Upon hearing that the elders of the Gu family wanted to verify the authenticity of his jade, Gu Tingjun suddenly lost his confidence.
Seeing that Old Master Gu and his wife looked calm and composed, my heart sank to the bottom.
"What, Second Brother, are you afraid to let Elder Gu take a look?"
"Since you're sure the seal in your hand is genuine, then show it to the world. The Gu family seal is crucial for the appointment of every clan leader. If the seal is truly in your possession, then your succession as clan leader is perfectly logical."
After much hesitation, Gu Tingjun finally handed over the seal in his hand.
The elder took the seal into his hands and examined it carefully.
He suddenly shook his head and chuckled.
"As expected, this is not the Gu family's heirloom."
Ye Yuzhen anxiously defended herself: "This seal was personally retrieved from the Gu family's old house by Old Gu himself, following the old lady. How could it be fake? Take another look. Are you seeing things?"
At this moment, Madam Gu slowly stood up, her indifferent gaze revealing a hint of sharpness.
“That’s right, this seal is indeed fake, Gu Tingjun. Although my eyesight is failing, I’m not completely senile. Hmph, you think I don’t know you kidnapped him just because you brought me a letter from the old man?”
Gu Tingjun's expression changed drastically, and he stared at Old Madam Gu with a deathly pale face.
"You... Hmph, I thought you two had such a good relationship, but it seems it's nothing special. The old man was kidnapped, and his handwritten letter was delivered to you, yet you dared to use a fake seal to deceive me. Aren't you afraid something might happen to the old man?"
Gu Tingjun wanted to sow discord between Old Master Gu and Old Madam Gu.
But as soon as he finished speaking, Old Master Gu immediately stood up to defend his wife.
"I asked her to give you the fake seal."
Upon hearing Elder Gu's words, Gu Tingjun looked puzzled.
"Impossible, I saw that letter with my own eyes, and it didn't mention a single hint..."
"Hehe, of course you can't tell, because even my wife has never seen the real Gu family seal. The seal kept in the Gu family study is fake. When she saw in the letter that I asked her to go to the study to get it, she naturally understood what I meant."
Old Master Gu smiled at Old Madam Gu: "How could you possibly understand the tacit understanding between my husband and me?"
Bai Qianmo chuckled inwardly. The old man of the Gu family was quite adorable; after explaining things, he didn't forget to show off his affection before leaving.
Gu Tingjun felt like he was about to vomit blood; he was just short of spitting it out in public.
Today, he thought the Gu family was already his.
Unexpectedly, the Gu family seal they had painstakingly obtained turned out to be fake, and Gu Jueye, who had been missing for several days, returned today.
Everything he had meticulously planned vanished in an instant.
He was unwilling to accept defeat so easily.
“Dad, don’t be so stubborn. Quickly apologize to Great-Grandpa and Great-Grandma. They watched you grow up. As long as you sincerely admit your mistake, they will definitely punish you leniently…”
"Smack!"
"Ah!" Gu Xinyi was slapped to the ground by Gu Tingjun.
She covered her swollen, red face and looked at her father in disbelief.
The father who had cherished her since childhood and never laid a hand on her looked at her with the eyes of someone looking at an enemy.
"You brat, our family is ruined! It's all your fault! You traitor, you betrayed us! What sins did I, Gu Tingjun, commit to give birth to such a heartless wretch?"
"Dad, I'm doing this for your own good. Stop being so stubborn," Gu Xinyi cried as she tried to explain.
"Get out! From now on, get out of the second branch of the Gu family. I, Gu Tingjun, will pretend I never had you."
Ye Yuzhen wanted to go forward and help Gu Xinyi up. Although this girl had caused a huge disaster today, she was, after all, the child she had carried for ten months and raised with love since she was a baby. She really couldn't bear to see her being beaten.
"Never mind her. From now on, we'll pretend we don't have a daughter." Gu Tingjun roughly pulled Ye Yuzhen back.
Ye Yuzhen looked at Gu Xinyi, who was sitting on the ground in a disheveled state, with tears streaming down her face.
"Xinyi, Xinyi, how could you be so silly?"
Gu Xinyi shook her head, even though she had anticipated that her parents would likely be very disappointed in her after she told the truth.
Even now, she still doesn't regret doing it.
Great-grandparents have always taken good care of the second branch of the family. Great-grandfather is already over eighty years old; how could my father treat him like this?
Old Madam Gu stepped forward and personally helped Gu Xinyi up, tenderly tucking the messy strands of hair from her forehead behind her ear.
“Xinyi, you did nothing wrong in the face of such a big issue. It is your parents who are stubborn and blinded by greed.”
After speaking, Madam Gu gave Gu Tingjun and Ye Yuzhen a sharp look.
"Gu Tingjun, you should be glad that you two had a good daughter."
Old Master Gu then spoke up, “Gu Tingjun, today I will be lenient in dealing with your kidnapping of me for the sake of Xinyi. However, you may be spared the death penalty, but you will not escape punishment. From today onwards, in front of the entire clan, I hereby announce that Gu Tingjun will be permanently removed from the Gu family genealogy. From this day forward, you will have no further connection with the Gu family.”
Gu Tingjun sneered; after his defeat, he had already guessed his fate.
"Heh, I've lived in the Gu family for forty-five years, and I've long been fed up with this life of dependence. Do you think I really enjoy going out with the Gu family name on my part? In the eyes of outsiders, I, Gu Tingjun, have always been Gu Zhizhou's lackey and henchman. I've had enough of that."
Gu Xinyi tugged at Old Madam Gu's sleeve.
"Great-grandmother, please beg you to plead with Great-grandfather not to remove my father's name from the Gu family genealogy. I know he cares deeply about it. He made such a big mistake this time because he was instigated by Pei Yuanshao. Pei Yuanshao is the real culprit who kidnapped Great-grandfather."
Gu Zhizhou frowned, his eyes darkening slightly: "Who are you talking about?"
Gu Xinyi cried out that person's name again.
“Pei Yuanshao, that’s your eldest son, Fourth Grandfather, you’ve been deceived. His real name is Huo Zhaoyuan, a descendant of the Huo family. He’s impersonating Pei Yuanshao to come and claim kinship, but he just wants to ruin our Gu family.”
This is why she insisted on putting righteousness before family.
Between taking care of her family and her parents, she chose the former.
If the Huo family really ruins such a large family as the Gu family, the Huo family will absolutely not allow her father to take over the Gu family.
Huo Zhaoyuan's tempting offers were nothing more than a ploy to stalk the mantis while unaware of the oriole behind.
Unfortunately, her parents were bewitched and actually believed Huo Zhaoyuan's lies.
Upon hearing Gu Xinyi's words, Gu Zhizhou felt as if he had been struck by lightning. His body felt completely drained, his legs went weak, and he took a step back.
Gu Jueye was closest to him and reached out to support his arm.
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