"Miss, although the young master didn't accompany you on your homecoming, he still sent his right-hand men to protect you. This proves..."

You are still very important to him.

"You little brat, who is your master anyway? You've only been in the Marquis's mansion for two days, and you're already siding with outsiders!"

"Hehe, Miss, I'll take that as a compliment!"

Xiao Cui had served Gu Qianluo since she was a child and admired her from the bottom of her heart.

Xiao Cui had never seen Gu Qianluo dressed so exquisitely before, and she couldn't take her eyes off her for a moment.

Gu Qianlu noticed Xiao Cui's fixed gaze and felt a chill run down her spine. She said in a flustered voice,

"Cui'er! Why are you staring at me like that? Is my makeup ruined?"

Xiao Cui felt a sharp pain in her wrist, and only then did she come to her senses.

"No! No! Our young lady is the most beautiful!"

"If today were a banquet for selecting imperial concubines, Miss would surely be chosen as one!"

Gu Qianlu was startled. She gently patted Xiao Cui's shoulder and softly scolded her.

"Shh! Don't say that again!"

"If the people in the Marquis's mansion hear this, they'll surely think I'm a promiscuous woman, and that'll be used against me."

“Miss, Cui’er knows she was wrong! Cui’er was just upset on your behalf.”

From childhood to adulthood, the second young lady has always taken the best because she is younger than you.

"You are clearly the legitimate eldest daughter of the Gu family!"

As she spoke, Cui'er suddenly burst into tears.

“Miss, the groom has gone too far! He had military affairs to attend to on our wedding night, leaving you alone in the bridal chamber. He also stayed overnight in Miss Lin’s room last night and didn’t return.”

If the second young lady finds out, she'll probably laugh at you in front of your aunt again!

Miss, why does God only favor the bad guys?

When the Gu family was in charge, the eldest daughter-in-law allowed the second young lady to embezzle the household allowances of the servants in our household.

They even embezzled the cloth that the master had given to the servants. What should have been ours was taken by the people under the Second Miss's command!

Waaah!

Although the second prince was not favored by the emperor, he was still an imperial heir!

It is said that his salary alone is 50 taels of silver!

No wonder the Second Miss was willing to be a concubine and used all her tricks to snatch this marriage from you!

"What nonsense are you talking about! Granny Liu is still behind us!"

Now that I have married into the Marquis's household as his second wife, you will also come with me to the Marquis's household as a maid.

You should be more careful with your words and actions from now on, lest people gossip about you!

"Moreover, merchants who marry into the royal family are usually looked down upon. Given Gu Qianxue's spoiled and willful nature, she will likely suffer a lot in the royal family!"

"The old lady of the Marquis's mansion and my maternal grandmother were sworn sisters. Even if the second young master doesn't like me, he should still give the old lady some face, right?"

"Miss is naturally beautiful and intelligent, and is therefore lovable."

Cui'er just felt that someone as good as Miss should be loved and cared for by a man who cherishes her!

"Waaah, God is so unfair! He let the Second Miss get such a wonderful marriage!"

Upon hearing Cui'er's words, Gu Qianlu's lips curled into a cold smile.

In her previous life, she obeyed fate and married the second prince, working tirelessly for him and cleaning up one mess after another.

From the trivial matters of the inner quarters to the infighting within the royal family, she handled everything with impeccable composure.

However, when she completely cured the Second Prince of the cold poison in his body, he began to be ungrateful and fickle.

Men are ultimately unreliable.

A woman still needs to rely on her own abilities to make a living in her husband's family.

"Cui'er, don't be so downcast!"

I am now the lawfully wedded wife of the second young master of the Marquis's mansion!

Gu Qianxue was merely a concubine of the Second Prince.

Now that the eldest son of the Marquis's mansion is seriously ill, the First Madam is overwhelmed with other matters. Once I have secured my position as the mistress of the house, no one will dare to bully us anymore!

Gu Qianxue has lost the big picture for the small gain.

"Silly girl! Don't stand up for me about this anymore, okay?"

After Gu Qianluo's explanation, Cui'er wiped away her tears and nodded vigorously.

Xiao Cui finally let go of the matter of being abducted from her wedding.

A moment later, the coachman slowly brought the carriage to a stop and walked to Gu Qianluo's side to report.

"Second Madam, the Gu family has arrived!"

Upon hearing the sound, Gu Qianluo lifted the curtain and glanced at the entrance of the Gu residence, her eyes turning cold.

She lowered the carriage curtain, slowly stood up, straightened her clothes, and then Xiao Cui helped her walk step by step toward the gate of the Gu residence.

Even though she was followed by servants from the Marquis's mansion, just as she had expected, there were no family members waiting anxiously in front of the Gu mansion, nor were there any respectful servants coming forward to greet her.

She was often neglected and mistreated when she was in Gujia in the past, and she never expected that she would still be treated coldly by them now.

Liu Mama, the old lady's personal attendant, couldn't bear to see the Gu family treating Gu Qianluo so cruelly.

He stepped forward and informed Gu Qianluo, "Second Madam, the number of these return gifts that Madam Hou prepared for you is rather large. Please have Elder Rong go and inform the Gu family steward."

Gu Qianlu was startled. Was Liu Mama trying to stand up for her and vent her anger?

She nodded slightly in acknowledgment, "Thank you for your trouble, Granny Liu."

After saying this, Granny Liu led the servants of the Marquis's mansion, one on each side, steadily walking towards the gate of the Gu residence.

"The Second Madam of the Marquis's Residence has arrived! Why hasn't the Gu family sent anyone to greet her? We brought three large trunks of gifts for our return visit!"

As soon as Granny Liu called out in her clear voice, the servants of the Gu family stopped in their tracks and looked toward the door in disbelief.

Uncle Fang, who was in charge, also looked surprised and quickly stepped forward to bow in greeting.

"Please wait a moment, Second Madam, this old servant will go and tell the Master right away."

A moment later, Gu Cixiu led Madam Lu, Gu Zichen, Gu Zijun, and a group of servants to come forward to greet them.

However, when Gu Cixiu saw Gu Qianluo standing there all alone, with no sign of the Second Young Master, the smile he had just managed to put on vanished.

But Lu Shi behind him couldn't help but chuckle, while feigning regret on the surface.

"Why is Luo'er only just getting back? Oh? Where's her husband?"

Gu Qianluo narrowed her eyes slightly, forced a smile, and curtsied.

"Father, Mother, your daughter is back! My husband has important matters to attend to in the army, so he cannot come today."

"It's alright! It's alright! It's good that Luo'er is back! Come quickly! The old lady has been thinking of you!"

After saying this, Gu Cixiu personally stepped forward, took the return gift from the Gu family servant, and turned to Gu Qianluo seriously,

"Luo'er, you should be more compliant with Jinheng in the future, because our Gu family will need to rely on them more in the future!"

"You are the legitimate daughter of the Gu family; you should understand these things."

Gu Qianlu's heart sank as she realized that her father's usual doting on her was merely a means to consolidate the Gu family's relationship with the powerful and influential.