"What did you say?" Xie Yu's entire body was instantly filled with murderous intent.
"How could you say that?" Madam Xu was also stunned, and slapped Xie Jin across the face. "You scoundrel!"
"Why did you hit me? It wasn't him who died, as you all said..."
Madam Xu covered his mouth and pleaded with Xie Yu, "Yu'er, don't listen to his nonsense, he's been deceived."
Zhou Linglu's expression was very unpleasant: "Madam Xie, what do you mean? Are you saying we lied to him? That we taught him to say these things?"
Facing Xie Yu, Zhou Linglu recounted the whole story, while the other spoiled brats chimed in with their own comments.
He said angrily, "The Xie family can't take this lying down. Never associate with them again."
Xie Yu naturally knew that Zhou Linglu had misunderstood the meaning of "deception".
But he didn't want to air his dirty laundry in public.
Looking at Xie Jin, he said coldly, "Xie Jin, tell me the truth, did they lie to you, or did you beg them to play with you?"
"I want to play this game myself! Why should this house be yours in the future? Since I'm not going to get any of it anyway, what's the point of saving money?"
Upon hearing Xie Jin's words, Xie Yu's face darkened horribly. He said to Madam Xu in a low voice, "Mother, lock him up in the ancestral hall for now, and let Father and Grandmother deal with him later!"
Xie Yu said to Madam Xu, "Give them the 358 taels of silver that they owe Zhou Linglu and the others."
Madam Xu nodded hurriedly and said, "Young Master, I'll give it to them right away."
They didn't dare to presume to call her Yu'er anymore.
Xie Zhaozhao stood on the upper floor of the waterside pavilion, taking in all of this.
Full of anger and hatred, her eyes reddened, she said, "I'll risk being beaten to death to teach him a lesson."
Xie Zhaozhao suddenly saw Xie Yu turn his head and glance at her. He had a smile on his face, but only Xie Zhaozhao knew that her brother was comforting her.
Even if Grand Secretary Gu doesn't come back, my brother said he would take care of her for the rest of his life and protect her for the rest of his life.
Xie Zhaozhao turned around and went down the stairs of the waterside pavilion.
Her feet trod on the beautifully decorated wooden stairs, making no creaking sounds, only a soft "thump," like her heartbeat, steady and unhurried.
Manman, standing at the very back, refused to give up and stood there for a while longer, then suddenly shouted, "Miss, Miss..."
She lowered her voice when she said the last "sister," but it sounded even more urgent.
Xie Zhaozhao's heart was pounding, but she still took steady steps. Only she knew that her steps were a little faster than usual.
At the gate of the Xie residence, a servant shouted, "Grand Secretary Gu has arrived!"
The servant at the second gate relayed the message: "Grand Secretary Gu has arrived."
"Grand Secretary Gu has arrived."
They called out all the way from the entrance to the front hall and back yard.
Xie Yu's heavy steps faltered, and he turned around instantly, looking towards the door with wild joy.
Gu Shaoyu jumped off his horse, and Nanxing followed suit. A servant from the manor took the horses from him.
He wore a purple straight-cut court robe with a matching gold spider pattern belt around his waist, and his black hair was tied up and secured with a crown inlaid with gilded green.
He was tall and slender, with a straight back. His handsome appearance exuded an innate nobility, making him seem as unapproachable and humble as ever.
Xie Yu felt a huge weight lifted from his heart. He strode over to the man, a genuine smile spreading across his face, and said, "You're back, Grand Secretary?"
"Yes, I went to the palace and came right away."
"From today onwards, you will call me Big Brother."
Gu Shaoyu nodded and called out earnestly, "Big Brother!"
Xie Yu laughed loudly, and the two of them put their arms around each other's shoulders and entered the courtyard.
Xie Anfeng had already come out from the hall to greet them.
Prince Jing and Duke Xun came out of the living room to greet them, and said with a smile at the door, "You've finally arrived! We knew you wouldn't miss the auspicious time."
The whole courtyard erupted in cheers, and the old lady came out to greet him, saying warmly, "Grand Secretary Gu, you must have just returned from Jiangnan? You must have had a long journey."
Gu Shaoyu immediately bowed to the old lady and said, "Jing Chen just returned to the capital. He was delayed because His Majesty summoned him urgently. I apologize for making you worry, Madam."
"You have served the country and its people, and we are honored by that. From now on, we are all family, so there's no need to be so polite." The old lady was extremely moved.
She was an elder, yet she came out to greet him, which showed her deep respect and affection for Grand Secretary Gu.
His Majesty personally arranged the betrothal for him, so why should an old woman like her put on airs?
Xie Anfeng was his father-in-law, but he still couldn't help but respect Grand Secretary Gu.
Xie Zhaozhao was stunned for a moment. It was him!
A genuine smile appeared on his lips, and he quietly clasped his hands together.
The three of them, master and servant, returned to the courtyard, where Granny Xu was already waiting. The whole courtyard was filled with jubilation.
"Congratulations, Miss! Congratulations, Miss!"
"The young lady's betrothal gifts are unique in the entire capital."
"Grand Secretary Gu looks like a god."
"This is the most handsome son-in-law in the capital."
Xie Zhaozhao walked to the corridor, where the phoenix in the birdcage had been taught to speak by the maids and said in a affected tone, "Congratulations, Miss! Congratulations, Miss!"
Xie Zhaozhao said with a smile, "Yuanyuan, today I'll give everyone in the courtyard a reward of ten taels of silver."
There were nineteen maids and servants in the courtyard, who swept and cleaned the house and served the servants. Each of them was given ten taels of silver, which would amount to one hundred and ninety taels of silver.
Xie Xiangxiang's monthly allowance was only three taels of silver, while the lowest-ranking servant's monthly allowance was no more than three hundred coins.
These ten taels represent three years' worth of the servant's monthly allowance.
Who's unhappy?!
While everyone was overjoyed, Xu Shi and Xie Xiangxiang were in an awkward situation.
Madam Xie the Third, Madam Xie the Second, and many members of the collateral branches of the clan also came to the mansion to witness the ceremony. The female relatives were all in Madam Xu's courtyard.
"Didn't the Second Miss say that Grand Secretary Gu wouldn't be coming back?" A distant aunt from a collateral branch of the family asked with a grin.
She saw Grand Secretary Gu in the front yard; his appearance was nothing short of divine! To actually say he was dead—how dare he say that!
Xie Xiangxiang's face turned pale and then red, and she was speechless.
Her mind was in turmoil. How did Grand Secretary Gu come back alive? If she remembered correctly, the news of his death was sent to the capital on the day of the Dragon Boat Festival!
"Second Miss, didn't you say that the Eldest Miss was engaged in a ghost marriage?"
"The young lady's betrothal gifts only include silver. She can live a life of luxury, without doing anything else."
Madam Xie chimed in, "Luckily I called Wanwan away, otherwise, if they had just started talking, saying that the eldest young lady was going to remain a widow, wouldn't the clan leader have expelled us from the clan?"
Madam Xie added fuel to the fire: "I think that Minister Gu's betrothal gifts are truly unprecedented and unparalleled. Who else has such great fortune to receive a betrothal from His Majesty? Our eldest daughter is definitely the first of her kind."
She made no attempt to hide her feelings and said to her daughter, Xie Xiuxiu, "Let's go and congratulate the young lady, and share in the joy."
As soon as she left, the Second Madam also stood up and left with Xie Wanwan. The other relatives from the clan all got up and went to Xie Zhaozhao's courtyard.
Suddenly, only the Xu mother and her two daughters remained in the courtyard.
Xu looked at Xie Xiangxiang, her eyes instantly turning venomous!
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