Chapter 94 [VIP]

The Xu family was considered moderately wealthy, with servants and maids. However, from childhood, Gu Zhijiao not only had to do needlework day and night and prepare meals, but Mrs. Xu would also constantly instruct her, telling her that she lived for her younger brother, that her life was given to her by him, and that she would be dead if it weren't for him.

If she wrongs her brother, then she is heartless and deserves to go to hell.

Day after day, without end.

"You ungrateful wretch!" Mrs. Xu said through gritted teeth, clutching her slapped face. "Xu Ying'er, I should have killed you long ago."

She had been in prison for several days, her hairpins and jewelry removed, wearing prison clothes, her eyes bloodshot and filled with hatred.

"Didn't you?" Gu Zhijiao's eyes reddened. "When I was three, you gave birth to Xu Baozhang. You wanted to throw me into a well. I screamed in fear, which attracted Master Xu, and only then did you stop. When I was seven, Xu Baozhang broke your jade bracelet and blamed it on me. You punished me by making me kneel in the snow all night. I had a high fever that wouldn't break, but you refused to call a doctor, saying that I deserved to die. When I was eleven, I accompanied you to burn incense. The carriage went out of control, and you said it was because the carriage was too heavy and threw me off..."

At thirteen, you forced me to marry Gong Hai, knowing full well that no one in Gong Hai's household had ever lived more than a year.

"That's true. If I die, there will be no way to prove it. You can live in peace for the rest of your life."

"But I didn't die. My father and grandfather are watching over me from heaven."

"So, now it's your turn to die."

Gu Zhijiao had a gentle expression.

After saying these words, she suddenly felt relieved.

"My name isn't Xu Ying'er, it's Gu Zhijiao!"

The unease in Gu Zhijiao's eyes faded, replaced by a clear and bright light like autumn water. Facing the courtroom, she curtsied and said, "Your Honor, please read the judgment."

Xu stood outside the courtroom, covering her face and weeping.

The Jingzhao Prefecture had already held two court hearings, and all the cases that needed to be investigated had been thoroughly examined. With Granny Sun's testimony as evidence, and the Zhenguo Duke's Mansion keeping an eye on things, the Jingzhao Prefect did not delay and read the verdicts aloud in court.

"According to the Great Law of Qi, anyone who sells a good family's son shall be hanged."

Upon hearing the word "绞" (jiao), Mrs. Xu froze on the spot.

"No, it's not a sale, it's not!"

"It was just adoption."

"Ying'er, tell them quickly, it wasn't a forced sale. Tell him, Grandma, I did it to ensure the Xu family's lineage, not a forced sale!"

Xu shouted incoherently.

Granny Sun collapsed to the ground, dazed.

Upon hearing the word "strangulation," Gu Zhijiao did not linger and stepped out of the courtroom of the Jingzhao Prefecture.

She raised her hand to shield her eyes, staring at the blinding sunlight, and the last trace of gloom in her heart gradually dissipated in the sunlight.

"mother."

Gu Zhijiao took Xu's hand, her eyes blooming like spring flowers, and said, "Let's go."

"If you can't bear to part with Granny Sun..."

Gu Zhijiao wanted to say that if Xu Shi was reluctant to let go, then so be it, as she had already let go.

Xu closed her eyes, and what she remembered was her childhood when Granny Sun held her in her arms and hummed a nursery rhyme.

She touched the top of her head and said, "I brought you back not so that you would suffer."

“Granny Sun is guilty; let’s deal with her according to the law.”

"The fact that we don't resort to vigilante justice is already the greatest act of leniency."

"If we treat evil with good, then how should we distinguish between good and evil?"

Gu Zhijiao thought about it carefully. She took Xu Shi's arm, leaned her head against her, and walked out: "Mother, I want to study."

She had never received an education in the Xu family.

Madam Xu laughed and said, "Have your eldest sister hire a tutor for you."

"Bow and horseback riding, the Four Books and Five Classics, music, chess, calligraphy and painting—learn whatever you want."

Gu Zhijiao's eyebrows and eyes curved into a smile.

"That would be exhausting, Second Aunt, are you willing to let me go?"

A cheerful voice rang out, and Gu Zhijiao looked up to see the carriage from the manor parked in front of the yamen. The curtain was lifted, and her older sister and the others were smiling at her.

Gu Zhiwei raised her hand and waved: "Second sister, get in the carriage quickly. Eldest sister said she'll take us to pick out some pearl flowers. Jin Yu Ge has brought in a lot of pearl flowers from Jiangnan. They're so beautiful."

"Go."

Xu pushed her, and Gu Zhijiao stomped over, letting the waistband sway wildly. She stepped onto the carriage and, with Gu Zhizhuo's hand, leaped onto it.

"Mother (Second Aunt), let's go out to play!"

Oh dear, this is so undignified. Madam Xu sighed inwardly, yet she smiled with unusual delight.

Watching the carriage leave, Madam Xu did not return to her residence. Since the Xu family was unwilling to sell their property and return to the north, she would go and "help" them out.

The Gu family's carriage was very spacious; even with five people in it, it was only slightly crowded. Qiongfang sat on the carriage shaft, Qingmei rode alongside on horseback, and the other maids were in another carriage. They first went to the Jinyu Pavilion on Zhuque Street.

Gu Zhizhu waved his hand and said, "Grandmother said you can choose for yourselves, and have the shopkeeper go to the Duke's mansion to settle the bill."

The manager of Jin Yu Ge had once visited the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion to make jewelry for the Grand Madam and several ladies and young ladies. Upon seeing them arrive, he immediately led them to the third floor and brought out all sorts of newly arrived pearl flowers, bracelets, earrings, gold necklaces, and the like.

Not only were there Jiangnan-style jewelry, but also gemstones from Minzhou. These gemstones were brought from overseas by sea. When the shopkeeper showed them to them, Gu Zhizhuo immediately took a liking to two cat's eye stones. The cat's eye stones were golden, with excellent color and exceptional clarity. As soon as Gu Zhizhuo saw them, she thought of the eyes of a cat.

Gu Zhizhuo drew a sketch and commissioned the shopkeeper to make a cat collar as a return gift.

Besides the cat's eye stone, she also selected several pieces of fine white jade rough, which she had polished into small jade pendants to be taken along with the cat collar when she came to pick them up.

Gu Zhizhuo paid for the cat collar and jade pendant himself, and asked the shopkeeper to settle the bill at the Duke of Zhenguo's mansion for the rest.

The old lady loved buying jewelry for her granddaughters.

After leaving the Golden Jade Pavilion, they strolled and played along Vermilion Bird Street. They went to a rouge shop to buy rouge, to a bookstore to buy newly published storybooks, and to an antique shop where Aman took a fancy to a small golden cage for her beloved bird.

Gu Zhijiao smiled faintly. Her sisters didn't take special care of her, so she felt very relaxed and at ease.

They threw all their bags and packages into the carriage, and by the time they reached the end of the street, they were almost tired from walking around, so they decided to rest at Tianxi Tower.

"My elder brother and Queque will be here soon. Let's have our meal first, and then we'll go see the acrobatics."

Gu Zhizhuo had reserved a private room for him in advance. After sitting down and ordering food, Gu Zhinan asked the waiter, "I saw a female entertainer playing the pipa in the building."

The waiter said solicitously, "It's Madam Gui. She's an excellent pipa player, especially skilled at playing the pipa while writing poetry. She's been working in our establishment for half a year now."

"Big sister." Gu Zhinan's gaze was intense. He wanted to hear.

"Go and call him."

"Okay!"

The waiter bowed and left, and soon led in a female entertainer carrying a pipa.

She wore a plain-colored long veil that reached her chest, revealing only a pair of extremely beautiful peach blossom eyes. Her eyes were shimmering, and even when she wasn't looking at anyone, just a small lowered gaze seemed to contain tender affection.

She curtsied and sat down, holding her pipa.

"What songs does Lady Gui have that she's good at?" Gu Zhizhuo asked with a smile.

Her voice was soft: "I know 'Wan Qing Si' and 'Yuan Yang Xiu'."

"Listen to 'Mandarin Duck Sleeves,' eldest sister."

Gu Zhizhuo readily nodded.

Lady Gui began to play the pipa and sing.

Gui Niangzi's voice was even purer than when she spoke; her first words were like a gentle breeze entering the ears, and the sound of the pipa told the whole story in a gentle and detailed way.

The waiter tiptoed in and served the dishes.

"Mandarin Duck Sleeves" tells the story of a woman who, when the country is in turmoil, dons military attire and takes up the spear left behind by her father and brothers after their deaths in battle.

Gui Niangzi's voice was sometimes high-pitched and sometimes gentle, every word full of emotion, touching the heartstrings.

The music ended with the woman placing the mandarin duck pendant, a token of her love with her childhood sweetheart, on the city wall, and raising her spear to point at the enemy.

"Well sung!" Gu Zhizhuo clapped his hands in praise. "Miss Gui, are you from Yongzhou?"

Lady Gui looked up in surprise, her eyes like deep, still pools of water: "How did you know, young lady?"

Lady Gui spoke fluent Mandarin, with no discernible accent, but...

"The story of 'Mandarin Duck Sleeves' is about a female general from Yongzhou who defended the city for ten days and died with it. Her childhood sweetheart and fiancé wrote the story of 'Mandarin Duck Sleeves'."

"This story is not popular outside of Yongzhou. In the capital, people prefer to sing about talented scholars and beautiful women, and prosperous times."

Lady Gui's eyes were like water, full of charm: "What you say is true, young lady."

"How about singing another song, 'Wan Qing Si'?" Gu Zhizhuo asked his sisters.

"good."

Gui Niangzi began to pluck the pipa, her red lips parted slightly, and a melodious song filled the air. Gu Zhijiao sat by the window, relaxed and at ease.

A carriage stopped in front of the restaurant, the horse neighing. Gu Zhijiao glanced at it out of the corner of his eye, and his hand holding the chopsticks suddenly tightened.

It's Gong Hai.

After that encounter at Governor Gong's mansion, Gong Hai's image, along with that of the wounded girl, was etched into Gu Zhijiao's mind like a nightmare. She turned back and leaned back, making sure she wasn't in the window's view.

After Gong Hai got off the carriage, another person stepped down from it. He was an extremely handsome young man, whose gender was indistinguishable. He wore a thin, moon-white, wide-sleeved Taoist robe, with a silk sash around his waist. His black hair was loose over his shoulders, which made his figure appear slender and delicate.

“Brother Gong…”

Xie Jing came out from Tianxi Tower to greet them.

He had been waiting for a long time; the appointment was for noon, and it was almost 1-3 PM now.

Given Gong Hai's age, Xie Jing, disguised as a commoner, almost blurted out "Uncle Gong," but thankfully his mind caught on before he could say it. The Ministry of Rites was already preparing for the wedding, and the Emperor had ordered Princess Zhaoyang to marry him within the month. In other words, Gong Hai was now his brother-in-law, so calling him "Uncle" would be quite inappropriate.

Gong Hai nodded, "Third Young Master," as a return greeting.

Xie Jing then looked at the beauty following Gong Hai. He had seen this woman a couple of days ago when he visited the princess's residence. At that time, his eldest sister was eating grapes that he had fed her. Her name seemed to be Se Se.

It must be the legendary woman in green.

Hmm, could it be that they're planning to live together as a family from now on? Xie Jing's mind wandered, and he even blushed. He made a "please" gesture and asked as he walked away, "Brother Gong, what do you think of that blueprint?"

"Was the crossbow depicted on the blueprint drawn by you, Third Young Master?"

"yes."

Xie Jing, handsome and refined, smiled and said, "I wonder if Brother Gong thinks it's worth 300,000 taels of silver?"

"If it is as described in the figure, then it is a natural value."

"Whether it works or not, Brother Gong, we'll know once you have a craftsman make one." Xie Jing took out a folded piece of silk paper. "The data on this one is more detailed."

"Then I'll have to take a look."

The two talked as they went up to the second floor.

Seeing that Gong Hai indeed showed some interest, Xie Jing breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Ke'er gave him these blueprints.

He felt sorry for Ke'er, failing to keep his promise to her, but Ke'er still thought of him. She didn't even use the divine arm to gain merit, but instead gave it to him to curry favor with Gong Hai. The Duke of Zhenguo's mansion had already sided with Xie Yingchen because of Gu Zhizhuo; if Xie Jing wanted to contend with them, the only one he could rely on was Gong Hai, who commanded the Imperial Guard.

Gong Hai is his future brother-in-law, which is the perfect match.

Upon reflection, perhaps the Emperor's betrothal to my eldest sister was also for my own sake.

Moreover, if Gong Hai is willing to allocate military funds to buy this blueprint, he will have the money to repay Miss Gu.

"Brother Gong, it's this way..."

Seeing that Gong Hai had gone upstairs and was walking in another direction, Xie Jing quickly called out to him.

But before he could finish speaking, Gong Hai had already pushed open the door to a private room. Gui Niangzi, who was sitting by the door, was startled. A gust of wind from the door opening blew her veil open, revealing the burn scars that covered almost half of her cheek.

Gong Hai glanced back, first marveling at her stunningly beautiful peach blossom eyes, then turning his gaze away with some disgust from the burns on her cheeks.

What a pity.

He doesn't like this kind of flawed beauty.

“Miss Gu…”

Gong Hai greeted him with a smile, "It's been a long time."

He recognized Gu Zhijiao among the Gu family's daughters by her voice. In his memory, she was a timid girl who never dared to lift her head, with a budding beauty hidden beneath her thick bangs. Now, without her timidity, she was less endearing. A beautiful woman should be gentle and submissive to others' desires.

No one paid him any attention, but that didn't stop him from taking the initiative and asking, "I've heard that the Thousand Machines Camp is short of food supplies?"

His tone carried a hint of interest.

Xie Jing stood awkwardly behind him, wanting him to leave quickly.

Gu Zhizhuo stroked the glass in his hand, his fingertips tracing the cold glass, and asked in return, "What is the meaning of this, Lord Gong?"

Gong Hai ignored Xie Jing and walked into the private room on his own: "Miss, go back and talk to the young master properly. It's not that we won't give you the rations, it's just a little late. After all, a batch was just sent a few days ago. The Thousand Machine Camp has few people, so they shouldn't run out of food."

"Are you referring to those moldy garbage items, sir?"

"How could it be moldy?" Gong Hai shook his head without changing his expression, and said with no sign of remorse, "It must be a misunderstanding. Perhaps the storage in the camp was not good enough and rainwater seeped in."

He placed his hands on the octagonal table, staring in amazement at Gu Zhizhuo's face, which appeared even more dashing after she removed her veil. Leaning slightly forward, he chuckled, "However, if the Thousand Machine Battalion really can't hold on any longer, it's not impossible to spare some. As long as Miss Gu asks, this admiral will make sure you get some..."

Gu Zhizhuo raised his hand and splashed the fruit juice over his head.

Gong Hai was too close to dodge, and the red fruit syrup dripped down his hair. A piece of ice from the syrup hit his forehead, the coldness making him shiver.

A sinister glint flashed in Gong Hai's eyes. He straightened up, wiped the wine off his face with his sleeve, and smiled lightly: "It seems the Thousand Machine Battalion is not short of food."

“Lord Gong,” Gu Zhizhuo’s voice was even softer than his, but his words were even harsher: “Has anyone ever taught you that you should never offend a doctor who can bring the dead back to life? Otherwise, when you are about to die in the future, no one will be there to save you.”

"Alright, alright." Gong Hai seemed not to be angry at all, and clapped his hands lightly: "This admiral is just waiting for you, young lady, to come and beg me."

Gu Zhizhuo lowered his eyes. Gong Hai was deliberately provoking him to ensure that the Thousand Machine Battalion would definitely go and seize the grain. Every word he said was intended to attack his mind.

"roll."

The glass cup was thrown from Gu Zhizhuo's hand.

Gong Hai tilted his head slightly, and the glass cup grazed past his ear before falling to the ground with a crash, shattering into pieces. The shards splashed across his cheek.

Gong Hai's face turned cold. He raised his hand and wiped it away, the fruit juice and blood mixing together, making it even more vivid.

"Ungrateful."

He flicked his sleeve forcefully, but the next moment, his wrist was grabbed and slowly lifted up.

"Ha, who can I ask for help?"

This extremely arrogant voice made Gong Hai frown.

Gu Yican is like the rising sun at its zenith, flamboyant and undisguised.

"I think I heard that Admiral Gong isn't distributing grain, is that right?"

A note from the author: