Chapter 37 On Filial Piety

Guan Zhiwei suspected that Gao Huan was attempting suicide in his room; he was simply too fragile.

After thinking it over, she decided to give him something to cheer him up.

But it wasn't very sincere; at least it didn't go up the mountain to hunt a tiger.

So she decided to give him the most precious thing she had on hand—the love token from that prince.

Although she thought the tattered sachet was worthless, she figured the powerful and wealthy might actually like it.

She entered the room and found Gao Huan reclining on a daybed with several scrolls of books beside him, which he was not reading.

"Why aren't you reading?"

"Heavy in my grasp."

Guan Zhiwei naturally helped him unfold the book, saying, "I'll hold it, you can look at it."

He rubbed his temples. "You've got it upside down."

Did he just look down on me? Guan Zhiwei had a slight doubt in her mind, and casually tossed the book aside.

Gao Huan felt a little sorry for the book. In this day and age, books were mostly controlled by aristocratic families. For ordinary people, reading books was as difficult as climbing to heaven. For a family like his, which was not a family of officials and nobles, it was not easy to get some books.

"What are you doing here?" His unspoken message was, "If you have nothing to do, get out of here."

"This sachet is for you." Guan Zhiwei held out her hand.

Gao Huan didn't even look at the sachet; he was slightly shocked and turned his gaze to Guan Zhiwei.

"You gave me a sachet?"

"ah."

"I am physically weak..."

"But she is very attractive."

What a beast!

After hesitating for a long time, Gao Huan finally managed to say, "I'm willing but unable."

Guan Zhiwei couldn't help but burst out laughing, laughing so hard she almost fell over.

“I’m not asking you to offer yourself to me, nor am I asking you to commit to me. I don’t have anything of value on me. Even if this is worth something, I’m giving it to you as an apology. You can use this sachet to exchange for various things from me in the future.”

Gao Huan then accepted it with relief. He examined the sachet, which was neither new nor old, and said coolly, "This is a fine item, made of silk. It is probably a cherished possession of some young man."

The subtext is that this is something that has been used by someone, and using it as an apology shows a lack of care.

Guan Zhiwei didn't realize what was going on and still thought she had made the right bet.

"Yes, yes, it's a good product."

His hand suddenly paused, and he saw a few embroidered characters in the corner—Yang Canghui.

Yang is the imperial surname, and this name happens to belong to the Prince of Ding'an.

It was precisely because this prince died under mysterious circumstances that Grand Commandant Gao was able to bring down Grand Tutor Yuwen, leading to Grand Commandant Gao's own death.

"Did you kill the Prince of Ding'an?!" he asked, his voice tinged with doubt yet also with certainty.

Guan Zhiwei recalled briefly: "I think so."

Why did you kill him?

"He's just unlucky."

If he's lucky, he'll meet a woman who's completely defenseless, and he can do whatever he wants, then simply have a fling afterwards. It's just that the woman is unlucky.

Unfortunately, it was his misfortune that he met Guan Zhiwei.

Gao Huan looked at Guan Zhiwei with mixed feelings. It turned out that the beginning of the storm was with her.

She was destined to be extraordinary, so what was the reason for their unexpected encounter?

They were both deep in thought, so they remained silent.

Guan Zhiwei racked her brains but couldn't come up with an answer. She asked, "I killed your father, but you've been calm all this time. Why are you angry today?"

Gao Huan cleared his mind of distractions and answered the question first: "It is normal for a murderer to be murdered. A person can be killed, but not humiliated."

Guan Zhiwei thought for a moment. If she had to choose between living and dignity, she would choose the former. Humiliation and dignity were both too vague and difficult to define.

She said, "It seems like you've never thought about revenge."

Gao Huan thought to himself, "You killed a tiger with your bare hands, how am I supposed to take revenge?"

He said irritably, "Whether it's my father or my life, I know which is more important."

Guan Zhi narrowed his eyes, then suddenly reached out and demanded the sachet back, "Give it back to me."

"Why?" You can't ask for something back after giving it away.

“Those who hold grudges and those who repay kindness are actually the same kind of people. Those who have few enemies will also have few favors. Since you don’t hold a grudge against me, you won’t remember my kindness either, so I’ve decided not to give you any gifts,” Guan Zhiwei said.

Gao Huanle said, "I'm not that forgiving."

Guan Zhiwei said, "Oh? Tell me about it, and I'll make a judgment."

There were many things Gao Huan never told anyone, because he thought he would take them to his grave.

He did indeed die, but before we could build him a grave, he came back to life.

He then pretended that he was talking nonsense.

“Everyone in the family says that my father loves me the most. Indeed, as the son of a concubine, I am physically weak and not capable of great things, but my father is willing to fulfill my wishes and collect three thousand books for me. Logically speaking, even if I am no match for you, I should fight to the death to fulfill my filial duty.”

"But?" Guan Zhiwei knew that a turning point was coming.

Gao Huan coughed twice and said slowly, "Do you know why I am so weak?"

"It can't be because of bad food, right?"

“When my mother was pregnant with me, my father suffered a defeat in the war and abandoned the city, leaving my mother behind. My mother was captured and, fearing that people would find out that she was pregnant, she wrapped her lower abdomen with cloth. I was born prematurely in July, and my mother died of blood loss when she gave birth to me.”

"Oh, you're such a filial son, standing up for your mother."

"That's not true. I've never met my mother since I was born, so how much affection could I have for her?"

Guan Zhiwei clenched her fist and slammed it down. "So, to sum it up, it's because you're cold-hearted by nature."

Gao Huan glared at him: "Are you going to listen to me or not?"

"listen."

“Before my mother died, she held my father’s hand and said that she had no resentment or hatred, only regret that she could not give him more children. How could she not have resentment or hatred? She just dared not, because she was dead while I was still alive. Everything I enjoy is the result of my mother’s planning, so what do I have to be grateful for?”

Gao Huan was quiet and serene, like a lilac blossom.

Guan Zhiwei nodded: "That makes sense. Besides, he abandoned you before you were even born, so you can naturally abandon him."

"You really think so?"

"Really." Guan Zhiwei nodded sincerely. She thought to herself, if I didn't say that, would I be encouraging you to seek revenge?

Gao Huan's mood visibly improved.

He rarely considered Guan Zhiwei's feelings, saying, "Since the Chen family still exists, it's obvious that my father didn't completely destroy them. So they probably aren't some powerful or wealthy family. You don't need to worry too much."

Guan Zhiwei said arrogantly, "I'm not afraid of the powerful families either. I'll kill them one by one, day by day, randomly picking which ones to kill. They're weak as chickens, even easier to kill than your father."

"..."

Gao Huan tossed the sachet into her hand. "Doctor Guan, I don't need your coaxing. Take what another man has used and leave."

"Men are just so dramatic." Guan Zhiwei shook her head and walked away.

Gao Huan secretly hoped that someone from the Chen family would come and kill her.

The idea was good, but it was difficult to implement because the head of the Chen family was not a fool.