Gu Aqi was an ordinary farm girl, the seventh child in her family, hence the name Gu Aqi.
The name was chosen arbitrarily, just like Gu Aqi's background, which was even more casual.
People often say that girls are like seeds; if sown in fertile soil, they will blossom and bear fruit, enjoying boundless happiness. But if sown in barren soil, they will wither away like mud, their lives bleak and desolate.
Gu Aqi was the latter. With seven children, the family struggled to make ends meet on their meager farmland. From the time Gu Aqi could remember, going hungry was a common occurrence.
As if things weren't bad enough, a famine struck Gu Aqi's family. In the end, Gu Aqi and Gu Asan were the ones who got the shortest straw and were taken away by the matchmaker for five hundred copper coins.
Gu Asan was far inferior to Gu Aqi in both appearance and figure.
In the end, Gu Asan was bought by a family and made into a laborer. After a few years, she could not bear the mistreating and abuse of the head of the household and eventually committed suicide by drowning.
Gu Aqi was bought by a courtesan to be her personal maid, which was somewhat better than Gu Asan's tragic fate.
And so, Gu Aqi, who had been exposed to the world and played along since childhood, gradually became more shrewd.
She originally thought that by serving the courtesan well here and saving enough money, she could leave this place of trouble.
Little did they know that the brothel madam had already set her sights on Gu Aqi, this juicy target.
Although Gu Aqi was the personal maid of the courtesan, in this brothel, even the courtesan was bought by the madam, let alone Gu Aqi, who was just a maid.
That night, the madam finally convinced the courtesan to persuade Gu Aqi to understand the situation sooner, so that she could have another money-making opportunity.
The courtesan returned to her room and, looking at the innocent-looking Gu Aqi, finally couldn't bear it and told him everything.
Upon hearing this, Gu Aqi immediately panicked. With red eyes, she knelt on the ground and begged the courtesan to help her think of a solution.
Ultimately, the courtesan decided to use the cover of night to help Gu Aqi escape.
Unfortunately, brothels are not such simple places. Before Gu Aqi even reached the door, he was caught red-handed by the thugs.
A beating was inevitable, but Gu Aqi, to thank the courtesan for her help, gritted his teeth and refused to reveal her identity.
Seeing Gu Aqi's resolute gaze, the madam finally devised a vicious plan: to have someone defile Gu Aqi. Although this would cost her a considerable sum of money, she reasoned that as long as she was alive, she could always find another opportunity. In the madam's eyes, Gu Aqi's appearance was perfectly suited to become the next top courtesan.
And so, the madam brought her most trusted thug. Gu Aqi looked at the burly man in front of her who had ulterior motives. Gu Aqi made a desperate move and bit the man hard. The man felt the pain and paused his actions for two seconds.
Those two seconds changed Gu Aqi's life.
Disheveled and resigned to her fate, she jumped from the second floor, and that's how she met the man she would love for the rest of her life—Su Shunhe!
At that time, Su Shunhe had not yet been named the Third Prince. He was just traveling incognito when he unexpectedly met a woman he would later think about day and night.
Gu Aqi fell straight down in front of Su Shunhe's horse. Startled, the horse raised its hoof and stomped heavily on Gu Aqi.
In the nick of time, Su Shunhe dismounted and caught the dazed Gu Aqi. The horse's hoof fell along Su Shunhe's hair, leaving a crack where it landed.
"Are you alright?" Su Shunhe asked, looking at the disheveled girl in front of him.
"Save me..." Gu Aqi said before fainting.
The madam and her thugs rushed over. The madam frowned as she looked at Gu Aqi in Su Shunhe's arms and said, "Give this woman to me!"
Su Shunhe glanced at the injured Gu Aqi and felt a pang of pity. Ignoring the madam's clamor, he ordered his servants to find the local prefect. After revealing his identity, Su Shunhe took Gu Aqi and left.
After a long while, Gu Aqi finally woke up in the inn. Looking at Su Shunhe with his bright eyes and sharp features, Gu Aqi blushed.
Su Shunhe, however, was very gentlemanly and showed concern for Gu Aqi's well-being, who had never received any care before, and Gu Aqi was completely captivated.
Their relationship quickly heated up and soon crossed the line, taking them a step closer.
Just as the two were enjoying their sweet life together, a letter from Su Shunhe broke the tranquility.
Su Shunhe's original name was He Shunsu. He was the third prince of the current emperor and the future third prince. The letter was secretly written to He Shunsu by the chief eunuch. It said that He Shunsu had been staying outside for too long and the emperor was furious and demanded that He Shunsu return to the capital immediately.
Left with no other choice, He Shunsu had to tell Gu Aqi the truth and promised that once Gu Aqi had appeased the Emperor, he would come to pick her up.
Gu Aqi nodded in agreement with tears in her eyes, but little did she know that He Shunsu would be gone for two years.
In the past two years, He Shunsu was also betrothed by the emperor to the daughter of a high-ranking official.
Born into an imperial family, He Shunsu truly understood the meaning of being told that one's fate is beyond one's control.
But he always had Gu Aqi in his heart. Over the past two years, He Shunsu had sent people to look for Gu Aqi countless times, but the result was always the same: they could not find her anywhere.
Several more months passed, and He Shunsu suddenly received a letter. The contents of the letter shocked him. It was from Gu Aqi, who had been missing for many years.
He Shunsu hurriedly went to look for Gu Aqi's whereabouts according to the address above.
Seeing an old friend again evoked mixed feelings. Gu Aqi was still as beautiful as she had been two years ago. He Shunsu felt very guilty and explained a lot to Gu Aqi.
Gu Aqi comforted He Shunsu, telling him not to take it to heart. She knew that his identity meant he had many things he couldn't control. He Shunsu was deeply moved and hugged Gu Aqi, vowing to take care of her for the rest of his life.
That night, He Shunsuo drank a lot of alcohol. When he woke up again, he found that Gu Aqi was no longer by his side, and all his valuables had been taken by Gu Aqi.
He Shunsu was furious when he saw the letter on the table. It turned out that Gu Aqi had never fallen in love with him. The reason she suddenly appeared was only because she coveted his special status. But she knew that she was not qualified to enter the He family at all.
So he simply stole all the valuables on He Shunsu's body to secure his livelihood for the rest of his life.
The letter pierced He Shunsu's heart. He Shunsu publicly ordered that Gu Aqi be captured alive, and thus the yamen runners launched a massive search for Gu Aqi.
Finally, Gu Aqi was found by a river. Gu Aqi looked at He Shunsu, who was as cold as ice, and finally jumped into the river and committed suicide.
The constables looked at the rushing river and ultimately brought back only a letter and news of Gu Aqi's death.
After reading the contents of the letter, He Shunsu was filled with regret. He never imagined that he would have a child with Gu Aqi, and he never imagined that Gu Aqi and his child would have such a difficult time in the past two years!
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