Mrs. Wang felt shaken again as she listened, suddenly recalling her daughter’s nonchalant and breezy tone when discussing those past events, seemingly not taking them to heart. Knowing her daughter was always highly protective of her son, how could she tolerate such bossy and ignorant behavior from Fang’er if that were truly the case?
Mrs. Wang then felt guilty, believing she had wronged Gu Fangzi. Seeing how filially respectful and caring Gu was now, and her insistence on the marriage proposal, Mrs. Wang’s resolve began to wane.
Gu Fangzi was overjoyed to have achieved her goal, sneering inwardly, wisely choosing not to mention it further, and just diligently attending to Mrs. Wang. She even hoped Sang Wan would lose patience and bring up the matter again, for then it would be as clear as Sima Zhao’s intentions! Mrs. Wang would then handle it herself, and Gu wouldn’t need to intervene.
Sang Wan, of course, wasn’t foolish enough to willingly attract suspicion. Apart from privately listening whenever Shi Fengju mentioned it, she acted as if she knew nothing and never let anything slip in front of Mrs. Wang.
It was Shi Fengju who couldn’t help asking his mother how the matter was proceeding.
Mrs. Wang was no longer as forthright as before, giving a vague response, "Fangzi is still in mourning. Let’s wait until her mourning period is over. This isn’t something that can be resolved so quickly."
Shi Fengju felt sullen, thinking, how could a few words not be clear? He said, "That’s fine, Mother, take your time discussing it with her. I’ll start inquiring and finding a suitable family. We don’t want to be rushed later on!"
Mrs. Wang grew anxious upon hearing this, "There’s no rush! Wait, let’s talk about it later! Fengju, Fangzi has lived with us for many years, in Mother’s heart, she has long been considered part of the family! It’s really hard on me to just send her away all of a sudden. Fengju, can’t you reconsider? Fang’er is quite good, and you used to like her, didn’t you? Our family doesn’t lack an extra bowl of rice; let’s keep her here!" ᴛʜɪs ᴄʜᴀᴘᴛᴇʀ ɪs ᴜᴘᴅᴀᴛᴇ ʙʏ ⓝovelFire.net
"Mother!" Shi Fengju’s expression darkened, "No, I don’t want to keep her!"
Mrs. Wang finally sensed something was amiss, her expression solemn, she slowly asked, "Fengju, tell Mother honestly, what has happened between you and Fangzi?"
How could Shi Fengju reveal it? Frowning, he said, "Just don’t ask anymore! Mother, I’m serious, I can’t accept her anymore, she has to leave sooner or later, otherwise, it will be ruining her whole life!"
Shi Fengju left after dropping that statement, leaving Mrs. Wang unable to recover for a long moment.
Shi Fengju was extremely annoyed as he stared in the direction of the peony garden for a while before striding over there.
Originally, he wanted to spare her some dignity, thus he had his mother handle the matter, eventually letting his mother decide, acting like a filial son complying with her wishes. That way, to both outsiders and the people in the household, it would seem that the lady of the house was reluctant to mistreat her niece and made this decision, and the young master was filial and abided by his mother’s wishes, a joyous situation for everyone!
Since she didn’t appreciate the courtesy, why not just tell her face-to-face?
"Big cousin! You came!" Gu Fangzi was overjoyed to see Shi Fengju appear, promptly smiling and getting up to greet him. She felt even more certain she had done well, thinking surely her aunt had spoken well of her, otherwise, why would her big cousin come to the peony garden?
"Big cousin, I really didn’t expect you to come! Lan Xiang, don’t just stand there, make some tea!" Overjoyed, Gu Fangzi subconsciously reached out to hook Shi Fengju’s arm while smiling and gesturing for him to sit, ordering Lan Xiang at the same time.
Shi Fengju didn’t hesitate to shake off her hand and stepped back, saying indifferently, "No need for tea. Lan Xiang, leave us! I have a few words for you, and then I’m leaving."
"Big cousin, what’s wrong?" The smile on Gu Fangzi’s face froze, and her eyes began to mist over.
Seeing her feigning delicacy and frailty, Shi Fengju felt an intense aversion, frowning, he said, "Cousin, there’s no one else here, so I won’t beat around the bush! Once your mourning period is over, I will find another good family for you to marry into. You should prepare yourself too!"
"No!" Tears streamed down Gu Fangzi’s face as she pleaded pitifully, "Big cousin, I don’t want any good family, I just want to be with you, I want to stay in the Shi family! Big cousin, you weren’t before, how can you treat me this way! Don’t send me away, I don’t want to leave the Shi family, I don’t want to leave you and Aunt!"
Shi Fengju replied, "Cousin, I already told you, since we’re alone here, there’s no need for pretense. I’m exhausted just watching you. And don’t talk to me about the past; it makes me feel disgusted! Whatever you think, I can only tell you plainly: I care for Miss Wan, and if you stay, I won’t touch you at all. So what’s the point?"
Gu Fangzi stared at him in disbelief, then suddenly started to laugh coldly, "You’ve admitted it! You’ve finally admitted it!" as if she had caught him in a trap.
Shi Fengju felt speechless, but inexplicably relieved, he nodded candidly, "Indeed, I’ve admitted it. Now you’ve gotten the answer you wanted, are you satisfied?"
Gu Fangzi was stunned. Ever since Sang Wan entered the household, she had incessantly pressed Shi Fengju about this matter, forcing him to respond. He had always laughed it off and told her not to overthink it! But she had never truly believed him! She trusted her instincts and judgment more.
Yet today, without her asking, he frankly told her he cared for Sang Wan. At last, her inner suspicions were confirmed, the facts proved she was right! She was correct!
But what now? Confirming that she was right also laid bare the harsh truth that she had lost him!
Gu Fangzi was lost, uncertain; about this issue that had haunted her and which she had relentlessly questioned, what exactly was the answer she had wanted?