The marriage between Gu Yaoniang and Lu Zhaoan was thus officially approved.
Mr. and Mrs. Gu decided to hold their wedding next spring, giving them more than half a year to prepare. That was more than enough time.
In the past, Gu Pingsheng would always be very friendly and affectionate when he saw Lu Zhaoan, calling him "brother" warmly. However, after Gu Yaoniang and Lu Zhaoan's marriage was arranged, Gu Pingsheng would always treat Lu Zhaoan with disdain, practically covering his eyes with his sleeves, his face clearly saying "I don't want to talk to you."
This proves the old saying—"A mother-in-law likes her son-in-law more and more the more she looks at him." After the marriage was settled, among the entire Gu family, Madam Gu was the one who found Lu Zhao'an the most pleasing to the eye.
Every time Lu Zhaoan came, Madam Gu would be busy making arrangements, running around like a headless chicken, afraid of neglecting Lu Zhaoan in any way. This infuriated Mr. Gu, who would glare at her and say that she was useless.
Mr. Gu was clueless about business, while Lu Zhao'an was a shrewd businessman, so Mr. Gu disliked Lu Zhao'an even more. One day, Lu Zhao'an came to the Gu family again looking for Gu Yaoniang. Mr. Gu could no longer tolerate it, so he called Lu Zhao'an to his study and made up his mind to make things difficult for him and curb his arrogance.
Gu Pingsheng watched the two enter the study and, out of curiosity, wanted to follow them, but the door was slammed shut by Mr. Gu with a loud bang, startling Gu Pingsheng.
"They're throwing things around like that. I don't know who they're trying to impress."
Gu Pingsheng nearly got hit in the nose, and vaguely felt a thin layer of sweat seeping out of his back. He muttered to himself.
It's unclear whether this was a show of force to his disliked son-in-law Lu Zhaoan, or a lesson for his good-for-nothing son.
Gu Pingsheng scoffed.
He walked up to Gu Yaoniang, looked her up and down, and asked in surprise, "Sister, why don't you have any reaction at all?"
Gu Yaoniang sat in the flower hall, gently waving the round fan in her hand. She had been holding a teacup and sipping her tea in one hand, but upon hearing this, she put down the teacup, covered her mouth with the fan, and chuckled softly: "What's the reaction?"
Was she nervous, or curious?
No need for that.
Lu Zhao'an was exceptionally talented, which is why he was ostracized by his clan and started doing business. Besides, after years of navigating the business world, he had developed a silver tongue, able to "speak to people in one way and to ghosts in another." How could his father possibly make things difficult for him?
She didn't believe it.
Lu Zhaoan had probably been waiting for this day for a long time, and was fully prepared to completely win over his father in the study.
Looking at Gu Yaoniang's ambiguous smile, Gu Pingsheng immediately understood. His initial anticipation of a good show vanished.
Sure enough, when Lu Zhaoan and Mr. Gu came out of the study, Mr. Gu had already changed his address from "that kid" to "my son-in-law".
Gu Yaoniang glanced at Gu Pingsheng with a smile, as if to say, "See? What did I tell you?"
Gu Pingsheng was somewhat resentful that he hadn't seen the show he wanted to see. A sudden idea struck him, and he instead looked back without flinching.
His gaze darted between Gu Yaoniang and Lu Zhaoan, openly and brazenly under her watchful eye.
Gu Yaoniang hadn't initially thought anything was wrong, but under Gu Pingsheng's shifty gaze, her face gradually flushed.
Lu Zhaoan stood politely to one side, watching the commotion with a smile. He actually envied the harmony of the Gu family. Fortunately, he would also receive some warmth from that harmony in the future.
Madam Gu's voice came from behind: "Gu Pingsheng!"
Before Gu Pingsheng could react, Madam Gu slapped him on the shoulder: "Did you bully your sister again? Did you even read your book today? You're not doing anything important!"
Gu Pingsheng's smile froze.
Gu Yaoniang raised an eyebrow at him, smiling smugly.
Madam Gu smiled at Gu Yaoniang, but couldn't help scolding her: "And you! Go back to your courtyard! Seeing each other all the time, what kind of behavior is this! After the wedding, you'll have plenty of time to see each other. Come with me!"
As she spoke, she grabbed Gu Yaoniang's wrist and led her towards the backyard. Gu Yaoniang hadn't expected the usually gentle Madam Gu to pull her along so directly, and she stumbled.
Lu Zhaoan instinctively reached out to steady her, but Gu Yaoniang had already regained her balance. Lu Zhaoan subtly withdrew his hand, and Mr. Gu noticed this, stroking his beard with a smile in his eyes.
Madam Gu felt somewhat guilty for having caused Gu Yaoniang to stumble a little earlier. As they walked, she whispered a few words of advice: "You silly child, you can't see him every day before you get married. If you see him too often, he'll lose his novelty. You have to learn to handle him."
Gu Yaoniang obediently followed Madam Gu, softly replying, "Yes, Mother."
As she walked into the courtyard, Gu Yaoniang was startled by the scene before her, but her joy was palpable.
She whispered "Mother" and walked inside.
On the embroidery frame in the courtyard, there was a set of brocade and gold-embroidered bright red wedding dress.
"Mother, you finished embroidering so quickly?"
Gu Yaoniang was good at everything, but she was really bad at needlework. Therefore, after the marriage was arranged, Madam Gu did not lock Gu Yaoniang in her boudoir to embroider her wedding dress like the other ladies did, but instead took on this important task herself.
Gu Yaoniang touched the fine lines on her wedding dress. The stitches were dense and the embroidery was exquisite. Every stitch was a mother's heartfelt blessing to her daughter.
Gu Yaoniang felt her eyes getting hot.
Madam Gu held Gu Yaoniang's hand, a glint of pride in her eyes.
Before her marriage, her embroidery skills were renowned, and all the other women around her were eager to learn them. She had regretted that Gu Yaoniang had never learned even a fraction of her embroidery skills. However, being able to make a wedding dress for this child herself and send her off on her wedding day was a good thing nonetheless.
"Go ahead and give it a try."
Madam Gu gently nudged Gu Yaoniang.
If there's anything unsuitable, she can make alterations. A wedding dress is the most important garment a woman wears in her life; it cannot have the slightest mistake.
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