In her letter, Gu Fangzi detailed her sorrow, grief, and confusion. As Shi Fengju read it, he could almost see her tear-stained face, one of tragic pain and emaciation. He couldn’t disregard her and thus sent someone back to the Shi Mansion to report his safety, while he himself, along with Chang Huan and a few others, hired a carriage and hurried to Gu Fangzi’s home.
Gu Jin was good for nothing, and there was little interaction with relatives of the same clan. The land had long been sold off, and the Gu family’s kin, seeing no advantage to gain, and though Gu Fangzi had become an orphan, the Shi family still stood. Relatives from the Gu Family dared not extend their reach to Gu Jin’s home! Therefore, they handled Gu Jin’s funeral arrangements sluggishly and lackadaisically, only making an effort when the Shi Mansion’s housekeeper brought people to manage things; otherwise, they would have dispersed and fled long ago!
Although Gu Fangzi knew these relatives were unreliable, experiencing the desolation firsthand still sent chills through her heart.
Such was so-called kin!
If not for the Shi family, she dared not imagine what she would have become, nor what situation she would have faced that day! They might even have sold her altogether.
Gu Fangzi shivered with cold! After deeply reflecting on her pain, she grew even more determined to cling firmly to the great tree that was the Shi family.
When Shi Fengju arrived at the Gu family’s place, he was relieved to see everything managed in an orderly fashion with the assistance of the Shi Mansion’s housekeeper.
The next day, Gu Jin’s funeral procession took place, and the various relatives each went their separate ways.
In the simple room, there remained only Gu Fangzi, clad in unbleached mourning clothes, Shi Fengju, and the people dispatched by the Shi family.
"Butler Liu, have someone fix up this courtyard and house tomorrow. Procure anything that needs to be added, and find a reliable family servant to come and stay with Miss Wan. Provide her with a monthly allowance that is double than what is given in the mansion, and let the extra come from my account," Fengju casually glanced around the bare Gu family home and sighed silently.
Gu Fangzi’s body stiffened, and she glanced lightly at Butler Liu and the others before saying quietly, "You all may leave first!"
Everyone withdrew, and Gu Fangzi softly called out, "Big cousin!" Tears streaming down her face.
"Fang’er, don’t cry, don’t be sad," Shi Fengju’s heart tightened, and he instinctively felt a tingling sensation on his scalp.
"How can I not be upset," Gu Fangzi sobbed, "I am now left with nothing, even you, big cousin, don’t want me anymore. What pleasure is there left in living!"
"Where did that come from!" Shi Fengju exclaimed in shock, quickly saying, "Fang’er, I have never said such a thing!"
"But you’ve already done so!" Gu Fangzi cried out, "Otherwise, why would you instruct Butler Liu that way?"
Shi Fengju smiled bitterly and said, "Fangzi, what are you thinking? With the courtyard in such disrepair, how could you bear to live here? You still need to observe mourning—"
"Didn’t we set the sixth of August to welcome me through your door?" Gu Fangzi raised her tearful eyes, asking pitifully.
Shi Fengju was caught off guard and awkwardly said, "Fangzi, your uncle has just passed away; how could you possibly come through the door now?"
"Do you mean that I should observe mourning for three years?" Gu Fangzi’s gaze flashed, confronting him harshly.
Shi Fengju hastily said, "Three years will pass quickly! Fangzi, I promise you, after three years, I will surely welcome you into my home as my lawful wife!"
Shi Fengju’s eyes brightened, and he inexplicably felt relieved. He subconsciously thought that after three years, Miss Wan would probably not be in the Shi Mansion anymore. He should be happy about this, but at the moment, instead of feeling pleased, there was a subtle sense of dejection.
Gu Fangzi seemed to have heard the most ridiculous joke in the world, letting out a bleak "heh heh" and painfully challenged, "Big cousin, three years, three whole years! Do you know how old I will be after three years? How can I possibly wait for three years!"
"Fang’er..." Shi Fengju felt incredulous, as if something inside him had shattered. The cousin before him seemed so unfamiliar; it was as if he had never known her at all.
"Your uncle was your biological father; how can you not observe mourning for him?"
"He wasn’t!" Gu Fangzi shouted with turbulent emotions, "I don’t have such a father! I don’t! He’s never been responsible as a father, has never raised me, so why should I mourn for him? He killed my mother, and now he’s about to ruin my entire life! I hate him, I despise him!"
"Fang’er, calm down!" Shi Fengju hurried forward, holding her by the shoulders, "Fang’er, you can’t speak such nonsense! Even if he had his faults, he was still your father. Once dead, let bygones be bygones. If others heard this, what would they think of you!"
"I don’t care! I don’t care at all!" Gu Fangzi threw herself into his arms, weeping uncontrollably, clutching him as she cried, "I only care about you, I only care about you! Big cousin, you can’t abandon me, you can’t!"
"I didn’t say I don’t want you, I didn’t," Shi Fengju murmured, lifting his arm to pat her back, but he didn’t notice his uncontrollable weakness.
"Then let me enter your home! On the sixth of August!" Gu Fangzi raised her head from his embrace, wiped away the tears, and with shining eyes, she said, "There has been precedent for entering a home within a hundred days of mourning!"
Shi Fengju was dumbstruck.
He had not expected Gu Fangzi to say such a thing.
"Fang’er, if," Shi Fengju’s voice was somewhat weak and hoarse, "If I say that after you observe three years of mourning, I will welcome you as my lawful wife, would you be willing? Are you willing to wait?"
Shi Fengju’s heart rose to his throat, anxiously waiting for Gu Fangzi’s response.
Gu Fangzi noticed his unusual expression and took it as deceit, feeling agitated and annoyed in her heart. She cast him a resentful glance and said quietly, "Big cousin, I have always known about your marriage agreement and that you would never take me as your wife in this life. But so what! I love you in my heart! And I know that your feelings for me are genuine! With this, I am very content!"