Xu Yangui was a man of his word. When Shen Zaiye remained absent from the Prime Minister’s residence for an extended period, he brought Gu Huairou to Yanguimen.
Having grown up in seclusion, Gu Huairou knew nothing of the jianghu world. She was excited upon seeing the Yanguimen sign.
“Can I live here from now on?” she asked Xu Yangui.
Xu Yangui nodded, smiling at her. “Yes, you can do anything you want here. There are no rules.”
If not for the black veil covering her face, Gu Huairou would have kissed him. She felt liberated, believing she could now live a fairy-tale life with him.
However, upon entering, Xu Yangui led her to a place called Hongyan Yuan.
“Choose a room to live in,” Xu Yangui said generously. “The women here are easy to get along with. Don’t be afraid.”
Staring at the courtyard full of women, Gu Huairou tugged at his sleeve reluctantly. “Must I live here?”
“Of course. Other places might be dangerous for you,” Xu Yangui explained. “These are women who willingly came back with me. I’ll take care of them for the rest of their lives.”
Her heart sank. Gu Huairou turned to look at him, stunned. “When you said you’d take care of someone for life… you meant anyone?”
“Isn’t that right?” Xu Yangui looked at her, puzzled. “I just want to be responsible for you all.”
Gu Huairou was stunned for a long while before laughing bitterly.
She should have known. How could there be a man who didn’t care about a woman’s appearance? She had thought he genuinely liked her, but he treated everyone the same. She wasn’t special. To him, women were probably just extra mouths to feed.
The irony was that she truly believed they were in love. This feeling was terrible, like excitedly telling a story to someone, only to realize at the end that they hadn’t been listening at all. She felt foolish, not knowing how to conclude.
“What’s wrong?” Xu Yangui turned to look at her, pausing slightly. “Are you upset?”
He had encountered too many women and understood their thoughts well enough. He could sense that Gu Huairou liked him, but… surely he hadn’t been won over so quickly?
“I am a bit upset,” Gu Huairou said softly. “Can I be your maid instead? I don’t want to live here.”
Many women had similar requests, which Xu Yangui always refused. But Gu Huairou’s situation was unique. Her face was ruined, and living with other women might lead to mockery and isolation.
After some thought, Xu Yangui agreed. He took her to his courtyard, letting her stay in the side room and help him dress daily.
Soon, everyone in Yanguimen knew that the master had taken an “ugly monster” as his maid.
“What were you thinking?” a confidant joked in the main room. “Any woman from Hongyan Yuan would be better than her. Doesn’t it feel like seeing a ghost with her floating around your courtyard in that black veil?”
Xu Yangui was taken aback. He had been in such a good mood lately that he hadn’t noticed. “She’s just a maid. Why are you all so concerned?”
After all, she was his woman. He couldn’t help but protect her.
However, as more people mentioned it, he began to waver. Sitting in his room, watching Gu Huairou clean, he didn’t know how to tell her to leave the main courtyard. After much thought, Xu Yangui came up with the simplest solution.
The next morning, as Gu Huairou was carrying water to the main house, she saw a beautiful, graceful woman in the same maid’s attire enter before her.
Confused, Gu Huairou followed to take a look.
“Master, this servant Fengwu is here to help you dress,” the woman said.
“Mm,” Xu Yangui mumbled, half awake. He stretched out his arms as usual, and Fengwu gently helped him dress, with some flirtatious touches. Xu Yangui smiled warmly, even pinching her cheek.
Unconsciously touching her face, Gu Huairou lowered her gaze and silently retreated.
This was his way of saying he no longer needed her, right? Crouching in a secluded spot, Gu Huairou thought for a long time before gathering her spirits and heading to the kitchen.
She wasn’t one to give up easily. If her face wasn’t attractive, she could still do other things.
In the following days, Xu Yangui noticed the food had become much more delicious. He wanted to praise the cook, but then heard, “Master, that ugly monster has been helping in the kitchen. Several cooks are threatening to leave because of her.”
“Ugly monster?” Xu Yangui was surprised, taking a moment to realize they meant Gu Huairou. He became displeased. “The food has been excellent lately. Whoever wants to leave can go. Yanguimen doesn’t lack for people.”
The servant was stunned but relayed the message word for word. Gu Huairou overheard, her eyes shining like stars in the night sky. She became even more enthusiastic about cooking, not only for Xu Yangui but occasionally improving meals for others as well. Gradually, the people of Yanguimen began to dislike her less.
As a well-educated lady, Gu Huairou had many skills. She cooked for him, mended clothes, made new robes, embroidered sachets, and pouches, and made new shoes. At first, Xu Yangui felt uncomfortable, but he gradually got used to it, always treating her with warmth and tolerance.
Gu Huairou thought, if this continued, would there come a day when he couldn’t live without her and might even fall in love with her?
However, there was someone in Yanguimen who loved to mock her. His name was Luoshan, and he had been calling her “ugly monster” since she arrived. He would provoke her daily, saying Xu Yangui would never care for her. At first, Gu Huairou would get angry, but later she became indifferent, ignoring whatever he said.
But one day, Luoshan said, “Jiang Taohua’s time is almost up, isn’t it?”
Gu Huairou was shocked. “What do you mean?”
“Jiang Taohua was poisoned. She’s close to dying from it,” Luoshan explained. “She’s the only woman the master has ever truly loved. He must be very upset now.”
“…” Xu Yangui liked Jiang Taohua too?
Gu Huairou felt foolish. Her expression beneath the black veil looked both stupid and pitiful. Luoshan frowned. “You ugly monster, don’t you believe it? The master has a white jade hairpin from Jiang Taohua. He treasures it like a precious thing. If you don’t believe me, go see for yourself.”
White jade hairpin? Gu Huairou asked instinctively, “Where is it?”
Luoshan’s eyes flickered. He suddenly grinned and said, “It’s in the drawer in the master’s room. I’ll tell you a secret. The hairpin is hollow, with a letter the master wrote to Jiang Taohua inside. He never gave it to her. If you break the hairpin in half, you’ll find the letter.”
(End of Chapter)