“What you’re saying makes no sense. What could I possibly want? They’re all my children,” Gu Shiliu’s mother retorted angrily, glaring at her. “They all came from my womb; they’re all my children.”
Gu Shiliu's father sneered and said, "Enough already. You have a bunch of children now, and you're still saying these things. It's like everyone has been a child before. It's true that both the palm and the back of the hand are flesh, but the flesh on the back of the hand is just not so pleasing. I used to turn a blind eye, but not anymore. Our Shiliu has the Marquis and his wife protecting him. Don't always think about finding someone easy to manipulate to supplement the second son's income when it comes to marriage. Don't say I didn't warn you. Let's get this straight."
Hongmian waited for a long time before seeing Gu Shiliu's parents come in, both looking troubled. Hongmian's heart skipped a beat.
Unfortunately, there were a few family-oriented women in the room who started chatting about everyday matters, so he had no choice but to patiently deal with them.
Gu Shiliu's mother sat down, sighed, shifted her body, and sighed again.
Everyone sensed something was wrong and fell silent.
Gu Shiliu's father didn't speak, but instead slammed his water pipe on the table a few times.
Gu Shiliu's mother said hesitantly to Hongmian's mother, "A wandering monk came to our door just now and said that we can't have any weddings now. We asked about engagements, but the monk said that engagements are not allowed either."
Hongmian's mother immediately became angry: "Where did this bald monk come from, daring to come to someone's house and say such discouraging things? Didn't you throw him out?"
Gu Shiliu's mother said, "We gave him some silver and some donations, and asked him what to do. He said that he wanted our Shiliu to personally take a look, otherwise there would be a resentful couple and the family would be in turmoil. But Gu Shiliu is such a jinx. Even when we sent him a message, he didn't come home. Gu Shiba also said that the Marquis had instructed him to do something these days and couldn't come back."
The marriage was on the verge of falling through.
Hongmian hurriedly called out "Mother".
Hongmian's mother suppressed her anger and said, "Didn't we agree before? Your son, Sixteen, will go to Baihe Academy with Seventh Miss after the festival and won't be back for two years. If he's always busy, do you expect my Hongmian to wait for him for two years?"
Gu Shiliu's mother said with difficulty, "That's what we thought too. If they get married sooner, it will be easier for his younger siblings to get married as well. So we asked the monk if there was any way to break the curse. The monk said to hang the couple's birth certificates on the beam above the stove. If there are no mistakes after three days, the marriage can still go through. Otherwise, I'm afraid the happy event will turn into a bad one."
Hongmian shook her hand, and half a cup of tea spilled out.
Hongmian's mother said with a long face, "We even had our horoscopes matched by a blind man on the street before, and they were perfectly compatible. Now..."
Seeing that things were not going well, Hongmian said, "Mother, I have something to tell you."
Her mother gave her a look of disappointment, but finally said, "You tell me."
The mother and daughter whispered to each other for a while, but finally agreed.
The relatives of the Gu and Li families all looked rather strange. The two families had already agreed on the betrothal gifts and dowry, but things suddenly turned out like this. Anyone would have made a huge fuss about it, but unexpectedly, Hongmian's parents actually agreed.
It's obvious that Hongmian bowed down before even entering the family.
Gu Shiliu's mother couldn't hide her disdain. Although Hongmian's mother was angry, she couldn't do anything about her daughter who had the final say, so she left the Gu family with Hongmian, her face gloomy.
“My daughter, you’ve seen it yourself. Being the eldest sister-in-law in their family isn’t easy. Their mother favors the younger one and is now going back on her word. As their mother, I’m being humiliated, and I still have to put on a brave face. But how long can I get along with the Gu family? You’ll be spending your whole life with them. There’s an old saying: ‘Men fear choosing the wrong career, and women fear marrying the wrong man.’ You can’t deny it.”
Hongmian said firmly, "Mother, I have my own plans. Once I marry into the family and establish myself, I will naturally find a way to manage their household. Gu Shiliu is the most trusted person by the Marquis's side. He is handsome and has a very good character. I will definitely enjoy a good life after marrying him and will also be able to lead my brothers to a good life."
Hongmian's mother sighed, "Your father works in purchasing, and they're doing alright. Your brother will find a job and get married in the future, so what's there to worry about? Why do you need to scheme like this? I really don't understand."
But Hongmian was not someone who could be persuaded by a few words, so we had no choice but to go along with her.
Hongmian bid farewell to her mother and returned to Wutong Garden with a heavy heart. Even without her mother saying anything, she knew that the three-day agreement was probably just an excuse from the Gu family.
But now the die is cast and the arrow must be released.
If you turn your back on the spot, there will be no chance at all. Now, at least there is still some hope.
After returning from leave, Hongmian wanted to go to the main room to serve Qin Yuan, but Cuiming stopped her.
Cui Ming said, "It's so late. You've been out all day. There's no need to rush over to serve you."
Hongmian laughed and said, "Sister Cuiming is right. I should freshen up first. I'm all travel-worn and don't want to make my master look dirty."
Cuiming ignored her.
Hongmian turned around and her face turned sour.
Several of the maids who were close to her were talking in the corridor, but when they saw her coming, they pretended to be busy and did not gather around her as usual.
Hongmian was preoccupied and didn't pay much attention. But when she returned from her bath, she realized something was wrong.
The bedding on her bed had been splashed with water.
"What's going on?" Hongmian stood with her hands on her hips, her eyes wide, ready to fight.
The other people in the room avoided looking at them and all said they didn't know.
Hongmian angrily said, "Since none of you know, it's clear that everyone gets a share. If I can't sleep, then nobody should sleep either."
He was about to grab a copper basin to pour it out.
Several people rushed to stop them, causing chaos and confusion.
Cuiming walked over and said coldly, "What's going on now? Hongmian, it's you again. You left early today, leaving behind a bunch of things to do, making us spend the whole day counting in the warehouse. And now you're not resting. You don't sleep, but others do."
Hongmian said aggrievedly, "Sister Cuiming is a trusted person of the Madam, so she should be able to distinguish right from wrong. My bed was splashed with water for no reason. How am I supposed to sleep? They were all in the room, but they didn't know anything. I'm afraid it was them who did it."
The person in the room quickly shook his head and waved his hands, saying, "It's really a misunderstanding. We had just finished our shift and were talking together when she came back from outside and asked what was going on. How would we know? She just said that if we couldn't sleep, none of us should sleep. You know, Hongmian has just gained the Madam's favor, how could she be so unreasonable?"
Cuiming looked coldly at Hongmian and said, "You heard it too. I don't know if you accidentally wet the bed or if you offended someone and caused this. If you don't have a place to sleep, you can just share a bed with someone else for now."
Hongmian had already made up her mind.
After thinking for a moment, he said, "In that case, I'll just squeeze in with the others. I wonder if it's convenient for Sister Hongye?"
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