Chapter 337 chilled her heart
Before leaving the room, Meng Jinyao gave her a silk handkerchief to cover her face, so that the maid would not see the injury on her face on the way to Shou'an Hall. She believed that she would not want to show herself like this in front of the servants.
When she returned to her parents' home, she was disheveled, but that was a different story. Xuan Yi didn't care about anything else at the time. She finally saw a chance to escape, and the situation was urgent, so she didn't even bother to dress up. She secretly escaped from the Marquis of Wu'an's mansion with her hair disheveled and in a sorry state.
Upon seeing this, Gu Xuanyi was taken aback at first, but quickly understood. She looked at her third aunt gratefully and said, "Thank you, Third Aunt."
After she finished speaking, she covered her face with a handkerchief, tied it in a knot at the back of her head, and then followed them nervously to Shou'an Hall to see the elders, intending to explain the situation and discuss countermeasures together.
She felt uneasy the whole way. Her third uncle was her uncle, not her father, and couldn't make decisions for her; he could only offer advice. What should she do if her father didn't agree to the divorce? If her mother agreed, but her father disagreed, could her mother persuade her father to agree?
As soon as Gu Jingxi and his group arrived at Shou'an Hall and were about to enter the house, they saw Zhang Shi rushing out in a panic.
When Zhang saw Gu Jingxi and his wife, she paused for a moment, then quickly noticed the veiled young woman beside them. Judging from her figure, she knew she was her daughter. She hurriedly stepped forward and asked, "Xuanyi, your mother just heard from the maid that she saw you running back with disheveled hair, and it seemed you were injured. You also told the servants not to tell me or your father. What happened?"
Seeing her mother's concern for her, Gu Xuanyi was finally less afraid.
Gu Jingxi said, "Sister-in-law, this is not the place to talk. Let's go inside and talk."
Upon hearing this, Zhang nodded repeatedly and pulled her daughter inside.
As soon as they entered the house, Gu Jingsheng, Gu Jingsong and his wife, as well as the old lady Gu, turned their attention to them. They were all taken aback when they saw Xuanyi covering her face with a silk handkerchief.
The next moment, before they could even greet Madam Gu, Gu Jingsheng suddenly stood up. Before they could even ask why, he pointed at Gu Xuanyi and launched into a tirade: "Gu Xuanyi, you unfilial daughter, are you trying to kill your father? You ran back to your parents' home for such a trivial matter, and now you're waiting for your son-in-law to come and pick you up? Just because he came to pick you up once doesn't mean he'll be so humble as to come back a second time."
Gu Jingsheng's attitude was firm: "Let me tell you, if you make a scene about divorce over some other thing again, you might as well just hang yourself with a white silk ribbon at your in-laws' house. I'd rather you be dead than make a scene about divorce and embarrass yourself! What are you hiding your face for? Are you too ashamed to show your face? Last time you were spoiled and willful and hit your sister-in-law, and now you've been hit back? You've been willful since you were little, and now that you're someone else's wife, you're still willful. You've married into such a good family and have such a good husband, aren't you satisfied?"
Hearing her husband's words, Zhang assumed her daughter had gotten into trouble again, probably hitting or fighting with her sister-in-law. Otherwise, why would the maid say Xuanyi was injured? She said with a headache, "Xuanyi, you've had another fight with your sister-in-law? How many times have I told you? You can't get into conflicts with her, or it will upset your mother-in-law. Some small things are better left unresolved. Now you're fighting again. Do you want to end up like last time, getting a divorce? You're not a child anymore. Why are you still so impulsive? Your husband is such a good man. If you divorce him, will you find someone better?"
Her father's harsh scolding and her mother's accusations extinguished the last glimmer of hope in Gu Xuanyi's eyes. A chill ran through her, and tears welled in her eyes again. Instinctively, she moved closer to her third aunt, seeking refuge. She knew that wanting a divorce would be met with strong opposition, so she didn't dare go to her parents immediately, but went directly to her third uncle and aunt. Her third uncle was fair and upright, and her third aunt, though young, was soft-hearted and easy to talk to; she would help persuade her third uncle to help her get a divorce.
Meng Jinyao frowned, instantly understanding why Xuanyi had sought out her and her husband first, instead of her biological parents. Seeing Xuanyi approach, she reached out and took Xuanyi's hand, silently comforting her.
The warmth from her left hand gave Gu Xuanyi a sense of comfort and rekindled a glimmer of hope, but her tears fell even more fiercely. She never expected that her biological parents would criticize her without even asking her anything, while her third aunt would stand by her side.
Hearing the couple speak to their child like that, Old Madam Gu frowned in disapproval and immediately scolded them with a stern face: "Eldest son, eldest son's wife, how can you be such parents? How could a child run back to her parents' home for no reason? If she could run back to her parents' home, she must have been wronged. No matter how good the son-in-law is, there are times when Xuan Yi is wronged. You criticize Xuan Yi without even knowing the facts. Anyone who doesn't know the situation would think that you are the son-in-law's parents and that Xuan Yi is an adopted child."
As soon as he finished speaking, Gu Jingsheng was stunned. He didn't expect to be scolded at his age. He still respected his stepmother from the bottom of his heart, so he didn't dare to talk back this time. He replied awkwardly, "Mother is right. Xuanyi has been disobedient since she was a child. I was so angry that I scolded her."
Zhang also said, "My daughter-in-law is being too anxious. Xuanyi and her sister-in-law have always had conflicts, and they even fought last time."
Old Madam Gu glared at her, her face displeased, and said, "Last time is last time, and now is now. Does Xuan Yi always strike first? Her sister-in-law is not a peaceful character. Maybe this time it was her who struck first?"
Zhang was speechless, but her mother-in-law's words were not without reason. However, she only thought that her daughter was throwing a tantrum again, which was why she was anxious.
"Don't stand up, sit down and talk."
As Madam Gu spoke, her gaze fell on her eldest granddaughter, and she said gently, "Xuanyi, don't be afraid. Tell your elders what happened, and they will stand up for you." After saying that, she waved her hand, dismissing the maidservants.
The group took their seats, but Gu Xuanyi did not sit next to her mother, Zhang Shi, but instead sat next to her third aunt.
Seeing her daughter's behavior, Zhang felt a little uncomfortable. She was the mother, so why was she sitting with her third brother's wife? But then she thought about what she had just said and felt relieved.
Gu Xuanyi choked up and said, "Grandmother, I regret it. I shouldn't have disobeyed my elders and insisted on marrying that beast. I was completely deceived by him."
As she spoke, she untied the silk handkerchief covering her face, revealing the injuries on her face. She continued, "These were all from his beatings. The marks on my neck are from when he tried to strangle me. If I hadn't revealed my third uncle's name and brought back his last shred of reason, I probably would have died at his hands. Besides my face and neck, there are also injuries on my body from his beatings."
Upon hearing this, Gu Jingsheng and his wife, Gu Jingsong and his wife, and Old Madam Gu were all shocked. Their eldest son-in-law usually seemed gentle and refined, but they never expected that he would do such a beastly thing, beating his wife who was powerless to even kill a chicken.
Looking at the injuries on his daughter's face, Gu Jingsheng pondered for a moment before asking in a deep voice, "Xuanyi, what terrible mistake did you make to anger your son-in-law like this?"
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