CH 53

Chapter 53: Sigh, just kick me out of the house

Three fast horses broke through the silent night at Hu Guo Temple. The crisp and chaotic sound of horse hooves seemed to beat in the hearts of the three people.

Gu Huai Zhong and Liang-shi rode on a horse each while Gu Yu Qi chased after them.

“Ah Nan, your foot is injured, go back first,” Liang Huai Yu looked back worriedly at Gu Yu Qi and said. “Mother will come find you once everything is settled.”

“No,” Gu Yu Qi shook her head. “I will accompany Mother.”

Seeing the stubbornness in her eyes, Liang Huai Yu knew that she would be unable to dissuade her daughter.

Gu Yu Qi had always been like this. Generally, whenever she decided on something, she would be unshakeable. Nevermind. Since her daughter was worried, let her follow. As long as she watched over her, nothing would happen to her.

Liang Huai Yu deliberately slowed down the horse’s speed so that Gu Yu Qi would not suffer so much.

Gu Huai Zhong saw that Liang Huai Yu took the initiative to slow down but never thought she did it for Gu Yu Qi. He thought that it was because she regretted it in her heart so she was deliberately delaying it. This caused a glimmer of hope in his heart to rise, and a touch of joy.

Liang Huai Yu was still reluctant.

As expected, since Liang Huai Yu had travelled thousands of miles from Jiangnan to the capital and had been granted the title of the first rank minister’s wife by imperial mandate, why would she give up so easily just because she said so? If she was willing to be soft-hearted and beg him, he also would not want to bang on the capital mayor’s gate in the middle of the night and make such a big joke. Their Marquis’ family matter should be solved at home behind closed doors; when would it be up to the capital mayor to intervene? If this matter spread out, it would not just be his reputation that would be damaged, and what good would it do for Liang Huai Yu?

There were so many imperial family members and nobles at the capital and they usually met up with smiles and laughter. Who knew what they thought behind their backs. If a joke came from any family, it would be talked about for a long time. If Liang Huai Yu insisted on doing this, she would lose more people than he did.

Even for Gu Yu Qi, who knew what face she would have left to mingle with the circles of noble girls at the capital in the future. She had reached the age for marriage. Just see what kind of marriage she could get. In the end, instead of keeping her identity as a good young miss of the Marquis’ residence, if she married some businessman or became the mistress of some other family, without the Marquis’ residence to support her, what was she?

He had already held back his anger. He had thought of the temple and that if he tied up Gu Yu Qi and took her to His Highness Prince An to plead for mercy, then maybe His Highness Prince An’s heart would soften and he would let her go. After all, there was a Ding Yuan Marquis residence backing Gu Yu Qi. However, he had not expected that Liang-shi would jump out immediately in defence when he taught his daughter a lesson. Where was any of his face as a Marquis and as the head of the family?

Before he came, he had sent someone with a letter to His Highness the Crown Prince. If His Highness Prince An refused to forgive and had to punish Gu Yu Qi, then His Highness the Crown Prince would come forward as the peacemaker. His Highness the Crown Prince had some feelings towards Gu Yu Qi. He thought that if the crown prince could plead for mercy on Gu Yu Qi’s behalf this time, then maybe Gu Yu Qi could use this opportunity to marry into the crown prince’s palace. Even if she could not be the crown prince’s concubine, it would also be good to be a Lady of Excellence.

According to his daughter’s appearance and how the crown prince missed her dearly, plus his own act of pulling down his own face and begging the emperor, after a year or two, Gu Yu Qi would be given the title of a side concubine and this was a good path. As long as Gu Yu Qi strived, then after the crown prince ascended the throne, she would certainly gain the title of a concubine. At that time, not only would he be the Ding Yuan Marquis, he would be the emperor’s father-in-law. When they became related, just see who would still look down on him as an upstart.

If Gu Yu Qi became a concubine, then in the future, Gu Si Yang and Gu Si Yu would both have a good path ahead. Was this not how those so-called aristocratic families rose up in an intricate network of loyalties and relationships? The difference between their Ding Yuan Marquis’ family and an aristocratic family was that others had already been in the business for a hundred years and he was just getting started. He had climbed from the position of a soldier to the position of the Ding Yuan Marquis step by step, so was he afraid he could not bring the Ding Yuan Marquis’ residence to greater heights?

So when he saw Liang Huai Yu slow down, he also slowed down.

He was just waiting for Liang Huai Yu to ask him.

Who knew that Liang Huai Yu would actually bring Gu Yu Qi all the way back to the capital on horseback without looking at him. When the three of them restrained their horses in front of the Ding An gate, Gu Huai Zhong felt slightly panicked.

“Who is outside the gate?” The gatekeeper asked.

“Liang Huai Yu from Jiangnan. I need to enter the capital to do business,” Liang Huai Yu said loudly immediately.

This was bad, she did not even report the name of the Ding Yuan Marquis’ residence. Gu Huai Zhong looked at Liang Huai Yu in panic. He could not help but whisper, “It’s late and the city gates are closed. Without orders from the capital mayor and military department, this gate won’t open.”

“Is that so?” Liang Huai Yu glanced at Gu Huai Zhong contemptuously, “Then what if I have a pendant from the Imperial Princess’ palace?”

After she finished speaking, she took out the jade pendant that Princess Ping Hu had given Gu Yu Qi. Then she said to the gatekeeper, “I have the jade pendant of the Imperial Princess here. As long as it is within the fief of the Imperial Princess, we have unhindered access.” After speaking, she raised her hand to reveal the jade pendant.

After Gu Yu Qi got this jade pendant that day, she thought that she would not use it anyway so she just handed it to Liang-shi and let her keep it. In fact, she felt that she was a bit careless herself. If she accidentally dropped the jade pendant somewhere, it would be very bad. This jade pendant from the Imperial Princess’ palace was very useful. If it was picked up by someone with bad intentions, something was bound to happen. It would be better if it was kept by Liang Huai Yu.

Gu Yu Qi had not expected that Liang Huai Yu would actually just use the jade pendant here and immediately had an embarrassed expression…

When the gatekeeper heard this, he said to himself, be obedient, another great personage had come and they actually had the jade pendant from the Imperial Princess’ palace. He really needed to open the door. To work as a petty servant in the capital was bad in this sense. If a brick fell and hit ten people, nine of them could be officials. He was just a gatekeeper and could not afford to offend a single one of them. He hastily ran out of a small door and bowed to Liang Huai Yu. Then he took the jade pendant and took a closer look under the light from the torches and lanterns of the tower. It really was the pendant from the Imperial Princess’ palace.

He returned the pendant to Liang Huai Yu and opened the gates immediately, letting the three of them in.

It was already late at night when they rushed from Hu Guo Temple back to the capital and the streets that were usually bustling were now empty. There was only the rhythmic sound of night watches in the distance and it made the night sky of the capital even quieter and far-reaching. The hooves of the three horses treading on the cobblestones of the street reverberated far.

Liang Huai Yu actually brought Gu Yu Qi and Gu Huai Zhong to the gate of the capital mayor’s yamen.

There was no one in front of the yamen. Only the two lanterns hanging from the eaves of the yamen gently swayed in the air and they made the words “capital mayor” flicker and dim.

Liang-shi halted her horse and dismounted. Then she walked forward and picked up the drum stick that had been placed on the big drum at the entrance to the state office.

Just as she was about to play the drum, her arm was pulled by Gu Huai Zhong.

Liang Huai Yu raised her eyes and faced Gu Huai Zhong’s angry expression, “You ignorant woman! Do you know what will happen if the drum is really beaten?” He was so furious that his tone changed a bit. He tried his best to suppress his voice so that he would not cause the people inside the state office to come out. His eyes were about to pop out of their sockets. “Don’t go crazy!” He growled softly.

“Since you say I’m an ignorant woman, then how would I know what the consequences of beating the drum would be?” Liang Huai Yu was about to blow up in anger from Gu Huai Zhong. She had really been blind at the beginning, how could she have liked such a man?! She could not help but say sarcastically, “Wouldn’t the consequences be known after the drum is beat? You called me crazy? Alright, I’ll be crazy and show you today!”

Gu Huai Zhong felt that he was so angry, black smoke was obscuring his vision and his temples bulged. His originally handsome face became a little hideous.

“If you want to go crazy, die further away!” Gu Huai Zhong lifted his hand and grabbed the drum stick from Liang Huai Yu’s hand. He was so angry that he was speechless.

“Hah, as long as we divorce, it has nothing to do with you where I die!” When Liang Huai Yu saw that Gu Huai Zhong was so angry, she actually found it a little funny and the corners of her lips curled up.

Originally, she had thought a lot on the way here. Once this decision was made, what would it bring Gu Yu Qi? She went through everything one by one in her mind. She was actually scared too. If the title of a jealous woman befell her, what path could Gu Yu Qi take in the future?

Yet, everytime she turned her eyes to see Gu Yu Qi’s calm face, she felt that maybe her daughter was right and life was not all about getting married. She forever remembered when her daughter, at ten years old, told her that she wanted to accompany her to watch the sunset over an endless river with rolling clouds. What kind of mind was this?

If such a daughter was really tied up by Gu Huai Zhong to make amends to Yun Ke, what would happen to her? If the situation turned bad, her daughter would be trapped in this small capital again and she would have even less of a chance to rise up.

Comparing the two, it was better to leave with her daughter and fly away!

The world was so vast, why would they be unable to find a place to live?

Thinking of this, Liang Huai Yu stretched her arms and hammered onto the drum. Boom… The drum vibrated and sounded a low and deep sound. In the quiet night, the sound of the drum was even more deafening.

Gu Huai Zhong’s heart was instantly shattered by this drum beat and he fell to the ground.

It was over, it was over, he repeated a few times in his heart.

His gaze towards Liang Huai Yu was no longer that of anger, but resentment! The face of his Ding Yuan Marquis’ residence was completely shattered by this drumbeat tonight!

“You know, our fate as husband and wife ended with that drumbeat just now!” He grabbed Liang Huai Yu and said bitterly as he stared at her hatefully.

“Didn’t our fate as husband and wife end when you took Liu Yue into the family without telling me?” Liang Huai Yu looked at Gu Huai Zhong fearlessly. “My father treated you like his own child, but you? He passed away at the border. Forget about how you didn’t even escort his spirit back to the village, but you secretly took a concubine and had children without telling him; you even hid it from me for ten years! Do you know how cold my heart is? Who are you worthy of? Are you worthy of me or worthy of my father? You are definitely not worthy of the Marquis title on your head!”

Gu Huai Zhong did not even think before he raised his hand and slapped Liang Huai Yu. Liang Huai Yu did not evade it and instead, took his slap face on. His palm whistled in the wind and a crisp slap hit Liang Huai Yu’s cheek hard. Immediately, Liang Huai Yu’s face was slapped to the side. Liang Huai Yu only felt a hint of blood on her lips and one side of her face was greatly swollen.

Gu Huai Zhong was obviously stunned and he stared dumbly at his numb palm. He was deeply regretful. No matter how angry he was, he had never laid a hand on Liang-shi. He was afraid that with this slap, things had come to a dead end and were unsolvable. He took a dejected step back and let go of Liang Huai Yu’s hand. He gave a long sigh, “Forget it, do what you want.”

Gu Yu Qi was startled and she limped forward a few steps, wanting to separate her mother from Gu Huai Zhong, but she was stopped by a look from Liang Huai Yu.

Gu Yu Qi halted her movements and quietly stepped aside. She looked at her mother’s swollen face in distress. Her lips moved but she did not say anything. After all, this was what her mother had to face and it was better for her to handle it by herself. She could only stay by the side and prevent Gu Huai Zhong from attacking her mother again.

She had completely given up all hope for Gu Huai Zhong in her heart. How could he actually slap her?! Gu Yu Qi looked at Gu Huai Zhong with cold eyes. She would remember this slap from today and in the future, she would be sure to return it.

Having been reborn this time, her greatest wish was to live a good life with her mother and protect her mother from being bullied. It did not matter how Gu Huai Zong hit her, but to lay his hands on her mother was unforgivable!

“I took your slap today. Anything left between us as husband and wife is gone.” Liang Huai Yu smiled strangely. She did not care about Gu Huai Zhong and instead, quickly hit the big drum with the drum stick in her hand. The drumbeats were urgent and dense like a hurricane.

“Who is it?! Instead of sleeping in the middle of the night, what are you beating for?!” The roar of the yamen runner came from inside. The gate of the yamen opened a crack and a sleepy officer leaned halfway out of the door with a face of reluctance.

“Open the door, call your masters awake!” Liang Huai Yu threw away the drum stick in her hand. Then she directly took out the jade pendant from the Imperial Princess’ palace and thrust it under the officer’s nose.

“What is this?! You want my masters to wake up just like that? You’re…” Halfway through his swearing, he saw clearly what Liang Huai Yu was holding and woke up instantly!

The scope of the capital was the fief of the Imperial Princess. This capital mayor managed one third of the Imperial Princess’ land. To put it bluntly, they were not only working for the emperor, but they were also working for Her Highness the Imperial Princess!

Who in the capital mayor’s office did not know what this jade pendant was? They rarely saw the emperor, but often saw the Imperial Princess. If they offended the Imperial princess then they would have to bear all the consequences!

“This Madam, please come in. This servant will go and call the master,” the yamen runner immediately changed his expression to a smile, nodding and bowing as he opened the door to let Liang Huai Yu, Gu Huai Zhong, and Gu Yu Qi enter. He ran to the back hall in a hurry and in a panic, he stumbled over the threshold and almost landed face first.

Before long, the capital mayor trotted out of the inner hall as he finished fixing up his clothes. As soon as he entered the lobby, he gave Liang Huai Yu a salute, “How might this Madam be called? Could Madam possibly show the jade pendant to this lower official?”

Liang Huai Yu politely handed over the jade pendant, “My lord need only call me Liang-shi from Jiangnan.”

Liang-shi from Jiangnan? The capital mayor had been dragged out of bed so his brain was still a bit numb. For a moment, he could not remember what background this Liang-shi from Jiangnan had. He took the jade pendant. Leaning under the lamp, he looked carefully, then he returned the jade pendant respectfully to Liang Huai Yu, “This is indeed a pendant from the Imperial Princess’ palace. Wonder what Madam was beating the drum so late at night for?” He secretly raised his head and glanced at Liang Huai Yu. His heart could not help but tremble. What a beauty she was with starry and inky eyes, powdery cheeks, and a slender figure. She looked like she was only in her twenties, but what happened with her slightly swollen half of her face? There was also faint blood on the corner of her mouth which not only did not detract from her beautiful appearance, but increased her delicateness. Who was it that had no eyes, actually hitting such a beautiful woman The capital mayor immediately felt tenderness towards her.

Gu Huai Zhong who was on the side saw the capital mayor glancing at Liang Huai Yu. He was already not happy at all, but now he was even more angry. He coughed twice and attracted the capital mayor’s attention.

“This is…” The capital mayor looked carefully. He felt that he was familiar but could not remember who it was for a while.

“Ding Yuan Marquis Gu Huai Zhong, greetings my lord!” Gu Huai Zhong cupped his hands in annoyance.

“This lower official greets the Ding Yuan Marquis. This lower official should be punished.” Only now did the capital mayor remember who this glaring man in front of him was and pleaded guilty.

Only then did he react. Was this Ding Yuan Marquis’ Madam the Liang-shi who was born in Jiangnan? Could it be that this delicate-looking beauty was the Ding Yuan Marquis’ Madam? Tsk tsk, the Ding Yuan Marquis attacked such a great beauty!

He smacked his forehead secretly. Was this a case of a couple fighting in the middle of the night and raising the issue to the state office? He looked at Gu Yu Qi who was standing on the side. At a glance, he was surprised again. He had also heard about the deeds of the young miss from the Ding Yuan Marqui residence. Thinking about it, this beautiful little girl with beautiful and enchanting eyebrows, but eyes full of coldness, was Gu Yu Qi, the legitimate daughter of the Ding Yuan Marquis. Seeing once was really better than asking a hundred times. She was actually more… more… This capital mayor was also a scholar and had a large vocabulary of verses. It was just that at this moment, he could not find any suitable adjectives to describe Gu Yu Qi’s appearance. Only four words appeared in his heart, “beauty overthrowing the country”!!

He had been a capital mayor for years but had never met a husband and wife who fought in the middle of the night and took it to the capital mayor’s house… Really… The capital mayor could not help but scratch his head. One was a marquis and the other was a first ranked madam. Say, they should just fight behind closed doors. Why did they bring it to the state office? He was just a little fifth rank capital mayor, he could not afford to offend anyone standing here! How should he do this?

Just as the capital mayor did not know what to do, Liang Huai Yu opened her mouth first, “Lord, please prepare the documents. Today, I came to divorce the Ding Yuan Marquis!”

What? The capital mayor was even more dumbfounded!

这下真的是稀奇了！虽然大齐朝立下了有诰命的夫人不能休弃必须和离的规矩，但是貌似到现在为止还没哪一家的夫人会半夜前来和自己夫君和离的。这真是头一遭啊，京兆尹一时愣在了一边，也不知道是去还是不去，他只能看向了定远侯。

This was really strange! Although the Qi dynasty had established a rule that an imperial mandated madam divorce their husbands, without waiting for their husband to discard them, it seemed that so far, no madam of any family would come to divorce her husband in the middle of the night. This was the first time so the capital mayor froze for a while, not knowing whether to go or not. He could only look at the Ding Yuan Marquis.

No matter how you two fought as husband and wife, why fight to the point of divorce?

“Go as you’ve been told,” Gu Huai Zhong’s mood had already been devastated. Seeing the capital mayor look at him, he was even more angry and resentful so he could not help but speak. Then he turned his attention to Liang Huai Yu, “Now that it’s gotten to this point, don’t regret it!” He spoke with gritted teeth. In his heart, he still hoped that Liang Huai Yu would change her mind now.

If she spoke now, there was still room to turn back.

If they waited until the capital mayor prepared all the documents, at that time even if Liang-shi knelt down and begged him, it would still depend on how he felt!

“Regret?” Liang Huai Yu glanced at Gu Huai Zhong contemptuously, “What I regret is that I married you in the first place.” Just this one sentence shattered all of Gu Huai Zhong’s expectations and pride. He roared angrily, “Good, good! This is how you feel! Then it is convenient for you to divorce today! Go as you wish! As long as you don’t regret it in the future!”

“Don’t worry, I’ll never regret it!” Liang-shi smiled slightly. Such a breathtaking beauty. Gu Huai Zhong was dumbfounded.

He turned his eyes to see the capital mayor staring at Liang Huai Yu intently and could not help roaring, “What are you looking at?! Still not preparing yet?!” 

“O-oh. Yes!” The capital mayor was stunned by the roar and immediately turned and ran out. My god, this capital mayor could not stay any longer! Anyone who came in here was his senior! He was a junior! The capital mayor complained in his heart while running!

“Think clearly. After the divorce, you’ll no longer be a first rank lady and can no longer step into the Marquis residence! As for Gu Yu Qi, her surname is Gu. If you want to take her away, it won’t be easy.” Gu Huai Zhong was so angry that his heart suddenly flashed with inspiration and he said with a sneer.

“What if I leave the Gu family voluntarily?” Gu Yu Qi, who had been silent for a while, suddenly said coldly.

“Vile creature! What do you think you are?!” Her tone clearly added fuel to the fire. In an instant, the very fragile Gu Huai Zhong was stimulated again. He was furious, “What would you be worth if you leave the Gu family?!”

“The person whose surname is Gu, watch your language!” Liang Huai Yu could not bear it any longer and said angrily, “Ah Nan is my daughter! You ask what she is? I, Liang Huai Yu, swear right here that for as long as I live, no one will be allowed to bully Ah Nan in the slightest!” She pointed at Gu Huai Zhong, her eyes spitting fire.

The daughter she had put her heart into had turned into a mere thing in Gu Huai Zhong’s mouth. It was intolerable!

“Hah! She’s your daughter just because you say she is?” Gu Huai Zhong finally found a weapon to attack Liang Huai Yu and could not help but feel proud and cold. How could he stimulate Liang Huai Yu? She would not get angry. Right, her weakness was Gu Yu Qi. “Her surname is Gu! She is in my Ding Yuan Marquis family tree. If you insist on divorce, you have nothing to do with her at all!”

Just as Gu Huai Zhong was sneering triumphantly, he suddenly felt a gust of cold wind in his ears. Then there was a crisp slapping sound. His face instantly burned and his head was smacked to the side.

He turned his head in disbelief and looked at the initiator. Gu Yu Qi had actually raised her hand and slapped him. This slap was solid and sturdy, and she did not show him any mercy as a father at all.

As he was stunned, there was a crisp clatter from the door and everyone turned to look. The capital mayor had come back with the documents, brushes, and ink, and was standing at the door. His eyes were wide open and his jaw could not close. He did not even know what he had in his hands.

At this moment, the capital mayor’s heart was completely broken. He actually saw the scene of a daughter beating her father just now!! It was a human tragedy, it was terrible!

“Lord capital mayor. According to the Qi dynasty law, how should children who do not know filial piety and who beat their biological parents be treated?” Gu Yu Qi looked at the capital mayor, who had completely turned into a stone statue, and asked with a smile.

The capital mayor returned to his senses and picked up the things. Then he said, “They should be driven out of the house and given 50 strikes of the cane to set an example.” He said quickly.

Gu Yu Qi’s smile seemed even more joyful, “I beat up my biological father just now. Lord capital mayor witnessed it with his own eyes. Therefore, according to the Qi dynasty law, kick me out of the Gu family!” As for the 50 strikes of the cane, she was not yet ready to accept it.