Chapter 121

Chapter 121

The Prime Minister Qin's estate was gone, and Gu Erniang had left. They lost their backing and a steady source of income, and the Ningyuan Marquis family, after this incident, also gradually became estranged from the Yuan family.

The Yuan family was filled with indignation.

They were the benefactors who had raised Gu Daniang! The debt of raising her was greater than the debt of giving birth. They had worked hard to raise the Marquis’s own daughter, yet now they were being treated like strangers.

So Mr. and Mrs. Yuan went to the Ningyuan Marquis family to see Gu Daniang, but they were turned away.

Well, after all, she wasn’t their own flesh and blood. With her real parents around, she had forgotten all about them, who had raised her for so many years—truly ungrateful.

Mr. and Mrs. Yuan grumbled, but after returning, they swallowed their anger and dared not make a fuss.

What kind of people were the Ningyuan Marquis family? And what kind of people were they? How could they dare to say anything bad about them behind their backs?

If they did, they might as well not want to live anymore.

The Yuan family still had many mouths to feed, and sons and grandsons to raise. Even if they were dissatisfied, they could only swallow it.

Thus, the Yuan family's good days were gone, and they returned to their previous hardships.

The neighbors watched as the Yuan family’s fortunes rose and fell. As gossip spread, people gradually stopped seeing the Yuan family as important, and they became ordinary once more.

Until one day in late spring this year, there was a loud noise—General Qiao had returned!

It turned out that Gu Erniang was the one who had saved General Qiao’s life.

The Ningyuan Marquis's foster daughter, Gu Erniang, had gone to the palace to receive rewards!

The Ningyuan Marquis's foster daughter, Gu Erniang, wasn’t she the eldest daughter of the Yuan family?

The Yuan family listened to the chaotic rumors and their hearts stirred.

Imagine the honor of entering the palace and receiving rewards from the Emperor! How glorious would that be? She must have endless gold and silver!

Mr. and Mrs. Yuan were tempted: That’s our daughter!

Even if she had cut ties with the Ningyuan Marquis family, she couldn’t deny the blood connection to the Yuan family!

And just in time, she had also divorced the Qin family. As a divorced lady, wouldn’t she become their Yuan family’s lady again?

As her biological parents, she had no choice but to acknowledge them.

Just as Mr. and Mrs. Yuan were planning how to reclaim their daughter, an overseer from the Ningyuan Marquis family arrived with news that Gu Erniang had received a large sum of reward silver and told them where she was staying.

Mr. and Mrs. Yuan were instantly excited.

Since the Ningyuan Marquis's foster daughter had gone to pay respects to Gu Erniang, it would be quite normal for them, as her real parents, to go and claim her, right?

Indeed, even if not for her, but for the large amount of money she held, it was worth making the trip.

As her current parents, it wouldn’t be excessive to claim half of the Emperor’s grand reward.

It was said that she had also planted many oranges in Min Prefecture, and they were sold at top prices in the Fusheng trading company, so expensive that they couldn’t even afford to eat them. Yet, knowing she was returning to the capital, she didn’t send any to her natal family—how outrageous.

If she continued to provide them with money as before, they would remain obedient. Whether she acknowledged them as parents or not, or whether she returned to the Yuan family or not, it was all fine. But if she refused to share the money or acknowledge them as her parents, they would make her pay for it!

So, on this day, Mr. and Mrs. Yuan, with their excellent plan, came to the private residence to claim their daughter.

Mr. and Mrs. Yuan were furious.

"Why won’t she even see us? We’re her biological parents! How can she be so ungrateful?"

"Now that she’s risen to prominence, she thinks she’s too good for her own parents!"

"Let everyone here be the judge! This Gu Erniang, after meeting the Emperor, doesn’t even recognize her own parents?"

Although fewer people had come to watch the commotion outside the Hang family’s separate residence in recent days, there were still some. Now that Mr. and Mrs. Yuan were being refused entry and making a ruckus, more people immediately gathered around.

"Biological parents?"

"I thought Gu Erniang wasn’t a biological member of the Ningyuan Marquis family? So these people are her real parents?"

"I heard that Gu Erniang has also severed ties with the Ningyuan Marquis family. It looks like she doesn’t plan to acknowledge her real parents either!"

"Gu Erniang sure isn’t acting honorably!"

"How can she be so unfilial?"

"I never would have thought someone who saved General Qiao could be so heartless!"

...

Seeing more and more people gathering outside the courtyard and the growing chatter, Manager Hang, who had been escorting guests out, rushed back to inform Gu Erniang of the situation.

Mr. and Mrs. Yuan, however, were pleased. "Good! She dares to just casually send us away. Look, look, now so many people know that Gu Erniang is an unfilial and ungrateful person. Let’s see how she can hold her head high in the future!"

If she dared not to acknowledge them again, they would come every day to show her how serious this matter was.

Once everyone in the capital knew that she was such an unfilial person who didn’t care for her biological parents, let’s see if the Emperor would still dare to protect her.

Inside the separate residence, hearing that the Yuan family was causing a scene outside and that a group of people were condemning her for being unfilial, Gu Erniang was furious.

How dare they push their luck?

In a fit of anger, she walked out but was pulled back by Pei Sixth Lady. "Sixth Miss?"

"You shouldn’t go," Pei Sixth Lady said.

In the Great Sheng Dynasty, filial piety was highly valued.

Even if Gu Erniang didn’t want to acknowledge her external parents, if she confronted and quarreled with her biological parents in public, it would be Gu Erniang who would be despised. The blame from the crowd would fall solely on her.

Being witnessed by the public as she tore apart relations with her parents, regardless of right or wrong, Gu Erniang would earn a bad reputation for being unfilial and ungrateful.

"It’s not worth it for such people," Pei Sixth Lady said.

"Anyway, I’m not living in the capital. If my reputation gets ruined, so be it," Gu Ran said indifferently.

"But ultimately, both the public and the Emperor will see this as damaging to your reputation," Pei Sixth Lady said. "If this can be resolved peacefully, why let a moment of anger get the best of you?"

"Then..." Gu Ran looked at Pei Sixth Lady.

"I’ll go," Pei Sixth Lady nodded. "We shouldn’t give them a show to watch."

Gu Ran could only nod but didn’t return inside. Instead, she stood in the courtyard, watching as Pei Sixth Lady pushed the door open and stepped out.

"You be the judge. Her mother went through ten months of pregnancy and endured great suffering to give birth to her. We didn’t raise her ourselves—was that our choice?"

When Pei Six came out, Yuan father and Yuan mother were crying to the crowd, "It's not our fault! Our daughter was switched with the young lady of the Ningyuan Marquis family. We also worked hard to raise the eldest daughter of the Ningyuan Marquis family. Was it our choice not to acknowledge our own daughter?"

"We wanted to, but the Ningyuan Marquis family decided to take her in as a foster daughter. We were thinking of her well-being. She was born into the Marquis family and lived her life there. As commoners, if we acknowledged her, how could we provide her with the good life she had? So, we endured the pain and let her stay with the Marquis family."

"Now that she has severed ties with the Marquis family, we finally have the chance to acknowledge our own flesh and blood. But look at how she treats us! She even resents us! She doesn’t understand the hardships we face as parents at all!"

"Oh, since you have the heart of a parent, why can’t you understand your daughter’s difficulties? Instead, you’re making a scene here, not thinking about how this affects Erniang?"

Pei Six’s light remark drew everyone’s attention.

The crowd looked surprised. "Wow, when did such a handsome man appear?"

For a moment, everyone was stunned, and even Yuan father and Yuan mother were taken aback before they reacted. "Who are you? What do you know? What difficulties could Erniang possibly have?"

"She is now the savior of General Qiao, has met the Emperor, and received rewards. With such glory, what difficulties does she have not acknowledging her parents?"

"It’s just that she despises her own mother! Let me tell you, even a dog doesn’t despise its own mother..."

"But maybe she can’t help but look down on you because of who you are," Pei Six said coldly.

"Tsk, tsk, who are you really? Are you in cahoots with that disobedient daughter?"

"Yes, I am from the Pei family, exiled to the remote Min region with Erniang," Pei Six calmly admitted, "I am on her side."

Yuan father and Yuan mother were startled, then flushed with anger. "He admits to being on the side of that disobedient daughter, so everything he says cannot be trusted!"

"You two, if what I say cannot be trusted, can what you say be entirely trusted?"

"I am her real father and mother, how can what I say not be trusted?" Yuan father demanded with wide eyes.

"Then why didn’t you claim her when she was exiled? Why didn’t you visit her during the three years she was in Min Prefecture?" Pei Six asked softly.

The crowd fell silent, all eyes on Yuan father and Yuan mother.

As someone who was also exiled to the same place, I didn’t see anyone from the Yuan family visit Erniang in three years, nor did I see any letters sent to her. Was it because you didn’t want to?"

Their faces suddenly darkened. "You know how far Min Prefecture is, right? Of course, we wanted to go, but as a common family, how could we afford the journey to Min Prefecture?"

"Exactly, we have sons, daughters-in-law, grandchildren to take care of. How could we spare the time to go to Min Prefecture? It wasn’t that we didn’t want to!"

"You always have your reasons. Min Prefecture is far, and you had no money to visit her, but couldn’t you even write a letter?"

"We didn’t know where she was exiled to, how could we write?"

"Then, when Erniang was still in the capital, imprisoned before her exile to the southern frontier, why didn’t anyone from your family visit her or see her off? Was it also because you didn’t want to? What stopped you from visiting and seeing her off?" Pei Six questioned.

"That’s because..." Yuan father and Yuan mother stammered.

"Was it because someone forbade you from visiting her, or was it because someone threatened you not to see her off?"

"You didn’t raise her, nor have you seen her. If you had even a little bit of a parent’s heart, that was the perfect time to acknowledge your daughter and make up for lost time. Why didn’t you? Was it because someone forced you not to acknowledge your daughter?"

"At that time, she was already married. These things weren’t up to us to interfere," Yuan mother said, lacking confidence.

"We are not like you knowledgeable people. We can't argue with you, but even if we didn't act properly back then, we are her real parents, and that's always true. There are no parents who are always in the wrong. Now that she no longer has a husband's family, she must listen to her parents..." Father Yuan was furious and said loudly, "If she dares to not acknowledge her parents for a single day..."

"Who doesn't acknowledge their parents?"

A hoarse voice rang out from the crowd.

The crowd looked over, and someone recognized the voice, exclaiming with joy, "General Qiao, it's General Qiao!"

"Is this our General Qiao?"

Those who had never seen General Qiao all turned to look at him.

"General Qiao, what brings you here?"

"Of course, I’m here to visit the one who saved me!"

"That must be Gu Erniang and the others, right?"

Upon hearing this, Father and Mother Yuan were shocked. "G-... General Qiao?"

Since it was General Qiao, he would surely take their side, right?

Just as the two were about to kneel before General Qiao, Pei Six, with a clang, drew his sword and blocked their way.

Father and Mother Yuan were startled, not only failing to kneel but also stepping back in fear. "What’s happening? Are you trying to kill us?"

"Sixth Miss, what's going on?" General Qiao still had a furry creature in his arms. Seeing the crowd, it clung tightly to him. Upon seeing the familiar Pei Six, it meowed daintily and then dared not make another sound.

"Just some clowns," Pei Six snorted coldly.

Manager Hang quickly came over and explained the situation about the Yuan family coming to claim their daughter.

After listening, General Qiao nodded and looked at Father and Mother Yuan, saying, "When Erniang saved me, she never mentioned having parents in the capital."

The crowd erupted in murmurs, and Father and Mother Yuan’s faces paled.

"Moreover, although she is now divorced, she is officially registered as a female household in Jianzhou and has acknowledged me as her grandfather."

Father and Mother Yuan were stunned.

The crowd grew even more agitated.

"G-... General Qiao? Is this true?"

"Of course, it's true. I never lie," General Qiao said, stroking the small, golden flower (Xiaojinhua) in his arms. "From now on, whether it's Erniang's marriage or any other matters, I, General Qiao, will take charge. You don't need to bother acknowledging her."

With that, he waved his hand, indicating to Manager Hang to see them out.

Manager Hang wiped his sweat and nodded.

Satisfied, General Qiao entered the separate residence.

Pei Six sheathed his sword and, with a cold smile, mimicked Father and Mother Yuan's tone, "Right now, is it that we don't want to acknowledge our daughter? Of course, we do. But even if it becomes widely known, it's useless. After all, she has acknowledged General Qiao as her grandfather. We’re just ordinary people—how can we possibly compete with General Qiao for her? For her sake, we’ll have to endure the pain and let her recognize General Qiao as her grandfather."

"You, you..." Father Yuan clutched his chest in pain and slowly fell backward, startling Mother Yuan into helping him.

Taking the cue, Manager Hang said, "Not good, Master Yuan is furious and might faint. Quickly, take them to see a doctor!"

Amidst the chaos, she quickly called the guards to escort the Yuan clan far away.

The group that had come to the capital was already a hot topic in the city. The news spread rapidly, and within a day, everyone in the capital knew about it.

Thus, people also learned about Gu Erniang's situation with the Yuan family and the fact that she was now the adopted granddaughter of General Qiao. People had all sorts of opinions, ranging from praise to criticism.

The Yuan family was thoroughly humiliated. It was obvious to all that they had neglected their daughter for many years. Now that she had been divorced and was gaining favor with the emperor, they wanted to claim her back to take advantage of the situation. While some criticized Gu Erniang for being unfilial, many more mocked the Yuan family for their opportunism.

The Yuan family was left in utter shame and became a laughingstock among their neighbors for quite some time.

As for Gu Ran, she didn’t feel the least bit guilty.

She had never planned to have anything to do with the original owner's family. If the Yuan family tried to approach her, she had already made up her mind not to acknowledge them. To her surprise, General Qiao intervened and swiftly resolved the situation.

"Grandfather Qiao, thank you for standing up for me and chasing them away," Gu Ran thanked General Qiao with a smile.

"You don't need to thank me."

Back in Xiaxi Village, General Qiao hadn't yet considered the complexity of Gu Ran's background. On the journey back to the capital on the official ship, as he discussed the changes in Jianzhou and Quan Gang over the years with Minister Hang, it naturally led to the topic of the people who had saved him.

He learned that the person who had saved him was a convict exiled to Min Prefecture.

Once the legitimate daughter of the Ningyuan Marquis family, then an adopted daughter; once the fourth mistress of Prime Minister Qin's estate, then a convict. However, Gu Erniang did not show any self-pity or resentment towards the injustice of fate.

What was in front of him was a clever and intelligent lady who was full of hope for life.

There was no shadow of the misfortune of imprisonment and exile thousands of miles away.

It was also very different from what he had heard about Gu Erniang from his acquaintances in the capital.

Perhaps it was those experiences at the Ningyuan Marquis family and Prime Minister Qin's estate that allowed Gu Erniang to rise from the ashes and become someone new.

Just like himself, after being falsely accused eight years ago and stranded on an island for many years, although he didn’t want to talk about it with outsiders, his mindset had indeed changed greatly from back then.

People always change, which is not surprising.

"You know that now, only I am left in the Qiao family," General Qiao looked at Gu Erniang with full expectation, "Since we are so compatible, and you always call me grandfather, how about really becoming my granddaughter?"

Gu Ran was stunned, and Pei Sixth Lady was also stunned.

General Qiao also looked at Pei Sixth Lady, "If you are willing, become my granddaughter too! In the future, both of you sisters can take care of each other."

Gu Ran and Pei Sixth Lady looked at each other. Gu Ran nodded with a smile, while Pei Sixth Lady shook her head.

"Oh, Sixth Miss doesn't want to?"

Gu Ran was slightly surprised to see Pei Sixth Lady: You don't want to? Such a strong and reliable ally is right in front of you, and you're turning it down?

Pei Sixth Lady coughed dryly and glanced at General Qiao, "Having Erniang as your granddaughter is enough."

"Alright, I won't force anyone," General Qiao smiled at Gu Erniang, "Then, from today onwards, I will consider you as part of the Qiao family."

"Okay, Grandfather Qiao!"

Although she hadn’t expected things to turn out this way, having General Qiao as a grandfather was like finding a strong backing. It would be very convenient for her to do anything in Jianzhou in the future. It would be foolish not to acknowledge this relationship!

When outsiders confirmed that Gu Erniang was indeed General Qiao's adopted granddaughter, there were even more opinions.

Some envied Gu Erniang's good fortune, while others were jealous that her adopted family was better than her biological one. Naturally, there were also those who cursed Gu Erniang for being ungrateful, among other things.

This rumor also reached the ears of the Ningyuan Marquis family.

Originally, the Ningyuan Marquis was harboring resentment because his wife failed to bring Gu Erniang back into the family. He was considering whether to teach this ungrateful woman a lesson, but upon hearing that she had become the adopted granddaughter of General Qiao, he had no choice but to suppress his desire for revenge.

Now that General Qiao was at the height of his fame and favor with the emperor, he had to be cautious and endure it.

The Ningyuan Marquis's wife, however, let out a cold laugh. "This Second Miss Gu, I raised her since she was young. Do I not know her temperament? She’s the most adept at scheming! No wonder she refused to acknowledge our Ningyuan Marquis family. It turns out she had already secretly attached herself to General Qiao!"

So what if she has General Qiao as her backing?

In the end, General Qiao would not remain in the capital. She would still have to return to the rural areas of Min Prefecture.

It was said that she was now farming oranges.

Fine by me. She can go back to being a farmer, scraping a living from the land, and not come back to annoy me in the capital.

As the rumors spread, the date for General Qiao's departure from the capital was set.

April 6th, a good day to return to his ancestral home.

Although it had been agreed upon before, now being publicly recognized as General Qiao's granddaughter and having visited many dignitaries in the capital with him, Gu Ran naturally had to go to Da Mao City as well.

As General Qiao prepared the supplies and reward silver to bring back to Da Mao City, Gu Ran and Pei Sixth Lady came to Fusheng Merchant House again to inform Xu Sanlang of their departure time.

This time, as soon as Gu Ran and Pei Sixth Lady appeared, the clerks in the merchant house, having received orders from the Third Young Master, immediately greeted them with smiles and invited them to the second-floor banquet hall, while sending someone to notify their young master.

As Gu Ran and Pei Sixth Lady walked towards the staircase inside the merchant house, Pei Sixth Lady spotted the same mother and daughter again, carefully selecting goods in the store. The woman jumped back when she saw them, but then quickly moved back into the aisle.

Pei Sixth Lady frowned, about to be on guard, when the woman called out, "Is that Second Sister?"

Pei Sixth Lady was stunned, and Gu Ran, walking ahead, also paused, looked up, and glanced at the woman, feeling a sense of familiarity.

Second Sister?

Was she talking to her?

Back in the Great Sheng Dynasty, only one person would call her Second Sister. Gu Ran quickly recognized her from the original owner’s memories. "You are, Third Sister?"

The woman, relieved that Gu Ran had recognized her, joyfully replied, "Yes, it's me, Second Sister, I am Third Sister!"

Pei Sixth Lady’s furrowed brows furrowed again.

Who was this Third Sister?