Chapter 219 Advance and Retreat
In just a few moments, the crowd watching the excitement formed a circle around Ji Yong and He Yu.
The He family's guards drove the crowd away: "What are you looking at? Have you never seen a fight?"
A woman laughed and said, "I've never seen such handsome young men fighting!" This caused the onlookers to burst into laughter.
Although the He family's guards looked a little embarrassed, they no longer had the domineering attitude when driving the crowd away.
Seeing that the He family's guards were just standing by and watching without stepping forward to help, the Ji family's guards knew that they were under He Yu's orders. Ji Yong and He Yu were frequent friends, so they didn't understand the situation for a moment and didn't dare to intervene easily. They could only let the two men who had no killing power fight with each other with punches and kicks.
After a few rounds, both of them were exhausted and sat on the ground gasping for breath.
Ji Yong asked He Yu: "Why the hell did you hit me?"
He Yu stared at Ji Yong: "Didn't you say that the fourth daughter of the Dou family would definitely marry Wei Tingyu? How come Jining Hou became the second aunt of the Dou family? I heard that it was you who went to Shuntian Mansion to help with the marriage certificate?"
It seems that the news of the Dou sisters' remarriage has spread.
Ji Yong gets angry when this matter is mentioned.
He sneered: "Why are you asking me? Why don't you go ask Wei Tingyu? If he doesn't acknowledge this marriage, can I still force him?"
He Yu didn't say anything.
Ji Yong stood up shakily and walked towards his carriage in a daze.
He Yu chased after him, put his arm around his shoulders, and said, "Forget it! I just feel depressed. Let's go for a drink?"
Ji Yong nodded, took the handkerchief handed to him by his son, wiped his nose carelessly, and said, "You didn't disfigure me, did you? I still have to go to the government office to work tomorrow..."
He Yu's eyes sparkled: "He is a real man. The scars on his face make him look even more majestic!"
Ji Yong said, "Pah," and said, "Then I'll make you more noble, what do you think?"
He Yu chuckled and said, "I'm married now, so I don't need to worry about these little things. Don't you still have to find a wife?"
"Wife..." Ji Yong murmured, a little absent-minded.
Dou Zhao, you will never pay attention to him again from now on, right?
Just thinking about it made him feel heartbroken.
How did things turn out like this?
He just wanted her life to be better, why did she always feel like she was meddling in other people's business?
Ji Yong suddenly felt a little confused.
He Yu, who was walking forward with his arm around Ji Yong's shoulder, saw that Ji Yong was a little disappointed. He suddenly felt anxious and squeezed his eyes towards Ji Yong, saying, "Do you want me to be a matchmaker for you? I have a younger cousin who is very good-looking, well-behaved, and talented. Come to my house one day and I'll show her to you. If you're satisfied, I'll let my father talk to your father..."
Ji Yong came back to her senses, slapped his hand off her shoulder, and said unhappily, "Just mind your own business, why are you worrying so much!"
"I'm not worrying about nothing, am I?" He Yu said indifferently, "You're already an adult, be careful that I'll have my son and you'll still be alone. However, I think Wei Tingyu is a worthless guy. Even if he's not the fourth daughter of the Dou family, he doesn't have to marry the fifth daughter of the Dou family! How will the fourth daughter of the Dou family live in the future?! What do you think, should we go meet Wei Tingyu..."
The two of them walked arm in arm, gradually moving away.
The guards of the He and Ji families followed the two of them silently and left Jing'an Temple Hutong together.
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Song Mo sat under the dim lights of the Yangjiao Palace, stroking the small piece of paper in his hand with a strange expression on his face.
Since Tao Qizhong has already gone to Jing'an Temple Hutong to visit Dou Qiye, I believe the Dou family will soon send someone to find out his background.
Is this a case of overdoing things?
The murderous reputation that he had intentionally left behind in order to scare his father has now become an obstacle between him and Dou Zhao!
However, the problem is not unsolvable.
Aren't there many rumors about Dou Zhao? !
It all depends on how he explains it to Mr. Dou Qi when the time comes.
Thinking of this, Song Mo took two bottles of the gifted Ganlubai and went to the commander of the Jinwu Guards, Shao Wenjie.
Who knew that Guangenbo's son Dong Qi was also there.
Song Mo generously handed the wine to Shao Wenji's servant and said with a smile: "I thought I didn't have to work tonight, so I wanted to have a drink with Master Shao, but I was afraid that Master Shao would be reluctant to let me drink, so I simply brought the wine myself. Master Dong is here too, so Master Shao, please do me a favor and have a drink with us, right?"
Who is Song Mo?
And he has always been respectful to his boss, so Shao Wen would have to be crazy to offend Song Mo.
Song Mo was so generous, so Dong Qi naturally could not be timid.
The two of them smiled and agreed, and sat on the kang as host and guest.
Song Mo found a brocade box on the kang.
I guess Dong Qi came to give Shao Wenji a gift.
As princes of noble families, Dong Qi and Song Mo have different personalities, but they are both good at dealing with people. They strictly observe the superior-subordinate relationship in the Jinwu Guard and are highly praised by their colleagues.
Song Mo pretended not to see it.
Compared to others, he and Dong Qi were much more generous in giving gifts to their superiors - because of their status, they gave gifts to make friends; others gave gifts to curry favor with their superiors...
Because it was in a separate palace, although the servants brought a few dishes quickly, they were nothing more than cold dishes such as peanuts and fried peas, not as good as the side dishes served to the maids in the Duke of Ying's Mansion or the Marquis of Huichang's Mansion, but in a separate palace, this was already a great luxury.
Song Mo was very considerate and took the initiative to pour wine for Shao Wenji and Dong Qi.
This is what Shao Wenji admires most about Song Mo.
"You came just in time. Jinyun and I were just discussing our mission for the next few days." He couldn't help but smile and said to Song Mo, "The emperor has decided to return to the palace on the 12th. You and Jinyun will be in charge of guarding the emperor for the next few days."
Jinyun is Dong Qi’s courtesy name.
Dong Qi bowed respectfully to Shao Wenji and said, "Your Excellency's orders." But his eyes could not hide his joy.
Apparently, he gave the gift to Shao Wenji for this very reason.
Song Mo was at a loss whether to laugh or cry.
If the emperor returns to the palace, the twelve guards of the imperial guard will guard along the way. Because there are so many people and they belong to different guards, the commanders of the twelve guards will decide in advance who will be on duty along the way, and they will also send people to patrol the places the emperor passes.
The inspection mission certainly does not involve serving the emperor in person, but I want to return to Kyoto quietly, so it would be best to let Shao Wenji send me on the inspection.
However, he did not expect to be implicated by Dong Qi, causing Shao Wenji to misunderstand that he came here for this purpose as well.
Now it seems that this path is not feasible, especially since Shao Wenji assigned himself and Dong Qi together, Dong Qi will definitely pay special attention to him.
Song Mo could only smile calmly and thank Shao Wenji, and asked which people would be on duty in front of Yu like him in the past few days.
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At this time, Song Yichun was pacing around the house like a trapped beast.
"I said this wouldn't work! Look at the Dou family, they immediately sent people to find out about Song Mo's background. Unfortunately, too many people know about this, so we can't keep it a secret. I'm afraid this marriage is over!" He said anxiously, "If the Dou family doesn't agree to this marriage, are there any other candidates?"
Compared to offending the emperor, Song Mo married the princess and took control of the real power in the Duke of Ying's Mansion, making him a decoration and becoming insignificant.
He had to arrange Song Mo's marriage as soon as possible, otherwise it would be too late to do anything after the emperor returned to Kyoto.
Tao Qizhong, who was sitting on the armchair next to him and drinking tea, smiled and said, "As soon as I left, the Dou family immediately sent someone to inquire about the prince. This just shows that the Dou family really wants to marry off their daughter. Duke, please be patient. I have anticipated this. I will go to Jing'an Temple Hutong early tomorrow morning!"
Song Yichun was too lazy to ask him what his idea was, and just urged him: "Hurry up and get this done!"
Tao Qizhong nodded with a smile, left the study, and early the next morning, as if he was visiting a good friend, he went to Jing'an Temple Hutong, carrying a twelve-color gift box.
Hearing that Tao Qizhong had come to visit, Dou Shiying sneered: "How dare he come to see me? Get him out!"
Dou Shiying was always gentle in his dealings with others, and seldom was he so sharp. The servant was so frightened that his face turned pale, and he hurried to the gate.
Tao Qizhong was a little surprised to hear that Dou Shiying reacted so strongly, but time was running out and he had no time or ability to find someone like Dou Zhao who met Song Yichun's requirements as a relative. He stuffed five taels of silver into the servant's pocket and begged, "Please go and tell him again, saying that people's words are scary. For the sake of my nephew's life, I dare not deceive Lord Dou."
Dou Shiying was a lenient ruler, so the servant thought again and again, and for the sake of five taels of silver, he went to report to Dou Shiying again.
"People's words are scary!" Dou Shiying chewed over this sentence several times. The more he thought about it, the more he felt that this sentence had a profound meaning. He ordered the servant in a deep voice, "Let him come in and talk."
The servant hurriedly brought the pottery back to the study.
Tao Qizhong's face was filled with shame. He apologized as soon as he entered the room, saying, "It's all my fault for not explaining it clearly. Our prince is a man of both military and literary talents. He is one of the few outstanding people in the noble families of Kyoto. When he was nine years old, he followed the emperor to Huailai Autumn Hunting. The emperor tested the prince in riding and archery. The prince ranked first among the noble children because he ranked second in riding and fifth in archery. The emperor rewarded the prince with a farm in Daxing. From then on, countless dignitaries in Kyoto kept an eye on our prince, and often used him as an example to teach those unlearned children. Unfortunately, the Duke had high expectations for the prince, and the homework was heavy. The prince seldom went out, and the rumor became more and more outrageous.
After I went back, I mentioned the young lady of your mansion to the Duke, and the Duke also sent someone to inquire about it. I was worried that the Duke would blame me for my rash behavior, but who knew that the Duke of England was very happy and said that if you don't suffer from the trials of heaven, you are not a good man, and if you don't suffer from the envy of others, you are a mediocre person. It can be seen that the young lady of your mansion must be very outstanding. He also specifically asked me to test the tone of the adults and see if I can arrange a time to meet with the adults in the next two days so that this marriage can be settled.
If it was really as rumored in Kyoto, would our Duke allow the Crown Prince to take human lives so lightly?
Whether it is true or false, a rumor or slander, Lord Dou will know it once he asks our Duke.
Is there any case in this world where the victim still speaks up for the victim?"
The heavy pottery put Dou Shiying in a dilemma.
Many of the staff members are as capable as Zhang Yi. If what he said is untrue, and if he agrees to this marriage, it will ruin Dou Zhao's life; if what he said is true, and he misses this marriage, where can he find such a good marriage for Dou Zhao?