Chapter 32

There were no loud sobs, no signs of sorrow or委屈, Gu Qiancheng only shed silent tears, one after another...

Gu Qiancheng wasn't crying for others to see, nor was she deliberately crying in front of Lady Zhao. Her body was out of control, as if she needed to cry for the original owner, for her tragic and short life.

But it was precisely because of this that it made people even more heartbroken.

Lady Zhao's eyes reddened, and tears also slid down her cheeks. She comforted with a choked voice, "Qiancheng, don't cry, don't cry. It's all Aunt Tong's fault. I didn't teach Yunchu well, making you suffer. Aunt Tong is sorry to you."

"Tong Aunt, don't say that. I don't blame the Young Master. My crying has nothing to do with the Young Master; it's just that my wound hurts." Gu Qiancheng stopped her tears. Without a handkerchief at hand, she wiped her face with her sleeve, "I'm sorry, Aunt Tong. I'm such a big girl, yet I still cry when my wound hurts. Aunt Sun even laughed at me before."

Gu Qiancheng pretended to be embarrassed and lowered her head, but this action made Lady Zhao even more heartbroken: "Silly child, in front of Aunt Tong, you will always be a little girl."

Lady Zhao picked up a handkerchief and carefully wiped away the tear marks on Gu Qiancheng's face. Lady Zhao's movements were very gentle, and for a moment, Gu Qiancheng saw the shadow of her mother in her.

Every time she returned home with injuries, her mother would scold her while gently applying medicine, secretly wiping away tears, heartbroken by her injuries.

Gu Qiancheng's eyes were a bit dazed. It wasn't until she saw the unhidden guilt in Lady Zhao's eyes that she came to her senses: No matter how good Lady Zhao was to her, she wasn't her real mother and would never unconditionally care for her. When it came to her own son, Lady Zhao would still think of her son.

Gu Qiancheng, don't be foolish... In this era, you can only rely on yourself. Even your own father can't be relied upon, so who else can you depend on?

When Lady Zhao retracted her hand, Gu Qiancheng spoke up, "Aunt Tong, I know you didn't come to see me just to check on me. If there's something, just say it. It's fine..."

"Qiancheng, Aunt Tong..." Lady Zhao's hand stiffened. Looking at Gu Qiancheng's forced smile, she felt an indescribable bitterness and pain.

Who said this child was dull and wooden? She clearly had a sharp mind, more perceptive than anyone. Such a woman would be enough to be her daughter-in-law, but unfortunately, this happened, and a good marriage was ruined.

The Prince was already dissatisfied with this marriage, thinking she had found a muddled wife for Yunchu, which would bring shame to the Zhao Mansion. As a result, Qiancheng hadn't even moved in, but caused a scandal at the wedding, embarrassing both the Gu family and the Zhao Mansion.

In this situation, the Prince was even less willing to acknowledge this marriage. Even mentioning Qiancheng's name made him angry. If Qiancheng were to marry into the Zhao Mansion, she wouldn't be happy.

Previously, when she saw Gu Qiancheng, she always appeared timid and dull, and she indeed felt a bit regretful. How could a woman who couldn't hold her own be a suitable Young Lady? Had she really been wrong?

As a mother, she selfishly hoped that her son could marry a sufficiently excellent wife who could match him. If the wife wasn't excellent, at least she should be liked by her son. Knowing that Yunchu didn't like Qiancheng, she couldn't force it and could only create opportunities for Qiancheng, but it didn't turn out as expected.

The Gu family really doesn't fear embarrassment...

Lady Zhao looked at Qiancheng with a heartbroken expression, her eyes full of guilt. Half of Qiancheng's tragedy was caused by her. She couldn't bring herself to say the words of breaking the engagement.

Gu Qiancheng sighed lightly and spoke up, "Aunt Tong, I know what you want to say. I had Aunt Sun pack up this jade pendant yesterday, originally planning to have her deliver it to the mansion someday. Now that you're here, I'll just be lazy and give it to you directly."

The jade pendant Gu Qiancheng mentioned was the token of engagement between her mother and Lady Zhao. Of course, there was also a marriage contract, which was in Lady Zhao's possession.

Aunt Sun had always hidden this jade pendant. Mr. Gu had tried several times to get his hands on it, but Aunt Sun always managed to avoid him.

The master and servant had endured a lot to protect this jade pendant. Whenever they couldn't bear it anymore, Aunt Sun would tell the original owner that as long as the jade pendant was safe, everything would turn around when she married into the Zhao Mansion.

But in the end, the jade pendant didn't bring them any benefits. Returning it to Lady Zhao now, the original owner wouldn't be attached.

"Qiancheng, it's Aunt Tong who has wronged you, it's Aunt Tong who has wronged you." Lady Zhao choked up, looking at the dragon pendant in her hand, her mind involuntarily recalling the image of that extraordinary woman.

Yunniang, your daughter is just like you, so considerate and heart-wrenching.

Gu Qiancheng shook her head, "Aunt Tong, don't say that. If it weren't for your open and covert care over the years, I wouldn't have lived so smoothly."

Gu Qiancheng wasn't lying. If Lady Zhao hadn't shown her affection and importance in public, the original owner's life might have been even worse.

"Foolish child, if Yunchu were half as sensible as you, Aunt Tong would be at ease." Lady Zhao patted Gu Qiancheng's head, her eyes full of pity, "Yunchu is still too young; he doesn't understand what he has missed."

Lady Zhao admitted that she had once wavered about Gu Qiancheng as a daughter-in-law, thinking she couldn't shoulder the responsibilities of a Young Lady. But on the wedding day, Gu Qiancheng's performance made Lady Zhao realize she hadn't been wrong. If Yunchu had married Qiancheng, Qiancheng would have been an excellent Young Lady for the Zhao Mansion. Unfortunately, Yunchu missed this opportunity.

After all, how could Yunniang's daughter be a dull and foolish girl? Even if she wasn't as skilled in music, chess, calligraphy, and painting as Yunniang, she must be an exceptionally wise woman. Today's performance by Gu Qiancheng further confirmed this fact.

This child had always been hiding her abilities, and it was impressive that she could maintain such composure at such a young age.

Seeing Lady Zhao looking at her with admiration, Gu Qiancheng feared she might change her mind and quickly said, "Aunt Tong, this is fine. Qiancheng is just a weak and foolish girl, not worthy of the Young Master, nor capable of shouldering the responsibilities of a Young Lady. The Young Master will surely marry a noble lady who matches him." No matter what, Qin Yunchu's wife wouldn't be Gu Qianxue. This was also a way to avenge the original owner.

"These years, you have suffered, child." Lady Zhao had already concluded that Gu Qiancheng had been hiding her abilities to survive in the Gu family.

At such a young age, she had to pretend to be foolish to survive. Despite knowing everything clearly in her heart, she couldn't argue and could only endure ridicule and humiliation. Such suffering would be unbearable even for an adult, yet Gu Qiancheng had silently endured it all at such a young age, how could it not be heart-wrenching?

Gu Qiancheng naturally knew that Lady Zhao had misunderstood. The original owner was truly raised by her stepmother to be ignorant and even somewhat dull and foolish, but she couldn't explain. As long as Lady Zhao agreed to the annulment, it didn't matter if she misunderstood...

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