While the Lu family was in Wancheng, they stayed as guests at the Huo residence.
Madam Lu, who was Gu Zhi’s aunt, had been close friends with Marshal Huo’s Fourth Concubine in their younger years. After so many years of Madam Lu deliberately maintaining the relationship, they were still on fairly good terms.
So when she returned to her hometown this time, Madam Lu brought her two daughters and son-in-law to stay at the Huo family residence.
Madam Lu claimed that she had returned to visit relatives, but in reality, she had not even gone home once. She knew perfectly well that if she really brought Shuyi and He Xun there, putting everything else aside, Old Madam Gu would definitely throw her out.
She might as well save herself the humiliation.
Aside from the main building, the Huo residence also had two smaller buildings, one of which was specifically used for accommodating guests.
Before Madam Lu arrived, to tell the truth, she had been worried that Gu Zhi would dislike having them around and make trouble for her every day.
But after moving in, she discovered that ever since Fourth Young Master Huo got married, Marshal Huo had driven his sons and daughters-in-law out of the main building. Only he himself and his legitimate eldest son’s family remained there.
The others had more or less complained, but that very day, the old man brought a gun to the dining table and spoke without leaving them any room to save face.
“I’ll make myself clear today. If anything happens to my grandson, I’ll step down immediately and let Xingchao become the commander. I’m telling you, when that happens, I’ll give the Huo family estate to whoever I damn well please. None of you should even think about it!”
……
Under the old man’s unquestionable authority, the young masters and young ladies did not dare defy him, and they all moved out quickly enough.
As for what they thought about it in their hearts, that was difficult to say.
Mainly because at first, they had assumed this was merely their father giving them a warning as a precaution and that he did not necessarily mean it.
But later, when they saw the series of orders and actions issued from above, they realized that the old man was truly serious this time.
Actually, Huo Guanghui had thought it through very clearly.
If the child in Gu Zhi’s belly really could not be preserved, then handing the position over to Qinglin would actually be the most suitable choice.
Because he was the most outstanding among his sons, and he had no descendants.
Having no descendants meant that in the end, he could only choose among his nephews.
It would be more objective and more stable.
But the others did not know that.
They could only secretly resent the old man for his favoritism while feeling too constrained to make any major moves. After thinking it over and over, the only best solution was to hurry up and have a child themselves.
……
It was under such strict protection that Gu Zhi peacefully spent four months nurturing her pregnancy in the main building. As the months gradually passed, her pregnancy became increasingly obvious.
During the New Year, when the family finally had a rare gathering, the other members of the Huo family discovered that this was clearly not the belly of someone who was only four months pregnant. They immediately became furious and resentful.
Often, whenever military matters were being discussed, the moment Huo Xingchao raised some point, his other brothers would become exceptionally united.
United in refuting and attacking him.
For once, they displayed remarkable solidarity against a common enemy.
Huo Xingchao actually did not care much. After all, the way they mixed official business with family matters like children playing house would, in a sense, only make people look down on them even more.
For the past few months, he had spent most of his time taking things at an unhurried pace. Whenever he had time, he would accompany Gu Zhi, listening to her chatter away beside his ear as she recited those impassioned poems of hers while he calmly read his newspaper.
Oh, of course, sometimes, if he was in a good mood, he would casually add a little more fuel to the fire over at the smaller building and make that family’s quarrels even worse.
“Madam Lu broke Third Concubine’s antique vase again and had to pay a huge sum of money for it!”
Or,
“Today, Mr. He discovered that Eldest Miss Lu actually can’t have children. The two of them started arguing right there in the courtyard. It got really fierce, and they almost came to blows in the end. Tsk, tsk, tsk.”
Or perhaps,
“I heard Fourth Concubine really likes Second Miss Lu. She even wanted to take her as a goddaughter before, but Eldest Miss Lu overheard it and pushed her straight down the stairs. Second Miss Lu’s leg still hasn’t healed to this day. Now those are truly sisters.”
……
Ever since this family moved in, the Huo family servants had fresh gossip every day.
And they all found it rather fascinating. Just how had the Lu family managed to live together like mortal enemies, yet still shamelessly cling to this place? They had been living here for nearly half a year and showed absolutely no intention of moving out.
It was truly laughable.
Actually, the Lu family’s chaotic, turmoil-filled life was basically all Lu Shuyuan’s handiwork.
But the fact that the entire family had remained shamelessly lodged at the Huo residence for so long had to do with Huo Xingchao.
He was rather different from Lu Shuyuan. If he could save himself the trouble, he could not be bothered getting tangled up in these trivial matters.
If he plucked the feathers out one by one, how long would it take before he was finally done?
Huo Xingchao found it troublesome.
So he directly cut off the source of their ability to throw their weight around.
The Lu family in Shanghai was now too overwhelmed with their own troubles to worry about anything else. Master Lu had lost his official position outright because of corruption.
Whether it was money deposited in the bank or hidden at home, everything had been searched out. No one even bothered listening to his explanations. A sudden and thorough investigation was launched against him directly, leaving him no time to pull any strings.
It could be said that from this point onward, the Lu family would no longer be the proud wife and daughters of an official. They were merely ordinary civilians pretending to be more important than they really were.
There were two reasons Madam Lu was still staying in Wancheng.
First, she had taken a liking to the Huo family’s status. During her many days in Wancheng, she had personally witnessed Fourth Concubine’s pampered life of luxury, as well as Gu Zhi’s rise from an ordinary girl to a phoenix perched on a high branch. Her heart burned with envy.
So she also wanted her own daughter to follow the same path, and she was more than enthusiastic toward the Huo family’s young masters.
Second, she hoped to find the right opportunity to ask the Huo family for help so Master Lu could regain his position.
Huo Guanghui was the leader of the Anhui clique warlords, and in recent years, he had gradually shown signs of becoming a dominant force in the central government. As long as Huo Guanghui said a single word, forget regaining his position, even being promoted several ranks would be effortless.
Thinking of this, Madam Lu felt somewhat regretful.
If she had known back then that Gu Zhi would become so capable, she should have treated her well. Forget falling out with her, even if she had needed to make Shuyi kneel and apologize, she should have maintained a good relationship with her.
Then now, all Gu Zhi would have to do was say one sentence to Fourth Young Master Huo, and it would be worth ten days of them begging here.
……Sigh, honestly, who knew what had gotten into that child Shuyi for her to insist on falling for an impoverished scholar like He Xun.
Madam Lu sighed. Her gaze shifted, and when she saw her younger daughter sitting on the sofa nearby, she could not help frowning again.
“Shuyuan, what’s going on with you? Why have you been cooped up in your room every day these past few days instead of having afternoon tea with Gu Zhi? I’m telling you, you can’t be willful. There’s nothing that can be done about your elder sister, but you absolutely have to build a good relationship with Gu Zhi!”
Lu Shuyuan lowered her head and looked at the book in her hands, her gaze indifferent. “Mom, you should stop thinking about it. Rather than having me get close to Cousin, you might as well have me get close to Fourth Young Master directly.”
“Ha, I’d like that too. The problem is, does he even pay attention to you? Shuyuan, I’m telling you, one of Gu Zhi’s old classmates came to see her today, and they’re having a wonderful time chatting. If you don’t go up there, plenty of other people will rush to get close to her. Don’t throw a little tantrum with me now. We’re the ones who have to beg them for favors, do you understand……”
She understood.
Of course she understood.
Gu Zhi was the female lead of this television drama, after all.
Naturally, everything she had was the best.
Whether it was her husband, her son, or even her admirers, they were all the best.
As long as you were like Gu Zhi, everyone would like you, and you could be a sweet, naive little fool who simply waited for good fortune to fall from the sky.
She had always known that.
Young Master Duan, who had pursued her before, did he not later become Gu Zhi’s number one admirer in the drama too?
But as long as she met him first, he immediately fell deeply in love with her.
That was the protagonist’s halo, wasn’t it?
Lu Shuyuan looked at the book in her hands, her eyes dark.
The title on the cover belonged to a familiar English poetry collection in translation, but upon opening it, one would discover that it was not a poetry collection at all. It was merely a notebook using its cover.
Favorite fruits: cherries. Oranges. Chinese bayberries.
Favorite color: blue.
……
Blinks when speaking.
……
One pierced ear. Right ear.
……
They were all Gu Zhi’s habits and preferences.
This was how she had pieced together the memories of two Lu Shuyuans, bit by bit, to piece together the person she was now.
At first, she had not intended to imitate Gu Zhi. It was only because Gu Zhi was the female lead of this television drama that she had subconsciously remembered many things about her.
But when she first met Young Master Chen, she discovered that as long as she resembled Gu Zhi even a little, he would like her a little more.
So little by little, until eventually, it seemed almost like an addiction.
She became more and more like Gu Zhi.
And at the time, she had thought that sooner or later, Huo Xingchao would be injured in Shanghai. Once he was injured, she would seize the opportunity to save him. Resembling the woman he loved was also the fastest way to attract his attention.
But yesterday.
Just yesterday, while she was memorizing her lessons in her room, she had accidentally fallen asleep with her head on the desk. When she woke up, a servant told her that Gu Zhi had come to her room looking for her. But perhaps because she saw that Lu Shuyuan was still asleep, she had not woken her and had simply left.
……
The book was still lying open neatly on the desk.
But it had been flipped from the middle all the way to the final page. It was obvious that someone else had gone through it.
And that person had not even been afraid of letting her know that it had been read.
Lu Shuyuan thought about it for a long time, growing increasingly uneasy the more she thought.
No. She had put so much effort into building a good relationship with Gu Zhi. She could not let it suddenly go to waste like this.
So she took a deep breath, carefully thought through what she was going to say, and only then knocked on the door of the main building.
By the time she arrived, they had already finished eating. Old Master Huo had probably gone upstairs. In the sitting room, only Fourth Young Master Huo was sitting on the sofa with Gu Zhi, playing cat’s cradle with her.
“No, no, you have to hook it toward the right.”
“Oh, no, that’s not it. Cross them and hook toward the right.”
“Wrong, it’s the one underneath.”
By the end, the young girl simply sighed, exasperated by his failure to live up to expectations.
“Oh, why are you so stupid?”
Yes, a young girl.
Even though her figure looked plump and she was pregnant, neither her expressions and movements nor the tone she used when speaking resembled those of a woman who was about to become a mother.
She was just like one of those young girls in television dramas who waited for good fortune to fall from the sky.
Lu Shuyuan clenched her hand, curved her lips into a smile, and walked forward. “Cousin.”
Gu Zhi raised her head. When she saw her, her eyes immediately lit up. Smiling brightly, she waved at her. “Shuyuan, you’re here. Your timing is perfect. I happen to have something I want to ask you.”
Lu Shuyuan froze.
Sure enough, the next moment, she saw the young girl put away the string in her hands and blink at her, her tone carrying a few traces of curiosity and a few traces of puzzlement.
Her soft, delicate voice sounded in Lu Shuyuan’s ears.
“Why are you trying to copy me?”
……
It was a directness and straightforwardness she had never expected.
Meanwhile, the man beside them leaned against the sofa in a lazy posture, his expression indifferent. He did not even lift his eyelids, as though he had absolutely no interest in the topic.
This scene was also an unexpected and humiliating situation that had caught her completely off guard.
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