Chapter 57: 57 Parents

After leaving the medical hall, Gu Jinyu went directly to a tea house in the town where the Marquise had already been waiting for a long time.

Gu Jinyu enters the tea room, dives into the Marquise’s arms like a baby swallow, and tenderly calls her mother.

Holding her daughter who had been away for many days, the Marquise said, “You’re already so old. Still crawling into your mother’s arms? Shameless.”

Gu Jinyu held on even tighter, whining, “No matter how old I am, I am still your and father’s daughter. How can I be shameless?”

The Marquise pinched her small nose, “You’ve been really spoiled by your father!”

Gu Jinyu hummed, “Who asked Dad to have only one precious daughter like me?”

The Marquise didn’t know whether to laugh or cry, and asked her, “Did you successfully pay the medical fee at Huichun Hall earlier?”

Upon mentioning this, Gu Jinyu started to evade eye contact.

The Marquise quickly noticed her daughter’s anomaly, “What happened? Was Huichun Hall not satisfied with the medical fee?”

Talking about the medical fee was a real mess; the Marquise thought the servant had paid it, and the servant thought the Marquise had paid it.

If the Marquise had not casually asked, they would have been none the wiser of their overdue medical payment to Huichun Hall.

Because of this, the Marquise planned to visit Huichun Hall personally. However, just as she left the villa, she ran into her daughter who had rushed over from the Capital City. After learning about what had happened, Gu Jinyu voluntarily took up the responsibility to pay the medical fee. However, the Marquise was not idle either; she went up the mountain to offer incense to the Bodhisattva.

“It’s not that Huichun Hall was not satisfied with the medical fee, but…” Gu Jinyu explained what had happened at Huichun Hall in detail, without embellishment or concealment. Her mother had taught her the importance of not judging a book by its cover since she was young, so she did not purposely emphasize the fact that the girl from the village was ugly and had a prominent red birthmark on her left cheek.

“I was wrong, I shouldn’t have been so hasty.” She bowed her head in apology.

The Marquise spoke with deep concern, “There are always people with higher status than us in this world. Just because you are of higher status than her, you can look down on her. If you meet someone more privileged than yourself in the future, could they look down on you?”

Although the Marquise adored her daughter, she was not without principles.

Gu Jinyu playfully clung onto the Marquise’s arm, “I am the Marquis’s beloved daughter. Who could look down on me?”

“You!” the Marquise looked at her helplessly and scolded her.

“But, what’s the issue regarding my brother’s jade ring?” Gu Jinyu asked.

The Marquise replied, “Your brother said that she took it accidentally. You know that your brother wouldn’t lie.”

Still, Gu Jinyu was confused. “What does ‘taking it accidentally’ mean? How would he know if she did it accidentally? Did he see it?”

“I…I don’t know.” The Marquise had principles when it came to spoiling her daughter, but she didn’t follow them when it came to her son, who had a limited time to live; she didn’t want to restrict him with rules.

Her son did not want to talk about the incident from that day, so she didn’t ask further.

It was just a jade ring. If it was lost, it was lost. The most important thing was that her son was happy.

Gu Jinyu hummed sourly, “I also ‘accidentally’ took it last time, yet he ignored me for an entire month! Aren’t I his sister?”

“You!” The Marquise tapped on her forehead, she was both exasperated and amused, “If not you, then who else? Could it be the girl who took his jade ring?”

Because of this completely impossible joke, Gu Jinyu’s mood improved. She leaned into her mother’s arms, stretching out her small hand, “Mom, my hands are cold.”

The Marquise felt the back of her hand, which was indeed a bit cold. She immediately put down the candy in her hand, picked up an exquisite hand warmer, and began to warm her daughter’s hand.

Gu Jinyu glanced at the sesame candy in the plate with a strange expression, “Mom, where did you get this? It doesn’t look clean, be careful not to get a stomachache.”

Thinking about the little girl, the Marquise softened her gaze, “A kind-hearted girl gave it to me, so I accepted it.”

—

Meanwhile, Gu Jiao received her consultation fee—a total of twenty taels—enough to buy the hill with the silver she had in her hand.

The landlord was worried that today’s events might have upset Gu Jiao, so he hesitantly asked, “Uh… next month’s consultation…”

Gu Jiao replied indifferently, “I promised to be on duty once a month. I will fulfill my promise.”

Having said that, she took the silver and went to the academy.

The dean left before returning to the academy.

When Gu Jiao arrived at the academy, classes had already ended. The students, dressed in white academy uniforms, were leaving one after another. Gu Jiao was still waiting in the same old spot at the entrance of an alley, but she didn’t see Xiao Liulang or Gu Xiaoshun.

Just as Gu Jiao was wondering if the two of them had been kept back by their teacher, Xiao Liulang and Gu Xiaoshun unexpectedly approached from another direction.

Xiao Liulang and Gu Xiaoshun were both carrying a bunch of items. It was only when they approached Gu Jiao that she realized they were holding incense candles and bundles of joss paper.

Gu Jiao asked, “What are you buying these for?”

Gu Xiaoshun’s jaw dropped, “Sis, did you forget? It’s our third uncle and aunt’s death anniversary today!”

Gu Jiao was speechless.

She had really forgotten.

Original Master’s memories did contain this important day. Unfortunately, Gu Jiao was not the Original Master and had forgotten this day.

“Thank goodness you remembered.” Gu Jiao said to Gu Xiaoshun.

Gu Xiaoshun scratched his head awkwardly, “Actually, I also forgot. It was brother-in-law.”

Gu Jiao raised her eyebrows and glanced at Xiao Liulang. She didn’t remember “herself” ever mentioning her parents’ death anniversary to him. He must have heard it from the villagers. Considering their current pretend marital status, it’s commendable that he remembered.

Gu Jiao: “Thank you.”

Xiao Liulang stood still with his crutches, his face expressionless. He was still angry about Gu Jiao’s “secret understanding” with the Dean and planned not to talk to her for a whole day!

Gu Jiao didn’t understand the cause of his sudden displeasure. Since he helped her remember her parents’ death anniversary, it certainly couldn’t be because of her!

Gu Jiao carelessly got on the ox cart.

Gu Jiao, who thought their relationship was excellent, specifically chose the seat closest to him.

Xiao Liulang was seething with anger, while the person who angered him had absolutely no sign of regret. Xiao Liulang was even angrier as a result.

After the three of them returned to the village, Liao family took Gu Xiaoshun away directly. Gu Jiao and Xiao Liulang went to the graveyard at the edge of the field.

The graves of Gu Sanlang and his wife, Madam Xun, were situated side by side. Due to rarely being attended to, the grass on the grave had already grown half a person’s height.

Xiao Liulang was sulking by himself, but he still rolled up his sleeves and pulled out the grass from the grave one by one.

He was so focused on pulling out the grass without realizing that Gu Jiao was staring blankly at the graves behind him.

In the original host’s memories, Gu Sanlang was swept away by a flood. The villagers spent half a month retrieving his body along the river bank. By the time the body was found, it was already swollen beyond recognition. Madam Xun only took one look at it and immediately collapsed. She never recovered after that.

She hung on for just one more year before she passed away on the anniversary of her husband’s death, leaving behind their five-year-old daughter.

They were both outstanding parents, incomparably superior to Gu Jiao’s parents from her previous life. Sadly, they passed away so early.

It seemed that whether in her past life or this one, she was destined to grow up without the love and care of her parents.