The aloof young master didn't care how many fast horses had died. He raised an eyebrow slightly and asked, "Oh? What news?"
The servant held the letter high above his head and handed it to the young master.
Gu Zhongyi reached out and flipped through the letter.
The report detailed Zhu Jiayu's birth date, including the conflict between her mother and maternal grandparents, and how incompetent her father was in running the embroidery workshop, but it made no mention of her relationship with Wei Qinglou.
However, the only place Zhu Jiayu has ever been since birth is Heling City, while Wei Qinglou recently went to Suiping. In other words, if they were to cross paths, the only place they could be in would be Suiping.
But unfortunately, his men couldn't find out what happened between the two people in Suiping City.
He closed the letter and pondered: It seems that Zhu Jiayu and Wei Qinglou have an unusual relationship, otherwise Wei Qinglou probably wouldn't have ordered people to cover up their affair.
I just don't know what Wei Qinglou is planning to do.
If he remembered correctly, the jade pendant that his uncle gave to Wei Qinglou was supposed to be a gift for Wei Qinglou's future wife. If his uncle knew that Wei Qinglou had given away the jade pendant so easily, and to a lowly merchant's daughter no less, his expression would surely be quite interesting.
But that's not something he needs to worry about.
"Your Highness, Young Master Li and Young Master Fang have come to invite you to Yanxi Restaurant for a drink."
Not long after Gu Zhongyi put down the letter, another servant came upstairs to report.
Gu Zhongyi had been in Heling City for over a year, but he neither read poetry nor wrote essays, only indulging in wine and women. Fang Hui and others were good at studying, so they catered to his interests. Gu Zhongyi was happy to give them face on weekdays—after all, wherever they went, they drank and looked at beautiful women, and it seemed that there was no difference between being alone and being with a group of people.
However, now that he knows Wei Qinglou and Zhu Jiayu have a close relationship, Gu Zhongyi, if he had any sense at all, would distance himself from that group of good-for-nothings who had just made things difficult for Zhu Jiayu.
Moreover, he is extremely intelligent.
It wasn't that he was afraid of Wei Qinglou, it's just that Wei Qinglou was too difficult to deal with.
Back when he was studying in the Imperial Study with Wei Qinglou and several other princes, the Second Prince was naturally violent and took pleasure in humiliating palace servants and torturing animals. However, his mother, Consort Li, was a shrewd woman who managed to keep this a secret from the Emperor.
Before the Second Prince accidentally killed Wei Qinglou's beloved bird, he was always seen as a smart, studious, filial, and sensible son in the Emperor's eyes.
However, after he later killed the oriole in Weiqing Tower, first Consort Li's scheme to cause the Empress to miscarry and then frame Consort Liang was exposed, and then the Second Prince's acts of humiliating palace servants and abusing animals were also exposed.
Consort Li has been trapped in the Cold Palace for more than ten years now, and it seems that she will not be able to get out for decades to come; while the Second Prince lost the Emperor's favor early on. More than ten years ago, he was given the title "Ping" and sent to Yan Pass in the north, ostensibly to temper his will in the harsh land.
From that moment on, Gu Zhongyi understood that he could harm anyone, but he couldn't harm Wei Qinglou's people or possessions. Otherwise, the consequences would be far beyond what ordinary people could bear.
Although he and Wei Qinglou had grown up together, friendships are the most fragile things. Before Wei Qinglou clearly severed ties with Zhu Jiayu, he could stop providing Zhu Jiayu with conveniences, but he couldn't continue associating with Fang Hui and others, thus disrespecting Zhu Jiayu.
"Let them go. If they come again in the future, there is no need to inform me."
The servant, having received his order, turned to leave. But Gu Zhongyi suddenly recalled the girl's gentle yet sharp smile amidst the flowers. He rubbed his temples and sighed.
“Tell them that Zhu Jiayu is right. Instead of indulging in wine and women, they should read more books.”
Fang Hui and the others, who had been waiting outside the mansion for a long time, looked at each other in bewilderment after hearing the servant's account, and asked in surprise, "What does the young master mean? What do you mean that Zhu Jiayu is right?"
"Something's not right, something's really not right. We were all fine before today, weren't we? Could it be that the young master has feelings for Zhu Jiayu? Isn't that what they always say in the stories? Arrogant and conceited young masters from noble families are most likely to fall in love with commoner women who are of humble origins but have audacity?"
"There's no need for him to distance himself from us, is there? This is the first time we've been turned away when we come to his door! It's not like he's ever been angry with us before, but every time we come to his door, he acts like nothing happened."
The group was quite anxious about this, because they had previously used the name of Prince Jing's heir to bring a lot of benefits to the family, and their father had been very kind to them because of it. It was easy to imagine that if they lost the banner of the heir, their importance to the family would probably plummet. When it came time to fight for the family business, how many people would support them?
"No, do you remember that at the beginning, the young master was also angered by Zhu Jiayu's words, but later he seemed to change his expression after seeing Zhu Jiayu. He even talked to her for a while, and then he refused our invitation just now."
"Yes, that's right. So no matter what Zhu Jiayu of the Midnight Team thinks, ultimately, he treated us this way because of Zhu Jiayu. If you ask me, we shouldn't rush to invite the young master to drink. Instead, we should think about how to start with Zhu Jiayu and appease the young master."
"That makes perfect sense!"
The group reached a consensus, turned around, and headed home.
Five days passed in the blink of an eye.
It was the day of rest at Bailu Academy. On this day, Qiu Lingyan planned to take Zhu Jiayu to Bailu Mountain to pick up her second brother and fourth brother.
After they returned from the Wei residence last time, Zhu Jiayu's words quickly reached the Qiu residence. However, neither Qiu Lingyan's mother nor the second or third madam showed any displeasure. On the contrary, as if to appease her, they sent many good things to Chunshan Residence. Although they did not say it explicitly, these actions clearly meant to support her.
Therefore, no one stopped Qiu Lingyan from taking Zhu Jiayu out today.
However, after Qiu Mingyan and Qiu Boyan found out, they couldn't sit still and went to find Qiu Lingyan after lunch.
Qiu Lingyan found it quite strange to see them come to her courtyard.
After all, the third branch of the family was born out of wedlock, and they weren't as close as the first and second branches. Her two younger sisters rarely interacted with her since childhood, and it was only with the old lady that they showed some sisterly affection. But in private, they hardly ever spoke to each other.
"Fifth Sister and Sixth Sister are rare guests. What brings you to visit my courtyard today? Is there something you need?" Qiu Lingyan was straightforward, especially since they were family. She didn't want to beat around the bush, so she asked directly.
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