My Dearest Sister-In-Law, I've Been Waiting For You To Get A Divorce For A Long Time - Chapter 22

Chapter 22

◎ “Is that so, aunt-in-law?” ◎

The back garden was filled with women, all gathered in pairs or small groups by the pavilions and stone tables, laughing and chatting.

The moment Gu Wenyao arrived, all eyes seemed to turn her way, and the laughter quickly turned into whispers.

“Isn’t that the Marquis Gu’s second daughter, the Yao girl? Her birth mother was Miss Ming, the only daughter of the Jiangnan Ming family. I haven’t seen her in a while. She’s grown into quite the beauty.”

“That’s her. I heard that the First Lady’s lotus banquet today isn’t just for her daughter, but for her niece as well.”

“To find a match for the Second Miss? Just looking at her, Gu Wenyao is flawless. The daughter of a Marquis, and she has a mountain of gold behind her. She has the status and the nobility. However…”

The woman held a handkerchief over her lips, lowering her voice. She secretly glanced at Gu Wenyao. “I heard that this Gu Wenyao is frail and can’t bear children easily. Her weak constitution makes it hard to say if she’ll even live a long life. If we were to deliberately marry her as the main wife, it would seem like we have ulterior motives.”

“With her conditions, would the Marquis Gu agree to her not being a main wife?” another lady said. “Unless Gu Wenyao has lost her mind and wants to marry into a small family, otherwise the Marquis Gu would never agree.”

“That’s why, even though she’s the official Second Miss of the Marquis manor, her conditions are a hurdle. Her matchmaking has been put off until now. Compared to Madam Gu’s own daughter, it’s probably going to be hard for Gu Wenyao to get married.”

“You can’t be sure about that,” the woman said with a smile, her eyes glancing over to where Mo Shuqing, the current First Lady of the manor, was. “Her sister-in-law, the daughter of the Mo family, is here now, and she’ll definitely have to fight for control of the household. If the Second Miss stays in the manor and doesn’t get married, it wouldn’t look good.”

“No wonder the First Lady suddenly held a lotus banquet.”

The women looked at each other, their minds suddenly as clear as day. Madam Gu was determined to use this banquet to marry off Gu Wenyao.

They were all women of the inner quarters. Madam Gu’s schemes were transparent, and some could see right through her.

“Second Miss.” When Gu Wenyao walked over, the women smiled and nodded at her, feeling a little awkward.

After Gu Wenyao passed, they continued to whisper. “I wonder how much of that she heard.”

“What does it matter if she heard all of it? It’s not like we said anything wrong. Alright, alright. It’s the Marquis’s family business, what does it matter to us? Come, try this pastry. We still have to go look at the lotus flowers later.”

“That’s right. No other courtyard in the capital can compare to the Marquis Gu’s lotus pond. That’s why his lotus flowers are the most beautiful every year.”

“Ooh, why is this fruit so sweet…”

Gu Wenyao looked from left to right as she passed the group of women, as if she hadn’t heard anything. A flawless smile was on her face, but there was no warmth in her eyes. It was only when she caught a glimpse of a scallion-green figure that a genuine smile appeared on her face. She lifted her skirt and walked over to Mo Shuqing.

Gu Wenyao stood behind Mo Shuqing and quietly reached out. She gently tapped Mo Shuqing’s right shoulder with her fan. When Mo Shuqing turned her head to look, she immediately moved to her left and hid her face with her fan.

When she saw Mo Shuqing turn around, Gu Wenyao held the fan’s handle with both hands and slowly lowered it, revealing her bright, smiling face. “Sister-in-law, I’m here.”

Mo Shuqing sighed softly, as if helpless. “You’re so mischievous.”

Gu Wenyao’s eyes curved. She opened her arms and slowly turned around in front of Mo Shuqing, deliberately blinking and asking her, “Sister-in-law, don’t you think this dress fits me perfectly? It’s all thanks to my sister-in-law’s accurate measurements.”

Even more mischievous.

“It fits perfectly,” Mo Shuqing said, her face expressionless, and she nodded. “This color also complements your complexion.”

Gu Wenyao was dressed in pink and held a silver-white and gold-embroidered fan. Standing in the sunlight, she looked fresh and lively, with a lot less of her usual sickly look.

Gu Wenyao was all smiles. She held the fan out and turned her wrist to fan Mo Shuqing. Just as she was about to speak, she saw Madam Gu’s servant walk over.

The servant said, “First Lady, Madam has asked you to go with the Young Marquis to meet some important guests.”

Gu Shufeng wanted to become an official, so the guest list for today included several scholars from the Hanlin Academy, not to mention the doctors from the Imperial Academy.

For this one banquet, Madam Gu had her ideas, and the Marquis had his.

He was determined to have his son try the civil service exams. He was afraid of others gossiping, so he used the excuse of the newlyweds to have Mo Shuqing and Gu Shufeng meet these old scholars. After all, no matter how much they disliked Gu Shufeng, they would give Mo Shuqing some face because of her family.

Seeing Mo Shuqing and the servant leave, Gu Wenyao’s fingers holding the fan’s handle slowly tightened. Her smile completely vanished.

It was as if a clear sky had suddenly turned cloudy. Gu Wenyao’s good mood vanished in an instant, and even the pink on her dress seemed a little dull.

She followed Mo Shuqing towards the front hall. As she got closer, she saw her brother standing on the steps of the front hall.

When Gu Shufeng saw Mo Shuqing coming, he forced a smile onto his face and reached out to her in a familiar way, as if to put on a show of being a loving couple. “My lady.”

Mo Shuqing stopped. Her hands were folded in front of her, and she remained still. She only looked at Gu Shufeng with an impassive expression.

Although they shared the same father, Mo Shuqing’s attitude towards the two siblings was completely different.

With her being so cold, Gu Shufeng couldn’t continue his act.

Gu Shufeng peeked into the hall with the corner of his eye and said to Mo Shuqing, his voice low and threatening, “This is my father’s idea. Do you think I want to do this? You’d better be sensible and cooperate with me and let those old fogeys think I’ve changed for the better after getting married. Otherwise, if I look bad, you won’t get off easy either.”

Mo Shuqing was curious. Her eyes fell on the spot where Gu Shufeng had been beaten. “Oh, and how will you make me not get off easy?”

Gu Shufeng was so frustrated by her stare that he was on the verge of losing his temper. “You…”

He took a deep breath and forced himself to calm down. His eyes went up and down Mo Shuqing’s body. The woman in front of him stood tall and slender, her expression cold. Her green robe was like bamboo and a lotus, so straight that he wanted to bend it.

Gu Shufeng suddenly smirked, his eyes frivolous. “Don’t you hate me for not consummating our marriage? How about this, if you put on a good show today, I’ll go back to the Other Gentleman Courtyard to sleep tonight.”

Mo Shuqing was speechless.

Seeing him about to touch her again, Mo Shuqing was the first to reach out and lift her skirt, stepping past Gu Shufeng and walking up the steps into the main hall. She coldly left him with a message. “There are no puddles in the Other Gentleman Courtyard. The Young Marquis probably won’t have a place to stay tonight.”

A puddle?

Gu Shufeng belatedly realized. “You’re insulting me!”

He immediately lowered his voice and gritted his teeth. “You’re calling me a bullfrog lying in a puddle!”

This wretched woman!

Gu Shufeng chased after her, his face twisted in a scowl. Just as he was about to speak, he saw his father’s stern eyes glance at him from inside the hall. Gu Shufeng’s anger immediately died down, and he lowered his head, not daring to say a word.

“Shuqing is here.” The Marquis changed his expression to a kind one and waved at Mo Shuqing. “You two just got married not long ago. Come and meet some of the elders.”

Out of fear of the Marquis’s authority, Gu Shufeng stood next to Mo Shuqing obediently, looking like a good husband who respected his wife.

Gu Wenyao stood outside the door, her hand holding the fan handle at her side. She watched the “happy” family of four and the “loving” couple inside.

No matter how she looked at it, she felt that Gu Shufeng was extremely out of place standing next to Mo Shuqing.

She raised her hand and blocked Gu Shufeng with her fan, looking only at Mo Shuqing. Only then did she feel a little better.

The sun was rising, and it was getting hot outside.

Madam Gu came to the front hall and was a little surprised to see Gu Wenyao standing at the door with her fan, not going in.

Madam Gu followed Gu Wenyao’s gaze and saw the Marquis leading Mo Shuqing and Gu Shufeng to meet the guests. “Yao girl, what are you looking at?”

She stood next to Gu Wenyao, taking the opportunity to stab her in the heart. “Look at how well your brother and sister-in-law look together. The people in that room are a family of four, and you are an outsider who will be marrying out sooner or later.”

Madam Gu looked at Gu Wenyao, her mind turning. She brought up Mo Shuqing on purpose at this moment. “Yao girl, I’ll give you a piece of advice. You should hand over the household authority to your sister-in-law as soon as possible. When you marry, we can all get along as aunt and niece-in-law when you come back to visit.”

“Aunt-in-law,” Gu Wenyao murmured. Her gaze was fixed on Mo Shuqing. “Is that so, aunt-in-law?”

It had been a month since Mo Shuqing married in. Only now did Gu Wenyao truly understand that the words “sister-in-law” were not just a title but a status.

As long as Mo Shuqing had this status, she couldn’t stand next to Mo Shuqing as a man like Gu Shufeng could.

Gu Wenyao lowered her eyes. Her long eyelashes hid the emotions in her eyes. She only lowered her head and touched the gold thread on her silver-white fan.

Seeing her fall silent, Madam Gu’s eyelids twitched. She feigned concern. “Yao girl, do you want to go look at the lotus flowers? The servants said the lotus flowers are at their most beautiful today.”

Gu Wenyao had almost drowned in that lotus pond back then. How could she possibly want to go look at the lotus flowers?

Gu Wenyao frowned and sighed softly. “I won’t go. The family is so happy and harmonious, why should I go?”

She glanced at Mo Shuqing in the front hall, then looked back at Madam Gu and smiled. “Auntie, you planned this banquet so well. You’ve invited everyone who should and shouldn’t be here. I think I even saw your husband’s nephews just now.”

The words “husband’s family” made Madam Gu’s eyelids twitch. She instinctively looked at Gu Wenyao and said awkwardly, “What ‘husband’s family’? We got a divorce a long time ago.”

Gu Wenyao slowly fanned herself, smiling. “Oh, a divorce.”

She said the last three words with a meaningful tone.

Gu Wenyao turned around and left with Yi Yun.

Madam Gu looked at Gu Wenyao’s back and raised her hand to wipe the sweat from her temples with her handkerchief. Surely Gu Wenyao didn’t figure anything out? This girl is so cunning. I have to be more careful.

The pleasantries in the front hall were also nearing their end.

Mo Shuqing bowed to the old scholar with gray hair in front of her. She said warmly, “Then I’ll have to trouble you.”

Madam Gu came in at this moment. She glanced at Mo Shuqing and walked to the Marquis’s side. “Zecheng, who is this?”

The Marquis pulled Madam Gu’s arm and walked two steps to the side. He whispered, “That’s Doctor Li. He’s retired from the Imperial Academy. He had some ties to the Mo family in the past. I specifically invited him, hoping he would give the Mo family some face and guide Shufeng a little for Shuqing’s sake.”

No wonder Madam Gu didn’t recognize him. After all, she was the one who had made the guest list.

The Marquis looked at her. “Sister, why did you come over?”

Madam Gu remembered the main point. She raised her chin and gestured to the men sitting in the side room. “The lotus flowers are blooming. It’s time for the banquet to begin.”

The best time to appreciate lotuses was between 9 a.m. and 11 a.m. If you went too early, the lotus flowers hadn’t fully bloomed. If you went too late, they would have started to close up. So, this was the best time.

Especially since the lotus flowers had been in bloom for three days, it was the best time to see them.

The Marquis readily agreed. “Alright. You have someone go first. I’ll be there soon.”

After Madam Gu left, the Marquis put his hands behind his back. He looked at Mo Shuqing not far away, a satisfied and content expression on his face. “She’s a daughter of the Mo family after all. She’s dignified and knows her place. Shufeng should also use this opportunity to settle down.”

He said to Madam Yu, who was next to him, “Shufeng’s injury has healed. Just as I said, have his things moved to the Other Gentleman Courtyard today. He’ll live with the First Lady he officially married. What kind of rule is it for a married couple not to consummate their marriage after a month?”

Madam Yu didn’t dare to object and only nodded in agreement.

Seeing Mo Shuqing walking towards him, the Marquis gave her a look that told her to wait. He first bowed to the scholars and doctors. He said with a smile, “Gentlemen, the lotus flowers in the back garden are blooming. How about we go take a look?”

Literary men loved appreciating flowers. As soon as they heard this, they all stood up, gesturing for each other to go first.

The Marquis, as the host, lagged two steps behind. He instructed his son to show off in front of the scholars. “Shufeng, go lead the way for the scholars.”

After most of them had left, the Marquis asked Mo Shuqing, “How was it? What did Doctor Li say?”

Mo Shuqing said, “Doctor Li has agreed to guide the Young Marquis. But he doesn’t dare to take him as a disciple. Doctor Li said that the Young Marquis has been away from the Imperial Academy for too long. If he wants to pass the autumn imperial examinations, he might need to live in his school and study diligently.”

He didn’t dare to take him as a disciple because he was afraid of ruining his reputation. But being willing to guide him was the best possible outcome.

The Marquis nodded repeatedly. “This must be because of your father and your Mo family’s reputation. Otherwise, with Gu Shufeng’s character, there’s no way he would catch Doctor Li’s eye. Shuqing, this is all thanks to you.”

“It’s all what I should do,” Mo Shuqing slightly bowed. She then brought up his studies. “Doctor Li asked if the Young Marquis could move into his school today? After all, the autumn imperial examinations are coming up soon, and there isn’t much time left.”

“This…” The Marquis hesitated for a moment.

He had originally wanted the young couple to consummate their marriage tonight.

The Marquis pretended he had never mentioned that to Madam Yu and agreed. “It’s rare for Doctor Li to give in. We can’t miss this opportunity. Have him move today. However, it’s a bit unfair to you.”

“Don’t say that. We’re a family,” Mo Shuqing said, walking out with the Marquis.

They came out late and were walking behind the male guests.

Mo Shuqing saw a few familiar figures and feigned confusion. She turned her head and asked the Marquis, “Father, those few gentlemen are very unfamiliar, and they don’t have any name tags. I wonder which family’s sons they are. We should be careful and not let anyone sneak in and cause trouble for Miss Jingchun.”

When she mentioned this, the Marquis followed her gaze and said casually, “Those are from the Earl’s manor. What ‘gentlemen’? They’re a bunch of good-for-nothings who can’t even compare to Shufeng.”

Then, the Marquis paused. “There seem to be quite a few sons from the Earl’s manor here today.”

He narrowed his eyes. “These people are cousins to your aunt’s daughter. It’s Jingchun’s matchmaking banquet today. Why are they here?”

Especially her ex-in-laws. For so many of them to show up, people who didn’t know might think the two families were still connected.

The Marquis remembered something and asked Mo Shuqing, “Shuqing, besides the scholars just now, was the rest of the guest list made by your aunt?”

Mo Shuqing nodded. “Auntie gave me the list, and I wrote the invitations.”

The Marquis suddenly stopped. “Marrying off a daughter? Are they marrying off my daughter…”

Madam Gu had a history of this when it came to Gu Wenyao.

The Marquis’s face didn’t show anything, and his voice was normal. He only said to Mo Shuqing, “Ever since Wenyao fell into the water, she hasn’t liked to go near the pond. As her sister-in-law, you should watch over her today and make sure she doesn’t get left behind. That child is sensitive, and we can’t be with her. I’m afraid she’ll think we’ve forgotten about her and feel sad.”

The key point in the Marquis’s words was not that he was afraid Gu Wenyao would be sad but that he wanted her not to be alone.

He looked at the crowd in front of them, clearly having his own plan. That’s why he didn’t send someone to protect Gu Wenyao.

Mo Shuqing pretended not to understand his hidden meaning and only lowered her eyes and said, “Yes.”