In the end, Princess Ruining still managed to protect the Gu family.
The Emperor never intervened, leaving all decisions to Princess Ruining. He was aware of everything Princess Ruining did, but like any father, he simply watched his daughter's steps from behind, and would not intervene as long as she didn't stumble.
Hearing from her daughter that she had only kept the Gu family under surveillance and prevented anyone from entering or leaving at will, but had not yet confiscated their property or imprisoned them, she felt somewhat conflicted.
The fact that the Gu family handled things so casually suggests that Zhao Yang was the most suspicious person.
Regardless, Zhao Yang was his son. No matter how much he favored one child over the other, it was only between the two. But when outsiders were involved, he would naturally favor his own son more.
Even if the Gu family were truly innocent, according to Emperor Zhenlong's wishes, they would still have to be pushed out to take the blame.
Emperor Zhenlong sighed. The child is grown up now; let's see how things go.
Sometimes, compassion isn't a good thing.
-
However, no matter how much Princess Ruining protected them, the Gu family's life began to become difficult.
Nowadays, only Gu Yaoniang is allowed to enter and leave the Gu family's gate; even the doctor is not allowed to enter.
Gu Xingzhi was still not fully recovered, and his complexion remained terrible. He relied entirely on Bi Shuang to administer acupuncture to relieve his symptoms every day. As for Gu Pingsheng, his chances of passing the imperial examination this year were naturally slim.
After three years in the capital, Gu Yaoniang finally understood the power of authority. The Gu family was nothing more than a tree teetering on the brink of collapse; before absolute power, it could lose its vitality without even a gust of wind.
Following the regulations set by the imperial court, she opened the granaries to distribute grain when requested, and opened the treasuries to provide silver when requested. It seemed as if she had completely lost her will to fight.
Although her movements were not restricted, Gu Yaoniang had no desire to go out and only wanted to stay at home to take care of Gu Xingzhi.
Fortunately, those who came to the Gu family to ask for grain and money were very organized and did not take the opportunity to line their own pockets.
Gu Yaoniang vaguely knew that someone must have given prior notice, and the person who came was someone trustworthy, but she had no interest in investigating.
Even so, she watched as Gu Xingzhi's complexion irreversibly darkened day by day, his waking hours dwindled, and now he slept almost all day long. Gu Yaoniang and her brother dared not stray a step further. Finally, on this day, Bishuang shook her head at Gu Yaoniang.
Qiaoniang burst into tears. She was always smiling; even when she cried, she would hide and shed tears secretly. Now, she truly couldn't hold back anymore.
Gu Yaoniang was stunned for a moment before she understood what Bishuang meant.
She rushed out of the main courtyard where Gu Xingzhi was, staggering towards the gate. Gu Pingsheng, worried, wanted to follow, but Gu Yaoniang shouted, "Stay with Second Uncle!"
He had no choice but to stay in the main courtyard, but he was still worried, so he hurriedly asked Bitao and Bizhu to go and check on them.
The guards at the door, seeing it was Gu Yaoniang, did not stop her. The one who was originally guarding the door gently stepped aside to let her through. Gu Yaoniang did not go out, but walked towards the guards at the door: "I want to see the princess."
Gu Yaoniang's eyes were red. This was the first time she had made a request since they had put the Gu family under guard.
The guards exchanged glances, and finally a captain-like man said, "Madam Gu, it seems the princess is unable to come."
Gu Yaoniang didn't say much, didn't make things difficult for them, and turned to walk out the door.
Seeing Gu Yaoniang walk away, Bizhu and Bitao, who had been chasing after her, quickly followed. Bizhu ran fast and caught up in the blink of an eye, but Bitao was stopped.
"Please don't make things difficult for us, young lady."
They should have stopped the girl from leaving earlier. But she ran fast, and they wanted to curry favor with her, so they let her follow them out.
Now, Bitao absolutely cannot go out with them anymore.
Bitao tiptoed to look outside. Standing inside the door, she could only see a small area outside the door, and now she could no longer see Gu Yaoniang. Bitao had no choice but to walk back inside.
-
Bizhu caught up with Gu Yaoniang and said urgently, "My lady, let me carry you on my back!"
Gu Yaoniang was in a state of shock, anxiety, and panic. When Bizhu spoke, she looked at Bizhu with bewilderment and confusion in her eyes.
Bizhu was startled and lowered her voice to say softly, "My lady, you're going to find the princess, but there's no carriage available. Shall I carry you there? I'm fast on foot!"
-
In the main room of the Gu family home, Qiaoniang was silently shedding tears. Gu Xingzhi lay there lifelessly, his eyes tightly closed.
Gu Pingsheng stood in the hall, somewhat bewildered, unsure of what to do.
Seeing him standing there in a daze, Qiaoniang said in a hoarse voice, "Pingsheng, your sister has probably gone to fetch a doctor. Go and wait for her."
"well!"
Gu Pingsheng was a little dazed. He agreed first, and then realized what Qiaoniang was talking about. He quickly responded again and ran outside.
Unexpectedly, at that moment, Gu Xingzhi stirred and woke up.
Qiaoniang rushed forward and called out loudly, "Pingsheng! Come back quickly!"
She stepped forward and smoothed Gu Xingzhi's hair: "Are you hungry? Would you like some water? Are you still feeling unwell? Do you want to sit up?"
As soon as she uttered those words, she contradicted herself: "You're feeling weak right now, you should just lie down."
Gu Xingzhi watched her bustling about, his eyes full of gentle smiles: "Stop busying yourself. Take a rest."
As soon as the words left my mouth, I realized that my voice was low and hoarse, and each word felt like it was being torn apart.
He smiled bitterly to himself. Just then, Gu Pingsheng entered the room and knelt down beside his bed. His voice, low and tearful, came from below: "Second Uncle, you're finally awake!"
Gu Pingsheng was at the age where he was growing taller, and now the young man was kneeling by the bed, snot and tears streaming down his face, a rather comical sight. Gu Xingzhi was amused and laughed: "You brat! What are you crying for! I'm still alive!"
Gu Pingsheng remained silent, only continuing to cry. Gu Xingzhi, growing impatient, tried to shoo him away: "Where's your sister?"
Gu Pingsheng was stunned for a moment, then remained silent. His sister hadn't left any words when she left; they only guessed she had gone to see a doctor. How should they explain this?
"Yao Niang is worried because you haven't woken up yet. She went out to find a doctor."
Qiao Niang answered for him, and Gu Pingsheng quickly followed suit, saying, "Yes! Sister has gone out to find a doctor."
Gu Xingzhi shook his head: "It's just a stomachache, why make such a fuss?"
Seeing that Qiaoniang and Gu Pingsheng were both looking at him disapprovingly, and knowing that his situation was indeed not good, he stopped talking.
Suddenly, his chest began to heave violently. Qiao Niang knew at a glance that he was probably feeling nauseous again, but he was afraid of worrying them, so he endured it, which is why he is like this now.
Qiaoniang quickly brought over a spittoon and patted his back.
Gu Xingzhi was originally able to endure it, but upon seeing the spittoon, he could no longer control himself, and a sour feeling rose in the room.
When Gu Yaoniang returned home, she not only brought back a doctor, but also an unexpected person who came to the Gu family with her.
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