Chapter 335: Chapter 313, Bluff_1
Daohua returned to Taohua Temple and found the courtyard to be serene, with the sound of cooking coming from the kitchen. She went over to take a look and saw her grandmother preparing soup.
Lady Yan hurriedly waved Daohua over when she saw her, “You’re back just in time. Quickly, take this rock sugar, honey, and snow pear soup to Granny Gu.”
Daohua was startled, “Is Granny Gu coughing again?”
Lady Yan stretched her neck to look towards the main house and whispered, “Just now, your master said something to Granny Gu, and from what I could tell, it seemed like he upset her.”
“I’ll go have a look.” Daohua quickly ladled a bowl of the snow pear soup and then turned to head for Granny Gu’s room.
“Take it easy, don’t burn your hands,” Lady Yan called out loudly.
Inside the room, Granny Gu’s emotions had stabilized, and she had closed her eyes to sleep by the time Daohua entered.
Gu Jian made a gesture for silence, then gestured for Daohua to follow him outside.
Once outside, Daohua asked anxiously, “Master, hasn’t it been a long time since Granny has had a cough? What’s happened today?”
Gu Jian glanced at his disciple and shook his head, “It’s nothing now.”
Daohua looked at her master’s expression and tentatively asked, “Is it because of Xiao Yeyang?”
Gu Jian looked at his disciple again but remained silent.
Daohua fell silent for a while, set the bowl of soup on the table, thought for a moment, and then decided to speak up, “Master, tell me the truth, do you and Granny Gu have some kind of grievance with Prince An Jing?”
Gu Jian sighed inwardly, having a clever disciple was a blessing, but such cleverness could also be exhausting. He sat down on a chair before replying gruffly, “So what if there is? What if there isn’t?”
Daohua quickly sat opposite him, “So there really is something?” She narrowed her eyes and began to analyze, “You wouldn’t give Xiao Yeyang the precious swordsmanship techniques if he were your enemy.”
“You and Granny Gu were shocked and excited the first time you saw Xiao Yeyang, and you kept asking Prince An Jing about him. I guess that you must know Prince An Jing.”
“But this time when Xiao Yeyang came over, you weren’t too friendly towards him, so even if there’s no enmity, I guess there isn’t any particular favor either…”
Having said this, Daohua paused.
It wasn’t that she didn’t want to continue speculating, but she knew too little about Imperial family affairs to guess further.
If Granny Gu were twenty or thirty years younger, Daohua would have speculated whether she could be Xiao Yeyang’s mother or something.
But Granny Gu was even older than her own grandmother and could be Prince An Jing’s mother. What was she to make of that?
Seeing her cheap master looking at her expressionlessly, with a ‘go on, keep talking’ look, Daohua gave an embarrassed smile and then forged ahead despite her hesitation.
“But then, you had Xiao Yeyang personally repair your roads, so I’m thinking, does Prince An Jing owe you and Granny Gu something?”
“What could he owe? Being a Prince, he has money if he needs money, power if he needs power; it should be easy for him to repay any favor.”
Hearing this, Gu Jian’s heart skipped a beat. Seeing Daohua’s eyes spinning around, he quickly interrupted her, “If you’re so bored you’re delirious, go memorize the ‘Herbal Compendium’ for me. Why waste time on such pointless thoughts?”
Daohua said earnestly, “Master, this matter is very important to me. You are my master, which practically makes Granny Gu my elder, and Xiao Yeyang, he’s my friend. I must understand the grievances between you all to know how to respond.”
Gu Jian was at a loss for words, “What kind of response are you planning to make?”
Daohua replied, “For instance, if Prince An Jing really does owe you, then I definitely can’t let Xiao Yeyang keep coming here and bothering you.”
“And for another, if there’s some kind of misunderstanding between you, then I could try to help you resolve it.”
Gu Jian felt helpless. He knew that without a reasonable explanation, this girl would relentlessly pursue the matter. He said abruptly, “There’s no misunderstanding, and Prince An Jing doesn’t owe us anything.”
Daohua looked skeptical, “That doesn’t seem right. I saw that Granny Gu is actually quite nice to Xiao Yeyang.”
Gu Jian took a deep breath, “That’s because she mistook him for her grandson.”
At this, Daohua’s eyes widened suddenly.
Gu Jian glanced at her, “Don’t get the wrong idea. There was a fire in our household years ago. Except for my sister and me, everyone else perished, including my sister’s pregnant daughter-in-law.”
Daohua: “What does that have to do with the Peaceful Prince?”
Gu Jian: “…Back then, I looked into the cause of the fire. It was said to be related to the Peaceful Prince, but later, the Government Office intervened and said it was due to the dry weather causing the fire, not arson.”
“Is that so?”
Daohua still had some doubts in her eyes.
Her master’s words, at first listen, seemed quite reasonable; however, something still didn’t feel quite right.
Seeing the investigative look still in his disciple’s eyes, Gu Jian couldn’t help but rub his forehead and, after thinking for a moment, continued, “Back in the day, the Peaceful Prince intervened to help us. For several years, I frequently visited the Prince Residence to treat him.”
Hearing this, Daohua finally felt relieved.
The Peaceful Prince first helped her master’s family, then was suspected of destroying it; hence, that was why her master had shown such a complex expression towards Xiao Yeyang.
It was quite easy to explain the situation with Granny Gu. Being elderly and yearning for her grandchild, it was a case of emotional transfer.
Gu Jian glanced at Daohua’s expression and, seeing that he had finally convinced her, he quietly heaved a sigh of relief.
He thought that would be the end of it, but lo and behold, Daohua spoke up again.
“Master, as for Xiao Yeyang, yes, he’s the legitimate son of the Peaceful Prince. But in fact, he’s quite pitiable. When he was just a few years old, the Peaceful Prince divorced his Princess Consort, and he favored the concubine’s eldest son by the concubine, completely neglecting him.”
“Think about it, a prince’s son was kidnapped by human traffickers, which just shows how little his own family cared about him.”
“Now, he’d rather stay in Zhongzhou, spending the holidays alone, than return to Beijing. I’ve known him for a few years now, and I’ve never once heard him voluntarily talk about his own family. You can imagine how rough his life has been.”
“So, don’t take out your resentment towards the Peaceful Prince on him.”
After learning about Xiao Yeyang’s circumstances, Gu Jian frowned and then looked at Daohua in silence. He lacked a beard, otherwise, he would definitely be puffing it out and glowering: “How have I taken out my dissatisfaction on him?”
Daohua: “You made him repair the road by himself?”
Gu Jian: “He’s big and strong. Taohua Mountain isn’t that high; is repairing a road going to kill him?”
Daohua was at a loss for words.
Gu Jian sneered and asked, “Does that lad think it’s beneath him to repair the road for me and his sister?”
Daohua pursed her lips and didn’t dare to speak.
Gu Jian ‘hmphed’ and, remembering his sister’s instructions, suppressed the displeasure in his heart and said no more.
After thinking it over, Daohua said, “Master, Xiao Yeyang is actually quite reasonable. I’ll write to him immediately, tell him about the grudge between you and the Peaceful Prince. If he knew that the Gu Family might have been destroyed because of his father, he would be willing to come over and repair the road for you.” As she was saying this, she made a move to leave.
Gu Jian quickly called her back: “Don’t tell him all that!”
Daohua was stunned: “Why not?”
Gu Jian appeared somewhat dejected: “…your master and sister are already of such an age, with not many years left to live. We don’t want to get entangled with the Peaceful Prince’s residence anymore. All I wish for now is to live out the rest of my days in peace and quiet.”
After finishing his words, he looked at Daohua earnestly.
“If you still acknowledge me as your master, then forget everything I’ve told you today.”
Daohua silently said, “Master, I won’t talk about it then. As for the road, if Xiao Yeyang won’t fix it, I will. If you really need me to do it personally, that’s fine too, but it may be a bit slow.”
Gu Jian looked askance at Daohua: “With that tiny frame of yours? Repairing roads?”
Daohua immediately retorted, “Master, if you look down on me, then I’ll find someone else to repair it.”
“Do as you please!” Gu Jian waved his hand with an impatient air.
Daohua smiled and decided there and then to have Xiaoliu arrange for people to come and repair the road the next day.
Little did she know, before Xiaoliu set off for the county town the next day, Xiao Yeyang had already returned with Defu in tow.