Chapter 258: A Generation of Grand Secretaries (20)
Father Shen was overjoyed; the matter was settled. Shen Yuechu accepted his fate in despair. What had he done wrong? He had only asked one question! Was the price of that one question to make his future bleak?
After finishing their meal, Wen Wan escorted Gu Sui back home, with Shen Yuechu following behind. Once they left the main house and could no longer see Shen's parents, Shen Yuechu grabbed his younger sister's arm. "Sister! Why did you trick your brother like that? I'm neither cut out for academics nor for business. How could you scheme against me like this?"
“Brother, you’re slandering me. I’m only doing this for your own good. After all, the Shen family will be handed over to you in the future. If you are incompetent and squander the family fortune, then I will become like those characters in the picture book who are forced into an arranged marriage as a concubine to an old man because of the family’s decline. Do you want to see that?”
Shen Yuechu: "What are you talking about? How could our Shen family possibly fall into ruin? And even if the Shen family falls, I would never marry you off to that old man as a concubine. You don't trust your brother."
Wen Yan: "..."
It's not that I don't trust them, but that's just how it is in the original story.
Shen Yuechu glanced at Gu Sui, "Besides, aren't you with Gu Sui now? He's so capable and handsome, you can't possibly marry an old man like him, can you?"
After thinking about it, Shen Yuechu felt she should find another way to make a living, so she moved closer to Gu Sui and said, "Brother-in-law!"
Wen Yan: "!!!"
"What nonsense are you shouting? What do you mean, 'brother-in-law, don't talk nonsense'?"
"What's the big deal? It'll happen sooner or later anyway. Brother-in-law! You're my own brother-in-law, so you have to help your older brother out and go easy on him when necessary."
Wen Wan pulled Gu Sui over, "Gu Sui, don't go easy on him, absolutely don't go easy on him. Be strict with him. If he doesn't study, tell me, and I'll complain to my father, put him in solitary confinement, and deduct his allowance."
Shen Yuechu: "Are you still my biological sister?"
"No, thank you."
Shen Yuechu: "..." His little sister, who was so big and kind, suddenly disappeared.
"Hey, what kind of monster are you? Spit out my own sister!"
Three black lines appeared on Wen Wan's forehead. "Heh, accept your fate. From now on, you can only endure my oppression."
Shen Yuechu: "..."
"Pfft~" Gu Sui covered his mouth and chuckled, and Wen Wan's face instantly turned red. "Actually, I'm not usually like this. It's always him who bullies me."
Shen Yuechu was pointed at and said, "As expected, you've forgotten your brother now that you have a brother-in-law. I still remember how I raised you from infancy, feeding you and changing your diapers. Who would have thought that things would turn out like this? It's really heartbreaking!"
"You're only two years older than me, don't talk nonsense."
“If you don’t get Dad to change his mind, I’ll tell your brother-in-law every day that when you were six, you dug a hole in the yard and buried yourself in it because you wanted a little sister.”
Wen Wan: "???" The original owner of this body actually did this?
"You were still wetting the bed at seven years old."
"It wasn't me, don't talk nonsense." Wen Wan rushed over and covered Shen Yuechu's mouth. "If you keep talking nonsense, I will tell Father what happened today and have him break your legs."
Shen Yuechu: "..."
What a vicious sister.
"I won't say anything, little sister, you absolutely mustn't tell, or your brother will lose his life."
Gu Sui, standing to the side, didn't ask what was going on, but just watched the two siblings playfully bickering and felt a little envious.
He was an only child with no siblings. He was in poor health from a young age and rarely left the house. When he was a child, he envied children who had siblings.
Later, when his parents suddenly passed away, he had no relatives left.
As for the Gu family, they are not his relatives. Even if they are related by blood, they have nothing to do with him.
Shen Yuechu wisely left halfway through, saying, "Brother-in-law and sister, enjoy the moon and have fun. I'm going back now."
“The moon... sinks...and begins to fall…”
Shen Yuechu ran after her like a dog was chasing her. After Shen Yuechu left, Wen Wan belatedly felt a little ashamed and embarrassed. "Actually, I usually have a pretty good temper and am quite gentle."
"I know, but it's great that you're like this, it's very enviable."
"Really? But when you teach Shen Yuechu, don't give him face or listen to his nonsense. If he doesn't listen, just tell me and I'll complain to him. He's most afraid of my father."
"Um."
Wen Wan looked up at the moon in the sky, which had just emerged from the clouds. "The moon is so round! And it's not even Mid-Autumn Festival yet! What do you need at Mo Bai Courtyard? Are there enough people?"
"Everything is fine."
"So, how did things go with your second uncle?"
"They're still in jail. The magistrate promised to keep them in there until I've completely taken control of the Gu family, then I'll release them."
"You gave the magistrate a lot of money, didn't you?"
Gu Sui: "If something can be solved with money, it's not a big deal. The person I should thank the most for this is you. Without you, I would have had to deal with those people for a long time longer."
Wen Wan nodded. "You should thank me."
After all, in the original story, your fate as the male lead was full of misfortune; you were poisoned, your family property was seized, and you were kicked out of your home.
"Do you want to take the imperial examination?"
Gu Sui looked at Wen Wan. This was the second time they had discussed this issue. She seemed to value whether or not he would take the imperial examination. Why was that?
"I want to, but I can't."
"Why?"
"Officials are not allowed to engage in business; this is an ironclad rule. Taking care of my family is my responsibility."
Wen Yan: "..."
What kind of ridiculous rule is this?
The system explained, "This is to prevent collusion between officials and businessmen."
"Responsibility is responsibility, but do you enjoy doing business?"
Gu Sui: "Is it important?"
Wen Wan nodded. "Very important." You're the male lead, for crying out loud! This is "The First Grand Secretary"! A novel about a male protagonist rising through the ranks of officialdom, how can he become an ordinary businessman? What's going on?
Gu Sui: "It's all fine. Even if I don't take the imperial examination, I can still learn poetry and prose, and I can still do scholarship."
Wen Wan withered.
What should we do?
The male protagonist has no interest in the political arena, so is the mission doomed to fail?
"I think you're so knowledgeable, you should take the imperial examination to become the top scholar. I also think you can become a high-ranking official. You can also hand over your business to someone else. You can just find a wife who is good at business in the future, right?"
According to the original novel, the female protagonist did indeed later open a spice shop and various silk shops, which proves that she had a knack for business.
At worst, one person can be in charge of the official position, and the other can be in charge of the business.
However, as soon as Wen Wan finished speaking, she fell into Gu Sui's complicated expression. The moonlight was beautiful, but his eyes were like an unfathomable pool of water, deeply captivating people.
"I...I'm not talking about myself, anyway, we're going to break off the engagement anyway."
"The person I like may not necessarily be good at business, perhaps like Miss Shen."
Ah, this...
An awkward silence fell over them. They didn't know what to say. They couldn't very well say that they knew who the female lead was, could they?
Finally, we arrived at Mobai Courtyard.
Gu Sui: "Would you like to come in and sit for a while?"
"No, it's getting late, I should go back and rest too." Wen Wan waved, "Bye~"
"See you tomorrow."
Gu Sui watched Wen Wan leave, and Wen Wan felt that gaze lingering on her. Gui Zhi, who had been following at a distance, ran to her young mistress's side and saw her mistress's abnormally red face. Even if Gui Zhi was slow-witted and honest, she could tell that her young mistress was shy.
It seems that Miss Gu is quite fond of him.
Meanwhile, after losing sight of Wen Wan, Gu Sui entered Mo Bai Courtyard.
Qingqing came over. "Young Master Gu, would you like some tea?"
"Go pour me a cup. Tomorrow, go get me some medicinal herbs. I'll write down the prescription for you later."
Qingqing: "Is the young master feeling unwell? Should I go and fetch a doctor to take a look?"
"No, they're just some nourishing herbal prescriptions that I often take. Just go and get them for me."
"yes."
After the maid poured tea and left, Gu Sui took a wooden box from the bookshelf. He opened the box and found a milky white worm inside. If Wen Wan were there, she would know that this was the Gu worm that had been planted in her body. However, Wen Wan would never have imagined that the male lead had not planted any Gu in her body at all, which proved that the Gu worm in her body could not be activated.
The box contains the mother Gu.
Gu Sui's expression was complicated as he looked at the Gu worm. It was a memento given to him by his master before he left, so that if he met someone he liked in the future, especially someone he couldn't have, he might be able to force it.
It has to be said that my own master is still unreliable and unserious.
However, in order to gain the support of the Shen family, he still used the Gu on Shen Jiao, but he did not plant the Gu on himself. He originally thought that if the Shen family was unjust, he would be unjust.
Who would have thought that he could enter the Shen family so smoothly, and even find that Shen Jiao was completely different from before. In order to investigate the cause of his parents' death, he had been secretly investigating the whereabouts of Shen's father during this period, but he did not find any connection with the Gu family.
However, if there is no connection, why would the Gu family's business mark be left on his father's corpse?
He also investigated that bandit gang, but it was as if they had never appeared, as if it was all intentional, just to kill his parents.
Why didn't Gu Sui know that his gentle and kind parents were the ones who wanted them dead?
Gu Sui closed the box. The medicinal herbs he had found were also intended to draw out the Gu worms from Shen Jiao's body.
Now that the goal has been achieved, there's no need for the Gu poison.
...
Five days later, a major event occurred that shocked the people.
The emperor died of illness, and the crown prince succeeded to the throne. He granted a general amnesty, exempted the country from taxes for one year, and changed the era name to Yun.
After Emperor Yun ascended the throne, the capital was in turmoil, and even in neighboring counties far from the capital, the news was being spread throughout the streets and alleys.
Meanwhile, at Qin Yuege's residence, upon hearing the news, Qin Yuege laughed hysterically while holding the plot of "The First Grand Secretary" that she had been memorizing during this time. "I knew it was the world in the book 'The First Grand Secretary,' and this proves it. Emperor Jing died, Emperor Yun succeeded to the throne, exempted taxes, and granted a general amnesty."
This proves that other things will happen as well, and that she will eventually become Gu Sui's wife, just as the story goes.
That's great! The panic and tension of the past few days have vanished in an instant.
Qin Yuege packed her things and left the house, happily running to find Gu Sui. She was eager to see him.
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