Chapter 289: Su
Gu Zhang knew exactly what his son was talking about—Mrs. Chen had told him last night. Still, Gu Zhang deliberately asked, "What are you thanking me for?"
Gu Erlang said bashfully, "Thank you, Father and Mother, for proposing on my behalf."
Gu Zhang snorted. "Come with me. I have a few things to tell you."
The two of them went into the house, and Gu Zhang shut the door. "I was going to tell you this yesterday, but your mother said there was no need. Still, I have to say this upfront."
"Regarding you and Lan Zhi... your mother and I were originally against it."
Gu Erlang was stunned for a moment. ’Lan Zhi is so wonderful, how could Father and Mother be against it?’
Seeing his son’s foolish expression, Gu Zhang shook his head. "Lan Zhi, after all, was born a Miss of the Marquis Mansion. If her family hadn’t run into trouble, she would have certainly married into an official family."
"Besides, she’s far too beautiful. That’s not a good thing. A woman like her was born to be kept in the deep courtyards of a great house."
"We’re just a family of common folk. We can’t really handle a young lady of her stature."
"You’re still young, you don’t understand. If a beautiful woman doesn’t have the protection of power, she can easily become a plaything for the nobility. If something were to happen, a family like ours wouldn’t be able to protect her at all!"
Gu Erlang stared blankly at his father. No, he understood now!
That Mr. Xu had dared to so brazenly declare he would take her by force.
Gu Zhang continued, "But you’re so stubborn, we figured you wouldn’t take no for an answer. So, your mother and I decided to go along with your wishes."
"Just remember, this is your own choice. If she abandons you one day, you’ll have to be strong enough to bear it."
Gu Erlang felt as if he’d been struck by lightning. He didn’t know how his father could say such a thing. He shook his head. "She won’t. Lan Zhi wants to marry me. She won’t abandon me."
Seeing Gu Erlang’s deeply wounded expression, Gu Zhang didn’t say any more. There were some things one couldn’t understand until a certain age. He waved his hand dismissively. "Alright, that’s all I have to say. It’s your life to live. Just make sure you don’t regret it later."
Gu Erlang walked out, his mind elsewhere. He wanted to tell his father about Mr. Xu, but he didn’t dare. He was afraid his father would use it as a reason to forbid him from marrying Lan Zhi.
His sister had said she would figure something out, but he didn’t know if she would actually succeed.
No matter what, he was going to marry Lan Zhi. He absolutely could not let that Mr. Xu snatch her away.
The next day, Gu Erlang rose bright and early.
He grabbed a few ice-cold buns from the kitchen and left.
He reached the city gate before it had even opened. After waiting for a good while, the gate finally swung open, and he hurried into the city.
When he arrived at the shop, its doors were still closed, but a horse-drawn carriage was parked out front.
Just as Gu Erlang was about to head toward the side entrance, the curtain of the carriage was lifted, and someone inside called out to him, "Second Brother Gu—"
Gu Erlang’s eyes lit up. "Young Master Su."
"What are you doing here so early in the morning?"
Su Chen, sitting in his carriage, replied, "I just entered the city. Oh, right, about Mr. Xu—don’t worry, I’ll think of something."
Gu Erlang was overjoyed. "Really? In that case, thank you so much, Young Master."
"Wait here, Young Master. I’ll go knock."
He hurried over to the side entrance and knocked until the door was opened. Su Chen’s carriage then entered through the side gate.
Gu Fei had just woken up. She had washed her face but hadn’t combed her hair yet. Just as she pushed open the window, intending to do her hair and makeup, she saw Su Chen standing in the courtyard.
Hearing the sound, Su Chen happened to look over just at that moment. Gu Fei froze for a second, then shut the window with a SLAM.
Behind her, Lian’er secretly pressed her lips together to hide a smile. "Miss, let me comb your hair for you."