Chapter 217 Matchmaking
Dou Shiying was moved for a moment, but he quickly suppressed the feeling.
This pottery is a scholar who speaks elegantly, has a handsome appearance, and seems to be as humble as jade, but he often reveals a bit of flattery, which shows that his character is not very good. At this time, he clearly proposed to be a matchmaker for his daughter in order to curry favor with me. Who knows what kind of character he has chosen?
You can't just marry Shougu off casually just because she's old, right?
He chuckled a few times and brushed the matter off.
Tao Qizhong didn't say much when he saw the situation and said goodbye together with Xu Zhiji.
Dou Shiying went back to the study to read for a while, but the servant ran in and said, "Seventh Master, Mr. Tao, who came to visit you with Master Xu just now, has come back again and said he has something important to see you about. Please come and see him no matter what."
Although he was unhappy in his heart, he was gentle in nature and still met Tao Qizhong.
Tao Qizhong bowed deeply when he saw Dou Shiying, and said with shame on his face, "Sir Dou, I have to be proud and I can't say it in front of Sir Xu. My nephew didn't steal other people's things. He opened a silver shop in Baoding Prefecture and had an affair with a concubine of the Baoding prefect who often asked the shop master to make jewelry for him. The Baoding prefect noticed it but couldn't find any evidence, so he found a random reason to turn him in. Prison. I was an aide to the Duke of England, and I had a very pleasant stay with him. I had asked the Duke for help on this matter, and I thought it was just a misunderstanding. The Duke even sent someone to deliver a name card to the prefect of Baoding, and we only then knew what was going on. But the prefect of Baoding had already said so much, and the Duke could not intercede. I had no choice but to ask Lord Dou for help.
He has committed such a filthy thing, and we have no face to plead for him. But he has a 60-year-old mother and several hungry children. If he gets into trouble, the old mother and children will probably die. That’s why we have the courage to ask Lord Dou to come forward and save his life…” After saying this, Tao Qizhong bowed once again.
That's more like it!
Dou Shiying was thinking.
As long as he can keep his life, this pottery can be manipulated again and he will be released in three or two years.
Since he knew this was a personal grudge, he became more cautious and said, "I'll ask for you first."
Tao Qizhong was filled with gratitude and said hurriedly, "It's true what I said I would be a matchmaker for your lady. The man is my master, the prince of the Duke of Ying's Mansion. He is sixteen years old this year. He is handsome and talented. He is also proficient in riding, shooting and the six arts. He was granted the emperor's favor just after he was born and was granted the title of the fourth-rank assistant. He inherited the title of prince at the age of five. Now he is the commander of the Jinwu Guard, a regular third-rank military officer. He has only one younger brother and a few distant relatives in his family, so he is very quiet. If it weren't for the incident in the Duke of Ding's Mansion and the death of Mrs. Jiang, how could the prince's marriage be delayed until now..."
Everyone knows about Duke Dingguo's affairs.
Many scholars believed that Duke Dingguo died unjustly. Not only did they not consider him a sinner, but they compared him to Guan Gong and thought he was a victim of the game between Zeng Yifen and Ye Shipei.
Song Mo is the nephew of Duke Dingguo and undoubtedly comes from a distinguished family.
Dou Shiying was immediately attracted. It would be better for Dou Zhao to get married than to stay at home.
He couldn't help but ask, "Is this true?"
"How dare you lie to Lord Dou!" Tao Qi said solemnly, "I have been in the Duke of Ying's mansion for more than ten years. I am also a person who has a say in front of the Duke. I definitely dare not lie about such a thing."
Although many young men and women from wealthy families were introduced to each other by trusted maids, Tao Qizhong acted so confidently, as if the matter would be settled as long as he mentioned it, which made Dou Shiying suspicious.
Since the British prince is so good, why would he choose Shougu?
It's not that he belittles himself. But the nobles and civil servants are two different circles. The British government has a great reputation, even people like him who don't go out to socialize very much know it, and he is just a fourth-grade Hanlin. Although his cousin is in the cabinet, his foundation is still shallow, and the two families have no one who can help each other. Places like the British Government House, which has stood for hundreds of years, may not necessarily take notice.
Tao Qizhong seemed to have seen through Dou Shiying's thoughts and smiled, "To be honest, the Duke of Ying's Mansion has been without a person to manage the family since the death of Madam Jiang. The Duke has no intention of remarrying, so he wants to find someone who can manage the family for the Crown Prince. It would be best if she is a few years older than the Crown Prince, prudent, virtuous, sensible, gentle and honest. Who knew that after searching for a long time, there was no suitable family. I heard that the unmarried girl in your mansion is your eldest daughter, the daughter you plan to keep at home for your old age. She must be very smart and capable, so I decided to act as a matchmaker. If the unmarried girl in your mansion is your second daughter, I might not dare to say such a thing..."
Dou Shiying felt relieved and couldn't help but say: "I'm not boasting as a father. My daughter is indeed very capable. There is nothing big or small that she can't handle at home..."
Tao Qizhong appeared to be very serious, but in his heart he was listening with disapproval.
If you are so capable, why don't you dare to say a word when your sister replaced you with someone else?
Even if they are capable, they will probably be the kind of people who only keep their heads down and are taciturn and dull.
He finally waited until Dou Shiying finished praising his daughter, then he smiled and said, "Master Xu was here just now, so I can't say which family I am matchmaking for your daughter. I'm going to go to the Duke of Ying to get some information, and I'll come back to hear from Master Dou in two days."
Dou Shiying nodded with satisfaction.
This is what a matchmaker looks like!
Both families were well-known, so if the marriage could be successful, everyone would be happy. If it failed, wouldn't it be a shame? Especially for Dou Zhao, the fact that the sisters were married off could not be kept secret for long. If the marriage with the Song family failed, she would really become the laughing stock of Kyoto. It would be okay to become a laughing stock, just bear with it, and it would pass in a few days. But if rumors spread that Dou Zhao had some hidden illness or defect, it would be terrible.
He personally sent the pottery back out, and said, "Mr. Tao, don't worry about your nephew. The prefect of Baoding and my second cousin were in the same class. He went to Kyoto to report on his work a few years ago and stayed at my fifth cousin's house. But she was just a concubine. It was because he didn't manage his family well. I believe he knew it in his heart, otherwise he wouldn't have found a reason to throw your nephew into prison."
What I meant was, if you can secure this marriage for my daughter, I'll take care of your nephew's affairs.
Tao Qizhong bowed again and again before leaving Jing'an Temple Hutong.
Dou Shiying was so excited that he could hardly sit still.
If Shougu could marry the prince of England, she wouldn't have to stay at home to find a son-in-law.
I wronged Shougu last time. This time when Shougu is getting married, I have to prepare more dowry for her.
I believe Ming Jie'er also understands this in her heart and will not argue with her sister about these things.
He called Gao Sheng in loudly and ordered him, "Prepare another dowry for the eldest daughter, and double the original amount." As soon as he said this, he felt that it was inappropriate. If others saw it, they would think that he liked Dou Zhao but not Ming Jie'er, which would make Ming Jie'er embarrassed. So he hurriedly said, "Forget it, you still buy the dowry for the eldest daughter according to the 20,000 taels of silver, and I will give her the rest quietly."
Gao Sheng was stunned.
It’s only been a few days, how come the eldest daughter is getting married?
I hope that the old man would not marry the fourth young lady off just to take a gamble.
He couldn't help but ask, "Master, whose son is the eldest aunt? Have you sent your trusted people to find out the details of the eldest aunt? The matchmaker's words are usually not to be trusted!"
Dou Shiying was stunned and said, "Yes! How could I forget about this?!"
Or maybe it was because he was too eager to compensate Dou Zhao!
Dou Shiying laughed and told Gao Sheng about Tao Qizhong's matchmaking for Dou Zhao, and asked him, "...what do you think?"
Gao Sheng felt that this marriage came too suddenly, but seeing that Dou Shiying was in high spirits, he didn't want to pour cold water on him. He was also afraid that this marriage was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity, and if it was ruined because of his words, he would be blamed even if he died.
"If it works out, there's nothing better than this marriage!" He said implicitly, "However, we should still ask around, so that when the fourth young lady gets married, we won't be blind and have no idea."
"Of course." Dou Shiying nodded repeatedly. Thinking that Gao Sheng was the person he trusted the most, he smiled and said, "Then I'll leave this matter to you." He repeatedly reminded him, "You must find out everything." He also said, "If you handle this matter well, I will reward your kid with a good family background."
Gao Sheng always respected Dou Zhao. Even if Dou Shiying didn't ask him to, he would have asked about it. Moreover, Dou Shiying had given his son a birth! Gao Sheng was overjoyed and thanked him repeatedly. He knelt down and kowtowed to Dou Shiying three times before he left.
Dou Shiying was in a very conflicted mood.
He was afraid that the news Gao Sheng had heard would be bad for the prince of the Duke of Ying, thus making Dou Zhao's marriage uncertain. He was also afraid that the news Gao Sheng had heard was as good as Tao Qizhong said, and the Duke of Ying would look down on Dou Zhao...
He was practicing calligraphy in his study, anxiously waiting for news of his promotion.
Unexpectedly, he came back just when Gaosheng was about to put on the lights.
"Master, I found out something." His face was pale, which made Dou Shiying feel that something was wrong. "I heard that the prince of the Duke of Ying has a very violent temper. Because of an argument with the Duke, he killed all the guards who obeyed the Duke. Not only that, he also stacked the bodies of the killed guards neatly in the middle of the yard. When the Duke returns home, the noble families in Kyoto will be terrified when they mention this matter..."
"What did you say?" Dou Shiying jumped up.
No wonder Tao Qizhong would act as a matchmaker for Shougu. It turns out that the Prince of England has a bad temper and no one dares to marry into their family!
Isn't this pushing Shougu into the fire pit?
You are so good, Tao Chi, how dare you bluff me!
He was so angry that he was shaking all over. Seeing that all the servants in the house had been sent away by him, he shouted at Gao Sheng with a sullen face: "Where is the visiting card of Tao Chi? What is the name of his nephew? You help me grind the ink. I want to write a letter to the prefect of Baoding. He still wants to save his nephew's life?! I will exile his nephew three thousand miles away... No, exile him to the nine frontiers. Maybe it will be just what he wants. Then he can ask the Duke of Yingguo's Mansion to intervene. The three-year sentence may be more comfortable than outside. I will make him spend the rest of his life in prison..."
Gao Sheng had never seen Dou Shiying so angry before, and he kept silent. But a servant was not very smart, or maybe too smart, and ran in to report, "Seventh Master, the fifth wife from Huaishu Hutong is here, and she wants to discuss something with you!"