Chapter 117 Chapter 117 is the only authentic version...
Gu Zhizhuo sat cross-legged on the beauty couch and placed the cat in front of him.
Her previous two divinations were about timing.
The faster the left side is, the better, but the hexagram is very bad.
The right side indicates waiting. The marriage symbol will last at least three to six months, giving her plenty of time to choose a better opportunity. The hexagram indicates good or bad luck, but leans towards good luck.
She set up her counting sticks and asked eagerly, "Which side do you choose?"
"Me?"
Shen Mao looked left and right.
He placed his paw on the abacus on the right and spoke in a high-pitched voice with excitement.
"Meow!"
It pounced on it happily, held an abacus in its paws, and ground its teeth happily.
Gu Zhizhuo handed the left abacus to it, and the cat clapped its paws, swatting all the abacus chips to the ground. It poked its head out from the beauty couch and let out a displeased "Ha!" at the scattered black abacus chips.
How disgusting is this.
Qilin cats like evil and dislike good.
Gu Zhizhuo leaned over to pick them up. Her movements were very slow. After she had collected all the abacus chips, she smiled at the cat and said, "I've made up my mind. I'll listen to you!"
No more waiting.
Once Gu Zhizhuo made a decision, she rarely hesitated. She asked, "Qiongfang, do I have a small villa near Lotus Villa?"
"Yes." Qiongfang replied.
At that time, Ji and others were sent to Lotus Manor.
One reason is that this village is relatively remote and far away from the official road.
Secondly, it was because Gu Zhizhuo had a small villa nearby. This villa was newly given by the lady, and even Ji Shi didn't know about it.
"Take all the Ji family members to my small mountain village, including Ji Huacheng."
Qiongfang agreed repeatedly and went down to tell Zheng Qi.
Gu Zhizhuo went into the inner room, retrieved the crossbow, and placed it on the Eight Immortals table. She squatted beside the beauty couch, touched the cat's ears with her fingertips, and asked, "Do you want to go out and play with me, or go home?"
"Me?"
The tabby cat that was chewing on the counting sticks raised its little head and rubbed it against her face.
"Come with me?"
Gu Zhizhuo picked it up and placed it on his shoulder, saying casually, "What if your master comes looking for you?"
"Meow!"
"Can't understand."
It should be okay to kidnap his cat, right?
"Harunobu, have someone prepare the carriage."
You can't ride a horse with a cat.
When the carriage was ready, Qiongfang also came back, and Gu Zhizhuo only took her and Qingmei out.
The carriage was moving slowly along the streets of the capital, and the tabby cat was peeking at the window.
"Bang!"
The shrill sound of the gong startled it so much that it jumped up and buried its head in Gu Zhizhuo's arm with a "meow meow" sound.
"Don't be afraid, don't be afraid." Gu Zhizhuo touched its little head.
Outside the car window, yamen runners were parading through the streets, beating gongs. The people from the Wucheng Bingmasi captured a burly man and, instead of taking him away, chopped off his head with a knife.
This scene frightened Qiongfang so much that she couldn't bear to look at it.
“Ahhhh!”
The people passing by also screamed in surprise.
"Anyone who breaks into a house and robs someone during a disturbance will be killed without mercy."
"Bang!"
The strong smell of blood drifted into the carriage, and Qiongfang's lips trembled slightly: "Miss, isn't this too... too bloody?"
Beheadings usually took place in Caishikou, not in a busy street like this.
"In troubled times, severe punishments should be used."
Gu Zhizhuo didn't even blink as he stared outside and said, "If there's not enough shockwaves, we won't be able to immediately control the chaos. This will only cause greater harm."
At this time in the previous life, the capital city had been in unrest for several days, and thousands of people died.
"Hey, it's your master."
Gu Zhizhuo's eyes lit up. An incredibly expensive carriage with four glass lanterns hanging from the front and back turned out from the alley at the other end, with Sheng Jiang riding beside it.
Gu Zhizhuo hurriedly picked up the tabby cat and let it look outside.
"Master, it's a cat."
Sheng Jiang whispered to the carriage.
Gu Zhizhuo grabbed the cat's little paw and waved it towards him. With a snap, the car curtain dropped, blocking the pair of sparkling peach blossom eyes.
"Your master has a really bad temper."
"Meow!"
At least I have told him that the cat is with me.
The carriage slowly sped away from the downtown area. Once out of the city, the gong's thumping sound disappeared, and Shen Mao became more energetic, running around like crazy in the carriage.
The small village was quite remote and far from the official road, so the carriage took two hours to travel.
Shen Maofeng was tired and fell asleep on her legs. When the carriage stopped, it raised its little head, shook its ears, and jumped out of the window.
Gu Zhizhuo picked up the crossbow at hand and got off the carriage.
"Me?"
Chen Mao, who grew up in the capital, had never seen such a vast world. He raised his unicorn tail in surprise and pounced towards the bird not far away.
The bird flapped its wings and flew over to its head, then pecked at it angrily.
"Meow!"
This small mountain village is not big. It is located halfway up the mountain and occupies a hilltop. The scenery is excellent. There is also a hot spring inside the village. However, due to the inconvenient journey, the lady almost never came here before.
The scorching heat in August is even more unbearable, and even the wind blowing in your face carries an indescribable sense of stuffiness.
Gu Zhizhuo looked towards the north, where there was a pavilion. Going down the hillside on this side of the pavilion and walking through the woods, he could see Lotus Manor.
"Big girl."
The chief steward Zheng Qi came out from the villa to greet them. With him was the steward of the villa, who was about thirty years old and was rubbing his hands together with a harmless smile.
Gu Zhizhuo excused them from the formalities and said with a smile, "Thank you for your hard work. Let's go in first and talk later."
"Please."
"cat."
Hearing her call, the cat let go of the bird from its claws, fluttered its limbs and ran over, wrapped its tail around her legs affectionately, and walked into the villa with her.
"Have you brought all the Ji family members?"
Gu Zhizhuo stroked the crossbow in his hand and asked.
"We're still on the way. We'll be here in about half an hour." Zheng Qi said, "Master Ji Qi has arrived first. Do you want to meet him?"
Ji Huacheng is the seventh child in the Ji family and has always been called Master Ji Qi.
"Take him to Wangshan Pavilion."
Zheng Qi agreed.
Gu Zhizhuo had a leisurely lunch and drank a glass of iced fruit juice to cool off. When she brought the cat to Wangshan Pavilion, Ji Huacheng was already waiting there.
Ji Huacheng was captured in Yizhou. Over the years, he had lived a carefree life with the money given by the Ji family, and had accumulated a large fortune. When he was captured by the Gu family, he also wondered if the Ji family's affairs had been discovered.
He asked to see Ji several times, but no one paid any attention to him. He even suspected that the Gu family had forgotten him until he was brought here from the small courtyard where he was imprisoned not long ago.
"Big girl."
The guards saluted one after another.
Ji Huacheng looked back nervously, only to see a girl with a veil covering her face, holding a cat, walking slowly towards him.
Miss Gu?
Is this my cousin's stepdaughter?
Ji Huacheng had initially thought that Gu Baibai had ordered him to be arrested, or that it was the prince's intention, but he hadn't expected this delicate little girl to come. He had heard from his cousin that this Miss Gu had been spoiled by her, a spoiled, foolish, and beautiful waste.
Is she here to sound out the situation on behalf of the prince?
Ji Huacheng said warmly: "It's the older girl, I'm your uncle Cheng, do you remember? I met you a few years ago."
Gu Zhizhuo walked past him and sat down leaning on the beauty chair.
I have indeed seen it, probably at Ji's place.
Ji Huacheng's appearance hadn't changed much, and she remembered it after thinking about it carefully.
"You were only this small back then, and you've grown into a big girl in the blink of an eye." Ji Huacheng looked around and asked, "Are you alone?"
Ji Huacheng asked indirectly, "Isn't your mother here? I haven't seen her for a while."
"Are you talking about Aunt Ji?"
Gu Zhizhuo looked at him with a smile. The calculation and temptation on his face were too obvious, as if he was treating her as a fool.
Ji...Aunt?
Ji Huacheng was stunned for a moment. What did that mean? Ji Ruo was demoted to a concubine?
"Miss Gu." Ji Huacheng curled his lips, "Who agreed to the Gu family demoting my wife to a concubine?!"
His body leaned forward subconsciously and Lao Dan held his shoulders.
Gu Zhizhuo leaned against the beauty's chair and calmly uttered two words: "Your Majesty."
Ji Huacheng:!
His heart skipped a beat.
Gu Zhizhuo hinted, "As for the reason, Master Ji Qi must also know it."
Ji Huacheng's breathing was slightly stagnant, and he said with a strong expression, "What does Miss Gu mean?"
Gu Zhizhuo winked and Lao Dan slapped Ji Huacheng in the face. Ji Huacheng was stunned and stared at her.
"Meow."
The tabby cat squatted on her knees, looking at the person in front of her curiously, and meowed at Ji Huacheng, with the ending tone full of joy.
Gu Zhizhuo said nonchalantly, "Master Ji Qi seems to have forgotten that he is a prisoner. I am the only one who asks questions and you answer them."
Ji Huacheng said sternly, "Miss Gu, I am your elder."
Lao Dan slapped him again, this time on the other cheek. Both cheeks swelled up at the same time, and the face was deformed by the swelling.
Gu Zhizhuo pinched the cat's paw pad and said, "Ji Ruo is marrying in place of me, Master Ji Qi, do you know?"
Ji Huacheng froze. He forgot the pain in his cheek and swallowed hard, saying, "I, I don't know."
"In the 22nd year of Taiyuan, do you know the cause of death of your eldest cousin from the Ji family?"
"I have no idea."
Ji Huacheng yelled, instinctively using shouting to cover up his guilty conscience.
"Why did Ji Shi use money to bribe you? You must know this."
Ji Huacheng was sweating profusely.
She was not the stupid and ignorant beautiful waste that Ji said. This aura suppressed her so much that she couldn't breathe.
"I have no idea!"
Ji Huacheng gritted his teeth and uttered only four words: "I don't know."
It’s not that he is so trustworthy that he wants to keep his promise to Ji Shi, but if he tells some things, he will definitely lose his life.
As long as he doesn't say anything, the Gu family can't do anything to him. At most, they can lock him up and provide him with good food and drink.
"Meow."
The tabby cat became even more excited, and its pupils narrowed into a thin line.
Gu Zhizhuo clapped his hands lightly: "Bring it here."
Well?
Ji Huacheng followed her gaze, stood up suddenly, and blurted out, "Clan leader? Dad, uncle, why are you here too?!"
The people brought here by the guards were the patriarch and elders of the Jiangnan Ji family.
His biological father, Master Ji Er, was shocked and said, "Why did the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion also capture you?!"
When the Zhenguo Mansion went to Jiangnan to arrest someone, they surrounded the Ji family's ancestral home and told them that the emperor had decreed that Ji Ruo was demoted to a concubine for marrying in a substitute marriage. At that time, Ji Huacheng was not in Jiangnan, and the second master Ji thought he could escape.
When Master Ji Er said this with hatred and annoyance, Ji Huacheng had a plan in mind.
The emperor must have wanted to use the crime of substitutionary marriage to suppress other scandals, but the Gu family had obviously discovered more, so they wanted to force him to confess.
"This is the eldest girl." Zheng Qi introduced Gu Zhizhuo's identity to them expressionlessly.
The Ji family members looked at each other, and the clan leader bowed politely: "Miss Gu."
My aunt's relatives are not considered relatives, so there is no need to return gifts. Gu Zhizhuo held his chin with his palm and continued to say to Ji Huacheng: "I'll give you one last chance, do you want to tell the truth?"
Ji Huacheng gritted his teeth and said, "Miss Gu, my cousin and I are not close. I just came here to give her a New Year gift..."
"That's all."
Gu Zhizhuo interrupted him coldly, "I gave you a chance. If you don't want to talk about it, then don't talk about it."
Ji Huacheng: What do you mean?
"Let him go."
As soon as she finished speaking, the two guards who were holding Ji Huacheng immediately let go.
Gu Zhizhuo said slowly, "Master Ji Qi, I'll let you go now." She pointed to the mountain road leading down, "You can go down the mountain from here. After passing through the forest, you will reach the official road. Once you get to the official road, you can go wherever you want."
Ji Huacheng asked with a trembling voice: "You, you really let me go."
Gu Zhizhuo smiled faintly and said, "Of course."
Ji Huacheng instinctively felt uneasy. Was she trying to use the clan leader and his father to force him? She thought that since their lives and property were in her hands, he would have to give in sooner or later.
"Meow!"
Shen Mao's whiskers were raised high, and he pounced down excitedly, causing Gu Zhizhuo to hold his belly.
"Don't go over there. You're rubbing all kinds of garbage around. Be careful that your master might dislike your dirt and not want you." Gu Zhizhuo coaxed casually.
The cat hung its head and licked its paws in despair.
Ji Huacheng took two cautious steps, and the guards stood still and did not stop him.
He glanced at Master Ji Er, meaning that he would find a way to save them after he left.
Don’t worry about us, just go away. Master Ji Er signaled with his eyes.
Ji Huacheng's heart was pounding nervously and he ran away.
The moment he stepped out of the pavilion, Gu Zhizhuo raised the crossbow in his hand and aimed it at him.
The arrowhead of the iron arrow reflected a silver light in the sunlight, which was creepy.
Master Ji Er's face changed drastically, and he screamed: "Cheng'er, be careful!"
whoosh!
Before he could finish his sentence, Gu Zhizhuo pulled the trigger.
An iron arrow shot out with a sharp sound. Ji Huacheng turned his head subconsciously, and the iron arrow passed by his cheek and hit the tree behind him. The huge force shook the trunk and leaves fell to the ground.
Ji Huacheng wiped his aching cheek with the back of his hand, and the sight of blood frightened him so much that his legs went cold.
He was about to cry: "Miss Gu, you promised to let me go."
"Yes. You've already left. I never lie."
Gu Zhizhuo aimed the crossbow at him: "But I can't guarantee that you can reach the official road alive."
After she finished speaking, she pulled the trigger again. This time, two iron arrows shot out at the same time, landing at his feet, one on the left and one on the right.
"Miss Gu," Master Ji's face turned pale and he screamed repeatedly, "It was my eldest brother's idea to marry Ji Ruo in her place. We were all unaware of it! Cheng'er was even less aware of it. If you have any complaints, go to my eldest brother. Don't hurt Cheng'er, he knows nothing..."
Gu Zhizhuo adjusted his crossbow: "You don't know anything, huh?"
The clicking sound of the crossbow made Ji Huacheng's heart tremble.
The crossbow was aimed at Ji Huacheng again.
The guards held Master Ji Er's shoulders, and he could only shout hysterically: "Cheng'er, run! There is a manor at the foot of this mountain. I saw it with my own eyes when we came here. If you run to the manor, she won't dare to act recklessly with outsiders here. Run!"
Ji Huacheng's mind went blank and he ran into the forest.
whoosh!
This time, three arrows hit him at the same time, and an iron arrow pierced his calf.
Ji Huacheng fell to the ground in pain.
The head of the Ji family asked with trembling lips, "Miss Gu, this is at the foot of the imperial city. Although my Ji family is not an official family, we are also ordinary people of Daqi. How can you hurt others without permission and still be subject to the law?!"
Ji Huacheng hugged his legs and crawled into the forest.
"Chief Ji."
Gu Zhizhuo turned to look at him and said calmly, "The Ji family has been a family of scholars for generations, and farming and studying have been passed down from generation to generation. Our ancestor, Ji Jingwen, was dignified, respectful, and intelligent. He once said, 'Loyalty and integrity go hand in hand. Without integrity, a person will decline, and without integrity, a family will fail.'"
"The Ji family started out as a small academy. Over the past century, they have produced three great scholars and written countless books and biographies. If the Ji family is to fall, it will not be because they are unable to serve in the government, but because they lack integrity."
Patriarch Ji is now sixty-one years old. He has witnessed the glory of the Ji family with his own eyes. The glory of the Ji family is far more important than his life.
His face turned pale and blue: "What do you mean, Miss Gu?"
Gu Zhizhuo pointed down the mountain and said, "Chief Ji, do you want to go with me and take a look?"
"Look at the family tradition that the Ji family has been proud of for over a hundred years."
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