Chapter 283 — An Endless Stream

On the way back to Yizhi Hall, Song Yan asked Dou Yan, "Did everything go smoothly?"

"Mm!" Dou Yan thought of the bedraggled figures the Elder Madam and her daughter-in-law had cut as they left, and a faint smile crept onto her lips. "It was only a meeting with the stewards of each branch. I have no intention of seizing control of the rear quarters, so we were all quite courteous to one another."

The Ying Ducal Estate belonged to the Duke of Ying, after all; he could reclaim the authority of household management at any moment. What Dou Yan had to do now was make Song Cen understand that no matter whom he chose to hand the power of running the Ying Ducal Estate, without the consent of Yizhi Hall, that person would never hold the position securely.

She asked Song Yan, "Any news on the Hua family?"

When the two of them talked, the maids and pages naturally dared not come too close; all of them trailed far behind.

Song Yan still lowered his voice. "The official document appointing the Hua family's eldest son as chiliarch of the Renqiu Guard has already been sent to Yu Prefecture." A flicker of coldness passed through his eyes. "But the old lady of that household has also decided to go to the capital in person to lodge an appeal with the emperor—let the Hua family enjoy themselves for now. Falling from the mountaintop into the valley makes for a finer spectacle."

An old woman with no one to rely on, daring to come to the capital to accuse a third-rank grand official—anyone would suspect she was acting at someone's direction... Dou Yan cautioned, "Be careful. Don't let yourself get dragged into it." If someone with ill intent made use of this, they could make it seem that Song Yan was targeting the Marquis of Changxing and the Marquis of Anlu. Song Yan was still young, his foundations unsteady; it would not do for him to make too many enemies.

Song Yan showed not the slightest fear. "Even if someone suspects the old lady has backing, it doesn't matter. Once this blows up, pulling up the radish brings the mud with it—do you think there are many in the Ministry of Personnel and the Ministry of War with clean hands? They'll only address the matter at hand and cut through the knot to quiet things down as fast as possible. And if they truly discover I was behind it, that's no matter either—let them know why I did it. Perhaps the Hua family will even withdraw from the engagement on their own, saving me the trouble of prompting him later."

The impression from her past life was too deep. Dou Yan had always regarded Song Yan as an exceedingly capable man, and at his words she could not help nodding.

In the distance, Song Han abandoned the pages crowding around him and came running over.

"Brother, brother, you're finally back!" He threw his arms around Song Yan's arm, a glimmer of tears at the corners of his eyes, and looked at Song Yan with an uneasy expression. "There was a fire at home, and thieves took the chance to break in. Yet Tao Jun knows nothing about it." He complained, "I ran to see Sister-in-law, and brother's guards were all standing watch over her..." He shot a swift glance at Dou Yan, saw that she was merely standing quietly beside Song Yan with a smile, and at once let out a breath of relief—failing to notice the embarrassment that flashed across Song Yan's face and vanished.

He had been so preoccupied with whether Dou Yan was all right that he had forgotten his younger brother—bereft of a mother's love and treated roughly by their father...

"It won't happen again." Song Yan put an arm around Song Han's shoulders and said with a smile that carried a double meaning, "When Father returns, I'll speak to him. I'll assign a few guards to you..."

Before he had finished speaking, Song Han was already crying out in delight, "Really? Then won't I be just like you, with guards of my own?" He tugged at Song Yan's arm, acting spoiled. "Brother, I want guards even stronger than yours!"

.

Song Yan chuckled. "I'll keep an eye out for you."

Song Han giggled, his laughter bright and joyful, like the sun at dawn, carrying a touch of warmth.

Was this Song Han?

The Song Han whose four limbs had been severed by Song Yan, who had died wailing in agony?

Dou Yan felt a heaviness in her heart.

A page came trotting over, chasing after a figure.

Dou Yan looked closely—it was actually Gu Yu.

Song Yan and Song Han saw him too. Song Yan gazed at Gu Yu. Song Han muttered a few words under his breath. Song Yan did not hear them, but Dou Yan heard clearly. What he muttered was "Why has he come," in a tone of undisguised disgust.

Dou Yan pretended not to have heard.

"Tianci, how could there have been a fire at home?" Gu Yu was drenched in sweat, his expression somewhat panicked. "Is anyone in the household hurt?" As he spoke, he glanced at Dou Yan and Song Han, saw the two standing there safe and sound, and let out a long breath of relief; his expression gradually settled, and he said, "What was all that about the thieves? I went drinking with Wang Dahai yesterday and only got home at the hour of the tiger. I vaguely heard your household had caught fire, so I hurried over. You've come back this early—you must have gotten leave from Shao Wenji, right? Does the Emperor know? Does the Empress know? Shall I go to the palace for you? Those men of the Five City Garrisons are forever passing the buck, and the Shuntian Prefecture is always eager to have one less matter to deal with. Expecting them to help chase down thieves is like expecting an iron tree to bloom..."

He rattled on and on.

Dou Yan felt only warmth in her heart.

Song Yan likely shared Dou Yan's thoughts; the look he turned on Gu Yu grew gentler still.

"The Emperor bestowed Emperor Taizong's sword upon me and ordered me to investigate the fire at the Ying Ducal Estate..." He recounted the course of events simply and concisely.

Gu Yu said at once, "Tianci, I'll help you. I know most of the riffraff of every trade in the capital. If I don't turn them upside down, my surname isn't Gu! Don't they know what kind of place this is, daring to target Tianci..." As he spoke, a hint of menace crept into the corners of his eyes and brows, lending a cold darkness to his face, which was as fair as a woman's. "Unless they hand over the culprits, not a single one of those 'Lord' this and 'Brother' that will escape involvement!"

Dou Yan was startled, but on second thought an idea rose in her mind.

She shot Song Yan a look.

Song Yan gave an almost imperceptible nod and said to Gu Yu with a smile, "Don't go making trouble. It's best to leave this matter to the Five City Garrisons and the Shuntian Prefecture." Then he added, "Have you broken your fast? Come, let your sister-in-law fix you something to eat. Get some rest, and later come with me to see the Earl of Donglin... Look at the state of you—pale-faced, listless... How much did you drink last night?"

"Not that much." Gu Yu mumbled under his breath. "I ran into Feng Zhi and the others along the way, played a few rounds of pai gow, so it got a bit late..."

Song Yan was somewhat irritated. "Starting tomorrow, you get up early and practice horse stance with the household instructors..."

Gu Yu said nothing, following Song Yan into Yizhi Hall with a somewhat awkward air.

Dou Yan deliberately fell a few steps behind and glanced at Song Han.

He was staring at Gu Yu, sparks fairly flying from his eyes.

Dou Yan asked Song Han, "Has the Second Young Master broken his fast?"

"No!" Song Han answered stiffly, then, as if sensing his own brusqueness, he hurriedly put on a somewhat forced smile and softened his voice considerably. "I can't eat! The moment I heard brother was back, I hurried over."

His voice was loud, and Song Yan and Gu Yu, walking ahead, could not help turning back.

Song Yan said, "Then later you can eat with Gu Yu."

Song Han nodded with a smile.

Dou Yan noticed that Song Han's hands were clenched tightly into fists.