Chapter 378 - 379: I Am Sincere
Chapter 378: Chapter 379: I Am Sincere
Fortunately, Xu Nuo didn’t dwell on the matter and immediately started talking about some of the interesting things that had happened recently.
Watching the woman before him speak with such animated excitement, Gu Lehuan felt a strange bitterness in his heart. If Dazhuang hadn’t told him otherwise, he would have thought Proprietor Xu had been living a wonderful life.
"Proprietor Xu, about the matter of me marrying into your family... does the offer still stand?" Gu Lehuan’s abrupt question made the entire courtyard fall silent.
Xu Nuo’s expression froze. She stared at Gu Lehuan in disbelief.
She had her own regrets, wondering why she hadn’t finalized the marriage sooner.
But in truth, she had never really considered Gu Lehuan. At least, not since his status had changed. From that moment on, Xu Nuo knew the two of them were impossible.
"Young Master Gu, please don’t joke around." Xu Nuo couldn’t imagine the nephew of the Ancient Scholar marrying into the Xu Family. Even if she were willing, the Gu family would certainly never agree.
"I’m not joking. Our families had already agreed. If things hadn’t changed, I would have married into the Xu Family long ago."
The moment Gu Lehuan finished speaking, He Chun, who had just come to his side, felt like his head was about to explode. ’The implications of that statement are huge! Is he trying to ruin my very first day on the job?’
’If I go back and Madam blames me for this, she might just sell me off again.’
Forgetting the divide between master and servant, he blurted out, "Young Master Huan, please stop joking! If Madam finds out about this, my life will be forfeit!"
He Chun’s words snapped Xu Nuo back to reality. She gave a dry, awkward laugh. "Young Master Gu, that joke isn’t funny at all. That was ages ago. Besides, you’re a young master from an official family now. How could you possibly get entangled with common folk like us?
Your visit today is already a great honor for us. Let’s not bring up the past again."
But Gu Lehuan just stared at her intently. "I’m not joking. Proprietor Xu might think I’m trying to take advantage of your plight, but this is the best way to resolve your current difficulties."
Xu Nuo frowned. "Young Master Gu, please don’t press the issue. I can handle my own affairs. I have other matters to attend to shortly, so I’m afraid I can’t entertain you any longer today."
Her repeated use of "Young Master Gu" finally snapped him out of it. "I’m being sincere," he insisted.
Xu Nuo’s hand tightened into a fist. ’Of course I can see the sincerity in his eyes.’ But she was even more aware of her current status and circumstances. ’Why bring this humiliation upon myself?’
Having come to this conclusion, she turned to the dazed Dazhuang standing nearby. "Dazhuang, please see Young Master Gu out for me."
Dazhuang looked at Xu Nuo, as if he wanted to speak but held his tongue. ’Why is the proprietor pushing away such a good opportunity?’ he wondered.
Seeing Xu Nuo’s face tighten, Dazhuang didn’t dare to overstep. He could only say quietly to Gu Lehuan, "Young Master Gu, this humble one will see you out."
Gu Lehuan watched helplessly as Xu Nuo turned and disappeared into the inner courtyard. He then gritted his teeth and said to Dazhuang, "I’m being sincere."
Dazhuang lowered his head, looking troubled. As much as he wanted what was best for Xu Nuo, he couldn’t sway her decision.
Sanhua, who was still standing in the same spot, also snapped out of her daze. A look of delight flashed across her face. "The proprietor must just be having a hard time accepting it right now. If she really ends up with Young Master Gu, those petty villains won’t be able to threaten us anymore."
Dazhuang gave Sanhua a disapproving look. "The proprietor has her own reasons."
Sanhua shot him a glare and muttered under her breath, "So you just want us all to be split up?"
Dazhuang was speechless.
Gu Lehuan was in no mood to pay attention to their little squabbles. He walked out of the courtyard, utterly dejected. He didn’t understand what he had done wrong. If only Xu Nuo would agree, her current difficulties could all be resolved.
"Young Master Huan, you are, after all, a young master from an official family. How could you possibly marry into someone else’s?" He Chun’s words struck Gu Lehuan like a bolt of lightning, and he instantly understood why Xu Nuo had rejected him.
"What kind of young master am I? Our family branch already separated from Seventh Uncle’s long ago. We’re distant relations at best." Gu Lehuan said despondently, "To be honest, in the end, I’m the one who feels I’m not good enough for her."
He Chun didn’t understand the meaning behind his words and could only follow him in silence.
As soon as they returned to the manor, He Chun didn’t dare delay for a second. He immediately went and reported the incident to Housekeeper Fu.
Jiang Zhongfu gulped. ’When did marrying into the wife’s family become so popular?’ he wondered. ’The Gu family’s uncle and nephew are both trying to go down the same path.’
This was a huge matter. Jiang Zhongfu didn’t dare to delay for even a moment and rushed to pass the message to the inner courtyard.
Jin Qianqian was chatting with Li Cuicui when the sudden news arrived. Li Cuicui rubbed her forehead. "The Gu family’s ancestral tomb must have been poorly placed. One after another, they’re all growing rebellious streaks."
’Blaming the ancestors seemed a bit of a stretch,’ Jin Qianqian thought.
"So, what do we do now?" Jin Qianqian really didn’t want to get involved in this sort of thing. The previous affair with Gu Lejia and Song Xiuyang had already left a bad taste in her mouth. She had no desire to get mixed up in the lives of these nephews-by-marriage.
Li Cuicui said, "This is a matter for his own family branch, so I shouldn’t be meddling. But your second sister-in-law has been rather unreliable lately, which is why I agreed to let Lehuan come with us. I never expected him to pull a stunt like this."
Thinking of the trouble to come, Li Cuicui couldn’t help but rub her temples again. "I’ll have him brought here in a bit to question him. After all, we have the precedent with the eighth brother. I hope this is just a momentary impulse."
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Li Cuicui hadn’t expected her grandson to be so stubborn. He insisted that even if he were to be expelled from the family, he would still marry into the bride’s household.
Li Cuicui felt dizzy. "Can’t you spare a thought for your parents? They’re getting on in years, and you’re the eldest son. How can you do this to them?"
Gu Lehuan replied, "If I hadn’t met Seventh Uncle, or if so many coincidences hadn’t occurred, your grandson would have already married into her family by now."
Li Cuicui was silent for a moment. "...Explain yourself. What is this all about?"
Jin Qianqian was also curious. As they listened to Gu Lehuan’s story, both she and her mother-in-law were left stunned.
Li Cuicui was shocked. ’How could the second brother and his wife have made such a decision back then?’ she wondered. ’Were things truly that desperate?’
Jin Qianqian was also surprised. She hadn’t expected the other party in this arrangement to be someone she knew.
’And Wang Caiyue, she’s really something else,’ Jin Qianqian thought. ’To be willing to let her own eldest son marry into another family.’
"Have you been in contact with this girl?" Li Cuicui, sharp and wizened with age, immediately got to the heart of the matter. "This affair should have been settled long ago. Why bring it up again now?"
Gu Lehuan nodded and went on to sing Xu Nuo’s praises.
"She already rejected you when you went to see her today, didn’t she? Then let’s consider this matter closed.
In a few days, when we return to our hometown, I’ll have a matchmaker find you a suitable girl. I won’t let your mother get involved this time." Li Cuicui grew even more irritated at the thought that this whole mess was Wang Caiyue’s doing.