Quick Transmigration: Underdog Turns out to be Untouchable

Chapter 987: Chapter 898: Defending Our Homeland 28

Kou Shuangshuang helped Du Zongze with his tasks, and each time the reward was the same. After all, Kou Shuangshuang was Du Zongze’s daughter-in-law, and couldn’t be promoted with titles and ranks, so money was a better reward. For Kou Shuangshuang, who was currently short on cash, the reward aligned perfectly with her needs.

After returning, the bodyguards who were Du Zongze’s confidants returned to their original posts. Naturally, everything that happened during Kou Shuangshuang’s trip would be reported in detail to Du Zongze.

Du Zongze was hardly able to rejoice at the fact that Kou Shuangshuang had decisively rescued his son, Du Haokun, before his brows furrowed at the matter involving Du Haokun and Tian Xueli. Du Zongze didn’t feel anything about Du Haokun having another woman, as he had countless women himself, and did not regard this as a big deal.

What angered Du Zongze was that his son was too careless. A woman like Tian Xueli is best suited to be kept as a mistress outside, and once the initial interest fades, she’s let go.

But Du Haokun actually had genuine feelings for Tian Xueli, not only protecting her at every turn, almost losing his life for her, but also making his wife look bad in front of others for such a woman. This was utterly foolish. If Kou Shuangshuang were merely a decorative vase, it might be acceptable, but Kou Shuangshuang was a crucial ally, even the figure that Du Zongze himself had to frequently appease.

Du Zongze initially thought the marriage bond alone would suffice, even if Kou Shuangshuang was indifferent in personality and had no real affection for his son, Du Haokun. However, Kou Shuangshuang was not someone who indulged in personal affairs, and just because she didn’t fancy Du Haokun, it didn’t mean she’d fancy other men.

In this situation, the two could conveniently treat the marital relationship as an unbreakable partnership, allowing Kou Shuangshuang and Du Haokun to cooperate seamlessly and eventually take over Du Zongze’s legacy. In fact, Du Zongze wanted Kou Shuangshuang to aid his son, Du Haokun, in advancing further.

But the premise of this collaboration was for Du Haokun to give Kou Shuangshuang enough respect and decency, so she wouldn’t become estranged from Du Haokun. This actually wouldn’t be difficult, so long as Du Haokun stopped taking concubines, kept any woman he fancied outside, and didn’t irk Kou Shuangshuang. He should also bring Kou Shuangshuang to important occasions and ensure she maintains her dignity outside— given that a woman’s pride in these times is only granted this much.

As for how to ensure subordinates obey Kou Shuangshuang, Du Haokun didn’t need to worry about that. Kou Shuangshuang could manage it herself. In fact, Kou Shuangshuang was doing quite well; even the bodyguards initially directed only by Du Zongze were seamlessly under her command, eliminating any concern about her ability to handle her subordinates.

It was fortunate that Du Haokun liked to maintain his integrity and wasn’t swayed by beauty, making Du Zongze believe he needn’t worry, as Du Haokun surely wouldn’t wrong Kou Shuangshuang over his fondness for women.

Unexpectedly, his son was swiftly proven wrong; Du Zongze had just been thinking about his son’s chastity when Du Haokun acted like the foolish kings of ancient times, willing to do nonsensical things for a woman.

The more Du Zongze thought, the angrier he became. In his rage, he felt confused; for years, his son had been a calm, self-reliant man, uninterested in women. Why was he suddenly infatuated with a not-so-excellent, thoughtless, impulsive, and cowardly woman? It was truly inconceivable.

Thinking this way, Du Zongze ordered someone to call Du Haokun over. He intended to educate Du Haokun on the dangers of favoring one woman among many.

While Du Zongze worried about Du Haokun, Du Haokun was busy persuading Tian Xueli to leave. He couldn’t understand why Tian Xueli, who always resisted coming to his house, suddenly insisted on accompanying him back to Du Mansion. But now was certainly not a good time for Tian Xueli to come home with him.

However, Tian Xueli had a trick to overpower Du Haokun—a stubborn yet tearful gaze, so pitiably innocent that before long, Du Haokun yielded helplessly, leading Tian Xueli all the way back to Du Mansion.

Thankfully, Du Haokun hadn’t completely lost his senses and understood that his family favored Kou Shuangshuang. Especially because Kou Shuangshuang was his father’s trusted ally, they wouldn’t welcome Tian Xueli, who had just made Kou Shuangshuang uncomfortable. So he arranged for Tian Xueli to stay in his room, warning her not to wander around.

Of course, Tian Xueli was unhappy about this. She hadn’t come to Du Mansion to be hidden in a room; otherwise, what was the point of coming? She came to demonstrate to Kou Shuangshuang, to intrude upon her territory.

The reason Tian Xueli did this might be out of indignation or perhaps a sense of crisis. She clearly felt that although Du Haokun was extremely deferential to her, whenever he encountered Kou Shuangshuang, he still prioritized her. Yet, when confronted with both of them, Du Haokun never once sided with Tian Xueli.

Not to mention, he no longer impulsively helped her deal with and settle the people she disliked. This unusual response from Du Haokun unsettled Tian Xueli, who felt something was slipping out of her control. That’s why she changed her usual stance of not getting involved in Du Haokun’s family affairs, desperately clinging to him and wanting to come to Du Mansion.

Tian Xueli’s intentions were unknown to Du Haokun, who was standing in front of his father, Du Zongze, being lectured. Du Zongze’s admonishment was simple: urged Du Haokun kindly that if he really liked Tian Xueli, he should keep her outside as a mistress but never bring her back to cause trouble for Kou Shuangshuang.

The reason Du Zongze allowed Du Haokun to maintain Tian Xueli was that he knew his daughter-in-law was even more broad-minded than his wife, caring little about how many women Du Haokun had, nor about Tian Xueli, the particular woman whom Du Haokun favored. Therefore, Du Zongze allowed Du Haokun to keep Tian Xueli.

However, not allowing Du Haokun to bring Tian Xueli back to Du Mansion was to prevent her from instigating conflicts daily. Kou Shuangshuang wasn’t a pushover; although she didn’t care how many women Du Haokun had, it didn’t mean she would tolerate anyone trying to exert dominance over her.

Before deciding to rely heavily on Kou Shuangshuang, Du Zongze had investigated her actions in detail, understanding thoroughly how Kou Shuangshuang smoothly exposed the instigators behind the scenes when she first faced servants’ exclusion after getting married. She swiftly dealt with Lin Sixteenth Concubine and Liu Feifei in one go, targeting their weaknesses effectively.

Combining her efficient methods when assisting Du Zongze recently, it was clear this was the real Kou Shuangshuang. If provoked, not only Tian Xueli but Du Zongze was certain it was possible even his own son, Du Haokun, wouldn’t be a match for Kou Shuangshuang.