After the Cold and Aloof Husband's Mask Falls - Chapter 10

The moment she heard that Gu Wanlan had returned to the manor, Gu Lehuan hurried to find her, medicine chest in hand.

As she rounded a covered walkway, she happened to run straight into Gu Wanlan. “Sister, are you… headed to the Old Matron’s courtyard?”

Gu Lehuan’s gaze instinctively dropped to Gu Wanlan’s knees. She had heard that in order to fish Gu Qingyun out of prison, Gu Wanlan had knelt before the gates of the Capital Prefecture. She couldn’t help but feel worried. “Sister, have you applied any medicine to your knees? That part of the body is delicate; you mustn’t be careless. Otherwise, when the rainy and snowy seasons come, the pain will be unbearable.”

Gu Lehuan had walked quickly and was still a bit out of breath. The white fur balls dangling from her cloak ties had swung behind her shoulders, but she remained oblivious, staring at Gu Wanlan with the serious eyes of a little adult. Gu Wanlan found it somewhat amusing.

She reached out and straightened the fur balls on Gu Lehuan’s ties. “So young, yet you worry so much.”

Having said that, Gu Wanlan half-raised her eyelids and lazily extended a hand toward the girl. “Give it to me. I’m impressed you carried it for so long.”

Gu Lehuan blushed and handed over the heavy medicine chest. “I have no talent for the martial arts. In order to make the Protector Duke’s body feel a bit better, I studied some medicine. This chest is filled with ointments I prepared myself for circulating blood and relaxing the tendons. You should try them.”

Gu Wanlan took the chest; it was surprisingly heavy. She wondered just how many things the girl had stuffed inside.

Looking at Gu Lehuan, Gu Wanlan let out a sigh. She had intended to tell the girl she didn’t need to look out for her, but upon seeing Gu Lehuan’s anxious and hopeful eyes, she swallowed her words. Instead, she hefted the chest with one hand and gave a smile. “Thanks. I’ll try every single one of them.”

“Furthermore,” Gu Wanlan winked at her, “my ‘friend’ said the strategy you provided was very effective.”

“Is this a secret between me and your friend?” Gu Lehuan asked, her eyes lighting up with excitement.

“Naturally.”

“Sister, I have a secret to tell you as well—” Gu Lehuan looked around cautiously, then stood on her tiptoes to whisper in Gu Wanlan’s ear. “Just now, my maid Tingqi saw a nanny from the Old Matron’s courtyard preparing a carriage. They said they were heading to the Temple of the Infinite outside the city.”

When Gu Wanlan arrived at the Hall of Pine and Crane, Autumn Cassia had already assisted the Old Matron into a sitting position. They were admiring a painting of a Fierce Tiger Descending the Mountain. The Matron appeared peaceful, thumbing her prayer beads as she gazed at the art, as if the previous day’s chaos had never occurred.

Gu Wanlan narrowed her eyes and gave a deep, formal bow. “Grandmother, I have brought Second Uncle back from the Prefecture today. I hope the misunderstanding between you and him can be resolved soon.”

“You have been thoughtful,” the Matron replied coolly. Leaning on Autumn Cassia’s hand, she turned around. “Kneeling before the Prefecture in this weather must have been difficult. I shall have the manor’s physician examine you shortly.”

Despite her words, the Old Matron did not bid Gu Wanlan to rise. Gu Wanlan didn’t care; she casually pulled up a yellow-wood chair and sat down. “To get Second Uncle out, such a thing is a small price to pay. However—”

Gu Wanlan looked up, a faint smile on her lips. “There are still rumors circulating in the streets that are unfavorable to him. After all, it was you, Grandmother, who originally ‘sacrificed’ him in the name of justice.”

Autumn Cassia shuddered. She could feel the Old Matron’s right hand tightening its grip on her arm with enough force to bruise. The Eldest Young Lady was truly twisting the knife.

“They are merely street rumors. Wanlan, you are new to Xijing and may not know—in this city, as long as there is a new scandal, the old ones are quickly forgotten.” The Old Matron sat regally in the high seat, her composure unruffled.

“Is that so?” Gu Wanlan lowered her eyes, toying with a white jade porcelain cup. “But Second Uncle is an official, after all. The triennial Zhongzheng Evaluation is about to begin, isn’t it?”

The clicking of the prayer beads in the Matron’s hand stopped abruptly. Autumn Cassia bowed her head even lower, feeling the air in the room turn thick and suffocating.

After a long silence, the Old Matron closed her eyes. “Then, what brilliant suggestion does Wanlan have?”

Gu Wanlan leaned back lazily in her chair. “Hardly a brilliant suggestion. But since it was a misunderstanding, it can be resolved as long as the ‘victim’ is willing to let it go.”

“Heh.” The Old Matron let out a cold laugh and slammed the prayer beads onto the table with a sharp clack. Her eyes turned piercing as she glared at the girl. “And what if that ‘victim’ is insatiably greedy?”

The Matron suddenly released the full weight of her authority as the household’s matriarch. Autumn Cassia was so terrified she dropped to her knees, breaking out in a cold sweat.

Gu Wanlan remained completely unfazed. She shifted into an even more comfortable position, resting her chin on one hand and blinking at the Matron. “Grandmother, if wanting back what belongs to oneself is called ‘insatiable greed,’ then what do we call those who covet what belongs to others? Are they not less than human? Worse than pigs and dogs?”

Autumn Cassia felt as though a bolt of lightning had struck her. She wished she could plug her ears. The Eldest Young Lady actually dared to call the Old Matron a pig and a dog to her face! Is she going to tear the mask off completely?!

However, the Old Matron knew this was not the time for an open brawl. Even though she knew Gu Wanlan was insulting her indirectly, she had to endure it. Ignoring the vein throbbing in her forehead, she squeezed out a smile. “What Wanlan means is—”

“Naturally, I mean splitting the family estate.”

Clack! The porcelain cup Gu Wanlan had casually tossed back onto the table let out a crisp sound. The Old Matron stood up abruptly, her chest heaving and her face flushed red as if she were suffocating. Autumn Cassia hurried forward to rub her back.

Gu Wanlan rose gracefully and patted her skirt. “Is Grandmother unwilling? You should think carefully. As long as the household remains one, those rumors of Second Uncle murdering for wealth will never be cleared.”

After a long, silent stare-down, the Old Matron finally conceded. She looked defeated. “Fine. We can split the estate. But I have one condition. Since we must clear your uncle’s name completely, it must be done at a large public gathering.”

“Such as?”

The Matron seemed to have found her footing again, her speech quickening. “It just so happens you have recently returned home. We shall use this opportunity to hold a grand Recognition Banquet. On one hand, the guests will serve as witnesses for your uncle’s clarification; on the other, it will introduce you to society so you may travel freely within the capital.”

“That sounds reasonable,” Gu Wanlan nodded.

The Old Matron secretly breathed a sigh of relief. “Naturally. I value propriety above all. This is best for everyone. Once the banquet is over, we shall invite the clan elders to preside over the splitting of the estate.”

Gu Wanlan finalized a few more details before leaving. The moment she was gone, the Old Matron’s face turned grim, and she spat toward the door. “Truly a difficult wretch.”

Then, the Matron reached out to Autumn Cassia with a triumphant smile. “See? You were worried this little brat wouldn’t agree to the banquet. Now she’s more eager for it than anyone.”

Autumn Cassia supported the Matron, not daring to look up. A chill ran down her spine. Before Gu Wanlan had even arrived, the Matron had predicted she would use Gu Qingyun’s reputation to demand a reward. The Matron had feigned anger and “retreated” step by step, making Gu Wanlan believe she had won.

In truth, she had lured Gu Wanlan into a trap set long ago.

“Your strategy is profound, Madam. No one can compare,” the maid whispered.

The Matron huffed. “A little slip of a girl cannot escape my palm. The arrangements at the Temple of the Infinite are already in motion. You must prepare the guest list meticulously. I want to give that brat a recognition banquet she will never forget.”

“Achoo!”

Back in her courtyard, Gu Wanlan sneezed as she was closing her windows. She rubbed her nose and thought nothing of it. She opened the medicine chest Gu Lehuan had given her. The ointments and patches were arranged neatly, and in a small corner, there were even two pieces of malt candy.

Gu Wanlan peeled the wrapper and popped a candy into her mouth. A sweet flavor spread across her tongue. “Mm, quite sweet.”

With that sweetness lingering, she collapsed onto her bed. She had intended to treat being a noble lady as a vacation, but the past two days had been non-stop work. Exhaustion washed over her. She pulled the blanket over herself and drifted into a heavy sleep.

But something felt strange.

Gu Wanlan was consciously aware she was dreaming. She was floating in the air, looking down at a military tent where “Ji Lin” was eating with a group of soldiers.

“General, after the great victory at Changping Pass, Monitor Song and General Qi both went back to the capital to receive rewards. Yet you’re here eating from a communal pot with us. Don’t you feel slighted?”

Monitor Song? Gu Wanlan’s mind went blank. During the battle of Changping Pass, wasn’t the monitor Cui Qiong?

She forced herself to float lower. When she saw the face of the man sitting next to “herself,” she was struck with horror.

It was He San—the man Cui Qiong had executed!

Before she could react, her dream-self placed a piece of braised pork into He San’s bowl. “The capital isn’t all that great. It doesn’t matter if I go back. As long as we drive the Rouran out, it’s enough.”

He San looked uneasy for a moment. He looked up to speak, but was interrupted by someone entering the tent. “General Ji, someone is outside looking for you. They say they are an old friend?”

“Looking for me?”

Her dream-self looked surprised. After a moment’s hesitation, she stood up and walked out. The floating Gu Wanlan followed, filled with curiosity. Ever since she assumed the identity of Ji Lin, she had been in the army almost every waking hour. What “old friend” could she possibly have?

The winter at Changping Pass was dry and cold. Outside the camp, she saw a figure wrapped in a snow-white fox-fur cloak. The person’s back was to the camp, speaking to a sentry.

Only a silhouette remained.

“Who are you?” she heard her dream-self ask.

The figure turned around. It was Cui Jue!

At the same time, she heard her own heart cry out in shock: It’s him!