Chapter 41 - 41 Unworthy
41 Unworthy
“…” Kang Wang’s expression darkened visibly. How could he not tell that Gu Yanfei was deliberately insulting Gu Yunrong?
A storm quickly brewed in his dark pupils and his sharp gaze swept across Gu Yanfei’s face inch by inch.
He also knew the truth about the real and fake daughter slip-up. Gu Yunrong had not hidden the truth from him and had told him immediately.
Kang Wang did not care if Gu Yunrong was from the Gu family. To him, it was enough that she was the Gu Yunrong he knew.
Having obtained the marriage of the British Monarchy after she returned to the Gu family, she had already gained an advantage. It was also because Gu Yunrong was magnanimous enough. Otherwise, if it were up to Kang Wang, this hidden danger would already have been resolved.
He did not expect Gu Yanfei to take this undeserved gain for granted!
“How dare you spout nonsense in front of the Empress Dowager!” Kang Wang took a step closer to Gu Yanfei. His eyes were terrifying as he tried to use his aura to suppress the slender and weak girl in front of him.
The crowd gasped involuntarily.
Kang Wang was furious. On the contrary, the corners of Empress Dowager Yuan’s mouth curled up imperceptibly and she shouted at Kang Wang indifferently, “Chu You, step back!”
Empress Dowager Yuan was a smart person and could tell from Gu Yanfei’s words that something was amiss.
She sized up Gu Yanfei and was surprised to find that this young lady, who was not yet of age, was actually very calm in the face of the furious Kang Wang, Chu You. Moreover, her slender and graceful figure was still standing upright like a bamboo willow.
After taking a closer look, Empress Dowager Yuan felt that Gu Yanfei looked a little familiar and resembled Madam Xie.
When Madam Xie was alive, she was a famous beauty in the capital, beautiful and refined.
“Tell me, what exactly is going on?” Empress Dowager Yuan’s gaze turned to Gu Yunrong again with suspicion in her eyes.
Empress Dowager Yuan’s voice was neither soft nor heavy, but it had a dignified aura.
Gu Yunrong had already calmed down from the initial panic, embarrassment, and helplessness.
She asked herself honestly and felt that she had not let Gu Yanfei down ever since her return to the capital, nor did she ever compete with her for anything…
She had returned Gu Yanfei’s Big Brother.
She had returned the status of the eldest branch’s legitimate daughter.
She had even returned the engagement.
She had already retreated again and again. What she had given was enough to make up for the past 14 years of her misplaced life.
Gu Yunrong closed her eyes and said slowly and clearly, “Empress Dowager Yuan, my second sister, Gu Yanfei, is the eldest daughter of the Marquis of Dingyuan.”
She tried her best to remain calm and looked straight at Empress Dowager Yuan. Only her slightly pale fingertips revealed her true thoughts.
Everyone was confused.
In the past two years, Gu Yunrong had been in the limelight in the capital. She could play the zither, play chess, write calligraphy, and paint. She could even ride horses and shoot swords. Not only was she good at all six arts, she was smart, obedient, and good at socializing with everyone.
Everyone knew that she was the legitimate daughter of the late Marquis of Dingyuan, Gu Ce, and had a legitimate brother, Gu Yuan. Ever since Gu Ce and his wife passed away one after another, they only had this pair of son and daughter left.
However, Gu Yanfei was very unfamiliar to them.
It was only today that they saw her and heard her name for the first time.
This morning, after Gu Yanfei came to the mansion with Gu Yunrong and Gu Yunzhen, several girls, including Changqing, privately asked Gu Yunrong who Gu Yanfei was.
At that time, they were just chatting idly and their words went in one ear and out the other most of the time. They had not paid much attention to it, but now that they thought about it, they felt that Gu Yunrong was very vague. She only said that Gu Yanfei was her cousin and did not say anything else.
If Gu Yanfei was Gu Ce’s only daughter, what about Gu Yunrong?
The straightforward Eldest Miss Li couldn’t help but ask, “Sister Rong, is this girl your biological sister? Then why did you say that she’s your cousin?”
Gu Yunrong was speechless.
She looked embarrassed. Her armpits, joints, and back were covered in sweat.
It was as if a loincloth had been torn open in public.
From the day the ancestral hall was opened, her and Gu Yanfei’s background had been determined in the Marquis Mansion. She always thought that Madam Gu would find an opportunity to give an explanation to the public.
If Madam Gu were to do this, it would definitely be more formal and easier for outsiders to accept. <any baseless speculations could also be avoided.< p>
And now, she was completely unprepared… The current situation was equivalent to directly throwing her into the fire pit.
At this moment, Gu Yunrong almost resented Madam Gu.
When Chu You saw Gu Yunrong like this, pity and heartache filled his chest.
He suppressed his killing intent towards Gu Yanfei and said in a clear voice, “Since Gu Ce’s daughter is Gu Yanfei, the engagement with the British Monarchy will naturally be hers.”
“Mother, it has been made clear now. Rong’er is not engaged. Mother, please give me and Rong’er a marriage.”
Chu You held Gu Yunrong’s hand tightly, his hot palm pressing against her cold skin. He gestured with his eyes that she did not have to speak. He was here for everything.
As a man, of course he had to protect his woman!
The more Chu You protected Gu Yunrong, the more uncomfortable Empress Dowager Yuan felt. She asked indifferently, “Gu Yanfei is Gu Ce’s daughter, so who is Gu Yunrong?”
Gu Yanfei smiled without saying anything.
“Rong’er is…”
Chu You wanted to answer on Gu Yunrong’s behalf again, but this time, Gu Yunrong interrupted, “Empress Dowager Yuan, I’m the daughter of the Marquis of Dingyuan, Gu Jian. Because the eldest branch’s legitimate daughter was lost since she was young, I was adopted to the eldest branch. Now that my second sister has been found, the elders have decided to let us sisters return to our original positions…”
“I’m currently third in line.”
Gu Yunrong had made up this excuse at the last minute. As she spoke, the sweat on her back became even denser, wet and cold against her skin.
Gu Yanfei let Gu Yunrong make up the story, but she still smiled without saying anything. Her quiet expression made her look even more beautiful and refined. She was simply dazzling to the eye.
The crowd was in an uproar.
To be honest, it was the Gu family’s business who the daughter of this pair of cousins was. If not for the fact that the Empress Dowager and Kang Wang were present today, they would have just treated it as a breeze and not cared much. However, under such circumstances, everyone could not help but think too much.
They glanced back and forth at the cousins, recalling their respective words. Something was wrong, and they could not help but be suspicious.
If the truth was as Gu Yunrong had said, there was no need for Gu Yunrong to hide it at all. However, when they called her Second Lady Gu today, Gu Yunrong did not correct them.
The more secretive she was, the more one would think that she was trying to hide some unknown secrets.
Chu You did not care what the others thought at all and only wanted the Empress Dowager to quickly bestow the marriage. He continued, “Since the sisters are returning to their original positions, the engagement naturally belongs to Gu Yanfei.”
As soon as he finished speaking, a crisp and decisive female voice sounded.
“I don’t want other people’s things.”
“Someone else’s engagement is not worthy of me.”
Gu Yanfei raised her beautiful chin slightly and smiled confidently.
The slender girl who was still as delicate as a flower just now was now like a different person, full of heroic spirit.
She was in her most dazzling year and was like the brightest stars in the night sky, arrogant and carefree.