The men at the Five Cities Military Command looked at Wei Tingyu with curiosity in their eyes.
Wei Tingyu only realized the reason behind this after Jiang Yi officially took office. Recalling his colleagues’ glances, he couldn’t bear to stay at the office for even a quarter of an hour.
Upon returning home, Wei Tingyu said to Dou Ming, “When you have time, visit Duke Ying’s mansion to see Shou Gu. Song Yantang recently appointed someone with no family ties to him as the Southern City Commander. Go ask what’s going on.”
Whether by kinship or friendship, Song Mo should have promoted him instead.
Jiang Yi’s appointment suddenly made Wei Tingyu realize that since his marriage, he and Song Mo had never shared drinks or intimate conversations.
He had indeed been too negligent of Song Mo lately.
Hearing this, Dou Ming became furious. However, remembering their recent reconciliation, she suppressed her anger, forcing a smile. “How dare you call her Shou Gu? Be careful not to slip up in front of Song Yantang, or it’ll be embarrassing for everyone. You know, since I married you, Dou Zhao hasn’t given me a kind look. You should approach Song Yantang directly than for me to seek her out. Didn’t you always say how close you were with Song Yantang before? Why don’t you talk to him yourself? It shouldn’t be difficult for such a small matter, right?”
Wei Tingyu knew his situation.
Even when Song Mo treated him best – helping him with business, gifting him horses, introducing him to friends – the more Wei Tingyu learned about Song Mo, the more he feared him. Eventually, he became timid in Song Mo’s presence, afraid of saying something wrong while drunk and losing Song Mo’s favor. That’s why when Duke Ying’s household faced trouble, Wei Tingyu seized the opportunity to distance himself from Song Mo, speaking those words to his sister. Now that Song Mo treated him with coldness and indifference, how could he dare approach him?
However, he couldn’t express this in front of Dou Ming. Reluctantly, he steeled himself to invite Song Mo for a drink.
When Song Mo heard of Wei Tingyu’s visit, he felt uncomfortable and instructed Chen He, “Tell the staff that when the Marquis of Jining comes, just serve him tea in the outer courtyard’s small flower hall. There’s no need to search for me or the madam everywhere.” He added, “I need to write a memorial for the Emperor today. Ask the Marquis what business he has – if it’s not urgent, handle it for him; if it’s important, tell him I’m busy and have him leave a message with you. I’ll consider it later.”
In essence, this meant he would no longer see the Marquis of Jining or help him with any matters.
Chen He pondered silently.
This Marquis of Jining must be missing a screw in his head. How dare he still set foot in Yizhi Hall?
Chen He went to the flower hall.
Wei Tingyu wanted to ask Song Mo for a promotion. How could he discuss such a matter with a servant?
He mumbled for a while, not even sure what he had said, and left disappointed.
Chen He hurriedly relayed Song Mo’s instructions to the staff.
Wei Tingyu then went to Duke Jing’s mansion.
Upon hearing about this, Wei Tingzhen became furious.
“Can’t you see? Song Yantang dislikes you because of Dou Ming!” she complained. “I told you long ago that Dou Ming was trouble. I warned you not to marry her, but you wouldn’t listen. Now look what’s happened – the Southern City Commander position that was within your grasp has slipped away! If you keep ignoring my advice, you’ll suffer more in the future, just wait and see…”
Wei Tingyu was extremely irritated. “That’s all in the past. What’s the point of your constant nagging? It’s not like I can divorce Dou Ming, can I?” Seeing his sister’s expression change, he quickly added, “Even if I divorced Dou Ming, would Song Yantang treat me like before? We might offend the Dou and Wang families, causing more trouble!” He hoped to dispel his sister’s thoughts.
Wei Tingzhen’s eyes dimmed as she fell silent for a moment. “Let me ask your brother-in-law if he has any ideas,” she finally said.
Wei Tingyu didn’t want to go home. He stayed to play with his niece and nephew while waiting for Zhang Yuanming to return.
Zhang Yuanming had no good suggestions either. He could only say, “Why don’t you ask the Earl of Dongping for help? Isn’t he Wang Dahe’s father-in-law? That’s a connection you could use.”
Wei Tingyu then went to see Wang Qinghai.
Concerned about Wei Tingyu’s future, Wang Qinghai naturally felt obliged to help and personally accompanied him to the Earl of Dongping’s mansion.
The result was predictable.
Wei Tingyu spent half a month running around, making no progress. Instead, he alarmed Hao Dayong, the former Eastern City Commander.
Thanks to the fire incident at Duke Ying’s mansion, Hao Dayong impressed the Duke’s heir apparent and benefited from it. After the case was closed, he was promoted to Assistant Commander of the Five Cities Military Command. Since the Earl of Dongping held the concurrent position of Commander-in-Chief but didn’t manage its daily affairs, and because of Hao Dayong’s connection to Duke Ying’s heir, the Earl entrusted him with overseeing the Command’s operations. Now, Hao Dayong acted as if he were the Commander-in-Chief, surrounded by attendants and full of pride. He racked his brains trying to figure out how to further improve his relationship with Song Mo and the Earl of Dongping, hoping to secure their recommendation for the Commander-in-Chief position.
He asked those around him, “Has the heir of Duke Ying’s household had any noteworthy events to celebrate recently?”
After some thought, someone replied, “The nephew of the heir’s wife’s family has just passed the imperial examination and became a Jinshi. Would that count as something worth celebrating?”
Hao Dayong slapped the man’s shoulder, nearly knocking him over. “You fool! Why didn’t you mention such great news earlier? If this isn’t worth celebrating, what is?”
Hao Dayong immediately prepared a congratulatory gift of 200 taels of silver and went to Huaishu Alley.
Hearing that a friend of Song Mo had come to offer congratulations, the head steward of Huaishu Alley gave him an odd look.
What kind of friends does the Fourth Son-in-law have? Why do they keep showing up uninvited?
He quickly called a manager to escort Hao Dayong to the flower hall for tea.
There, Hao Dayong saw several familiar faces from the Five Cities Military Command.
He greeted them without restraint.
Dou Shixu heard about this and felt a headache coming on. After some thought, he instructed the head steward, “Go inform the young master – guests are guests, but he should at least know to thank them, even if he doesn’t return the gesture.”
The head steward acknowledged and left.
Song Mo was accompanying Dou Shiying, listening to a group from the Hanlin Academy boasting. Upon hearing the message, he smiled and explained briefly to Dou Shiying, intending to go greet the guests.
However, Dou Shiying grabbed Song Mo’s arm, saying, “I’ll go with you. Since they’re showing you respect, we shouldn’t be too negligent.”
Song Mo could only rub his nose and follow Dou Shiying to exchange pleasantries with Hao Dayong and the others.
Being perceptive individuals, Hao Dayong and his companions noticed how Song Mo supported his father-in-law and treated him with the utmost respect. They knew where to direct their flattery, and began showering Dou Shiying with praise, their words flowing like a river. This made Dou Shiying retreat in embarrassment, though he felt secretly pleased. He found Dou Shixu and said, “Just accept the monetary gifts from Yantang’s friends. Give me the list, and I’ll return the favor.”
They’re not flattering you! They’re flattering Song Yantang!
If you return the favor, won’t they be delighted to establish a connection with Song Yantang?
Dou Shixu was about to speak but swallowed his words upon seeing Dou Shiying’s complete obliviousness to the situation.
He now had a capable son-in-law to handle these matters. Why should he worry about them?
“Alright!” he readily agreed, instructing the head steward to prepare a copy of the gift list for Dou Shiying later.
Dou Shiying then said to Song Mo, “Don’t worry, I’ll handle returning these gifts!”
Perhaps because Dou Shiying felt he could take charge of his own life, he consciously or unconsciously chose to compensate for this lack of money.
Song Mo subtly sensed Dou Shiying’s delicate state of mind and didn’t refuse. Instead, he catered to his father-in-law’s preferences, smiling, “Shou Gu was just scolding me the other day for accepting gifts recklessly. As you’ve seen, I didn’t invite these people, and it’s a joyous occasion for the Dou family. I can’t just turn them away, can I? You should handle this.”
Dou Shiying then advised him, “Don’t argue with Shou Gu. She’s pregnant, so her temper might be a bit odd. I remember when her mother was pregnant with her, it was the dead of winter, and she was about to give birth, yet she insisted on eating Chinese toon sprouts. Where was I supposed to find those?”
Suddenly recalling the past, his expression became distant.
Song Mo, however, dared not let Dou Shiying dwell on old memories. He quickly said, “Father-in-law, Boyan is about to take the examination for Shujishi. He’s always been close to our family, and we have several properties in the capital. Should we prepare a house for him to study? If he passes and becomes a Shujishi, he’ll need to stay in the capital for three years. It would be better for him to have his place with someone to look after him, wouldn’t it?”
Dou Shiying liked how Song Mo used the word “we.”
He nodded with a broad smile, saying, “Let’s talk to Boyan and see what he thinks.”
Song Mo called a maid and asked where Dou Qijun was.
The maid smiled and replied, “The Fifth Young Master is still being questioned by the madams and hasn’t come out yet!”
Song Mo then smiled at Dou Shiying, “Shall we rescue him?”
Dou Shiying became interested as well, saying, “Of course, we should find a way to get Boyan out!” He then instructed the maid, “Tell him that I have friends over and the Fifth Young Master should come out to meet them.”
The maid curtsied and hurried to the inner courtyard.
Dou Shiying and Song Mo exchanged smiles, like two conspirators who had just pulled off an amusing trick, feeling a sense of camaraderie.
At that moment, Dou Qijun was standing with Dou Zhao near the pomegranate tree in the main courtyard.
“I’ve been busy with the examinations lately and haven’t had the chance to thank Fourth Aunt and Fourth Uncle for their help with the Kuang family matter,” he said apologetically, his face beaming with the excitement of academic success. “Once I’m less busy, I’ll visit and have a proper drink with Fourth Uncle to express my gratitude.”
After learning who had designs on their fleet, the Kuang family realized that their ships had caught the eye of someone influential. Like a piece of fat meat, if one person didn’t take a bite, another would. They ultimately decided to sell the fleet to Wang Ge at a low price.
Kuang Zhuoran, meanwhile, resolved to study diligently for the imperial examinations.
Dou Zhao thought this was for the best.
A merchant family without official backing would always be vulnerable to exploitation.
Once Kuang Zhuoran achieved success in his studies, the Kuang family could regain their footing.