Mad Dog
Because Shen Changqing was distraught, Xiao An was worried about letting him ride a horse, so he bought a carriage and put him in it.
He had been haunted by nightmares, constantly calling out things like "Mother" and "Mom".
But just as he was about to leave the city gate, he suddenly seemed to return to his body, lifting the curtain and pulling him back, saying, "Wait..."
Xiao An hesitated, "Young Master, if we go back, the Embroidered Uniform Guards will probably have received the news and are already waiting to catch us like turtles in a jar."
"I'm not going to the Shen residence." He rubbed his temples, unable to shake off the restlessness between his brows. "The Marquis of Wu'an's residence."
"Young Master?"
Shen Changqing's voice regained its usual calm and steady tone, "There's a problem that's been bothering me for a long time."
Seeing that he had regained his senses, Xiao An decided to take the risk with him.
"Young master, even if Miss Gu admires you greatly, the Gu family is a family of loyal and virtuous people. Aren't you afraid that Miss Gu will put aside her own family for the greater good and immediately send someone to inform the Embroidered Uniform Guard?"
His voice trailed off, “If she does that, then it’s fine.”
"It's over, it's over," Xiao An cursed inwardly. Wasn't his young master just rushing to give others credit?
He wanted to rein in his horse and turn back, but then he thought, let his young master go mad if he wants. If he goes to Bianjing, he will never come back. It would be better to make things clear with Miss Gu so that he won't have to worry about it for the rest of his life.
“I used to hate people who lied to me the most, but then I thought, I was lying to her too, so we're both equally guilty.”
Xiao An sighed as he rode his horse. If the master hadn't had that accident, the two of them might really have been a perfect match.
"Xiao An, I don't think she likes me." Shen Changqing said with her eyes closed. "So I want to know, what exactly does she want?"
Could Gu Yu have some connection with the mastermind behind this? Could that be the answer?
Xiao An focused on the road and dared not utter a word. He was still completely unaware that his master had been arrested by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, so how could he possibly understand what the young master was thinking?
Fortunately, the Marquis of Wu'an's residence was not far away.
"Young master, we've arrived."
Xiao An had come to retrieve the account books before, so he knew the layout of the place very well. He led his young master over the wall and said, "Let's go in through the back door."
After walking through another corridor, you will see Gu Yu's courtyard.
Qiuju was the first to notice someone approaching. She looked ahead in confusion and saw Shen Changqing and his servant. She exclaimed in surprise to alert the young lady who was resting in the small couch under the warm sun.
"Miss, Young Master Shen has arrived."
"ah?"
Gu Yu was half asleep when she opened her eyes and saw the thriving, tender green grapevines, with dappled sunlight falling on her.
She got up sleepily and looked at Shen Changqing, "Qiuju, you can go out first."
Only the two of them remained in the courtyard. Gu Yu rested her hand on the white jade chessboard on the stone table beside her. "Since you're here, why don't you sit a little longer? How about playing a game of chess with me?"
Shen Changqing sat down calmly beside Gu Yu. "It seems like I'm meeting you for the first time today."
Gu Yu poured him a cup of tea. "I didn't expect you to come. You should be in Bianjing by now. Why did you come?"
If there's one piece in this game that's doomed to die, it's Shen Xiuwen.
As Shen Changqing watched her slender, delicate fingers manipulate the black and white pieces on the chessboard, he almost instinctively asked her, "Gu Yu, is that you?"
She raised an eyebrow slightly, a hint of mockery in her eyes. How could it possibly be Gu Yu?
"What?"
Shen Changqing sighed deeply, picked up the black piece, and placed it down.
"Nothing much? Someone is trying to harm my Shen family. I've investigated many people, but I still haven't found the mastermind behind it."
"You even doubted me?" Gu Yu looked at him with a light smile, her tone devoid of any blame. "But why would I do that?"
Upon hearing this answer, Shen Changqing breathed a sigh of relief. It was good that it had nothing to do with her. "I was just being paranoid."
“I, Gu Yu, have never had the slightest grudge against your Shen family, nor do I possess any extraordinary abilities to ‘frame’ a second-rank, no, third-rank official in the court.”
"Shen Lang, I am really heartbroken that you doubt me like this." She said she was heartbroken, but her mind was completely focused on the game of chess.
You don't like me.
"Yes, of course," Gu Yu replied. "Don't you like me too? So why are you pretending to be a sentimental scholar while I pretend to be a delicate young lady? Do you expect me to fall for your trap?"
"Moreover, you are the one who understands women's minds the least, even though you are surrounded by women. I'm afraid those women who like you are blind to their true feelings."
"Heh..." Shen Changqing was not angry at all, but instead chuckled. "You're right. They don't know my true colors, but they like me for no reason. Isn't what they like about my family background, my wealth, and my reputation?"
"Then why have you been playing along with me for so long? Aren't you afraid you'll actually marry me later?"
"Of course I'm not afraid, because the Shen family is bound to fall," Gu Yu answered in her heart.
Gu Yu retaliated with a few more jabs at him, a smile playing on her lips. "Even if all the young masters in Shengjing were to choose the best, they could only pick you. What's wrong with spending your whole life acting?"
Shen Changqing said in a low voice, "I'm going to Bianjing. I probably won't be going back to Shengjing."
"Aren't you going to investigate who's behind the murder of your whole family?"
“We can’t investigate now,” Shen Changqing said painfully. “We have to take it slowly… Ayu, my mother is dead.”
Gu Yu's fingers paused. "Why?"
"For my sake, otherwise I wouldn't be able to live."
"So you want to avenge your whole family, right? You want to kill your enemies, right?"
"nature."
Gu Yu nodded knowingly.
If Shen Changqing is captured by the Embroidered Uniform Guard, Old Master Zhuang will do his best to protect him. At most, he will suffer some mistreatment, but he will not die.
But if we let him go now, will he find out that she is the mastermind behind it all?
She was really looking forward to the answer.
On the chessboard, the outcome has already been decided.
"You were distracted, so I won."
"I hope we'll never see each other again."
If we meet again, we will definitely be enemies.
Even if he's her enemy, so what? She'll beat him again, and then kill him with her own hands.
So before he dies, Shen Changqing, stay with her in the sea of suffering.
Shen Changqing gave her a deep look. If one day he really found out that Gu Yu was on the side of his enemy, he would definitely kill her with his own hands.
Shen Changqing smiled bitterly. He felt like he had gone mad, like a mad dog that wanted to bite anyone.
Gu Yu watched his departing figure, then lay back down on her small couch. "These grapes should be bearing fruit by now..."
The Tang family was poor, and Tang's mother always grew some fruits and vegetables. She was influenced by what she saw and heard, and she had also learned how to grow medicinal herbs when she was in the clinic, so she was very skilled at it.
The empty space on the left was originally planted with flower beds, but now she uses it to grow vegetables and grains, including taro that had sprouted after being stored in the warehouse for a long time.
It is now lush and green, and has sprouted small white flowers.
Gu Yu tended to the crops in the fields every day, and listened to Qiu Ju and Chun Yue talk about the major events happening in Shengjing City.
The matter of leaked questions in the imperial examinations can now be considered closed.
Shen Xiuwen was beheaded at the Meridian Gate.
The thought that her enemy had also met a tragic end, with his body torn apart, finally eased her pent-up emotions considerably.
The once illustrious Shen family disappeared completely in Shengjing City. Shen Changqing survived in the Zhuang family in Bianjing, but his family would be barred from taking the imperial examinations for generations, which meant he would lose all opportunity to gain power.
How can one turn their life around without power or influence? Gu Yu was also very curious.
"Reopen Enco?"
Upon hearing this news from outside, Qiuju casually told Gu Yu, who was very concerned about the imperial examination, "Yes, the Emperor has bestowed a grace to reopen the special examination."
"Shen, that person is gone. Miss, who do you think will win the top prize this time?"
Chunyue was secretly glad that she had changed her mind so quickly.
Her daughter is truly plagued by bad luck; her love life has been very bumpy, and none of the men she's liked have had a good ending.
Pshaw, pshaw, pshaw... No, no, it should be that those men are useless, they don't have the luck, yet they still try to climb up to her young lady.
Gu Yu was in a good mood, and even ate more than usual, with some extra flesh on her cheeks. "I don't know, it doesn't matter."
Although she still had enemies waiting for her, she was not in a hurry at all. Firstly, because those enemies were of very high status, and she did not have the ability to deal with them now. Secondly, there were more important issues waiting for her.
Her father and brother are returning to the capital, and she is definitely getting married. Who she will marry is a big question.
She was still somewhat hesitant about Dongfang Hongyao, after all, he didn't know her background. What if she was afraid of ghosts and a Taoist priest exorcised her?
Xu Qiu's words were more about her stance; how could her father possibly agree to her getting involved with Xu Shanhai's side?
A new emperor brings a new court, especially eunuchs. As soon as Emperor Shengyuan passed away, Xu Shanhai was either sentenced to death and buried alive with the emperor or forced to guard the imperial tombs.
Without a powerful backer, how good can Xu Qiu be, unless he himself is capable?
She was eighteen, considered an old maid in Shengjing City. She didn't care about her reputation, but given her father and Gu Jin's personalities, they certainly wouldn't let her remain unmarried.
Chunyue said with longing, "Miss, I think the method of 'catching a son-in-law after the results of the imperial examination' is great. We can catch a top scholar to bring back."
Gu Yu teased, "Chunyue, I think you're the one who's fallen in love and wants to get married. Why are you even more anxious than me?"
"No, no, that's not true. I'm just a little worried about you, Miss. Since that man left, many bad rumors have been circulating in Shengjing City, saying that you're a jinx to your husbands..."
"A jinx? What a lucky fate! I almost hope it's true."
In that case, it wouldn't be impossible for her to marry one person and have one of her enemies die.
"Do you think marrying the Crown Prince would be a good idea?"
"ah?"
Chun Yue stared in disbelief, clearly bewildered by Gu Yu's question. "But the Crown Prince already has a Crown Princess. You can't possibly become a concubine, can you?"
"...Just kidding, you actually believed that? I've never even met the Crown Prince, how could I have any feelings for him? But what's the Crown Prince doing staying in Bianjing all this time? Why doesn't he go back to Shengjing?"
If he doesn't come back, she really can't do anything about it.
“I heard that the Crown Prince did something wrong, and the Emperor is very angry, so he won’t let him come back,” Chunyue replied.
Gu Yu blinked, no longer dwelling on the Crown Prince's matter, and turned to the two maids, "Don't you think it's improper for me to get married before my brother, who is two years older than me, since he isn't getting married yet?"
"It seems so, but the young master is on the battlefield all year round. Wouldn't it be pitiful for him to marry someone else's daughter? It's alright now that the young lady is here, but if she gets married too, then there will be no one left in the manor..."
It was only when Qiuju mentioned this that she realized her young mistress seemed to have always been in this situation.
Gu Yu lived a life of luxury, with everything done for her, yet she had no freedom, was frail and sickly, and had no close female friends.
"So I think, if both parties are willing, it's not a bad thing to marry a few more."
"ah?"
"If I were a man, I would marry several more, wouldn't that be more lively? If they fight amongst themselves, let them fight it out, as long as they don't come to me, I'll pretend I didn't see it."
Gu Yu put herself in the shoes of a young master from a prestigious family and thought that this kind of life seemed pretty good.
Unfortunately, she was a woman, trapped in a mansion, forced to fight tooth and nail with other women for the emperor's favor.
Therefore, the husband she chooses must be well-behaved in the harem; she doesn't want to waste her energy on such matters.
"So we should start looking for a suitable match for our brother now. Who knows, I might have a nephew soon, or a niece, who knows she'll be very beautiful..."
With her mind at ease, Gu Yu quickly instructed Qiu Ju to compile a list of noble ladies in the capital.
She visited each family one by one, and once she was familiar with them, she would arrange a banquet so that Gu Jin could see if there was anyone she liked.
The fifteen days of the imperial examination passed in a flash, and it was already mid-April.
The climate in Shengjing City is warm, and the peach orchards on the outskirts of the city are in full bloom. The peaches that bloomed earlier have already borne fruit.
Gu Yu invited several young ladies to enjoy the peach blossoms in the suburbs on the second day after the imperial examination ended.
The stream babbles, birds chirp, and a gentle breeze carries the fragrance of flowers.
She chose a higher rock to sit on, watching the young men and women gathered in pairs, occasionally commenting, "Yingying, that young man in the green robe looks very weak; he's probably not in good health..."
"Huh?" Zhang Liuying blushed instantly; she had only glanced at the person casually.
Gu Yu continued, "He's definitely not as good as my brother."
This was a young lady she had carefully selected because she thought Gu Jin would like her, so naturally she didn't want her to fall for someone else.
"Ayu, please don't say things like that."
"You haven't seen my brother yet. He should be back soon, and I'll introduce you to him then."
"Okay," she replied in a loud voice, two blushes rising on her face.
Gu Yu's eyes lit up, feeling that all the good things she had said about Gu Jin to Miss Zhang had been worthwhile; there should be a chance.
Another proud young lady, Xu Chuxi, glanced at Zhang Liuying and inwardly scoffed at her petty manner. "Sister Ayu also told me last time that she wanted to introduce me to General Gu. Why have you changed your mind?"
“Ayu, you said the same thing to me last time. Why do you say the same thing to all the ladies?”
"No, no, when my brother comes back, I'll throw a banquet so we can all meet. If we're both willing, we might become family."
Gu Yu chuckled, realizing that it was indeed a bit noisy when there were more people.
"Don't just think about General Gu. Ayu, you're the oldest among us. Have you thought about your own marriage?"
When asked this question, Gu Yu felt a headache coming on. "Of course I've thought about it, but there's nothing I can do. I'll leave it to my father and brothers to decide. If his family hadn't run into trouble, I would have been willing to marry him..."
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