Gu Qingjin had taken two hard slaps in succession; her cheeks were already swollen and red.
Gu Yuande immediately barked at Gu Qingzhao, “Stop at once!”
Xiao Hongshuang hurried to Gu Qingjin’s side, ordering ice to be brought while gently touching her face with concern.
“Hiss… it hurts…” Instinctively, Gu Qingjin flinched away, then pointed at Gu Qingzhao. “You harmed me—you did it on purpose!”
Gu Qingzhao fixed her gaze on her cousin, but felt no satisfaction. Two slaps were far from enough to repay the debt of her past life.
“I harmed you? Was it I who forced you into Prince Cheng’s bed? Or was it I who drugged you, making you fornicate before marriage?”
“You debased yourself, yet you dare accuse me?”
“Your trousers—did you take them off yourself, or did Prince Cheng? Either way, you cannot blame me.”
Turning, Gu Qingzhao looked straight at Gu Yuande. “Father, tell me—does this matter rest on me?”
Gu Yuande was struck speechless. This daughter had never been so defiant before. Especially toward the third branch of the family, she had never uttered a harsh word. This sharp, biting tone was a first.
He pulled Gu Qingzhao aside and lowered his voice. “Your fourth sister was merely confused for a moment. You should yield to her. If she says a few things against you, just endure them. As for the marriage, I will discuss it again with Prince Cheng. Today, I was too angry—don’t take it to heart. You know I have always felt guilty toward your third uncle.”
Gu Qingzhao’s lips curved into a cold smile. For so many years, whenever her father was entangled with the third branch, his mind seemed to wander far from home.
In all those past years, whenever she clashed with the third branch, her father was always the same—first letting her suffer the grievance, then offering a few words of explanation afterward. He would claim the second branch owed the third, and so she must yield.
She had once thought it was kindness—that her father pitied her third uncle, who had died young, sacrificing himself to save him, leaving behind a widow and orphans with no support. But now, it seemed likely that the two children of the third branch were in fact her father’s own blood.
“If I block her path and she wants my life, Father, you would hand her the knife yourself, wouldn’t you? Between me and Gu Qingjin—who is truly your daughter?”
Gu Yuande’s face showed unease at her words. He was about to speak when Xiao Hongshuang stepped forward.
“Second Brother, don’t blame Sister Zhao. We, widows and orphans, are simply unlucky. If Third Master were still alive, none of this would have happened. A child without a father suffers a bitter fate.” As she spoke, Xiao Hongshuang pulled out a handkerchief and dabbed at her tears.
Seeing this, Gu Yuande immediately scolded Gu Qingzhao: “Step aside. How have I always taught you? You must see the bigger picture.”
Seated nearby, Song Chu rested his chin in his hand, eyes lowered. At Gu Yuande’s words, his brows furrowed, and his lips parted as if to speak. But before he could, hurried footsteps sounded from outside.
The Gu family’s Old Madam entered with a train of maids and servant women. In her early fifties, she wore a plain sandalwood-colored silk robe trimmed in black at the collar and cuffs—dignified yet not ostentatious. Beneath it was a pale blue inner garment, its collar fastened with meticulous precision. She was the Gu family patriarch’s second wife. Years of privileged living had preserved her beauty; even past fifty, her complexion remained fair and her skin delicate. But years of sternness and a face that rarely smiled had etched deep lines at the corners of her mouth.
Seeing the Old Madam enter, Song Chu rose at once and bowed with the courtesy due a junior. He then said to Gu Yuande, “Since Duke Gu must attend to family matters, I will take my leave. When you have decided, come find me again.”
Gu Yuande’s temple still bore the blood from the teacup strike, not yet dried. Yet he had to bow and escort the Imperial Uncle out, fearful of provoking him further and causing new trouble.
Once Song Chu departed, the Old Madam turned to Gu Yuande with concern. “Is the wound on your head serious? I heard the Imperial Uncle flew into a rage—what happened? How could it come to blows?”
The Old Madam had no sons of her own. The Gu patriarch had left behind three sons and one daughter: the eldest, Gu Yuanbai, born of a concubine, now managed household affairs; the second, Gu Yuande, and the third, Gu Yuanliang, were legitimate sons; and there was a legitimate daughter married into the Chen family of Yongzhou.
After the patriarch’s death, the brothers all treated their stepmother with respect—not only for filial reputation, but also because she was on excellent terms with the current Empress Dowager.
The Old Madam had always remembered her husband’s dying wish: in great matters, the family’s name and future must come first. So when she asked, Gu Yuande stepped forward and explained the whole incident without concealment.
At the mention of a young lady’s chastity, the Old Madam’s face darkened. When he finished, her cold gaze fell upon Gu Qingjin. “Fourth girl, there are no outsiders here. Tell me the truth. Is this child truly Prince Cheng’s? When did you begin with him?”
Gu Qingjin had always feared her grandmother. Hearing the anger in her voice, she dropped to her knees with a thud. “Grandmother, His Highness and I are in love. It has been nearly half a year. I only… only feared Third Sister’s feelings, so I did not tell the family.”
At her words, the Old Madam slammed the nanmu table so hard that the teacups upon it clattered. “What nonsense! Even without your third sister’s betrothal, how could you consort with Prince Cheng without marriage rites? ‘In love,’ you say it so prettily. If he truly loved you, he would have come to the Gu family, properly dissolved the engagement, and then sought your hand.”
The Old Madam, well acquainted with the imperial clan’s ruthlessness, knew better than anyone how little sentiment mattered in royal affairs. She had opposed Gu Qingzhao’s marriage to Prince Cheng from the start. But Prince Cheng had petitioned the Empress Dowager, and Gu Qingzhao herself had agreed, so she had held her tongue. Now, before the marriage was even sealed, such a scandal had erupted.
Gu Qingjin, hearing her grandmother’s words, could only kneel with lowered eyes, tears streaming, as though crushed by unbearable grievance.
The Old Madam grew even more vexed by her crying. Her gaze shifted to Gu Qingzhao. “Zhao girl, what do you think?”