In Qinfang Courtyard, Aunt Liu was leisurely eating grapes and reading a storybook when she noticed her maid returning. "How is it outside? What did the people who came today look like?"

Last night, she overheard Lord Gu mention that the thief who kidnapped Gu Chaoxi was coming to their door, and she almost laughed her head off.

Her daughter entered the palace and became a concubine. Gu Chaoxi had lost her virginity before entering the palace and was pregnant out of wedlock, ruining her reputation. Aunt Liu was overjoyed. With a look of schadenfreude, she sent her maid to the front courtyard to investigate and see what kind of person she was.

“Aunt, that person didn’t come today, but His Highness the Regent did. I heard he’s here to investigate a case, and he’s sent a lot of people to guard the gates inside and outside the mansion. I dare not get close. I guess that person won’t dare to come when he sees this kind of entourage.”

"He didn't come?" Aunt Liu was somewhat disappointed. She had thought that the other party was a crude and uncouth man, and that she could secretly send someone outside to spread rumors. Now it seemed that this method would not work.

Thinking of the letter her daughter had sent from the palace, Aunt Liu was troubled again.

The emperor doesn't mind that Gu Chaoxi isn't a virgin, and still wants to take her into the palace. Isn't this just making things difficult for her daughter?

She had to find a way to prevent Gu Chaoxi from entering the palace.

She thought for a while before remembering the first person, and quickly wrote a letter and handed it to the maid, saying, "Send this letter to the Duke of Zhao's mansion and give it to the eldest son, Zhao Mingxu."

"yes."

...

Zhao Mingxu was quite surprised to receive Aunt Liu's letter. He had initially refused to annul his engagement with Gu Chaoxi, but Old Madam Gu's attitude was firm, and the engagement was quickly dissolved.

Unexpectedly, just over two months later, Gu Chaoxi was pregnant with someone else's child. The Gu family kept it a secret quite well; if it weren't for Aunt Liu's letter, outsiders would have no idea.

The thought of Gu Chaoxi's striking and beautiful appearance ending up with some man filled Zhao Mingxu with resentment and indignation. When she broke off her engagement and then immediately wanted to become a concubine, he was unwilling, but he dared not compete with the emperor for her.

Now things are really messed up. She's lost her innocence and is carrying an illegitimate child. The emperor definitely won't want her. As long as he comes forward and admits the child is his, he can be carried into the Duke's mansion as a concubine in a small sedan chair. He won't lose out.

The more Zhao Mingxu thought about it, the more feasible this method seemed.

So the next day, a rumor began to circulate in the capital.

After the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Changshan and the eldest son of the Duke of Zhao broke off their engagement, they remained entangled and she became pregnant.

As the story unfolded, it became known that after the Zhao family broke off the engagement, Miss Gu was unwilling to accept it and relentlessly pursued Young Master Zhao, stating that she was willing to become his concubine. Later, when the emperor was about to take her into the palace, he discovered that she was not a virgin, and in anger, he canceled the investiture ceremony. In retaliation, he deliberately had her kidnapped.

The gossipy women on the streets and alleys spread the rumors vividly, as if they were watching right there.

When Gu Chaoxi heard this, she was amused by how outrageous it was.

Lord Gu naturally heard about it, and his face immediately darkened.

Who spread this rumor?! What the hell does his daughter have to do with that boy from the Duke's mansion?!

That very day, Zhao Mingxu arrived at the door, kneeling before Lord Gu with a sincere face and a firm tone, "Uncle Gu, I don't know why there are such rumors outside. Since the annulment of the engagement, Chaoxi and I have never been in contact again."

“You should know that this child is not mine, but there are rumors flying around outside. If we don’t deal with it, it will damage the reputation of both our families.”

Lord Gu assumed Zhao Mingxu had come to distance himself from the matter, and snorted, "Alright, alright, go back now. Our manor will clarify the rumors."

Zhao Mingxu shook his head. "Uncle Gu, I came here today to discuss with you how to handle this. If we just clarify things, people outside won't believe us easily, and the rumors will only escalate and become difficult to control."

"My idea is to give Chaoxi a proper status. My feelings for Chaoxi remain the same. I am willing to treat the children as my own and take care of them for the rest of my life."

Lord Gu: ? ...

Lord Gu remained silent, his face dark and gloomy, as if someone had broken into his house, robbed him of millions of taels of silver, and slapped him in the face.

After a long pause, Lord Gu gritted his teeth and spat out a few words, "What title do you want to give my daughter?"

Zhao Mingxu said with difficulty, "I want to marry Chaoxi, but the current situation is not suitable for making it public. I can only ask her to be a concubine."

"Ha! It's not even dark yet, and he's already having such a beautiful dream!" Lord Gu sneered. "Guards! Bring out all the sticks I bought yesterday and beat him out of the manor!"

What a joke! His son-in-law is none other than Regent Lu Zhao, how could a mere Duke's mansion compare? If Lu Zhao hadn't instructed him not to spread this, he would have told the whole world long ago!

Zhao Mingxu also wants his daughter to be his concubine?

A toad lusting after a swan? He should take a piss and look in the mirror first!

For the first time, Lord Gu admitted that he had misjudged Zhao Mingxu. He had initially thought that Zhao Mingxu not only came from a good family but also held an official position in the court. He was even reluctant when his eldest daughter insisted on annulling the engagement, but now he realized that Zhao Mingxu was nothing special.

In the end, the newly purchased sticks still came in handy. Each of the servants in the Marquis's mansion had one, and they beat Zhao Mingxu out of the mansion.

When the Duke and his wife saw that their beloved son had been beaten black and blue, they went to the Duke's mansion to demand an explanation, but were turned away by the mansion. For several days in a row, they were turned away.

The two families became enemies because of this.

The Marquis's mansion claimed to the outside world that everything was a rumor. Some people outside believed it, and some did not. The Marquis's mansion did not care and continued to live its life behind closed doors.

Aunt Liu listened to the maid's report in the courtyard and nodded in satisfaction.

Regardless of the process, she achieved her goal. Now everyone knows that Gu Chaoxi is pregnant with an unknown father's child, and the emperor can no longer afford to disregard his reputation by bringing her back into the palace.

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