Gu Baozhu spoke casually, but Qin Yuan gasped in shock and hurriedly asked, "They're willing to let you come back?"
Gu Baozhu flicked her hair and laughed loudly, "Hey! Who am I? Do you think they can stop me? Before the match even started, I already put him down with my words, and I threw a large silver ingot on the ground, asking everyone present to witness that if it was a draw or I lost, the silver would go to Xu Tang. Since he was injured, I naturally didn't want the silver, but Xu Tang wouldn't have the face to cause me trouble in public. As for private matters, if he can hurt even a hair on my head, I'll consider it a loss."
She used a pseudonym when she traveled the world.
The only way to find her is to contact Qin Heng.
After finishing her business today, she went to the Grand Master's residence on the way. Qin Heng was so bored by being confined to the residence by the Grand Master's wife to study that he was almost sick. As soon as he saw her, he was overjoyed and exclaimed, "Grandma, you've finally come!" He wouldn't let go of her, otherwise why would he have come back so late?
After saying that, Gu Baozhu smugly played with the sachet tied to her waist, thinking to herself that she was now a person with both courage and wisdom.
Not to boast, but this matter was handled with utmost care, and even Qin Heng thought so.
Qin Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.
"He doesn't know who you are. Once you've recovered from your injuries, you should be at White Crane Academy by now. It's alright."
After studying for two more years and returning to the capital, Xu Tang should be able to let go of this grudge if he can't find the person.
Gu Baozhu laughed again, "When I saw he was injured, I said I wouldn't kick him anymore. So many of them tried to harm me, but they ended up losing more than they gained. Xu Tang couldn't figure out my background or whereabouts, so he could only pretend to be a righteous man. Third Sister-in-law, you didn't see it, it was hilarious, haha."
Seeing that she was generous and arrogant, showing no respect for anyone, and unable to get any information about her background through subtle means, Xu Tang didn't dare to turn against her rashly. He could only force a smile and say that they would have a proper match another time.
After all, a gentleman's revenge is never too late, even after ten years.
Gu Baozhu naturally agreed with a smile, and then calmly left the scene. She slipped into the alley, making several turns to avoid the few idle men following her, and then turned back to follow them to the teahouse to eavesdrop.
I thought I would hear how to deal with her, but instead I heard a secret.
"Are you saying that the Prince of Jin wants to use the Xu family to cause trouble for us, to find something wrong with us, and then present it to the Crown Prince?"
Qin Yuan casually picked up a round fan and waved it lightly, the strands of hair at her temples fluttering in the wind.
Gu Baozhu nodded, her dark eyes gleaming.
"Third Sister-in-law, you know I have sharp eyes and ears. Xu Tang suffered such a great loss, how could he let it go? In his anger, he was bound to say something, so I did this to be on guard... I never expected that the Prince of Jin's mansion was looking for Xu Tang because the Prince of Jin was furious at failing to get what he wanted from the Xu family, and he wanted him to say more bad things about Third Brother to the Emperor. That old eunuch pointed at Xu Tang's nose and asked if the Xu family didn't want to rely on the Prince of Jin's mansion anymore."
She heard it very clearly. The old eunuch who delivered the message arrogantly scolded Xu Tang: "Don't forget what you promised the prince back then? Don't think that you've climbed the social ladder just because you went to the palace. You should know that the prince can use Prince Qi's help to get you into the emperor's favor, and he can also make you disappear without a trace. I'm afraid the emperor won't even remember you."
Xu Tang, now devoid of any arrogance, was pale-faced, large beads of sweat dripping from his hair, which he didn't bother to wipe away. He forced a smile and said, "I hope you will put in a good word for me with the Prince. The Xu family… well, the Xu family will naturally follow the Prince's lead, but… my aunt is short-sighted and timid, yet she has my uncle completely under her thumb. If she says east, he wouldn't dare go west. These days, the two of them keep saying that my aunt's spirit has come to settle scores with them, and they've suffered quite a bit of fright. I'm afraid that's why they changed their minds; they certainly didn't intend to ruin the Prince's plans."
The old eunuch, with eyes that didn't look like eyes or noses, said coldly, "Your sister is still in the Prince's mansion. If you cared about your sister even a little, you wouldn't have made the Prince lose face in front of His Highness the Crown Prince."
Xu Tang carefully assured him repeatedly that there would be no more mistakes, and added, "I had no choice; I can't make decisions for the Xu family. Otherwise, how could I have angered the Prince? But although my uncle and aunt have failed, I have another idea."
"What idea?"
Xu Tang lowered his voice and said, "I wanted to cause trouble for Scholar Qin, so I tried to get closer to his cousin's family. That man was also a scholar, but he was narrow-minded and intolerant. He always spoke with resentment and said to me that the Imperial Academy Chief only had eyes for his nephew and not for his son-in-law."
The old eunuch sneered, "Since ancient times, scholars have looked down on each other. Every pedantic scholar thinks he has the ability to govern the world, but he only complains in a way that is not worthy of being discussed in public. I also know that Qin Jijiu's son-in-law is a Juren (a successful candidate in the provincial examination) with the talent of a Jinshi (a successful candidate in the metropolitan examination). Sooner or later, he will enter the court as an official. The whole family is together. Why would they care about such trivial matters?"
Xu Tang scoffed and said, "This man doesn't have the same insight and magnanimity as you, sir. He complains not only about Qin Jijiu all day long, but also about the Dingbei Marquis's mansion. I think he harbors deep resentment, and if we provoke him a little, he might do something unwise."
The old eunuch thought for a moment, then became interested and said, "It would be good if we could get the Qin family into trouble. Prince Qi is very popular among scholars now, especially with that group of people from Jiangxi, who have become close allies. The Crown Prince is very unhappy, but the marriage between Princess Fuyun and Zhang Hanlin was arranged by the Empress. The Prince has been trying to find a way to relieve the Crown Prince's worries these days. If you succeed, you can atone for your sins."
Xu Tang smiled and said, "Leave this matter to me, Your Highness. Please wait for good news."
The two were having a heated private discussion, but little did they know that Gu Baozhu had overheard everything.
“I’m so reluctant to do this,” Gu Baozhu complained. “If it weren’t for Mr. Songshan’s saying that a small act of impatience can ruin a great plan, I would have rushed in and beaten them both up long ago.”
Qin Yuan laughed and said, "Alright, alright, eat more good food later, consider it your third sister-in-law's compensation."
Gu Baozhu asked, "How did I do?"
"Very good, you can be considered both brave and resourceful," Qin Yuan gently patted Gu Baozhu's back and sighed, "It's clear that you've learned a lot from attending classes with Mr. Songshan these past few days. When you go to Baihe Academy in the future, you'll need to be proficient in both literature and martial arts."
Gu Baozhu was overjoyed: "Of course, Third Sister-in-law, you can keep an eye on it."
As the two were talking, Hongye led her maids in, carrying a continuous stream of dishes. The table was piled high with food. Gu Baozhu's stomach rumbled as soon as she saw it. Without saying a word, she started eating.
After a long while, Gu Baozhu finally put down her chopsticks, rubbing her belly and groaning, "Why hasn't my third brother come back yet? He should be the one to make the decision about this."
Qin Yuan said, "We still don't know where your third brother is."
Gu Baozhu was getting a little anxious.
"What exactly is he busy with?"
Just then, a maidservant outside announced, "Madam, the servant from the Marquis's side has come to report."
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