Gu Yaoniang gripped Gu Pingsheng's wrist tightly, her hands turning white from the force. She felt the greatest humiliation of her life, her heart filled with bitterness and resentment, yet her lips trembled slightly, unable to utter a word. With her remaining rationality, she held onto Gu Pingsheng, fearing he might do something irreversible in a moment of impulsiveness.
Since an agreement has been reached and a statement has been agreed upon, the two families were previously just close friends.
Right now, both families need to maintain a respectable image. She felt dizzy and overwhelmed, and didn't want to think about anything else.
Officer Qin was also taken aback by Aunt Qin's nonsensical and rambling remarks. This wicked woman! Why does she blurt out all sorts of things! To want a respectable woman as a concubine—such hurtful words would surely destroy any remaining friendship between the two families!
Madam Gu gritted her teeth, spitting out each word: "Our Gu family and your Qin family used to be close friends, often having family banquets together. Our Yaoniang and your son have only met a few times and know each other. Now that this has been said, Sister-in-law Qin, you'd better not make any wild accusations! Don't act as if Yaoniang is determined to marry no one but Qin Dalang! Our Gu family's girls are pure and innocent; we can't tolerate any taint, good or bad, being involved with them!"
Mr. Gu raised his hand and threw the jade-bone fan, which he had already taken out, at Constable Qin, without caring whether the latter could catch it in time. Fortunately, Constable Qin was always quick-witted and caught the jade-bone fan in his palm before it hit the ground.
"Many years ago, Brother Qin visited my home and gave me a precious fan. In return, I gave him an ancestral jade pendant. However, the jade pendant is an heirloom, and before my mother passed away, she instructed that it must be given to my daughter as part of her dowry. Could you please return this jade pendant to Brother Qin?"
Qin, the constable, was both ashamed and embarrassed, and repeatedly agreed: "Yes, yes, I will return the jade pendant tomorrow."
The message had been delivered, and he understood the Gu family's meaning: they would join him in denying the marriage. His own wife had already deeply offended the Gu family and had no face to linger there any longer. So, Officer Qin hurriedly took his leave, pulling Aunt Qin along.
Even after the two left, Gu Pingsheng remained indignant.
“If anyone should be afraid, it’s the Qin family. If the Sage is to punish, he will only punish the Qin family! What are we afraid of? Father and Mother, you shouldn’t have agreed!” Gu Pingsheng was still indignant, deeply resenting his father for hastily agreeing to the Qin family’s shameless request.
My sister was inexplicably dumped from her fiancé, and I have to help cover it up. They're really bullying me!
Upon hearing this, Mr. Gu reached out and smacked his son on the head—"What do you know!" He rubbed his fingers against the slightly worn teacup. While the Qin family's behavior was shameless, what they said wasn't entirely without merit.
He said, “Although the Qin family appears prosperous, they are actually quite weak inside. They are afraid that if their son’s marriage to Gu Yaoniang causes a stir, it will ruin Qin Yuxiu’s hard-won future. The Qin family is afraid of being found out by the Emperor, and we should be afraid too. Although the Emperor is a benevolent ruler, it is ultimately disgraceful for him to be fooled by the newly appointed top scholar.”
Gu Yaoniang, recovering from her anger, looked at her still puzzled younger brother and added, "If the Emperor finds out, will he punish Qin Yuxiu, who deceived him, or will he let the matter drop? We can't gamble."
Silence fell over the hall. They naturally understood what Yao Niang meant by "making the best of a bad situation"—to completely erase the Gu family's involvement from Qin Yuxiu's resume, leaving no one from the Gu family with a voice. And in this world, only the dead speak out.
They truly dared not gamble. Qingyun County was merely a small county under the jurisdiction of Qingzhou, and none of them knew what kind of temperament the Sage currently on the supreme throne was.
Gu Jia didn't have the guts to gamble.
But in the end, it was all in vain. A perfectly good young woman, waiting for so many years. And it all came to nothing.
The Qin family is truly hateful!
Gu Pingsheng was still indignant: "So, we're just going to let it go like this?"
That damned Qin Yuxiu! He was all set for success in the imperial examinations and his wedding night, but he didn't care whether his sister would be heartbroken or whether she could withstand the torment of gossip.
Gu Pingsheng was seething with anger. "Look at how smug they are! Could it be that they're actually planning to take my sister as a concubine?"
That damned Qin Yuxiu! How come I never realized how shameless her family was before?
Madam Gu could not hide her worry. This world has always been harsh on women. After all this turmoil, Yao Niang is already 19 years old; it will be difficult for her to find a better husband in the future. What should she do?
No matter how good Qin Yuxiu was before, he is now someone else's husband, and the Gu family naturally won't covet him anymore. Moreover, regardless of whether what the Qin family says is true, that he was only forced to accept the marriage bestowed by the emperor, Qin Yuxiu's actions are all acts of betrayal and seeking a better match elsewhere.
The Gu family's daughter isn't someone who can't get married, so she naturally won't be unable to let go of someone like that. All the past hopes and aspirations have been worn away.
But deep down, he was still resentful.
Gu Yaoniang really wanted to go to Shuojing City to see what kind of splendor it was that could make this young man, who used to seem to have morality and integrity ingrained in his bones, so easily change his heart.
Gu Yaoniang wanted to ask Qin Yuxiu if he had any heart at all, and if he even knew what breaking off an engagement meant for a woman. She also wanted to know if Qin Yuxiu had truly accepted the imperial decree of marriage against his will, as his parents claimed.
Gu Pingsheng saw the money the Qin family had just delivered on the table, and his anger flared up again. He reached out to throw the money away in frustration, but Gu Yaoniang quickly stopped him.
Thirty taels of silver is quite a lot! It's fine to deceive her feelings; but money can't be delayed—after all, she and Qin Yuxiu don't have any feelings for each other anyway.
In short, no matter how angry you are, there's no need to throw away money that's been offered to you.
"We can't just let this go!" Gu Pingsheng was still indignant.
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