GTEMP[QT] - Chapter 9 (Patreon)

After Gu Wenjing returned home from work, he felt that Cheng Yuhua's mood was off, and the people around her were also gloomy.

He even noticed Cheng Yuhua staring at him with a pitiful gaze for a long time, which made him furrow his brows.

"What's wrong?" he asked.

Cheng Yuhua's voice sounded a bit aggrieved as she said, "Husband, aren't you going to visit Sister Yuan today?"

Sister Yuan? Gu Wenjing paused for a moment before realizing she was referring to Yuan Susu. But didn't Cheng Yuhua always call her cousin in the past?

"Why should I look for her?" Gu Wenjing couldn't understand what she meant.

Cheng Yuhua felt that Gu Wenjing was playing dumb and said indifferently, "Mother has already brought Sister Yuan here and settled her in the West Courtyard. If you want to go, then go!"

Gu Wenjing finally sensed that something was wrong, and his face darkened. "What's the matter with Yuan Susu?" he asked.

Cheng Yuhua explained the matter of Lady Yuan asking her to accept Yuan Susu as his noble concubine.

After listening, Gu Wenjing coldly sneered, "Mother has lost her mind. Does she think that by getting you to agree, I would willingly accept Yuan Susu?"

Lady Yuan probably thought that Gu Wenjing was reluctant to accept Yuan Susu because he was concerned about Cheng Yuhua and the Cheng family's opinion. After all, Yuan Susu was going to become a noble concubine. But now that Cheng Yuhua had personally agreed to accept Yuan Susu, even if Gu Wenjing didn't like her, a beauty delivered to his doorstep for free would be hard to resist.

However, Lady Yuan didn't understand Gu Wenjing's temperament. If he didn't want to do something, no one could force him. Even if he had to reluctantly agree due to the circumstances, he wouldn't make it easy for anyone.

Cheng Yuhua was stunned. She sensed something was wrong and said, "Husband, you and your cousin have always..."

Gu Wenjing gave Cheng Yuhua a cold glance. He hadn't expected Cheng Yuhua to agree without even discussing it with him, showing no trust in him.

But considering that Cheng Yuhua was a woman trained to become the main lady of a household in ancient times, it was her duty to arrange concubines for her husband in her mind.

Gu Wenjing closed his eyes, suppressed his anger, and then opened them to say calmly, "Mother has mentioned it to me before. I have no interest in my cousin and rejected her. I didn't expect Mother to turn her attention to you. You should have discussed it with me before giving a response."

Cheng Yuhua immediately regretted it. She had thought that Gu Wenjing and his cousin had a close relationship, so she reluctantly agreed. She was afraid that rejecting the proposal would make Gu Wenjing resentful. But she didn't expect that she had made a foolish mistake.

Gu Wenjing stood up, adjusted his sleeves, and said calmly, "I'll go see Mother. You should rest early. I'll sleep in the study tonight."

Cheng Yuhua stood up and called out, "Husband..."

But Gu Wenjing ignored her and walked out, heading towards the main residence.

Cheng Yuhua became anxious and took a few steps to chase after him, but she didn't want to run in an undignified manner, so she couldn't catch up with Gu Wenjing, who was already gone with his long strides.

She paced anxiously in the room, "Nanny, what should I do? My husband is angry with me!"

Just now, Gu Wenjing's indifferent attitude made Cheng Yuhua realize that he was indeed angry. However, she never expected that her attempt to be clever had backfired, and she ended up being neglected.

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Cheng Yuhua felt that she had done something foolish, not only bringing trouble to herself and her husband by actively arranging a noble concubine but also creating a rift between them.

Even her nanny thought this matter was tricky and said, "Madam, you should come back and discuss with the young master."

Cheng Yuhua forced a bitter smile. How could she have known that Lady Yuan would deceive her by saying that Gu Wenjing and Yuan Su had a deep affection for each other? Moreover, Gu Wenjing and Yuan Su had been living together in the same residence for so long as cousins, so it was only natural for feelings to develop. As a result, she became obsessed with unnecessary suspicions and didn't trust her husband at all.

Just when Cheng Yuhua was anxious, Yuan Susu arrived and said, "Sister, I heard that Brother has returned?"

She used to call Cheng Yuhua "sister-in-law," but now she immediately addressed her as "sister" without disguising her intention to snatch someone away.

Cheng Yuhua felt a tightness in her heart upon hearing this but remembered Gu Wenjing's attitude towards Yuan Susu just now. She smiled faintly and replied, "Cousin, my husband went to pay respects to Mother."

Yuan Susu's heart skipped a beat. It wasn't the time to pay respects now, so Gu Wenjing must have gone to see Lady Yuan because of her...

Just like Lady Yuan thought, Yuan Su was confident that her beauty alone would make Gu Wenjing unable to resist, even if he didn't have romantic feelings for her. She couldn't believe that he would remain indifferent when a beautiful woman was delivered to him on a silver platter.

But unfortunately, Gu Wenjing remained unmoved.

When he met with lady Yuan, he straightforwardly said, "Mother, you should marry off Cousin! I've already said that I have no interest in her, and I don't want to take her as a noble concubine."

Cheng Yuhua hadn't done anything wrong as a good wife, so why should she bear the burden of accepting a noble concubine?

In Gu Wenjing's eyes, Yuan Susu was a third party who was determined to destroy their marital harmony. Now, because of her, he was very unhappy with Cheng Yuhua.

Lady Yuan hadn't expected that Gu Wenjing would still refuse to accept Yuan Su under these circumstances. It was no longer a matter of dislike; he clearly abhorred and resisted her.

"Wenjing, everyone in the mansion knows that Yuan Su has become your noble concubine. If you go back on your word, how will she be able to live?" Yuan's family pleaded.

Gu Wenjing frowned, feeling dissatisfied with Lady Yuan as well. What kind of situation was this?

But he also knew that Lady Yuan was speaking the truth. The world was too harsh on women, and if he really returned Yuan Susu, it would be tantamount to forcing her to die or live a life of eternal loneliness.

While Gu Wenjing was contemplating how to find a solution that would benefit everyone and resolve the trouble caused by Yuan Susu, she came rushing over and overheard the second half of Lady Yuan's words.

Upon learning that Gu Wenjing was considering going back on this decision at this moment, Yuan Susu immediately grabbed Gu Wenjing's sleeve and burst into tears, pleading, "Brother, please don't send Susu away! I truly admire you, Brother, and if you think I'm a hindrance, I can silently stay by your side without causing any trouble. I don't ask for anything else, just a legitimate status to stay by your side. Will Brother not even give me that dignity?"

Gu Wenjing felt goosebumps rising as he listened. Asking for nothing? If she didn't ask for anything, would she plot behind his back to become his noble concubine?

If it were another man, he might have been deeply moved by her silent admiration and selflessness. Sometimes men were so foolish that they couldn't even see such a simple tactic of retreat and advance.

He brushed away Yuan Susu's hand gripping his sleeve, looked down at her, and reached out to hold her chin, forcing her to look up and meet his gaze.

Looking at her teary, beautiful face, Gu Wenjing sneered coldly and said, "If you ask for nothing, then you better remember what I'm about to say. Don't appear in front of me unless necessary!"

After speaking, he let go of her, took two steps back, and looked like he couldn't wait to distance himself from her. He quickly bid farewell to Lady Yuan and turned to leave.

Lady Yuan had initially wanted to persuade him a bit, but they didn't expect Gu Wenjing to leave directly as if he hadn't heard anything. They felt a surge of anger but soon became anxious. Could their son be estranged from them because of this?

With such thoughts in her mind, when Lady Yuan looked at Yuan Susu again, her affection for her had diminished.