Sickly Sprout
Madam Su decided that she would make a show of her authority for Yu Fu.
She would have her know that this manor was not a place for her to mess around in. There was still someone who could keep her in check.
“You’re called Yu Fu. Is Yu your surname?”
Yu Fu seemed to notice Madam Su’s dislike her for. When she entered, she had a faint smile displaying her dimples, but she was now standing there while feeling restrained. Her expression was a little uneasy.
“I… am.”
She hesitated for a moment before quietly replying.
“The surname Yu is quite rare. I don’t believe I have ever heard of anyone in Eastern Ling having such a surname. What country are you from? Where are your parents and family?”
These were questions that Yu Fu had never wanted to answer, and they had never pressed the issue. Madam Su was the first to ask her so pressingly.
Her hand unconsciously grabbed the jade pendant at her waist and cautiously said: “I am from Immortals Valley.”
When Gu HuaiJiang was fighting at the border, he had been struck by a poisoned arrow shot by someone from Western Kun. It was Yu Fu who had been brought from Immortals Valley to save him. Madam Su knew about this.
If not, she would not have allowed Gu HuaiJiang to take Yu Fu in.
“I know that you are from Immortals Valley, and I know that you saved Lord Marquis’ life. There’s no need to provide me with such a roundabout answer. Immortals Valley is not a country, and the people inside come from all three countries. Are you someone from Northern Li or Western Kun?!”
By the time she finished speaking, her voice was raised, and her tone was as if she was interrogating her.
Gu ShuBai stood up from his seat and walked over to shield her. Only then did she shyly raise her head to look up at her.
She did not know why. Why was Madam Su treating her like this?
This left her not knowing how to act.
“Aunty, don’t press Yu Fu. She would only be raised in Immortals Valley from childhood if she had some difficulties in her life; otherwise, what sort of child would not want to grow up next to their parents? You asking these questions, is it not just going to hurt Yu Fu’s feelings?”
Yu Fu’s identity was a secret. This was a secret that Gu ShuBai had previously encountered, and he had promised Yu Fu that he would help keep this secret.
Now, it was time for him to keep his promise.
“That’s right, aunty. Yu Fu saved father’s life. She has been in the manor for such a long time but never caused any trouble. Please do not hesitate to feel at ease.”
Gu WenQing also chimed in to speak for Yu Fu. Madam Su looked at the group. All of the brothers were actually speaking up for Yu Fu!
They were actually willing to go against her for Yu Fu’s sake?!
This was backwards. It really was backwards.
“You, you guys don’t even have a clear understanding of her background, yet you all treat her like a young miss of the manor? Though Marquis Gu’s Manor is prestigious, there are quite a few sets of eyes watching it. Are you not worried that a person with an unclear background might cause trouble?”
Madam Su found this hard to believe. She had only been in the manor for half a year, so how did she manage to capture the hearts of everyone?
“Aunty, we have never thought of Yu Fu as a young miss of the manor.”
Gu ShuBai faintly smiled, his eyes bright, “Regardless of her surname or her background, she is a young miss of the manor. There’s no need for anyone to think of her as one or not.”
This was a roundabout rebuttal that flipped Madam Su’s words back on her.
Gu HuaiJiang saw that the atmosphere was not great and waved to everyone, “You guys can leave for now. Your aunty and I have not met for a long time and have much to discuss.”
Everyone felt relieved and retreated from the main hall.
It was only after getting away from the hall’s vicinity that Yu Fu’s stiff body finally began to relax, as she let out a quiet sigh.
Upon looking up, she found six pairs of eyes staring at her, and she could not help but blush.
How could she have forgotten that all six of the people around her were trained in martial arts? Not to mention a sigh, but they might even be able to hear the movements of her internal organs…
“Did I say something wrong earlier that might have made Madam Su unhappy?”
“You didn’t.”
All six of them replied in the exact same way. Even the usually-silent Gu HanMo solemnly shot this idea down. Yu Fu felt much better.
“It’s possible that the misunderstanding from earlier caused a knot to form in aunty’s heart.”
Gu ShuBai sighed and recounted the misunderstanding from earlier, and Gu JiuGe added: “At that time, aunty’s expression was already quite ugly. You all know that she values face the most. This misunderstanding caused her to feel that she had lost face in front of the palace servants. It’s natural that she would be unhappy.”
So there was such a thing.
Gu Xiang furrowed his brow and said: “Then this is horrible! That girl, Su YunYan, loves vanity above all else. Seeing Yu Fu receive gifts from His Majesty that she did not get will definitely make her feel jealous! If she says anything to aunty, with how much aunty spoils her, she will definitely treat Yu Fu poorly!”
“That’s right, when that girl came last time, didn’t she steal all of our nice things? As males, it’s natural that we could not argue with her, but if she dares to bully Yu Fu, I won’t let her off!”
Gu Yi made a gesture with his fist. Thinking about Su YunYan’s unreasonable appearance, he became extremely angry.
Gu Xiang knew that he hated Su YunYan the most because he was frail when he was younger. Su YunYan would always mock his sickly appearance. There was one time when he got angry and pushed Su YunYan. She cried and ran off to tattle to Gu HuaiJiang.
The result was obvious. In line with Marquis Gu’s Manor’s rule of “raise boys strictly and dote on daughters,” nothing happened to Su YunYan. On the other hand, Gu Yi was given quite an admonishment.
Su YunYan could not sit still in the hall. Not long later, she ran out to look for Gu ShuBai and the others and happened to see the six brothers chatting on a small path in the bamboo forest.
It looked like they were being very secretive.
A desire for mischief came to her, and she stealthily walked up before loudly shouting, “Hey, what sort of bad stuff is the sickly sprout saying!”
Sickly Sprout
Madam Su decided that she would make a show of her authority for Yu Fu.
She would have her know that this manor was not a place for her to mess around in. There was still someone who could keep her in check.
“You’re called Yu Fu. Is Yu your surname?”
Yu Fu seemed to notice Madam Su’s dislike her for. When she entered, she had a faint smile displaying her dimples, but she was now standing there while feeling restrained. Her expression was a little uneasy.
“I… am.”
She hesitated for a moment before quietly replying.
“The surname Yu is quite rare. I don’t believe I have ever heard of anyone in Eastern Ling having such a surname. What country are you from? Where are your parents and family?”
These were questions that Yu Fu had never wanted to answer, and they had never pressed the issue. Madam Su was the first to ask her so pressingly.
Her hand unconsciously grabbed the jade pendant at her waist and cautiously said: “I am from Immortals Valley.”
When Gu HuaiJiang was fighting at the border, he had been struck by a poisoned arrow shot by someone from Western Kun. It was Yu Fu who had been brought from Immortals Valley to save him. Madam Su knew about this.
If not, she would not have allowed Gu HuaiJiang to take Yu Fu in.
“I know that you are from Immortals Valley, and I know that you saved Lord Marquis’ life. There’s no need to provide me with such a roundabout answer. Immortals Valley is not a country, and the people inside come from all three countries. Are you someone from Northern Li or Western Kun?!”
By the time she finished speaking, her voice was raised, and her tone was as if she was interrogating her.
Gu ShuBai stood up from his seat and walked over to shield her. Only then did she shyly raise her head to look up at her.
She did not know why. Why was Madam Su treating her like this?
This left her not knowing how to act.
“Aunty, don’t press Yu Fu. She would only be raised in Immortals Valley from childhood if she had some difficulties in her life; otherwise, what sort of child would not want to grow up next to their parents? You asking these questions, is it not just going to hurt Yu Fu’s feelings?”
Yu Fu’s identity was a secret. This was a secret that Gu ShuBai had previously encountered, and he had promised Yu Fu that he would help keep this secret.
Now, it was time for him to keep his promise.
“That’s right, aunty. Yu Fu saved father’s life. She has been in the manor for such a long time but never caused any trouble. Please do not hesitate to feel at ease.”
Gu WenQing also chimed in to speak for Yu Fu. Madam Su looked at the group. All of the brothers were actually speaking up for Yu Fu!
They were actually willing to go against her for Yu Fu’s sake?!
This was backwards. It really was backwards.
“You, you guys don’t even have a clear understanding of her background, yet you all treat her like a young miss of the manor? Though Marquis Gu’s Manor is prestigious, there are quite a few sets of eyes watching it. Are you not worried that a person with an unclear background might cause trouble?”
Madam Su found this hard to believe. She had only been in the manor for half a year, so how did she manage to capture the hearts of everyone?
“Aunty, we have never thought of Yu Fu as a young miss of the manor.”
Gu ShuBai faintly smiled, his eyes bright, “Regardless of her surname or her background, she is a young miss of the manor. There’s no need for anyone to think of her as one or not.”
This was a roundabout rebuttal that flipped Madam Su’s words back on her.
Gu HuaiJiang saw that the atmosphere was not great and waved to everyone, “You guys can leave for now. Your aunty and I have not met for a long time and have much to discuss.”
Everyone felt relieved and retreated from the main hall.
It was only after getting away from the hall’s vicinity that Yu Fu’s stiff body finally began to relax, as she let out a quiet sigh.
Upon looking up, she found six pairs of eyes staring at her, and she could not help but blush.
How could she have forgotten that all six of the people around her were trained in martial arts? Not to mention a sigh, but they might even be able to hear the movements of her internal organs…
“Did I say something wrong earlier that might have made Madam Su unhappy?”
“You didn’t.”
All six of them replied in the exact same way. Even the usually-silent Gu HanMo solemnly shot this idea down. Yu Fu felt much better.
“It’s possible that the misunderstanding from earlier caused a knot to form in aunty’s heart.”
Gu ShuBai sighed and recounted the misunderstanding from earlier, and Gu JiuGe added: “At that time, aunty’s expression was already quite ugly. You all know that she values face the most. This misunderstanding caused her to feel that she had lost face in front of the palace servants. It’s natural that she would be unhappy.”
So there was such a thing.
Gu Xiang furrowed his brow and said: “Then this is horrible! That girl, Su YunYan, loves vanity above all else. Seeing Yu Fu receive gifts from His Majesty that she did not get will definitely make her feel jealous! If she says anything to aunty, with how much aunty spoils her, she will definitely treat Yu Fu poorly!”
“That’s right, when that girl came last time, didn’t she steal all of our nice things? As males, it’s natural that we could not argue with her, but if she dares to bully Yu Fu, I won’t let her off!”
Gu Yi made a gesture with his fist. Thinking about Su YunYan’s unreasonable appearance, he became extremely angry.
Gu Xiang knew that he hated Su YunYan the most because he was frail when he was younger. Su YunYan would always mock his sickly appearance. There was one time when he got angry and pushed Su YunYan. She cried and ran off to tattle to Gu HuaiJiang.
The result was obvious. In line with Marquis Gu’s Manor’s rule of “raise boys strictly and dote on daughters,” nothing happened to Su YunYan. On the other hand, Gu Yi was given quite an admonishment.
Su YunYan could not sit still in the hall. Not long later, she ran out to look for Gu ShuBai and the others and happened to see the six brothers chatting on a small path in the bamboo forest.
It looked like they were being very secretive.
A desire for mischief came to her, and she stealthily walked up before loudly shouting, “Hey, what sort of bad stuff is the sickly sprout saying!”
