"Ahem... Okay."
Lü Yunling deliberately emphasized her words to make her voice sound more like a man's.
Gu Ziqi, sitting opposite her, twitched the corner of his mouth. This performance was too convincing; he didn't know whether he should discover her true identity as a woman.
Finally, he winked and gave Lü Yunling an ambiguous smile.
"My name is Gu Ziqi. May I ask your honorable name, sir?"
Lu Yunling tensed up. Eating at the same table with a man was already novel enough, but now they were even exchanging names, which was a particularly exciting thing for her.
"Ahem... My surname is Lü, and my given name is Yunlin."
"Young Master Lü, it's a pleasure to meet you!"
Lu Yunling blushed and hurriedly returned the greeting.
The two hit it off immediately, and after dinner, they made plans to go boating.
Gu Ziqi couldn't stand Lü Yunling's failed pretense any longer; he just wanted to expose her as soon as possible.
While the two were boating, Lü Yunling accidentally fell off the boat, which completely exposed her identity as a woman.
“Young Master Lü, no, Miss Lü, I… I will take responsibility. Where do you live? I will bring people to your door to propose marriage right away.”
Lu Yunling was a little dazed. How did she suddenly expose herself? Although she had a slight liking for this young master Gu, it wasn't to the point of marrying him.
Besides, she hadn't had enough fun yet and didn't want to go back just like that.
Gu Ziqi acted as if he wanted to take responsibility, and Lü Yunling couldn't say where her home was. In the end, she was taken back to the Gu family in a daze.
When she saw the dilapidated Gu family home, she regretted it; she shouldn't have come back with Gu Ziqi.
But Gu Ziqi saw and hugged her body, so who else could she marry?
She was in a daze and had no idea what to do, but Gu Ziqi coaxed her gently, and she finally revealed her identity.
The Gu family was overjoyed. They never expected to get such a great deal. The daughter of a high-ranking official was a powerful figure they had to cling to.
When she came to her senses, she was already sitting on the wedding bed. She was a weak woman who had fallen into the hands of the Gu family and was forced to marry.
Lu Yunling never understood how she had become a daughter-in-law of the Gu family. When she wanted to return to the Minister's residence, Gu Ziqi happily prepared things and went with her.
Minister Lü never expected that his daughter would return with a husband after only a month away. After learning about his daughter's experiences, Minister Lü understood the intricacies of the situation.
Unfortunately, the daughter had already married him, and the deed was done; there was no going back.
He had no choice but to give Lü Yunling a meager dowry to send her away, and from then on, he would treat her as if he had never had this daughter.
After all, this daughter is already ruined, so the family's resources certainly can't be wasted on her.
Gu Ziqi didn't expect Minister Lü to be so ruthless. He gave up on his daughter so easily. Since he hadn't gained anything from her, he certainly wouldn't try to coax Lü Yunling anymore.
He revealed his true colors; he was an incompetent and impoverished scholar who couldn't even pass the imperial examinations.
Lu Yunling never expected her father to abandon her like this. She was heartbroken, but she believed in following her husband wherever he went, so she followed Gu Ziqi back to the Gu family.
From then on, she took care of the household chores, respected her parents-in-law, and became an ordinary farm wife.
Gu Ziqi did not love Lü Yunling. He only approached her because he was attracted to her delicate appearance and guessed that she was the daughter of a wealthy family.
Who knew she would fall for his advances so easily, even sharing a table with men to go boating on the lake – she was utterly unfaithful.
He looked down on her from the bottom of his heart; she was supposed to be a young lady from a respectable family, yet she was not even as good as a girl from a brothel.
Gu Ziqi took Lü Yunling's dowry money and went out to indulge in debauchery. When he got drunk, he would come home and beat and scold her to vent his anger. Lü Yunling did not live a happy life; in fact, she had a tragic one.
Years later, while working at a farm, she unexpectedly saw Song Wenxuan traveling with his wife, who turned out to be her half-sister.
The man was handsome and the woman was beautiful; they were a perfect couple, the envy of everyone around them.
Lu Yunling was stunned. Song Wenxuan had actually restored his appearance and injured leg. There was no trace of disfigurement left. His leg was also completely intact, and it was impossible to tell that it had ever been broken.
That was her happiness, but unfortunately it was taken by her half-sister.
She stood at a distance, not daring to go forward, afraid that they would see her ugly and old appearance. Her half-sister seemed to sense something and walked towards her. She was so frightened that she ran away in a panic.
"See that? That's the general and his wife. I heard they're very much in love. I'm so envious."
"Yes, the general's wife is only in her thirties. She looks so young; you can't tell at all."
"I heard that when the general was disfigured, his wife did not despise him. She is truly a woman of deep affection and loyalty."
"Really? How was it cured?"
"I heard..."
Lu Yunling ran home and saw Gu Ziqi, who was drunk and fast asleep on the bed. She picked up a pair of scissors and stabbed him hard.
Soon the Gu family was engulfed in bloodshed. Lü Yunling changed her clothes, dressed herself up, and put on the clothes she had brought from the Minister's mansion, which she had never worn again and had carefully stored away.
With tears in her eyes and muttering to herself, she hanged herself.
"Mother, I was wrong. I shouldn't have disobeyed you. I'm coming to see you now. I promise I'll be obedient from now on."
?
When Lü Yunling regained consciousness, she discovered that she had not died and had returned to the time shortly after Song Wenxuan returned from the border.
I visited him today, and I'm already dissatisfied with the marriage. I'm planning to call it off.
"Stop, stop! You absolutely can't back out of the engagement. This time, I'm determined to seize my happiness."
She looked at her young face in the bronze mirror and cried her heart out.
"I'm back, it's so good."
Everything in the mansion felt so welcoming. Lü Yunling got up very early; she was going to pay her respects to her parents.
"Summer lotus, autumn chrysanthemum, let's hurry up and go."
Looking at Xia He and Qiu Ju, Lü Yunling felt a deep sense of regret. These two maids had been implicated by her in her past life; they were beaten to death after she ran away from home.
I must treat them well in this lifetime.
"These peonies are so beautiful, Xia He, don't you agree?"
Xia He nodded in agreement. She wondered to herself, "When Miss came back yesterday, she was full of worries. How come she was in such a good mood after just one night?"
However, it's a good thing that the young lady is in a good mood, as she no longer has to worry about being punished for doing something wrong.
When the three of them arrived at the Orchid Courtyard where Lady Lü lived, Lady Lü had just gotten up.
"Why are you up so early today? Have you had breakfast?"
Lü Yunling's eyes reddened. How many years had it been since she had seen her mother? Her mother was still so young and beautiful.
"Mom, I miss you so much."
Lady Lü was taken aback. "Did you have a nightmare? We just met yesterday, why are you already thinking about it?"
Lu Yunling was taken aback, wiped her eyes, and obediently served Lu Wangshi in her washing and grooming.
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