Despite his anger, Ye Mu managed to remain calm on the surface. The red eyes were the only thing that gave him away.
Such detail didn’t escape Gu Qiang’s eyes, but she only took several deep breaths and said nothing.
This was neither Ye Mu’s fault nor hers, thus there was no need for them to play the blame game. Instead of wasting time with this man, she would rather return to the banquet and greet all the guests.
Seeing Ye Mu had no wish to quarrel with her either, Gu Qiang turned back and looked at Gusu Liang, who stepped forward after getting the hint.
But everything suddenly went into chaos before she could ask Ye Mu out.
Ye Mu, once standing still where he was, suddenly leaned forward and seized Gu Qiang at her waist, dragging her into his arms and kissing her at her lips.
With a boom in her head, Gu Qiang instantly understood his intention; she tried to shake him off but failed as this man was
Jiang Min forced a smile, then she pushed down the maid who was cleaning oil stain on her clothes, venting her grievance out on her.Being used to her brutal treatment, the maid stepped back without saying anything.Gu Qiang was also simmering with rage, then she saw Prime Minister Gu and Ye leading some courtiers here to congratulate her. Also seeing their coming, Jiang Min stood up and complained, “Zhizhang, come here and take a look. Gu Qiang just shouted at me, was she angry?”Ye glanced over them all and found everyone was looking at her.She hadn’t got any attention since everyone learned that Gu Zhihua had been given cold shoulder by the Third Prince ever since they got married. Now, why were they looking at her?“What’s the problem with that? As an Infanta, she has the right to scold anyone she dislikes,” said Prime Minister Gu authoritatively, his beard quivered.Prime Minister knew Jiang M
Tears were pouring down Gu Zhiyan’s face. Though Ting Feng had been quick in helping her wipe out some, more were spilled out from her eyes.When she finally got steadier, she forced out a smile, “Sister, will things be different if I am not a mistress’s daughter?”Knowing who she was, Gu Qiang showed no surprise at her words. “Zhiyan, what you should blame is not your identity but yourself. Why do you allow yourself to be at mercy of others?” said Gu Qiang in a plain tone, looking into Gu Zhiyan’s eyes.Gu Zhiyan looked up to Gu Qiang with great astonishment.Why did she allow herself to be at the mercy of others? What a good question. Never having a chance to fight back, she could only lick her wound in the dark like a poor animal.“Sister, how could you be at peace with everything? You know there is nothing I can do,” said Gu Zhiyan, crying, which made Gu Qiang annoyed.She never had a good time
“No, my lady, the imperial palace is not a place where you can visit anytime you want. Besides... The Emperor got seriously ill because of Mr. Gu,” said Gusu Liang in a firm voice, her hand seizing Gu Qiang’s arms. Nonsense! The Emperor’s health had been deteriorating long before he met her brother! How could they make Gu Huaian the scapegoat? She should have never expected any decent doings from the imperial family.Or did the Emperor know he was beyond help, so he put her brother in prison out of rage?It was only because he didn’t get what he wanted?“How could you also blame him? Haven’t you noticed that the Emperor was already in poor health? How could they think it’s my brother’s fault?” snapped Gu Qiang as she walked out of the yard, trying hard to steady her trembling.With all guests gone, maids were cleaning the garden in the backyard. This was a grand place, and all the people here were radiant with
The rain outside the window was getting heavier. In autumn, the coming of rains was always accompanied by dropping temperatures. Gu Qiang knew it would get colder once the rain stopped.She walked over to the wardrobe and found herself a thick coat, ignoring Gu Zhihua and Ye who were still sitting in her room with grim faces.They were watching Gu Qiang’s movement, as though wishing to kill her with their stare. Behind the changing of their expressions lay the raging storms that neither of them dared to vent out.Just like what Gu Qiang had said, they knew what kind of person she was.More heartless and cruel, she would speak whatever she liked and didn’t give a damn about the Gu Family.Putting on the coat, she turned her head and smiled, “Where are you still not leaving? Waiting for me to ask you out?”Gu Zhihua dragged Ye’s clothes, motioning to leave.If Shen Zhongbai became the Emp
Gu Qiang raised her eyes, looking at Shen Zhongbai curiously, not knowing what this man was thinking. Was he upset because she didn’t love him, or because things were not going on as he wished?Had everything rolled out as what he hoped for, he wouldn’t have been acting so weirdly now.Perhaps it was because he started to act like an emperor, there was an oppressive evil spirit exuding from him. How could he simply use it upon a vulnerable woman?But in the imperial palace, Gu Qiang was alone with no one to turn to. What she could do was to stare at him, letting him know that she would not give in.“What exactly do you want?” said Gu Qiang coldly.Shen Zhongbai drew closer; a smile curled on his face as he gritted his teeth, “I want you to marry me. The imperial edict on your marriage with Shen Qianshan is no longer valid.”Gu Qiang glared at him as though wishing to kill him with her eyes. Indeed,
This was the least they wanted. Letting out a quiet swear, Gusu Liang dragged Gu Qiang to her back, then said to Jin Ye and Su Ge who were also in great disbelief, “Take Miss Infanta out of the palace if necessary.”Back in Xiaoyao Mountain, Shen Qianshan had made it clear to them that the whole meaning of their existence was to protect Gu Qiang.Surrounded by the torches, their faces were illuminated under the flickering light, feeling a bit hot.Shen Qiangwei walked out of the torchlight, still dressing in white with that plain look on her face. Even at this moment, she couldn’t help feeling timid when she saw Gu Qiang, who was as delicate and pretty as ever. Even the white cloth couldn’t hide the gracefulness of her movement that nobody would forget.Taking back her look, she spoke up, “You are here, Gu Qiang. Have you considered the Third Prince’s proposition? If you agree to marry him, you can take Gu Huaian right away
However, it was already too late. This team of people quickly disappeared in the imperial palace. Shen Zhongbai stood there without moving, as if he was still in a daze.As soon as Shen Qiangwei, who was on the ground, moved and turned around, she spotted Shen Zhongbai standing there. She bit her lips tightly, not saying a word, but her expression was incomparably resentful.Shen Qiangwei seemed to understand the situation in an instant. In fact, Shen Zhongbai had appeared long ago.He had long seen her being stepped on by someone, but he did not reach out to help her. What did he think of her?He had once expressed his affection to her in front of many people. Thinking it was true, she was slowly falling into his arms. Only now did she realize that this was just an imaginary bubble he had given her. She had never seen the truth clearly.Finding it funny, she got up from the ground with difficulty as the people
Gu Qiang only shook her head and did not say anything.She did not feel any warmth in spite of the sunny day. Before noon, her small palanquin arrived at Prime Minister Mansion.Unlike in the past, Prime Minister Mansion was terrifyingly quiet today. Even the passing maids did not dare to breathe loudly. When they saw Gu Qiang, they all knelt on the ground with sad expressions.Gu Qiang was frightened by this kind of aura. She held her breath and walked to the main hall.The fragrance of tea filled the air of the main hall. Shen Zhongbai sat in front of Gu Zhizhang. After drawing two circles on the table, he looked up and just happened to meet Gu Qiang walking up.Unexpectedly, he actually got up first, looked at Gu Qiang with an unknown emotion in his eyes, and then said, "You are back?"When Gu Zhizhang heard this, he suddenly looked up. It was such a memorable expression that Gu Qiang could think