Ye Guixue understood. This was Xie Yuan advising him.
Xie Yuan was well aware of how likable the Su Rong he had instructed was. It would be fine if Ye Guixue had never seen her, but once he had seen her and she had personally agreed to the marriage, there was no reason not to fancy her. But fortune and destiny are so cruel: her heart belonged to Zhou Gu first. He had arrived a step too late and had no choice but to accept it. He should avoid dwelling on it too much so as not to harm himself.
Ye Guixue nodded, "Thank you, Master Xie. Lord Thursday is a good man, and I respect him."
If there were any lingering resentment in the past, it was completely dispelled by Zhou Gu’s actions in Nanchu. He deserved Su Rong’s liking.
Xie Yuan chuckled, flicking his sleeve, "He is indeed not bad, but also stubborn. Grand Tutor Qin and the old Duke have instructed him for years, only for him to abandon everything for a woman. If he were my grandson, I would break his legs."
Unfortunately, he had no son, no daughter, or grandson. He couldn’t break anyone’s legs.
Ye Guixue: "..."
"Ahem, Uncle Xie, can you give my future husband a bit of face?" Su Rong couldn’t stand it anymore and popped out of the carriage to stand up for her future husband, "There are plenty of people in the world who uphold righteousness, can’t one person be selfish? The old Duke has four grandsons, why can’t I have one? As the daughter of my mother who made significant contributions to Daliang, how could I be faulted for wanting one man? Even my cousin, the Crown Prince, didn’t mind, why would you worry for Grand Tutor Qin and the old Duke? I think, the one who deserves sympathy is me."
"Oh? Why should I feel sorry for you?" Xie Yuan raised an eyebrow, "You’ve caused all this trouble, hurting others and yourself, and you still have the gall to justify it?"
Su Rong had a valid reason. "I’m almost exhausted, having lost eight pounds. Shouldn’t you feel sorry for me? My future husband has worked himself to death for my sake, and is still recovering from his injuries. After hearing your words, he couldn’t refute his elder so, oppressed by you, he will need comforting."
Xie Yuan looked at her, "You know how to comfort someone?"
Su Rong responded, "Barely, you haven’t taught me. Now I must figure it out myself."
Xie Yuan burst into amused laughter.
At this point, Zhou Gu stuck his head out of the carriage, saluted Xie Yuan, "Uncle Xie, you are correct. But we can’t turn back now, I can only shamelessly be Xiaoqi’s husband. I hope that you will continue to provide guidance and understanding in the future."
Xie Yuan was annoyed, "Enough, both of you, cut the act. I’m not playing matchbreaker here."
Zhou Gu looked up with a smile, "Thank you for your understanding, Uncle Xie."
Xie Yuan didn’t want to argue with the two, turning to Fen Ling, "Order to set up camp and rest here today."
After all this, he was exhausted.
Fen Ling acknowledged the order and immediately relayed it.
Soon the tents were set up. Su Rong helped Zhou Gu out of the carriage and into the tent. Zhou Gu whispered to Su Rong, "Uncle Xie criticized me for abandoning everything for you, but has he ever considered himself and what he sacrificed for Aunt Zhenmin during his lifetime?"
Su Rong smiled at him, "He believes you have great prospects and finds it a pity that you are wasting them on me."
"Not at all, believe me, if I left now, there would be a line of people waiting to be your husband," Zhou Gu muttered, "Compared to his past with Aunt Zhenmin, I consider myself very fortunate." He eyed Su Rong and teased, "Do you think Uncle Xie is jealous of me? After all, he didn’t get to marry and spend his life with Aunt Zhenmin."
Su Rong laughed, embracing him, "Alright, didn’t I stand up for you? Uncle Xie is not blind. He is complimenting your discerning eye."
Zhou Gu was skeptical, "Is he really praising me?"
How come he didn’t hear it?
"Yes, he is praising you, do you know him better than I do?" Su Rong led him to the bed, "If you had really given up on me, he would have criticized you for not appreciating what’s valuable. Being a respected official in Daliang is nothing compared to being king’s husband in Nanchu. No matter how good an official, he is still a servant. But in Nanchu, you will be both king’s husband and lord. Uncle Xie has always viewed fame and fortune with contempt, and he’s not really blaming you for abandoning the path in front of you. In his view, a life without regrets is complete."
Zhou Gu felt relieved at her words, "I see."
He smiled widely, "So, he achieved enlightenment because he had regrets?"
Su Rong shook her head, "It’s not exactly regret. At that time, they had no choice but to do what was right. There was mutual understanding between my mother and him. My mother fell in love with my father without meaning to, but she chose to stay in Jiangning County to avoid creating disputes and let Uncle Xie accompany her for the rest of her life. It was also a kind of completion for them. Uncle Xie has no regrets, but I think my mother might have, because she didn’t see my biological father one last time before she died. As for Uncle Xie, he has accepted and come to terms with it." 𝚏𝗿𝗲𝐞𝚠𝕖𝐛𝗻𝗼𝐯𝕖𝚕.𝚌𝗼𝗺
Zhou Gu nodded, dropped his smile, and hugged Su Rong tightly, "We should not follow their path. In this life, I will marry no one but you, and you should not marry anyone but me. You must not have feelings for anyone else besides me."
"Alright," Su Rong smiled and agreed. She thought to herself that aside from the man in front of her, she would not be able to fall in love with anyone else. She had tried and failed.
Just as the two laid down on the bed, Fen Ling’s voice sounded softly from outside, "Sister, Brother-in-law, have you gone to sleep yet?"
"Not yet, what’s the matter?" Su Rong asked.
Fen Ling spoke even more softly, "Master said that it’s inappropriate for you two to stay in the same tent before the wedding. He wants you to give up your tent for your husband to recover, and move somewhere else."
Su Rong: "..."
Zhou Gu: "..."
He grabbed Su Rong, murmuring, "No, I miss you. I don’t want to be parted from you."
Su Rong gently held his hand and murmured back, "I don’t want my palm to be smacked."
Zhou Gu looked at her, "Smacked palm?"
Su Rong sighed, "Uncle Xie will smack my palms. Whenever I refuse to obey him, aside from making me read until I faint from exhaustion, he would smack my palms."
She spread out two hands for Zhou Gu, "Look, these beautiful hands have been smacked until swollen countless times."
Zhou Gu looked at her beautiful hands, hesitating, "Now that you’ve grown up and become a princess, will he still smack you?"
He wanted to say, compared to being beaten with a military club by his grandfather, a smacked palm seemed minor. However, he could stand the punishment with his tough skin, but he couldn’t bear to see his wife getting smacked even once. Every smack would make him heartbroken.
He whispered, "Does smacking palms work?"
"It works, because when both palms are smacked, I can’t eat," Su Rong said.
Zhou Gu wanted to say "I’ll feed you," but it sounded too inhumane. So he blurted out, "Can I take the smacks for you?"
"Don’t," Su Rong whispered, "You’re still injured. Besides, they won’t smack you. If I disobey, they will only punish me."
Zhou Gu was helpless, holding on to her, "Can’t we really sleep together? After all, it’s not like I can do anything to you."
Su Rong coughed, "They’re probably worried that I might do something to you and slow your recovery."
Zhou Gu: "..."
He was grateful.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
