughter-in-law, merely smiling. Guo had never liked Cai’s chatter and didn’t engage; Han, who was naturally reserved and somewhat principled, found Cai’s teasing unappealing and didn’t respond, leading to an awkward silence. This was the first time for Cai, who was usually praised for her eloquence, to experience such a situation.

Her smile turned somewhat awkward. However, she was bold and quickly said, “Seventh Uncle originally only invited my sister-in-law, Sixth Sister-in-law, and me to come see you. Who knew Sixth Aunt insisted on bringing the eleventh sister-in-law along, saying she was worried and had to let her come along to see you as if my sister-in-law and I could only put on a facade? No wonder everyone says you’re just like Sixth Aunt’s own daughter; I can believe it now.” This broke the earlier awkwardness.

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but sigh inwardly.

Cai could walk confidently in Huai Tree Alley, which showed that it was not merely because she had given birth to two sons.

Dou Zhao smiled and invited her maternal aunts to sit down. After some casual conversation, they prepared for lunch and then strolled around until it was time for the evening meal.

Cai praised, “No wonder everyone says you married well. Not to mention anything else, just the fact that you don’t have a mother-in-law and can make decisions about household matters is already a great advantage.” There was a tone of envy in her voice.

Dou Zhao’s expression turned serious as she replied, “As the saying goes, ‘An elder in the family is like a treasure.’ Although I am unrestrained, I must make all the decisions myself, which can sometimes be quite daunting. It’s still better to have an elder in the family.”

Dou’s eldest lady and Han nodded in agreement.

Cai, however, muttered to herself.

This was truly a case of flattery backfiring… This lady was indeed difficult to please!

But considering that Duke Ying’s residence was one of the few noble families in the current dynasty, she had to suppress her dissatisfaction and smiled in agreement.

Seeing that it was getting late, Dou’s eldest lady smiled and took her leave.

Dou Zhao was not polite and escorted them to the Chuihua Gate.

Just as she returned to her room and changed into another outfit, Song Mo arrived.

Dou Zhao couldn’t help but rush out to greet him.

Song Mo lifted the curtain and entered.

The two stood facing each other, momentarily stunned.

Dou Zhao quickly asked, “Do you need to return to the palace?”

Song Mo replied, “Not anymore. I have a day off tomorrow and won’t return to the palace until the afternoon the day after.”

For some reason, Dou Zhao felt a sense of relief wash over her.

She noticed that Song Mo was still wearing the court attire he had donned when entering the palace. As she instructed the maid to bring water for him to wash up, she asked, “How is everything in the palace? Should I prepare a few sets of clothes for Chen He to bring, so you can change whenever needed?”

On the way back, Song Mo had been thinking about what it would be like to see Dou Zhao again.

There were no other women in the house, and he didn’t know anyone in the capital. Would she be bored?

He was unsure if his father had made things difficult for her while he was away.

After all, Dou Zhao held the title of daughter-in-law; even if his father were to trouble her, Yan Chaoqing and the others wouldn’t dare intervene.

Would she regret marrying him?

What he hadn’t expected was that upon returning home, he would find Dou Zhao so calm, serene, and even a bit chatty.

Yet this version of Dou Zhao made Song Mo feel at ease.

“The palace is quite good. It’s the empress who is worried, which is why we’ve all been kept in the palace,” he explained with a smile. “As close ministers to the emperor, we have a dedicated bathing area in the palace. Although I don’t have my duty room, I have a cabinet for my clothes and bedding, and there are people to help me air them out regularly…”

Dou Zhao nodded, taking the court attire he had changed out of and handing it to Su Xin, allowing the young maid to assist him with his washing while she sat on the kang, reflecting on his earlier words.