After the Cold and Aloof Husband's Mask Falls - Chapter 15

The incense in the room was pleasant—a scent of benzoin with a slight spicy undertone, used to treat stroke-induced fainting and clear the senses.

Cui Jue put away the cloth, the smile vanishing from his eyes. “Grandfather, you ought to enjoy your remaining years in peace.”

Old Master Cui appeared not to have expected that this grandson, who had always been obedient before him, would dare to defy him. His eyes stared fixedly at the hand-warmer Cui Jue had brought, his breathing ragged. “You have feelings for her?! You can’t bear to do it?!”

Cui Jue stood up and washed his hands in the bronze basin.

“Grandfather, do you remember when the Cui family was framed and nearly lost more than half of its assets years ago?”

Even if Old Master Cui was currently bedridden and his mind was often muddled, how could he ever forget a matter that concerned the very foundation of his ancestors? Back then, if it hadn’t been for Cui Jue turning the tide at the critical moment, how could a “monster” already cast aside by the family have ever entered his sight?

But hearing Cui Jue bring up the past now, a terrifying thought crossed the Old Master’s mind.

“You… you… you—”

The Old Master’s lips trembled, and saliva involuntarily began to drool again. This time, however, Cui Jue did not move to help. He simply stood over him, slowly drying his own fingers.

“Grandfather, you guessed correctly.”

It really was him! It was Cui Jue’s intentional doing all those years ago! But he had only been sixteen then!

THUD!

The Old Master’s upper body lost all strength, and he tumbled headfirst onto the floor. Despite the loud noise, not a single person entered to check.

He had thought that even while gravely ill, he held the grand scheme in his hands and could track everyone’s movements. Now, he realized with tragic clarity that those were merely things Cui Jue wanted him to know.

Once his “reverse scale” (the thing he protected most) was touched, this wolf pup didn’t hesitate for a second to show his fangs.

The Old Master now hated Cui Jue to the bone. Prostrate on the floor, his face was twisted in a hideous grimace. “You… you monster! I should never have let you out back then!”

Remembering something, the Old Master felt a surge of spiteful joy. He couldn’t wait to see Cui Jue’s expression collapse. His hoarse voice sounded like a venomous snake flicking its tongue.

“Do… do you know how your mother originally planned to send you away? She… she was going to sever your hand tendons, poison you mute, and then send you far away!”

No, she also ruined his face.

Cui Jue gave a silent, cold laugh. No one knew this better than him.

The bone-chilling knife. The thick, dark, viscous medicine. The scalding red charcoal. Everything the Old Master spoke of, Cui Jue had experienced in its entirety in his previous life.

“Ultimately, in this round, it is you who lost.” Cui Jue’s expression was indifferent.

The Old Master felt as if he had been struck by a physical blow, suddenly coughing up a mouthful of blood. He had lost! For all his lifelong cleverness, he had ultimately lost to a mere boy!

“I… I know… you had resentment in your heart. But… but now you are the one in charge of the Cui family… you… you cannot—” The Old Master’s words were fast and gasping, his eyelids twitching as he struggled to hold onto his breath.

“I cannot let the Cui family be destroyed?”

Cui Jue seemed to guess the thoughts in the Old Master’s heart. He half-knelt and considerately finished the sentence for him.

The Old Master grabbed Cui Jue’s sleeve, the veins on his withered hand bulging. “That… that’s right—”

Cui Jue gave a light laugh and brushed the hand away. His eyes were as deep as pitch-black ink. “Rest easy. When the time comes, I will have your decaying old friends join you to be buried with the Cui family.”

The news of the Cui family’s internal strife had not yet reached the Gu manor.

Having received Gu Wanlan’s promise, the Second Madam was no longer overly worried about Gu Baozhu. She was now fretting over another matter.

“The Old Matron pressed me again just now!”

“She said if I don’t do as she says, she’ll take Weiye to her side to raise! Tell me, what am I supposed to do?!”

The Second Madam irritably pushed Gu Qingyun on the bed. Since the incident at the Prefect’s office, Gu Qingyun had taken a long leave of absence. He no longer read books or wrote essays, spending his days lying in bed.

Gu Qingyun threw off the quilt and sat up impatiently. “She just wants you to find a family for Gu Wanlan to marry into. So find one! What is there to be bothered about?”

“You make it sound easy! Do you know who the Old Matron wants? It’s the Prince of Huai’s Heir!”

“What’s wrong with the Prince of Huai’s Heir? With that status, it’s hardly an insult to her. If Gu Wanlan found out, she’d probably be happy. Look at how old she is getting anyway.”

The Second Madam’s face turned red with frustration. “But that Heir has already had three successive fiancées die! No matter how good the background is, who would dare to marry him now?!”

Gu Qingyun looked at her with a half-smile. “It seems you’ve actually started planning for Gu Wanlan’s sake.”

The Second Madam punched him in annoyance. “Who do you think I’m worrying for?! If Gu Wanlan finds out I’m the aunt who pushed her into a fire pit, with her ‘dog’ temper, would she ever let our family off easily?!”

Gu Qingyun smiled and pulled her toward him by the waist. “It wasn’t your idea, what are you afraid of? Do you think even if you go to the Prince of Huai’s manor and settle everything, Gu Wanlan will just comply? When the time comes, just push everything onto the Old Matron.”

The Second Madam hesitated. “Really? But Mother…”

Gu Qingyun sneered. “Our younger sister married the Prince of Huai as his second wife. She’s already worried about how to deal with that Heir born of the first wife. Now that the Old Matron is sending someone as difficult as Gu Wanlan over, she’s likely planning to let the two of them fight it out.”

“They get to sit back and watch the show while solving the marriage problem for the Prince’s son. They truly have a ‘two birds with one stone’ plan. And if the plan fails and Gu Wanlan comes for revenge, she’ll see that you were the matchmaker and that the Prince’s father-in-law is my superior—she’ll think we planned it all to advance my career!”

Hearing this analysis, the Second Madam grew angry. “How can Mother be so biased!”

Gu Qingyun said nothing. The Prince of Huai was the Emperor’s seventh brother, and the Protector Duke of Xun (stationed at Changping Pass) was his uncle. Now that the Protector Duke of the Gu family was nearing his end, the Duke of Xun was becoming the leader of the military nobility.

To protect the manor’s interests, the Old Matron was willing to frame Gu Qingyun; she would certainly make him the scapegoat again to curry favor with the Prince of Huai.

“Anyway, do what she tells you for now, but make sure to hold onto evidence of her involvement. When the matter explodes, we’ll just watch the Old Matron and Gu Wanlan fight it out.”

The Second Madam bit her lip. “I suppose that’s all I can do. I’ll go to the Prince of Huai’s manor now, so the Old Matron stops using Weiye to threaten me.”

Gu Wanlan was returning to the manor when she saw the back of the Second Madam hurrying into a carriage. She watched thoughtfully for a moment before asking the gatekeeper, “Did Lady Baozhu send word back to the manor?”

“No,” the gatekeeper shook his head.

Gu Wanlan raised an eyebrow, recalling the Second Madam’s distracted appearance. She wanted to send Tianxuan to investigate, but then remembered Tianxuan was already out on another assignment. She realized she had too few capable people under her command.

As she entered the manor, she found Gu Lehuan waiting anxiously at the entrance of her small courtyard.

“Gu Lehuan? Did something happen?” Gu Wanlan opened the gate for her.

“Sister! The Old Matron is truly heartless!” Gu Lehuan said, her face full of righteous indignation.

“Oh?” Gu Wanlan immediately thought of the Second Madam’s departure. Seeing the girl’s face flushed from the cold, she gestured for her to come inside. Once indoors, Gu Wanlan lit a charcoal brazier.

Gu Lehuan couldn’t wait. She had been restless ever since hearing the news. “Sister, do you remember when I told you my maid saw the Matron’s nanny heading to the Wuliang Temple?”

Gu Wanlan’s hand paused on the fire tongs. “I remember.”

“Sister, you’ve just returned, so you might not know the Matron’s nature. She isn’t the type to admit a mistake easily. After the incident with Second Uncle, she suddenly proposed a Recognition Banquet for you. I felt something was wrong. So, I had my maid go to the temple to investigate.”

“She has invited the Perfected One of Wuliang to come and inspect the feng shui on the day of your banquet!”

“If it were a simple inspection, any day would do. She’s doing it that day because she wants that Taoist priest to say something unfavorable about you in front of everyone!”

Gu Wanlan dropped the tongs and stood up, a faint smile on her lips. “So that’s it.”

Gu Lehuan bit her lip. “I know you don’t care about gossip, but a ‘soft knife’ kills without a trace. Especially since we have to marry later; if your reputation is ruined, it will be truly terrible.”

Seeing the girl’s concern, Gu Wanlan’s heart softened. “I know. I’ll be careful.” She reached out and patted Gu Lehuan’s head with a laugh. “You’re quite capable yourself; you saw right through the Old Matron’s scheme.”

“Sister! Stop teasing me. We need to find a way to counter it!” Gu Lehuan blushed and stomped her foot.

Sonehe (Pine Crane) Courtyard

The Old Matron sat leisurely in a lounge chair, sipping tea. “Did you see clearly? That girl Gu Lehuan went into that brat’s courtyard?”

Qiugui nodded. “Yes, she went in.”

The Matron set down her cup and laughed. “Another ungrateful wolf. We raised her for so long, and she turns around to curry favor with that brat.”

Qiugui didn’t dare respond, simply bowing as she took the cup.

The Matron smiled darkly to herself. “But it’s just as well. Without her, this plan might not have worked. Once that brat focuses all her attention on the Wuliang Temple, I’ll strike her while she’s off guard!”

Gu Wanlan, just you wait. We’ll see who the real victor is!