Only after leaving the southern part of the city did Wang Fugui dare to address him as "His Lordship the Young Master."
"Young Master, your marriage has been settled—it's the Second Miss of the Xie family."
"What? The Second Miss?" Gu Chengyan nearly tumbled off the carriage.
"Yes, indeed, it's the Second Miss of the Xie family."
How could it be the Second Miss?
As if doused with a basin of cold water, Gu Chengyan's heart was in utter turmoil. He hurried back to the residence to seek his father, only to find him absent. Upon asking the steward, he learned that his father had not returned since yesterday.
He then went to Lady Tu's courtyard. His mother was going over the accounts, and it seemed the numbers did not add up, for she was angrily scolding someone.
The servants in the courtyard, upon seeing him return, all respectfully put on smiling faces: "Young Master."
"Mm." He nodded gracefully without pausing his steps.
Lady Tu set down the account books and gestured for her personal attendant, Nanny Wan, to dismiss everyone first.
Once they were alone, Gu Chengyan suppressed his anger and asked coldly, "Mother has settled a marriage for me with the Second Miss of the Xie family?"
Lady Tu: "Yes."
"Was it not agreed upon to be the Eldest Miss?"
"Living Buddha Yuanji came and said that if you and the Eldest Miss of the Xie family were to marry, both households would be bathed in blood—an omen of great misfortune."
How could this be?
Gu Chengyan was taken aback as well. Not wanting to say more, he rose and went to find his grandmother.
The courtyard of Old Madame Hou was called Ci'en Yuan. When the senior maidservant Taxue saw him coming, she quickly reported: "Old Madame, the Young Master is here."
Old Madame watched Gu Chengyan enter, with Lady Tu following behind, and her expression immediately soured.
"Where have you been these past few days? Your engagement was settled, and you were nowhere to be found!"
"Grandmother, was it not agreed that I would be betrothed to the eldest legitimate daughter of the Xie family? How did it become the second daughter? The one I hold in my heart is the eldest daughter of the Xie family."
Old Madame said, "Did your mother not tell you the reason?"
Of course she had! Gu Chengyan swallowed his breath and only asked, "Is it still possible to change it?"
Old Madame frowned: "Do you think this is shopping at the market? It certainly cannot be changed."
Yesterday, the marriage between the second legitimate daughter of the Xie family and Yan'er had been settled. She did not know how the Third Master had gotten word of it, but he had specially sent someone to deliver a letter, asking her to help secure the eldest daughter instead.
Coincidentally, Lady Xu was also of the same mind, saying that seniority should be respected in order, and that the marriage should not skip over the eldest daughter. Grand Secretary Gu, being a young man of exceptional talent, was not someone they wished to miss out on.
Both parties were strongly in favor, so Old Madame had no reason to object.
"Grandmother, since I was a child, you have always told me that I would marry the eldest legitimate daughter of the Xie family!"
"The Living Buddha said that you and the eldest daughter of the Xie family are not a suitable match."
"No!" Gu Chengyan was nearly mad with rage and shouted, "I do not want the Second Miss of the Xie family!"
"Gu Chengyan, who gave you the audacity to shout at your grandmother and mother? The Second Miss of the Xie family was originally meant to marry into the Prince Jing's household. Do you think she is eager to marry you?"
Lady Tu was furious: "She is willing to form a marriage alliance with you—you should be burning incense in gratitude!"
Gu Chengyan, in a fit of extreme anger, blurted out: "What does Living Buddha Yuanji know? He is nothing but a madman! How can the words of a madman be taken as truth? Even if it is an omen of great misfortune, what does it matter? At worst, I will marry the eldest daughter and simply not consummate the marriage. I have no intention of living in harmony with her—do you truly think I would have children with her?"
"You wretch! How dare you defy the words of the Living Buddha?" Lady Tu cursed loudly.
Gu Chengyan was so angry he could not speak. Yingying had once said that all this fortune-telling and talk of living buddhas was nothing but feudal superstition.
Even the Emperor was but a mortal man. All this talk of the Son of Heaven and the true dragon was merely a means to fool the common people and lead them into blind faith.
"The eldest legitimate daughter is the legitimate daughter of Xie Anfeng and his first wife. She is Xie Yu's own younger sister and Grand Tutor Xu's own niece. What does the second daughter have? Her birth mother was merely a concubine-born daughter of the Xu family. Xie Anfeng married her as his second wife only because, as an aunt, she would treat his son and daughter well."
"Yan'er, I'm telling you, arguing with me is pointless. The eldest Miss Xie is already betrothed to your third uncle," Lady Tu said angrily. "That kind of person is a jinx—she hasn't even entered the household and she's already stirring up trouble."
"What? You've betrothed her to Third Uncle? Absurd!"
Gu Chengyan, furious, grabbed the teacup on the table and smashed it to pieces, speaking recklessly, "You've ruined my grand plan!"
The Old Madame could no longer hold back. She shouted toward the door, "Bring the Marquis back immediately! Prepare the family discipline rod—I want to teach this disrespectful descendant who shows no reverence for the gods above or filial piety to his parents a lesson."
Gu Chengyan's head instantly cooled. He knelt, lowered his head, and said, "Grandmother, your grandson was wrong."
"Ha, wrong? If you had said these words only within my courtyard, that would be one thing. But if they reached the ears of the Xie household, never mind you being the heir of a marquis's estate—the entire household could vanish from the capital without a sound!"
"I didn't know you had such grand ambitions that you could override heaven itself and force marriages as you please!"
"Taking a wife is not for mutual respect, not for bearing children—then what is it for? To exploit your wife? To seize her dowry? Or for something else?"
"You said I ruined your grand plan—what grand plan? Tell this old woman too, so I can see for myself—something so grand it could overturn the heavens?"
Seeing the Old Madame was truly furious, Gu Chengyan immediately admitted his fault: "Grandmother, your grandson was wrong. I was just upset that I didn't secure the eldest Miss Xie's hand, and in my anger I spoke recklessly."
The Old Madame was resolute about invoking the family discipline.
Pointing at Lady Tu, she said, "You go kneel in the Buddha hall. You may come out only when you know what you've done wrong."
The Marquis, Gu Boyu, had been gambling for two or three days, losing over a hundred taels of silver and trying hard to win it back. When he heard his old mother summoning him home, he returned to Ci'en Courtyard with great reluctance.
The Old Madame was so angry she didn't waste a word—she gave him a thorough scolding first and ordered him to carry out the family discipline immediately.
Gu Boyu dared not defy her. He immediately took the iron whip and struck Gu Chengyan five harsh lashes. Gu Chengyan bore them without a sound.
The Old Madame said sorrowfully, "I've been shrewd all my life, but my mistake was finding you a short-sighted wife, and now she has raised a grandson who doesn't know his place. The marquis's household will be ruined by his hands. What face do I have to meet your father?"
Gu Boyu immediately begged forgiveness: "It is all your son's unfilial conduct—I failed to manage the household, causing you to worry at such an advanced age."
The Old Madame told Gu Boyu about yesterday's marriage discussions between the two households and said, "Keep Yan'er restrained. Don't let him spout nonsense anymore. Otherwise, never mind the Xie household—if your third brother becomes estranged from this house, the marquis's household will have no place to stand."
Though the matter at Ci'en Courtyard was handled behind closed doors, the marquis's estate was large, and keeping it completely secret was impossible.
Gu Shaoyu returned in the evening and paid his respects to the Old Madame.
The Old Madame was shrewd. She feared that the events of the day might drive a wedge between uncle and nephew, so she addressed it directly.
"Yan'er and you are both no longer young. If you have no objection, send the betrothal gifts as soon as possible. Matters of state are never finished—marriage won't delay your service to His Majesty."
Both uncle and nephew were outstanding, yet both remained unmarried well past the usual age. All over the capital, rumors spread that the two of them had hidden ailments.
"Very well, your son takes note."
The two households exchanged birth-date marriage proposals, originally planning to send the betrothal gifts to the Xie family before the end of the month, when suddenly the imperial court received an urgent memorial from the south.
A violent spring hurricane had struck Yangzhou, sinking all dozen or so large ships transporting official salt, drowning every one of the convoy leaders, helmsmen, and crew aboard.