"Why are you standing?" The middle-aged man, dressed in a red Tang suit with dark gold patterns, stood behind the desk, writing calligraphy.

Hua Yueli stood somewhat nonchalantly before the middle-aged man, dressed in a crimson Tang suit with flowing cloud patterns. Hearing the man's words, she grinned, stepped forward, and began grinding ink for him. "Father, my dear father, everything's been arranged over there. I've already promised them..."

She looked at the middle-aged man with a pitiful expression.

"Why are you coming to me with something you've already arranged yourself? Didn't you already have a foolproof plan?" The middle-aged man dipped his brush in ink, placed a Tang Dynasty paperweight on the Xuan paper, and slowly began to write.

Hua Yueli's hands kept moving. Grinding ink was hard work, but for the heirs of these prominent families in the capital, it was just grinding ink and didn't take much effort.

His handsome, clear face was plastered with a fawning smile. "Dad~ you know that's not what I meant~"

After a long while, the middle-aged man placed the pen in his hand on the pen rest. This pen rest and the paperweight were from the same set, both from the Tang Dynasty, and the ink used was a piece of Huizhou ink that had been passed down from the Ming Dynasty.

He raised his chin, sat down in the armchair behind him, and chuckled softly.

Hua Yueli instantly understood what the middle-aged man meant, and reached out to offer the tea that had been brewed earlier with both hands.

The middle-aged man took the tea, took a sip, and said, "Hmm, the tea is good. But you all created this mess yourselves, so why are you now helping them solve it?"

The He Family's Troubles

With the young master imprisoned, many collateral branches were eliminated, the head of the family was investigated and suspended, and the entire family's business was investigated. The people in the supervisory and inspection departments didn't even have a good New Year, as they were busy with the He family's affairs.

Anyone who sees this would probably say that the He family is finished.

But ironically, this group of people who initially plotted against the He family actually wanted to save their lives.

Hua Yueli grinned and said, "Dad, didn't you teach me before? When fishing, good bait is very important, and loosening the bait properly also makes it easier to catch big fish."

The woman's eyes curved slightly, and she smiled very happily.

"You can handle it yourselves. I won't get involved in your affairs as young people." The middle-aged man stood up, put down his tea, picked up his brush, and continued writing slowly and deliberately.

"Just don't make things too ugly."

“Of course, Dad!” Hua Yueli continued grinding ink. “Then Dad, you can continue writing. Mom will wait for you outside. Ninth Brother is here too, so I’ll go find Boss Zhou first.”

Everyone, including those close to Hua Yueli and her family, knows how Hua Yueli addresses Zhou Zhi.

Zhou Zhi came from an ordinary family; his parents were farmers, and he had an older brother who died young. His family was simple.

However, the Hua family did not belittle this new master in any way. Although the major families in the capital secretly harbored some disdain for him, no fool would dare to say it openly.

The middle-aged man waved his hand, "Go on."

——

"Ayu, cheer up, I'm getting engaged today." Mo Yulu was wearing a hibiscus-colored silk brocade dress with twin lotus patterns, a simple gold and jeweled butterfly hairpin in her hair, pearl and jade pendants at her waist, and soft silk jade boots with auspicious cloud patterns on her feet.

Xie Yunyu sat down next to Mo Yulu and couldn't help but sigh, "Luo Luo, tell me, is it because Gu Nanchen looks like your benefactor that you developed feelings for him and gradually fell in love with him?"

Both she and Mo Yulu were victims of the 601 case, and their feelings for Gu Nanyan were unparalleled.

"No, it's not." Mo Yulu looked at Xie Yunyu with righteous indignation, "I like Achen, it has nothing to do with my benefactor, and..." Even though she hadn't spent much time with her benefactor, her opinion of him had changed somewhat.

It's not that she thinks her benefactor is bad, it's just... not quite what she imagined.

"Sigh, never mind, there's nothing more to say." Mo Yulu shook her head, but the tassels on her head didn't sway at all. "Anyway, cheer up. Achen is great. I'm a bit too soft-hearted, but with Achen around, it's just right."

Although outsiders say all sorts of things about Gu Nanchen, to Mo Yuluo, he is a very good boyfriend and will be a very good fiancé and husband in the future.

"Didn't the elders of the Gu family say anything?" Xie Yunyu knew that these big families in the capital valued matching social status when it came to marriage. Luo Luo was an orphan, so her family background naturally couldn't compare to the Gu family. Besides, how many families in this world could be compared to the Gu family?

The Gu family is not listed among the prominent families in the capital, yet who doesn't know the Gu family?

Mentioning this, Mo Yulu's face softened. "My father was rather aloof, but my mother was very easy to get along with. She gave me a jade pendant." Mo Yulu picked up a white jade unicorn pendant from her waist. "This can be combined with the jade pendant on Achen's waist. My elder sister and brother-in-law also have one, and Nan Yu has a dark green jade pendant."

Xie Yunyu looked down and saw that the material was excellent; it was clearly an antique with a history of over a thousand years.

It seems that he has truly accepted Luo Luo from the bottom of his heart.

"It's good that you get along with her." Xie Yunyu knew that Mo Yuluo was soft-hearted and would repay even the smallest favor a thousandfold, so she naturally kept a close eye on her.

"Alright, Ayu, you forgot, I'm a lawyer." Mo Yuluo grasped Xie Yunyu's hand. "Hmm... if nothing unexpected happens, I should be going to Peking University as an exchange student next semester, then I can be classmates with Ayu!"

Xie Yunyu raised an eyebrow, "So confident that I'll definitely get into Peking University?"

"Of course!" Mo Yulu said matter-of-factly. "Ayu will have to call me 'senior sister' then! I'm waiting!" She giggled, her rosy cheeks full of joy.

"Yes, yes, yes, I'll trouble Senior Sister Mo to look after me then." Xie Yunyu was naturally pleased to see her happy.

From the gloomy Luo Luo of the past to the smiling Xiao Yu Mao of today, perhaps Gu Nanchen really is a good person.

But for some reason, Xie Yunyu just couldn't stand him.

"Luo Luo, if you ever suffer any injustice in the future, you must tell me." Xie Yunyu always felt that Xiao Yu Mao would suffer in the future because she had entered such a complicated family as the Gu family.

Gu Jia…

This is a family that no one wants to cross; everyone deliberately avoids it when scheming against them.

However, it seems that since the benefactor's husband is also quite unrestrained, the benefactor's own brother would probably be the same.

Mo Yulu knew that she was worried about her, so she held Xie Yunyu's hand tightly. "Don't worry, Ayu. I spent the New Year with Achen at the Gu family's house this year and I've met the Gu family members. They all seem easy to get along with. It's not as exaggerated as people say. Besides, it's not true."

These were Mo Yulu's true feelings. It seemed that the Gu family members, who were so powerful and influential outside, were easy to get along with at home. They all had a bit of a childlike quality and played around without regard to age or gender. She was very happy doing this.

"It's you who needs to be more careful when dealing with Young Master Shen." The Shen family is much more troublesome than the Gu family.

Xie Yunyu and Mo Yulu exchanged a knowing smile, their unspoken understanding unspoken.

——

I guess every best friend dislikes their best friend's boyfriend (ps: no one is good enough for my best friend~)