Chapter 160: Chapter 160: Dreaming soporific

Gu Kaiyuan helped her smooth out her somewhat messy hair and said with deep agreement, "It’s a bit of a pity, but when I returned, I saw the Chen Family moving over again, maybe he has the latest version."

Chen Dafu really is everywhere; no sooner had the Third Prince left than he sidled up next to the Gu Family again.

Bai Suihe pursed her lips, "Forget about Mr. Chen; he came with an agenda. I suspect he’s one of their people."

Although the book doesn’t detail it, Chen Dafu was later reinstated to his position; the intrigue behind it can be guessed just by thinking about it.

"I’ve been wondering too, considering such a large sum of silver, that one wouldn’t want it falling into individual hands."

If it was in the Third Prince’s hands, it would still be in the same pot, but in Gu Baijiang’s hands, it would be different.

The higher-ups think more comprehensively, which is why Chen Dafu was temporarily assigned; it’s an additional layer of insurance arranged by them.

"So the Third Prince leaves and Chen Dafu cozies up again," Bai Suihe had a question, "Isn’t he afraid Gu Baijiang will mention him."

In the court, everyone knows who’s aligned with whom; as soon as the Third Prince and Gu Baijiang have any exchange, Chen Dafu would be exposed.

Gu Kaiyuan, "The Third Prince isn’t stupid; even if he knows, he has to pretend not to, and also expedite the process to quickly get things from his father.

Of course, it’s possible he doesn’t know; Father isn’t someone with an open heart, showing off Chen Dafu’s presence at this time."

If the Third Prince shifts his focus and starts to woo Chen Dafu, it’s not a good thing for him."

"The ones playing politics are just..." Bai Suihe clicked her tongue, patting Gu Kaiyuan’s shoulder, "You truly are your father’s son, you understand him best."

Bai Suihe finished speaking, yawned, and returned to the carriage; she hadn’t looked after the baby earlier, and now the baby was silent, probably asleep again, so she needed to rest.

Gu Kaiyuan turned his head to look at his shoulder, then smiled bitterly shaking his head; Bai Suihe wasn’t wrong, he was indeed somewhat like Gu Baijiang.

Gu Family here

Gu Kaiyuan and Bai Suihe dusted off their clothes and left, leaving the Gu Family behind, who were fuming.

Xu Yulan was perceptive this time, and she stealthily slipped into the carriage, ignoring her husband.

She saw Gu Antong still crying there, curled her lips, and snuggled up next to her son, leaning against him to sleep.

After a busy day, she was tired too, but that mother-daughter pair was like annoying flies, incessantly buzzing and crying.

She vaguely heard Gu Antong’s complaints.

"Mother, what should I do in the future?"

"Don’t worry, your grandfather will think of something."

"Even if Grandfather has a plan, what can it achieve? My biological father belittles me, and look at my uncles, they are all laughing at me.

If our family is ousted from the clan again, then I really have no path to survival."

Liu Yun thought about one thing after another, one clause after another, and felt a chill on her scalp; any single one could drive a person to despair, and there they were combined all together.

She could only blandly comfort, "The Third Prince won’t just stand by; he will help..."

"Mother, but your daughter doesn’t have that confidence." These days, Gu Antong had been working tirelessly; although the Third Prince might have a corner of his heart for her, it’s not enough.

In Shangjing, there are so many noble ladies with esteemed backgrounds and outstanding talents and beauty; she’s now just a criminal’s daughter; how can she compete with them?

The Third Prince’s departure timing is uncertain, and the variables in between are too great.

But despite that, she still might have had a chance to turn things around, but this opportunity was completely ruined by her own father.

In broad daylight, he actually allowed her to follow the Third Prince without a name or status; with such actions from her own father, no wonder her uncles mocked her so.

"Don’t worry, once your grandfather’s mood improves, we’ll ask him..."

Xu Yulan was already asleep when she heard this.

In her dream, Gu Antong was carried into the Third Prince Mansion through the side entrance in a small sedan chair, becoming a concubine in a side courtyard...

Seeing the always proud Gu Antong bowing and scraping before the women of the Prince Mansion, and being constantly troubled, Xu Yulan laughed out loud in her sleep.

This made Liu Yun and her mother, who were still there crying and pitying themselves, grind their teeth in anger; even as they were so upset, Xu Yulan laughed.

They didn’t care whether she was dreaming or not; they felt it was a mockery, and in their hearts noted down Xu Yulan’s offense.

The three father and son sitting by the fire were silently speechless.

Finally, Gu Kaichen couldn’t sit still, yawned, and spread his blanket on the ground, "Dad, big brother, let’s talk tomorrow, or we won’t have the energy to travel tomorrow."

"..." Gu Kaiping looked at Gu Kaichen, no longer wanting to speak; these two brothers seemed to be here just to collect debts, offering no support at all.

If not for Father, he would have followed Gu Kaiyuan’s suggestion, kicking them out to avoid the constant annoyance.

Gu Baijiang didn’t bother to respond, pondering in his mind how to resolve the Gu family’s issues and restore the family’s reputation.

No matter how much silver Bai Suihe had, he wouldn’t be willing to hand it over, and Gu Baijiang had no way to compel him.

The useless son Gu Kaiyuan, now completely enamored by Ms. Bai, practically a live-in son-in-law; this son was truly a waste.

If not for potential future needs, he would have taken this chance to split off that branch of the family.

Ms. Bai was without any substantial dowry now; should he return to the capital one day, the Bai Family would certainly not provide so much silver again to help her reestablish her household; this woman was really bold, daring to expect the Gu Family to offer compensation, she clearly couldn’t be kept.

"Kai Ping, tomorrow find an opportunity to connect with your great-uncle; when we were in the village, he liked you a lot, always wanted to hold you."

Gu Kaiping, "Dad, I’ve already forgotten those things..."

"It’s not for you to remember; learn from Kaiyuan, find a way to make that old man happy, and offer promises that we’ll have means to return to the court in the future; by then, we will not let them down."

Gu Baijiang thought for a bit, then added, "If they don’t believe, we can establish a contract."

An empty promise wasn’t believable; Uncle wasn’t likely to trust easily, and Gu Baijiang believed this time they needed to offer a sweetener, even if he could return to court, offering dozens to hundreds of taels each year, he had to restore lost reputation no matter what.

"Then I’ll try tomorrow," Gu Kaiping became anxious thinking about those covetous family members, his back felt chilled; he only remembered bits from childhood, having been confined at home to study at that time, how could he claim affection? He himself couldn’t believe it.