Destined

Now that Zhang Yue'er was managing the affairs of the inner courtyard, Liu Yu Ru needed her permission to go out.

Yin Hong didn't understand why Liu Yu Ru gave such instructions, but could only remind her: "Should we first inform Madam about the marriage arrangement?"

Liu Yu Ru was momentarily stunned, then sighed: "You're right, I should tell Mother."

With that, she walked to Su Wan's room. The room perpetually carried the scent of medicine. Su Wan lay on the couch, looking down reading a storybook.

Liu Yu Ru entered and carefully inspected the room's furnishings, confirming that the servants hadn't neglected Su Wan, before sitting beside her and saying: "Mother, have you heard that Old Madame Ye visited today?"

"I heard," Su Wan said with a light cough and a smile, "Your father sent someone to fetch me, but I'm unwell and unfit to receive guests, so I let Aunt Yue go instead."

Liu Yu Ru listened without exposing Su Wan's lie. She knew Su Wan said this to make her feel better - otherwise, having a concubine represent the family instead of the birth mother in her own daughter's marriage negotiations would be too humiliating.

Though her heart ached slightly, Liu Yu Ru didn't reveal her true feelings. Smiling, she brought tea for Su Wan, then carefully recounted the day's events.

"The Ye family's betrothal gifts must be generous, so Aunt Yue and Father are anxious, worried they might withdraw from the marriage, urging to settle it quickly," Liu Yu Ru said cheerfully. "Don't worry, Mother, I won't be mistreated after marrying over."

However, upon hearing this, Su Wan frowned deeply.

She seemed to want to say something but ultimately sighed helplessly: "Your father's approach is improper. It will make people look down on us."

Liu Yu Ru felt bitter inside - how could she not know this? But she couldn't cry before her mother, since Su Wan could do nothing about it anyway, and speaking of it would only add to her sorrow. So Liu Yu Ru pretended ignorance: "You're overthinking, Mother. Old Madame Ye dotes on me greatly."

Seeing her daughter's seemingly naive cheerfulness, Su Wan didn't know whether to worry or feel relieved. Finally, she could only sigh deeply, admonished Liu Yu Ru to behave properly, then grew tired and lay down to rest.

Leaving Su Wan's quarters, Liu Yu Ru sighed. Looking at the confined world within the courtyard walls, she wondered whether she could frequently return to visit Su Wan after marrying into the Ye family. After some thought, she finally went to seek Zhang Yue'er's permission before hurriedly heading to the Liu residence.

She had sent someone ahead to deliver a visiting card to Liu Si Yu. When she arrived, Liu Si Yu was prepared, but upon entering the room, Liu Yu Ru could tell Liu Si Yu had been crying recently.

She approached as if noticing nothing, smiling as she took Liu Si Yu's hand: "What's wrong today? Your eyes are swollen when you see me?"

Hearing this, Liu Si Yu's eyes immediately reddened again. Liu Yu Ru signaled the maid to withdraw, then alone led Liu Si Yu into the garden, saying: "Cry if you need to. I'll walk with you in the garden until you feel better, then you can talk to me?"

Upon hearing this, Liu Si Yu sniffled as if about to laugh, but ultimately couldn't manage a smile. After forcing her lips upward several times, she finally said: "Forget it. With you, I won't force cheerful appearances anymore.""What exactly happened? Do tell."

"The head of the Gu Family came to my house."

Liu Siyu spoke with difficulty: "Just two days ago, both the master and mistress of the Gu Family came together. They summoned me to the main hall, looked me over a few times, offered some compliments, gave me a jade bracelet, and then dismissed me."

Hearing this, Liu Yuru furrowed her brow: "What do they mean by this?"

"I don't know, but my parents suspect," Liu Siyu began, on the verge of tears again, "they might be here to propose a marriage arrangement for Gu Jiusi."

The expected answer made Liu Yuru sigh. Gu Jiusi's eyes from her dream flashed through her mind, and she thought to herself, regardless of whether the dream was real or not, this marriage must not happen.

While Liu Yuru and Liu Siyu were meeting, three young men dressed in the attire of Liu family servants walked through the garden with their heads lowered.

The two on either side were slightly shorter, while the one in the middle was considerably taller, making their formation resemble the character "mountain."

Though dressed as servants and appearing somewhat stiff, their movements lacked any trace of timidity, clearly indicating they were not actual servants. Especially the one in the middle, who pulled a fan from his sleeve as he walked and lightly poked the young man in front of him: "Chen Xun, what exactly are you up to?"

"You'll know in a moment."

Chen Xun, walking ahead, replied: "Jiusi, don't be impatient."

"You've been saying that for ages," Gu Jiusi said discontentedly. "You said you'd tell me once we sneaked into the Liu residence, and now we're here and you still won't speak. Are you asking for a beating?"

"Let me explain for him," Yang Wenchang, walking at the rear, couldn't contain himself and said excitedly, "We're here to show you your future wife!"

"My future wife?!"

Gu Jiusi abruptly halted. Yang Wenchang nearly collided with him. Seeing Gu Jiusi's shocked expression, Yang Wenchang grew somewhat fearful: "Yes."

"What wife? I didn't know about this," Gu Jiusi frowned.

"Your parents visited the Liu residence a couple of days ago," Yang Wenchang said cautiously. "Didn't you know?"

Hearing this, Gu Jiusi took a deep breath, clenched his fan, and turned to leave. Yang Wenchang and Chen Xun immediately grabbed him, whispering urgently: "Don't go, don't go! Since we're already here, at least take a look before leaving. Confirm what she looks like first."

"Even if she were a heavenly beauty, it wouldn't matter!"

Gu Jiusi hissed in a low voice. As Chen Xun was about to respond, Yang Wenchang pushed him behind the rockery, whispering urgently: "Someone's coming!"

The three young men panicked and quickly hid inside the rockery cave. The cave was somewhat cramped, forcing the three tall figures to squeeze together. Gu Jiusi didn't forget to poke Chen Xun with his fan. Chen Xun gritted his teeth without speaking, grabbing Gu Jiusi's fan as the two engaged in a silent battle of stares within the cave. Just then, footsteps approached from outside, accompanied by the conversation of two young women.

After listening for a while, they understood: this was Liu Siyu, and she had no desire to marry Gu Jiusi, currently weeping heartbroken over the matter.

From their manner of address, the other speaking young woman was Liu Yuru, the legitimate daughter of that Liu family in Yangzhou known for favoring concubines over wives.The three young men stopped their horseplay and began to listen attentively to the conversation between the two girls. Liu Siyu, reaching an emotional point, tearfully said, "Yu Ru, the Gu Family is wealthy and influential. I'm truly afraid my father might agree to this marriage for the sake of money. If I really have to marry him, how could I possibly go on living?"

Liu Yu Ru sighed upon hearing this, gently took Liu Siyu's hand, and comforted her, "I understand. I know your suffering. If it were me forced to marry him, I’d feel like throwing myself into this lake right now."

Hearing this, Gu Jiusi’s expression darkened. His two friends glanced at him, but Gu Jiusi feigned composure, opening his fan and pretending not to have heard anything as he lightly fanned himself. Yang Wenchang silently reached out and pressed down the fan that always seemed to threaten slapping his face.

Then the three focused intently on the conversation, hearing Liu Yu Ru offer advice: "How about this—we’ll investigate his true character. Then, we can act contrary to his preferences and force him to call off the engagement."

"Force him to call off the engagement?" Liu Siyu was stunned. Liu Yu Ru nodded and continued, "For example, I’ve heard that Gu Jiusi remains unmarried mainly because he has very high standards for a wife. He dislikes well-bred young ladies who adhere strictly to formalities, especially those who quote sages and classics. When you return today, study the Four Books and Five Classics thoroughly, particularly the passages about moral conduct. Memorize them well, and the next time you see him, constantly admonish him with those teachings."

Hearing this, Chen Xun and Yang Wenchang both looked at Gu Jiusi, giving him thumbs-up and silently praising with their eyes, "This girl is something else."

Gu Jiusi said nothing, his eyes filled with disdain.

Then they heard Liu Yu Ru add, "I’ve also heard he despises affected and pretentious women, especially those who actively approach him. If you ever meet him, remember to speak in a contrived voice. If he says anything harsh, start crying. Don’t speak too logically or act like a normal person—be unclear in your speech and actions, and just keep asking him for money."

"This..." Liu Siyu hesitated, "Doesn’t seem quite appropriate..."

"Don’t make it too obvious," Liu Yu Ru chuckled. "Avoid any direct contact with him in public. Just 'accidentally' run into him a few times in private and annoy him. Given his reputation, even if he speaks ill of you, people will assume he’s slandering you."

"Alright," Liu Siyu resolved, "You’re right. If I don’t disgust him, he’ll cause trouble for me."

"Also," Liu Yu Ru pondered seriously, "He never attends the Spring Flower Banquet. Once, when the Ye Family hosted a feast, he came, and a maid approached him. He sneezed twice in a row. That maid was wearing a low-quality sachet with strong floral scent made from petals. He probably dislikes intense floral fragrances, or even flowers altogether. I’ll find you a strongly scented sachet. When you see him, remember to dab the scent on your handkerchief and wave it frequently in front of him."

Yang Wenchang and Chen Xun felt even more sympathy for Gu Jiusi.

Gu Jiusi was prone to sneezing and breaking out in red rashes from strong floral scents—somehow, this girl had even noticed that. If she were to seriously investigate Gu Jiusi further, he might face even more misfortune.

Listening to the two girls plotting how to torment him to break off the engagement, Gu Jiusi couldn’t help but burn with rage.Until she heard Liu Yuru worry, "If it comes to that, and he still wants to marry me, what should I do?"

Gu Jiusi couldn't bear to listen any longer.

He felt deeply insulted. Before Chen Xun and Yang Wenchang could react, he suddenly rushed out of the cave and raised his voice, "Don't worry, I would never marry you!"

Liu Yuru and Liu Siyu turned around simultaneously. Liu Yuru froze when she met the face that had just appeared in her dream this morning, while Liu Siyu frowned and said, "What did you say? You... which courtyard's servant are you? How dare you be here? You..."

Liu Siyu couldn't process the situation, stammering her questions. Meanwhile, Liu Yuru saw Gu Jiusi raise an eyebrow and open his mouth, realizing he was about to announce his identity.

However, if Gu Jiusi were discovered in the inner courtyard, the Liu family wouldn't dare to confront him directly. If word got out, she and Liu Siyu would be the ones to suffer.

Without hesitation, Liu Yuru stepped forward and shouted angrily, "Where did this servant come from, daring to trespass in the inner courtyard?! Guards, seize him and throw him out of the estate!"

After saying this, she grabbed Liu Siyu's hand and turned to flee. Gu Jiusi was momentarily stunned by Liu Yuru's outburst. By the time he regained his senses, he, along with Yang Wenchang and Chen Xun who had just emerged from the artificial cave, were surrounded by guards who had no idea what was happening.

This was the first time the Liu estate guards had encountered intruders. Though unsure of their identities, they assumed they were merely petty troublemakers. The guards exerted full effort, rushing to capture the three.

However, the trio were accustomed to street fights, especially Gu Jiusi, who had trained in martial arts since childhood and possessed exceptional skills. Dodging and weaving through the crowd, he grabbed one companion after another. The three were chased all the way before scaling the wall to escape.

When they finally shook off their pursuers, disheveled and panting as they leaned against the wall, Chen Xun finally spoke, "That girl has such a timid heart, calling for guards without a second thought. She nearly ran us to death."

"Timid?" Gu Jiusi scoffed at this remark. "She was clearly playing dumb to protect their reputations! Liu Yuru, that black lotus—outwardly pure, but inside she's probably full of twisted schemes and muddy depths. Far more cunning than Liu Siyu."

"No wonder," Yang Wenchang murmured upon hearing this. "I wondered how someone like her could marry Brother Shi'an."

"Marry who?" Gu Jiusi instinctively turned back. Yang Wenchang looked puzzled and said, "That top scholar from White Heron Academy, Ye Shi'an. I heard the Ye family matriarch has long declared that her grandson's wife must be Liu Yuru. You didn't know?"

Gu Jiusi was utterly bewildered, his mind flashing back to the girl's appearance earlier.

She seemed utterly ordinary—mediocre family background, plain looks, conventional personality. Aside from being scheming, she had no other notable qualities. How could someone like her be matched with that hypocrite Ye Shi'an—already accepted as the closed-door disciple by Grand Academician Su Wen, universally acknowledged as having a brilliant future, and whom Gu Jiusi particularly despised?

Gu Jiusi thought about it—

Fine! He approved of this marriage!