As Dou Zhao walked out of Dou Zhengchang’s study, she ran into Ji Yong.

He smiled and asked her, “Leaving already? Why not stay a bit longer?” As he spoke, he glanced towards the study.

‘Don’t look at what’s improper, don’t listen to what’s improper.’

This person seemed to enjoy prying into others’ privacy. Where had all his book learning gone? And he was even a successful candidate in the imperial examinations!

Dou Zhao was displeased but nodded slightly at him before heading to Lady Ji’s room.

Ji Yong turned back to see Wu Shan sitting there, pale-faced and motionless as a wooden chicken.

He called out to Wu Shan, but Wu Shan responded by slamming the study window shut with a “bang.”

Ji Yong frowned, thought for a moment, and then followed Dou Zhao into Lady Ji’s room.

Dou Zhao was saying goodbye to Lady Ji.

Lady Ji held her hand, smiling affectionately, “Come visit Sixth Aunt when you have time.” It was as if she might not see her again.

A wave of guilt washed over Dou Zhao.

Sixth Aunt had treated her like a mother, yet she had let her down.

“I’m afraid I’ll visit so often you’ll have to chase me away,” she joked with Sixth Aunt.

Ji Yong, however, asked with a smile, “Didn’t you say you asked Wu Shan to paint a fan for you? Where’s the fan?” He looked her up and down. “Don’t tell me Wu Shan can’t paint? Would you like me to paint one for you? I’m quite good at painting, you know. I studied under the famous scholar Zhou Liuyi from Jiangnan!”

Dou Zhao felt a headache coming on, but out of respect for Sixth Aunt, she couldn’t be too impolite. She smiled and said, “Fourth Brother Wu said he’d have a servant deliver it to the West Mansion when it’s done.”

“Is that so?” Ji Yong was about to say more when Lady Ji called out to him warningly, “Jianming, didn’t you say you were going to Mount Tai to watch the sunrise in a few days? Have you packed everything? Is there anything you’ve forgotten?”

Ji Yong pouted but said nothing more.

Dou Zhao noticed a fleeting look of helplessness on Lady Ji’s face.

She quickly stood up, “Sixth Aunt, I’ll head back now. I’ll have them send over the jasmine flowers you wanted at dusk.”

“Thank you, Shou Gu,” Lady Ji smiled and had her chief maid Caimei see Dou Zhao out. Then she couldn’t help but say to Ji Yong, “What did your grandfather tell you? To ‘speak less and observe more.’ Don’t disappoint him!”

Hearing this, Ji Yong mumbled, “I know,” but still couldn’t help adding, “Don’t you think that Wu Shan lacks any grace or dignity? He’s not worthy of Shou Gu at all. Who arranged this match? It’s completely mismatched!”

Lady Ji was so angry she couldn’t speak for a moment, “What nonsense are you talking? Whether he’s worthy or not, what does it have to do with you?”

Ji Yong fell silent.

Lady Ji’s expression softened, and she said gently, “Sometimes things aren’t what they seem on the surface. Don’t be so quick to judge.”

Ji Yong responded with an “Oh,” respectfully bowed to Lady Ji, and withdrew.

Lady Ji watched her nephew’s tall, straight figure like a green pine and let out a long sigh.

Meanwhile, Dou Zhao instructed Sulan, “Visit the East Mansion more often these days. If you hear any news, come tell me immediately.”

Sulan was clever beyond her years. Previously, Dou Zhao couldn’t place her people in the East Mansion, but with Sulan, she had become much more informed.

Suxin hesitated, “Young Miss, shouldn’t you discuss this with Aunt Cui? Or perhaps consult with Seventh Uncle in the capital…”

She also thought the Wu family was a good match.

Dou Zhao had to find an excuse, “The Wu family is close to my Fifth Uncle, who aspires to become Prime Minister and compete with Wang Xingyi. I just want to live a peaceful life and don’t want to get involved in all that.”

Sulan tilted her head, “But what if Fifth Uncle wins? The historical novels all say that those who assist in great endeavors can become Prime Ministers. If we help Fifth Uncle now, he’ll surely treat Young Miss well in the future…”

Before she could finish, her sister Suxin tapped her on the head, “What if Fifth Uncle loses? We don’t think about others, and others won’t think about us. As Young Miss said, we help no one and live our own lives steadily. Don’t say such opportunistic things again, or I’ll punish you with stance training.”

Sulan stuck out her tongue and hugged Dou Zhao’s arm.

Dou Zhao thought of her daughter Yin’er, who would also cling to her arm and act coy when scolded. She couldn’t help but smile and put her arm around Sulan’s shoulders.

Suxin chided, “Young Miss, it’s all your fault. You’ve spoiled her!” But a smile spread from her eyes to the corners of her mouth.

Dou Zhao laughed heartily, suddenly realizing she could no longer clearly remember her children’s features. In the depths of her memory, only vague impressions of their coy or respectful demeanors remained.

She looked out the window, tears suddenly welling up.

Sulan and Suxin exchanged glances, with Sulan shrinking back a bit.

Dou Zhao wiped her tears, “It’s nothing, just remembering some things from the past!”

Sulan then pulled out a small pouch from her bosom and took out a piece of Osmanthus cake, carefully saying, “Young Miss, this is what my sister bought for me. When I miss my father, I eat a piece of cake and feel better. You should have a piece too, then you won’t think about those past things.”

Dou Zhao put a piece of osmanthus cake in her mouth with tears in her eyes and said, “It’s delicious!”

Sulan smiled, her smile as bright as sunshine, dispelling the gloom in Dou Zhao’s heart.

Suxin turned her face away, wiping the moisture from the corner of her eye.

Dou Zhao gathered herself and said, “Let’s go find Mr. Chen. I wonder how he’s doing with inviting Chen Xiaofeng and Duan Gongyi to be my bodyguards. I feel a bit uneasy going out without a few people around. Also, we need to get that 10,000 taels of silver allowance soon, so we have money to settle them when they arrive.”

Sulan clicked her tongue, “We still have to pay them? Didn’t Young Miss already give them a large reward?”

“A reward is a reward, wages are wages. How can they be the same?”

The three of them returned to the East Mansion, chatting and laughing.

Grandmother was sorting through trunks, shaking her head at this and that. Dou Zhao smiled and asked her, “Are you making autumn clothes or winter clothes?”

Hong Gu smiled beside her.

Dou Zhao suddenly understood.

Grandmother was preparing things for her dowry.

Fine beads of sweat appeared on her forehead as she pulled Grandmother to the outer hall.

Grandmother chuckled and instructed her, “Help me write a letter to your father, asking him to find some tailors and embroiderers from Jiangnan to come and make some new clothes for us to wear.”

Isn’t this too much fuss?

Seeing Grandmother’s enthusiasm, Dou Zhao still agreed.

Might as well make the old lady happy!

Grandmother then told her which shops had good shoes, and which had good false hair buns. Dou Zhao didn’t know where the old lady had gotten this information, but it filled her heart with warmth. After talking for about two cups of tea’s worth of time, Ganlu came in to report, “Mr. Chen requests Young Miss to come to the study!”

“Then you’d better go quickly!” Grandmother urged, “It might be something about the shop?”

It should be about hiring the bodyguards.

Dou Zhao didn’t clarify and went to the study.

Chen Qushui was indeed looking for her about this matter: “Chen Xiaofeng and the others agreed without hesitation, but they all said they needed to finish this month and wait for their employers to find replacements before they could come. Only Duan Gongyi said he could come in a few days. I inquired and found out that Duan Gongyi was originally hired by the Lang family’s old master as a bodyguard. After the old master passed away, the current head of the Lang family thought Duan Gongyi’s salary was a bit high and wanted to reduce it several times.

But out of respect for the old master, they couldn’t bring themselves to say it. Duan Gongyi had been wanting to leave for a while, but he had a bedridden mother who needed his care and medicine, and he couldn’t find a better position than being a bodyguard for the Lang family, so he didn’t dare to speak up. When I approached him, he was greatly relieved and voluntarily offered to take five taels of silver less than what the Lang family paid. Seeing that he could start immediately, I offered him five taels more than the Lang family, but he refused to accept it…”

Dou Zhao pondered, “Who else does he have in his family?”

“His wife passed away a few years ago,” Chen Qushui said, “leaving no children. In recent years, his mother’s illness has depleted their savings, and he hasn’t remarried.”

“Then let’s buy a maid to serve his mother,” Dou Zhao said. “We’ll cover the maid’s monthly allowance.”

Chen Qushui agreed with a smile. Dou Zhao then asked about the progress of the case, “Has Magistrate Lu accepted Pang Xilou’s lawsuit against the Dou family?”

“He has,” Chen Qushui smiled. “Not only did he accept the lawsuit, but he also invited Pang Xilou to drink in the backcourt, advising him to let bygones be bygones. That Pang Xilou is quite amusing. After hearing Magistrate Lu’s words, he said it wasn’t him who wanted to sue, but his second brother who asked him to help with the lawsuit. He told Magistrate Lu not to be angry…”

The Pang family was even more interesting than she had imagined.

Dou Zhao burst out laughing and entrusted Chen Qushui, “Please keep an eye on this matter for me.”

Chen Qushui agreed with a smile. In the following days, he was busy arranging accommodation for the new bodyguards, inquiring about Pang Kunbai’s condition, and probing for reactions from the capital.

Ji Yong set a date for his trip to Mount Tai and went around saying goodbye to the Dou family members, naturally including Madam Wu, who was also staying in the Dou family’s guest rooms.

Madam Wu warmly invited Ji Yong to stay for tea.

Ji Yong didn’t stand on ceremony and sat down next to Madam Wu, asking, “How come I haven’t seen Brother Wu these past few days?”

He was staying in the guest rooms on the east side of the East Mansion, while Wu Shan was staying with his mother and sister in the guest rooms on the west side.

Madam Wu smiled, “We’re setting off for the capital in a few days. Perhaps fearing his father might test his studies, he’s been shut up in his room studying diligently, burning the midnight oil. He won’t let anyone disturb him. Today, if it weren’t for Zhi’er, we probably couldn’t have opened his door — he went out with Zhi’er, saying some classmates wanted to see him off.”

Ji Yong smiled upon hearing this, “No wonder Brother Wu is so popular. He has quite an outgoing personality. That day, if it weren’t for him, we wouldn’t have found that farm!”

Madam Wu was startled and asked, “What farm?”

Ji Yong’s smile faltered slightly, but he quickly recovered and said, “Oh, we went out to play that day and got lost. It was Brother Wu who helped us find our way.” Then he picked up his teacup and took a few big gulps as if trying to cover something up.

Madam Wu grew suspicious.

After seeing Ji Yong off, she questioned Wu Shan’s servant.

Although the servant had been instructed by Wu Shan to keep quiet, he didn’t dare deceive Madam Wu. He soon spilled all the details about Dou Zhao’s kidnapping like beans from a bamboo tube.

Hearing this, Madam Wu’s face changed dramatically. She repeatedly asked the servant, “When you arrived, Pang Kunbai was already beaten half to death? And the Fourth Miss was unharmed, surrounded by unfamiliar bodyguards?”

The servant swore, “Madam, I wouldn’t dare lie to you. If I’ve spoken a single false word, may heaven strike me down!”

Madam Wu made a gesture to stop him from speaking further and instructed in a low voice, “Never mention this matter again, or you’ll be beaten to death.”

The servant shuddered, nodding repeatedly as he scrambled out of the hall.