Thinking of Xie Xiangxiang, Tu was so angry that she cursed Yuan Ji. If it weren't for his loose tongue, Xie Zhaozhao would have married Yan'er.

Xie Zhaozhao is such a good daughter-in-law. Her dowry surpasses that of a princess, she is favored by her family, she was raised by a concubine, she is well-mannered, has a first-class appearance, and is a top-tier noblewoman.

What a great help he is to his son!

"Since the Xie family won't support Xie Xiangxiang, let's adopt Yuebai under her name and make him the eldest son."

The three generations of the Hou family decided to open the ancestral hall during the Spring Festival to inform their ancestors and adopt Gu Yuebai as the eldest son of Gu Chengyan and Xie Xiangxiang.

The old lady said, "You must explain this to the eldest son. He doesn't know yet, does he? Yuebai is his own grandson."

Madam Tu went to summon Gu Boyu herself, but Gu Boyu was with his concubine, Madam Wang.

Gu Xuanxuan's attempt to harm Gu Huanhuan failed, and she was sold to a brothel by Sun Kehai. After being brought back, she was given to Sun Kehai as a concubine. Wang Shi lost all her ambition. Every day she pestered Gu Boyu, hoping to have another son to rely on.

She used all her charms to completely bewitch Gu Boyu.

Madam Tu summoned Gu Boyu to the old lady's Ci'en Courtyard. Gu Boyu crawled out of his warm bed, feeling somewhat displeased.

"Eldest son, have you seen Yuebai?" the old lady asked first.

Gu Boyu was a little confused. He only knew that a relative's child lived in his house, but he didn't know whose child it was.

“That’s Chengyan’s child, your own grandson.” Knowing that both Madam Tu and Gu Chengyan were afraid of Gu Boyu, the old lady had no choice but to bring it up herself. “There’s no reason for your own grandson to be left outside. He must be brought back to the family genealogy.”

Gu Boyu stared wide-eyed and said, "Gu Chengyan, you're keeping a mistress?"

Gu Chengyan nodded: "I've fallen for a girl. She's very special and knowledgeable, completely different from the young ladies around here."

"Where are you from? What's so special about you? You keep a mistress, and you even talk about it in such a refined and elegant way. All the money in the house is gone, isn't it you who squandered it?"

Gu Boyu was a playboy of the old generation, and he was the kind of person who didn't even know Confucius's surname. "Don't blame me if you run out of money in the mansion in the future. You support people and I gamble, we're evenly matched."

"My cousin..."

"Wait, your cousin? Which cousin?"

"..." Gu Chengyan hesitated for a moment, then said, "Qianyue comes from a faraway place, a country we can't reach. She didn't have an identity at first, so I registered her under her uncle's name..."

"Could he be a spy from an enemy country?"

"No, Father, you must believe her."

"Why should I believe her? Is she my mother or your mother?"

"Eldest son! Are you being foolish again?" the old lady scolded angrily. "Why are you rambling on? The child is Yan'er's own, and I don't plan to let this woman into the manor, but the child must be brought back. The bloodline of the Marquis's manor cannot be allowed to flow outside."

Gu Boyu frowned and said, "Mother, how can you be sure that child is Yan'er's? What if Yan'er is being cuckolded?"

Madam Tu said angrily, "Doesn't the Marquis hope that his own son will be better off?"

Gu Boyu spread his hands: "How could I not hope for his well-being? It's not like I haven't found him a wife. If he wants to take a concubine, he can just tell Xie Shi after a while. Why keep a mistress for no reason? If you're going to keep her, then keep her. Why adopt her? You're not incapable of having children. Hurry up and have one with Xie Shi. This kind of mistress isn't even a son born out of wedlock. What's the point of adopting her!"

Gu Chengyan said, "But Yuebai is my eldest son."

"Eldest son? You and Xie have only been married for half a year, and you've already adopted a child into her family. What kind of behavior is this? You can't bully people like this. Mother, aren't you going to do anything about it? Are you just condoning this kind of evil practice?"

The old lady retorted angrily, "How was I supposed to know he was keeping a mistress? Do you think I wanted this? But the child is born, so I can't deny it!"

Gu Boyu got up and left, saying at the door, "Hey, let me tell you, I don't agree to adopting children! Also, don't let this kind of woman into the house. What foreigner? What if she's a fugitive and our whole family is executed? Don't go looking for trouble! The Marquis's mansion isn't that glamorous, but you can still support a few concubines, right? Why would you want a foreign woman?"

One sentence made both Madam Tu and Gu Chengyan turn pale with fright.

The old lady, unaware that Tu Qianyue was the fugitive Guan Yingying, said, "If all else fails, I'll ask your third uncle to investigate that woman's background. He's very meticulous and will definitely find out everything."

My God, should we entrust this to Gu Shaoyu to investigate?

Isn't that just courting death?

The adoption was immediately stopped.

Gu Chengyan didn't care and told Madam Tu, "Let Xie raise her for now. She likes Yuebai. If Father sees that Xie can't have children in two or three years, he will agree to the adoption."

Since learning that Xie Xiangxiang had been abandoned by the Xie family, Madam Tu felt extremely contemptuous of her. People usually marry for help, but what kind of trash did she marry for her son?

Gu Chengyan pleaded with Madam Tu and the old lady: "No matter what, Xie is my wife. I hope that Grandmother and Mother will not say anything about her in public or in private, and will not make things difficult for her or put me in a difficult position."

The old lady sighed and said with a headache, "What kind of thing is this? Xie's manners are really not good. The other day I saw Second Madam Xie, and her demeanor and virtues were far superior to Xu's. It is clear that although Xu is a second wife, she is of lowly birth, and the children she raises are not like the legitimate sons of a prominent family."

Madam Tu stated that she would definitely not reveal that Xie Xiangxiang was an abandoned pawn, as the Marquis's mansion would lose face. However, she demanded that starting tomorrow, Xie Xiangxiang must stand before her with proper etiquette.

Gu Chengyan agreed, but asked his mother not to humiliate her too much.

My dear reader, there's more to this chapter! Please click the next page to continue reading—even more exciting content awaits!