Chapter 689: One bowl of sweet soup, two kinds of feelings
Gu Qingchen led the restless Lin Jiayou into the mansion and settled him in the "Tingzhuxuan" not far from his own courtyard.
The housekeeper replied, and she then realized that her cousin Gu Lu and cousin Gu Lanxin had temporarily moved into the Duke's Mansion because their mansion in Beijing had not been renovated yet.
"Tingzhuxuan" is quiet and elegant, and Gu Qingchen is very satisfied.
As they were talking, they met a woman on the corridor leading to the garden.
Lin Jiayou immediately put on the most humble and polite attitude, took a step forward and bowed: "Lin Jiayou meets Miss Lan Xin." His gaze lingered on her for a moment.
Lin Jiayou had lived in Jinguan City with Gu Lanxin and Gu Lu for many years and was already very familiar with them.
At this moment, when he called her "Miss Lan Xin", his tone was humble yet familiar.
Gu Lanxin stopped and nodded slightly to Lin Jiayou.
Her eyes swept lightly across Lin Jiayou's face, and then fell on Gu Qingchen behind him. A glance passed through the depths of her eyes, so fast that it seemed like an illusion.
A glance is worth a thousand words.
Lin Jiayou's gentle smile showed a hint of understanding, while Gu Lanxin's calm eyes also concealed an unknown tacit understanding.
Gu Qingchen was completely unaware of the silent undercurrent between the two.
She let go of Lin Jiayou, rushed forward a few steps, and affectionately put her arm around Gu Lanxin, almost hanging on her.
"Sister Lan! I miss you so much!"
Gu Lanxin was shaken by her and staggered. A helpless and doting smile appeared on her face, and she reached out and touched her forehead.
"Girl, you're still the same, impetuous as always. You haven't changed at all."
Gu Qingchen raised his head and praised her generously, "After ten years, Sister Lan has become so beautiful! She is much better than those shy ladies in the capital..."
At an angle that Gu Qingchen couldn't see, Lin Jiayou's mouth curled up into a very faint, genuine smile.
He knew that Gu Lanxin would be his most unexpected and important chess piece in the capital.
In the inner hall, Gu Qingchen handed the cloth bag to Chu Ruohan.
When I opened it, I found a bottle of the best blood-activating and blood-stasis-removing ointment, specially designed to treat old rheumatic injuries.
Chu Ruohan took the rough medicine bottle, rubbed it with her fingertips, and her eyes instantly became complicated.
There is relief, there is sadness...
Gu Junze put his arm around his wife's shoulders from behind, took the ointment and put it on the table.
He said in a deep voice: "He has you in his heart, but he doesn't know how to face it. The child is atonement in his own way, so don't push yourself too hard."
The news soon reached Master Gu San's house.
When Gu Lu's grandfather heard that his grandchildren were not living in his own home but instead in the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion, he was so angry that he smashed the teacup on the spot.
At home, he pointed in the direction of the gate and cursed Gu Lu as an "ungrateful wolf" who was trying to curry favor with the Duke of Zhenguo and had forgotten his roots, making him lose face.
It's late at night.
Gu Qingchen settled Lin Jiayou down and smiled brightly before leaving: "Have a good rest, I'll take you for a nice stroll tomorrow!"
Lin Jiayou responded gently and watched her leave.
When Gu Qingchen's figure disappeared behind the moon gate of Tingzhuxuan, the smile on his face instantly faded.
Those warm eyes turned cold, and their gaze passed through the night and looked towards the direction of "Jingsi Garden" where Gu Lanxin lived.
In the study, the candlelight flickered.
Gu Junze put down the book in his hand and asked Chu Ruohan beside him: "What do you think of Lin Jiayou?"
Chu Ruohan was sorting out the account books under the lamp and stopped writing when she heard this.
She pondered for a moment before saying, "He's too obsessed. Qingchen is no match for him. I already have a grudge against Lin Xingyao and Wei Qiming's child, but Gu Lu has been with him for so many years, so let's wait and see."
She said, and sighed again.
"Speaking of which, Lan Jie'er is also quite pitiful. She originally had a fiancé in Jinguan City who shared her feelings for her. He was a police captain, but unfortunately, he died while catching a thief... Alas, she was left like that and has never been married."
"Gu Lu is the same. He is already 25 years old. In Beijing, people his age would have children who are already able to help with cooking. But he is not in a hurry to get married."
Gu Junze held her hand and smiled instead.
"You just love to worry. Your children and grandchildren will have their own blessings, so don't worry too much."
The next day, Gu Qingchen got up early as expected, and disappeared before dawn.
She took Lin Jiayou and toured the huge Duke's Mansion.
From the martial arts training grounds where she practiced martial arts to the rockery where she robbed bird nests as a child, she wanted to tell him about her life over the past ten years.
It seemed as if Lin Jiayou was the only one left in her world.
This was the scene Qian Zhenyun saw when he came here on the orders of the Crown Prince.
Gu Qingchen was pointing at a fiery red pony in the stable with a beaming expression, showing off to Lin Jiayou: "Look! This is Chi Yan's son, Huo Miao'er. I'll give him to you to ride!"
Qian Zhenyun walked forward with a food box, "Qingchen."
Gu Qingchen turned around and saw that it was him, so he asked casually: "GunGun, what are you doing here?"
"His Highness said that you were frightened yesterday, so he specially ordered someone to prepare Mantingfang pastries." Qian Zhenyun handed over the food box.
"Oh, thank him for me."
Gu Qingchen took the food box, without even looking at it, and handed it to the maid behind him, then excitedly pulled Lin Jiayou's sleeve.
"Come on, come on, I'll take you to the back garden to see the koi fish I raise. Every one of them is so fat!"
Qian Zhenyun's outstretched hand was still suspended in mid-air. Looking at her back without any reluctance, the light in his eyes dimmed.
In the afternoon, Gu Qingchen suddenly remembered something and rushed into the small kitchen in a hurry.
"Chef Wang, hurry up! Prepare some good taro and freshly picked osmanthus flowers for me!"
She remembered that Lin Jiayou had said that his favorite dish was the sweet-scented osmanthus and taro soup made by the cook in the Princess's Mansion, so she became interested and wanted to make a bowl for him herself.
She moved a small stool and sat by the fire. Sometimes she complained that the taro paste was not fine enough, and sometimes she instructed the maid to add another spoonful of sugar. Her heart and eyes were filled with Lin Jiayou's surprise and emotion when he ate the sweet soup.
Dusk fell and the sunset glowed half the sky red.
Gu Qingchen personally carried the bowl of still warm sweet soup and walked briskly towards Tingzhuxuan.
She didn't let the servants inform him, wanting to sneak in quietly and give him a surprise.
The gate was ajar, and she gently pushed it open a crack.
However, the scene before her made her freeze in place.
Lin Jiayou was standing side by side with his cousin Gu Lanxin, whispering something.
In his hand, he held a simple handkerchief, and was concentrating and gently wiping away a piece of broken leaf that had fallen into Gu Lanxin's hair.
That gesture, that look, was so intimate that it made her heart skip a beat.
It was a kind of gentleness belonging to Lin Jiayou that she had never seen before.
"Clang."
The handle of the food box was not held firmly and hit the door, making a slight sound.
The two people under the tree heard the sound and looked over.
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