Bishui Alley.
Lord Gu, having been ignored by his son, felt a bit embarrassed. He cleared his throat and placed his sleeping son back into the arms of the Yao Family matriarch.
He had come today not only to see the Yao Family matriarch and his son, but also for another matter—the marriage of Gu Jinyu.
Gu Jinyu’s wedding to the Prince of An County was initially set to take place before the end of the year, but unexpected war broke out. While ordinary citizens’ marriages might remain unaffected, the Prince of An County was a court-appointed official, and Gu Jinyu was the daughter of the Marquis Residence, so they could not wed during a national crisis.
Therefore, the marriage was postponed until after the New Year festivities.
"It’s next month," Lord Gu explained to the Yao Family matriarch, "Jin Yu is your daughter; how can a daughter get married without her mother by her side? Why don’t you come back to the residence with me for a few days and stay until after Jin Yu is married?"
The reason behind the animosity between the Yao Family matriarch and the Gu Family stemmed mainly from the fact that she was unwelcome by everyone in the residence, headed by the Gu Family’s old matriarch, followed by Gu Changqing and his three sons. As for the servants, they didn’t really matter too much; in any case, they wouldn’t dare to make a real fuss in front of the Yao Family matriarch.
Now, with various misunderstandings cleared, the resentment the three Gu brothers held towards the Yao Family matriarch had vanished, and Lord Gu felt it was time to bring her back home.
The Yao Family matriarch hesitated.
She knew that the Gu Family’s old matriarch still did not wish to see her, the daughter-in-law who had come into the picture halfway, and it was impossible for their relationship to go back to being completely free of grudges.
Furthermore, even if she returned, neither Gu Yan nor Gu Jiao would go back with her.
She couldn’t bear to part with her two children, nor could she part with the large family in Bishui Alley.
But the lord was right; Jin Yu was also her daughter.
When the third son of Gu and his wife treated Jiaojiao like a treasure, what reason did she have to treat Jin Yu poorly?
"My health hasn’t been very good lately, and I can’t attend to everything in the residence," Lord Gu said, looking at her.
The Yao Family matriarch glanced at Gu Jiao, who was in the backyard repairing a football with flirtatious eyes, and then said to Lord Gu, "You’ve been here for so long, haven’t you spoken a word with Jiaojiao?"
Lord Gu huffed, "It’s her who won’t talk to me! I’ve been here for so long, did you hear her call me ’Father’ once?"
The Yao Family matriarch replied, "Jiaojiao is just not used to it. Besides, have you ever treated Jiaojiao like a father should?"
"I..." Lord Gu faltered, his words trailing off.
The Yao Family matriarch continued, "And you’ve hit her with a whip before."
"That was..." Lord Gu coughed awkwardly, feeling guilty, "how long ago was that and you still remember? Wasn’t it because I didn’t know she was our daughter and thought she would harm you?"
When it came to this matter, Lord Gu would get heated. He had only whipped the girl once, yet she bore a grudge in such a way—opposing him at every turn and even luring away his wife and son!
Two sons!
Was it he who did not act like a father?
Clearly, it was she who did not act like a daughter!
Why couldn’t she be more like Jin Yu, gentle and generous, charming and cute—the very image a daughter of the Marquis Residence should be!
Lord Gu rolled his eyes and complained, "If that girl was even half as sensible as Jin Yu, I wouldn’t find it so hard to dote on her!"
The Yao Family matriarch stood up, holding the sleeping Gu Xiaobao, and frowned at him, "Are you admitting you don’t dote on Jiaojiao?"
"No, it’s not... I..." Lord Gu was caught off guard, his mouth moving faster than his thoughts. Why did his wife always catch him at such tricky angles!
The Yao Family matriarch trembled with anger, "So all your past claims of doting on Jiaojiao were lies to deceive me!"
Lord Gu panicked completely and hurriedly said, "I didn’t lie to you! It’s the truth! I do dote on Jiaojiao! She’s the one I dote on the most!"
Not wanting to wake her sleeping son, the Yao Family matriarch suppressed her anger and asked, "Then tell me, what is Jiaojiao’s favorite food?"
Lord Gu opened his mouth.
He had no idea what the girl’s favorite food was!
"You can’t even answer that, yet you claim you dote on Jiaojiao!" With those words, the Yao Family matriarch left without turning back, cradling Gu Xiaobao in her arms.
Lord Gu: "..."
Sigh!
Gu Yan and Gu Xiaoshun had gone to see Master Xianzu and Master Lu in the southern wing, and were not at home. With the Yao Family matriarch ignoring him, Lord Gu, feeling rather downhearted, touched his nose. Every strand of hair on his body seemed to express the awkwardness he felt inside.
He hesitated over whether or not to leave first, but just then, Little Jingkong came over.
Little Jingkong was Gu Jiao’s constant companion, following her wherever she went, yet, surprisingly, he was not sticking to her at the moment.
Lord Gu was rather astonished.
He looked at this tiny figure who, no matter how much he grew, seemed to maintain his small stature, and for once, spoke to him amicably, "Why have you come over here?"
Without saying a word, Little Jingkong walked to the threshold of the main gate in the front courtyard, stood there with his little hands behind his back, and blinked up at him. ƒreewebηoveℓ.com
Lord Gu’s mouth twitched, "Are you trying to give me the boot?"
Little Jingkong shook his head enthusedly, "Jiaojiao has said that we should be polite children. A visitor is a guest, and it’s not right to send someone away just because they’re not welcome. That’s for adults to do; our job as children is just to be good."
Lord Gu: "..."
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