Chapter 166: Good or Bad

Song Mo felt that what Dou Zhao said made sense.

After being beaten by his father, he lay alone on the floor tiles in the inner room where his mother was burning the heating pad. He felt hopeless and just hoped that if he could open his eyes, what happened was just a nightmare. His father was still the nagging but loving father, and his brother was still the cowardly but obedient brother... At that moment, he felt that death was nothing more than this.

But he was saved by Dou Zhao.

His foster brother Chen Tao was beaten to death because he refused to betray him, his staff and personal bodyguards were hunted down... He had to stand up and confront his father numbly... At that time, he felt that this was the most tragic thing in the world.

But the guards sent by Dou Zhao helped him deliver the letter in time.

Not only did he redefine his own status, but he also won his mother's dowry and the jurisdiction of Yizhitang. Even with the label of "filial piety", he was able to compete with his father.

Every time he felt he had reached a dead end, there would always be light at the end of the tunnel and a new way out.

Song Mo recalled Dou Zhaohe's expression when he said this to him.

The smile gradually disappeared from her eyes, and there flashed a little sadness, a little sorrow, a little helplessness, a little sigh... but they quickly disappeared one by one, and she became energetic again, with her eyes looking forward, as if she was a traveler who had a long journey and finally succumbed to the exhaustion of the long and lonely night, and thus revealed a bit of weariness that could not be concealed.

Fragile yet resilient.

He suddenly felt heartbroken.

She is so beautiful, but fate is so unfair to her!

He suddenly wanted to see Wei Tingyu.

"Chen He," Song Mo ordered, "Let's go back to Kyoto immediately."

"Ah!" Chen He was surprised. "You, are not going back to the farm in Daxing?"

"I've been out for seven or eight days, so it's time for me to go back." Song Mo said calmly, "After returning to Kyoto, take my name card to the Jining Marquis's mansion - I have something to ask the Jining Marquis."

Chen He responded “yes” and couldn’t help but exchange glances with Xia Lian.

The Crown Prince originally planned to stay in Zhending for three days, but on the second day, he was in a hurry to return to Kyoto, and after meeting the fourth lady of the Dou family... Marquis Jining is the future husband of the fourth lady of the Dou family!

Xia Lian was worried.

As soon as he returned to Yizhi Hall, he immediately went to see Yan Chaoqing who stayed at home and told him his worries: "…If the Duke finds out something is wrong, it will be a disaster! Miss Dou Si is the niece of Mr. Dou Ge!"

Yan Chaoqing didn't know beforehand that Song Mo would go to Zhending to meet Dou Zhao. By the time he knew about it, Song Mo had already been on the road for two or three days. He also felt that Song Mo shouldn't have too much contact with Dou Zhao at this time, lest he be caught by the Duke of Ying's Mansion. Now after hearing what Xia Lian said, he felt that the situation was even more serious.

He pondered and said, "Miss Dou Si saved the life of the prince, and the prince came to thank her in person, which is a respect for Miss Dou Si. You should not be surprised, just be more careful in the future. If the prince goes too often, it will not be too late for us to remind him again."

Xia Lian felt a little relieved, talked with Yan Chao about going to Zhending, and then went back to his room to rest.

Yan Chaoqing wandered around the house for a long time and then went to Song Mo's place.

Song Mo had just washed up and was sitting on the big kang by the window listening to Wuyi reporting what had happened in Yizhi Hall over the past few days.

Ever since Wuyi and Songluo recovered from their injuries, Song Mo made them his personal servants.

Seeing Yan Chaoqing coming in, Wuyi hurriedly nodded at Yan Chaoqing with a smile, and only stepped forward and saluted Yan Chaoqing after he finished speaking.

Song Mo invited Yan Chaoqing to sit on the kang and said with a smile, "I was just planning to visit Mr. Yan later, but I didn't expect Mr. Yan to come first." Then he asked Wuyi to brew a pot of Biluochun tea, "Drinking Biluochun is the best in this season."

Yan Chaoqing thanked him with a smile and sat down face to face with Song Mo.

Wuyi served the tea and retreated quietly.

Yan Chaoqing then said, "So, the prince already knows?"

When he just walked in, he heard the tail end of the sound.

Song Mo nodded and said, "I heard from Wuyi that my father invited two old scholars from the Hanlin Academy to stay at home for Tianen to supervise his studies."

If it were in the past, when he returned home, Song Han would have rushed over in a hurry, but today there was no sign of Song Han until now.

Yan Chaoqing hesitated and said, "So what you mean is..."

Song Mo smiled and said, "I'm already like this. If Tian En can win the favor of my father, it may not be a bad thing!"

"But..." If this goes on, Song Han will definitely become estranged from Song Mo. If the Duke of England instigates and provokes with ulterior motives, I'm afraid that the Duke of England will start a story of brothers fighting each other.

"It's okay." Song Mo said, "Tian'en is only ten years old this year, and the reason why father can speak in front of the emperor is more or less due to the influence of grandfather, you don't have to worry."

The old Duke of England was resourceful and good at guessing the emperor's intentions, and was regarded as the emperor's right-hand man. This was why he was able to obtain the position of hereditary commander for Song Mo, who had just been born. Song Yichun was far inferior to the old Duke of England, and with Song Mo as an example, if he wanted to promote Song Han, he had to have that ability as well.

Yan Chaoqing understood it immediately.

"I was indeed overthinking it." He said with a smile, and then he told the purpose of his visit. "I am worried that after you finish mourning - you will be sixteen years old by then, and I am afraid that the Duke will make a fuss about your marriage..."

Jiang died of illness, Jiang Meisun and others either died or went into exile, and Mrs. Mei was far away in Haozhou. Even if there was something wrong with the marriage that Song Yichun had arranged for Song Mo, no one could stop it in time.

Song Mo sneered: "She is just a woman in the inner chamber. If she obeys, it's fine. If she has second thoughts," he paused, "just let her live and die on her own."

The relationship between them is like fire and water. This is the only thing that his father can use to control him. His father can't just give up so easily. He has been prepared for this. His wife will never be a good match.

Yan Chaoqing looked at Song Mo's handsome and perfect face and couldn't help but sigh secretly.

Song Mo had been prepared and determined. He felt that it would be a waste of time to continue talking about this topic, so he changed the subject and asked, "Did my father make any new discoveries?"

Since the situation stabilized, Song Mo sorted out all the things, but he still couldn't find the reason why his father wanted to frame him.

Although he occasionally thought, "It would be great if Dou Zhao could see something with the clarity of a bystander," he did not pin all his hopes on Dou Zhao. Zhuge Liang knew all about worldly affairs without leaving Wolonggang because he made friends with knowledgeable celebrities and was well-versed in history and the present. The family affairs of the Duke of Ying's mansion were probably not enough to be a topic of conversation. Dou Zhao had never been to Kyoto, so how could he know?

Song Mo went to see Dou Zhao, more to thank her and to congratulate her on her coming of age.

Yan Chaoqing smiled bitterly: "When Duke Ding was in trouble, the Duke took care of everything, without any perfunctory attitude..."

Song Mo thought about it and felt that the only reason for his parents' quarrel could be the death of his uncles.

Hearing this, he felt relieved but also a little disappointed, and murmured, "Could it be some old things from the past... Mother didn't know about it before, but it was brought up again because of my uncle's death..."

In Song Mo's impression, his uncle seemed to look down on his father, as if he was afraid that his father would spoil him. He was so busy, but he often wrote to him and interfered with his homework. Even his uncle's own son had never enjoyed such ardent attention. His father was very dissatisfied with his uncle because of this.

He pondered over it, and before Yan Chaoqing could say anything, he said, "If it's really an old story, I'm afraid I can only ask my grandmother..."

Song Mo's surprise attack made Song Yichun kill all those who had played a role in framing Song Mo, especially those who had served Jiang in the past. Not even the lowly maids survived.

After he finished speaking, he discussed with Yan Chaoqing: "This matter concerns the secrets of the Duke of Ying's Mansion. I'm afraid I'll have to ask you to go to Haozhou in person."

"Don't worry, my lord. I'll go back and pack my luggage." Yan Chaoqing was also a decisive person. "I'll leave for Haozhou overnight."

Song Mo did not dare tell his grandmother what happened in the Duke of Ying's Mansion.

His grandmother was old and had lost her son, daughter, grandson and granddaughter one after another. How could he bear to let the old lady worry about him?

But my grandmother is smart and capable, and if we want her to not become suspicious, only Yan Chaoqing is the most suitable person to go!

He called Xia Lian in and asked him to arrange a few highly skilled guards to escort Yan Chaoliao.

Xia Lian responded respectfully, and Chen He came back to report, "My Lord, Marquis Jining said he is at home in mourning and cannot meet guests!"

Everyone in the room looked gloomy.

Even during the Wei and Jin dynasties, few people could observe the 27-month mourning period as prescribed by the Zhou rites. All they had to do was not indulge in sensual pleasures. Wei Tingyu's actions clearly showed that he wanted to draw a clear line between himself and Song Mo.

It was a pity that Song Mo treated him like a brother at the beginning. Seeing that he liked riding and shooting, he even gave him the Hongyu horse in the mansion as a gift.

Song Mo also looked surprised.

It seems that what happened in the Duke of England's mansion has spread quietly.

Wei Tingyu has no opinion and no courage. After Dou Zhao marries him, won't she have to suffer with him?

He was secretly worried about Dou Zhao and wondered whether he should find an opportunity to challenge Wei Tingyu.

Although it was for Dou Zhao, he felt very upset when he thought that Wei Tingyu seemed to be in a hopeless situation.

Song Mo suppressed his unhappiness and told Chen He: "We'll talk about this later. Just help me keep an eye on Wei Tingyu's movements!"

Could it be that the prince still wants to continue his association with that lousy marquis?

Chen He and the others all changed their expressions slightly, only Yan Chaoqing looked at the teacup in his hand with a thoughtful look.

At the Jining Marquis' Mansion, not far from the Duke of Ying's Mansion, Wei Tingyu was being scolded by Wei Tingzhen, who was visiting his mother, Tian, ​​at her natal home: "...Why should you care about the affairs of the Song family? After Song Mo was killed by Song Yichun, did Song Yichun come to kill you? What are you afraid of?! Who is Song Mo? Even his father couldn't beat him, who do you think you are, to dare to show him your disdain! Are you crazy?! If I hadn't discovered it by accident, would you have cut off all ties with Song Mo from now on?"