Chapter 48 - Xiao Gu

Uncle Qun drove the horse carriage while wearing an unpleasant expression. He looked back at Qi Zheng and said, “Young Master, why bother with Third Miss Shen? If someone misunderstands, won’t we be causing trouble for ourselves?”

Qi Zheng had slightly closed his eyes to rest. Hearing Uncle Qun’s words, he opened his eyes and stared at the cyan carriage roof. There was a murderous glint in his eyes as he said, in a deep voice, “What sort of trouble?”

“She isn’t worthy of you.” Uncle Qun said.

A faint smile hovered on Qi Zheng’s lips. There was a glint in his eyes. “She…”

He didn’t continue. Uncle Qun knitted his eyebrows and sighed sorrowfully. Did Young Master really view that woman in another light now? How could that coarse and unscrupulous woman have the right to become the young lady of the house? He hoped that the Young Master wouldn't make the wrong decision.

The horse carriage entered the west door of Duke An’s residence. Qi Zheng got off the horse carriage with a calm expression, entering the door in high spirits under a few servants’ complicated gazes.

“Young Master really isn’t stupid…” A servant murmured to another one in a low voice.

“Not just that, but he seems… He seems…” Another servant didn’t know how to describe him. He accidentally made eye contact with Qi Zheng and just one glance terrified him to the point his face paled. Apparently, Qi Zheng’s gaze was enough to make one shudder and feel self-conscious.

“Young Master acts just like the Lord!”

The servants discussed in low voices, not detecting the housekeeper wearing deep gray clothes walking over. He coughed loudly and said, “You people don’t want to live anymore? You think you can gossip about your master behind his back?”

The servants hurriedly begged for mercy and claimed that they wouldn't do it again.

“Leave and attend to your duties!” The housekeeper hollered and the gossiping servants immediately scattered.

The housekeeper holding a complicated expression was the main housekeeper of the Duke An residence. His last name was Wu and he was the trusted aide trained by the Old Madam. When Xiao Gu married into the family, the housekeeper became Xiao Gu’s right-hand man. He never thought of a day that the Young Master would recover, so he already loyally treated the Second Young Master as the heir.

He was originally stupid and retarded, so how did he recover just like that? Housekeeper Qu wasn't the only one who didn't understand, many people within the Duke An residence didn’t either. But none of them were as angry as Xiao Gu.

“Lady, the Young Master returned from the palace.” Mama Gu took small quick steps and said in a low voice towards Xiao Gu, who was lying on the soft bed.

Ever since Qi Zheng woke up, Xiao Gu felt uncomfortable everywhere. She wore a loose flowery plum blossom dress and laid on the soft bed, the very picture of sickness. Her face was slightly pale and her originally sharp and acute gaze was now dull and lifeless. It made her appear more sorrowful and resentful.

“Humph. He just recovered and he’s already trying to please the Empress. He obviously wants the Empress to support him, so that he could kick my Feng’er out.” When Xiao Gu mentioned Qi Zheng, she gritted her teeth in hate. “Why didn’t he die?! Why did he have to wake up and cause trouble for us?”

“Lady, you mustn’t say this.” Mama Gu hurriedly advised. If the Lord found out, the consequences would be unimaginable. Everyone knew that the Young Master was the top priority in the Lord’s heart.

“How come I can’t talk about him? I want him to die so badly! Not only is he making me annoyed, but he’s also blocking my Feng’er’s path.” Xiao Gu clenched her teeth. She originally thought that Qi Zheng would never wake up, so she was secretly delighted in her heart. Who knew that he would wake up in the blink of an eye and would also recover from his retardness.

This development was what Xiao Gu hated the most.

Mama Gu tried to convince her master to calm down. “Lady, you still need to endure this for a while. The Lord is happy right now, but if he finds out that you are against the Young Master, he’ll start to dislike you. When that happens, he won’t even pay attention to your two sons, so wouldn’t that be helping the other person instead?”

Whenever Xiao Gu thought of Qi Zheng, she felt a twinge of pain in her heart. “You didn’t see… When that fool opened his eyes, I coincidentally was standing by his side. He looked like he was going to swallow me whole. Mama Gu, he… He might have been faking being stupid all these years!”

“How is this possible?!” Mama Gu was shook. “How could someone pretend to be stupid for a decade? Lady, don’t overthink. Instead, we should think about how to make the future for your two sons better.”

“Future? Humph! Could my Feng’er still be the Crown Prince? Look at how wide the Duke’s smile has been these days. He was always biased.” Xiao Gu suddenly felt wronged and she started to choke on her words.

Ever since Qi Zheng woke up, Duke An had been smiling splendidly. Naturally, Xiao Gu hated this.

When Mama Gu heard this, she felt uncomfortable in her heart. “After all, Duke An is a father. He originally thought that the Young Master couldn’t be cured, but who knew that he suddenly recovered? Anyone would be happy when they heard the news. When this phase is over, Lady should convince the two young masters to appear in front of Duke An frequently and please him. After all, they are their sons, so Duke An wouldn’t treat them any less.”

“Plus, the Young Master has been stupid for so many years, so he can’t catch up with a lot of the materials. He doesn’t even recognize words, so how can he compare to the young masters?” Mama Gu smiled thinly in disdain.

After Qi Zheng woke up and Duke An saw his clear expression, he started testing him. But Qi Zheng didn’t know any of the answers to his father's questions. He may not be stupid, but he wasn't very smart either.

“These years, even though Feng’er has improved, the Duke won’t even spare him a look. Meanwhile, he pampered and spoiled that bitch’s stupid son. Don’t mention how Qi Zheng isn’t stupid or dumb anymore, he even has the Empress supporting him. I know very well the type of person the Duke is, having been married to him all these years. Just look. In order to compensate that bitch, he will definitely title that son as the heir.” Xiao Gu didn’t feel any better, twisting the handkerchief in her hand into a ball as though that was the only way to vent her anger.

“Young Master… He still doesn’t know how his mother died?” Mama Gu’s eyelids twitched and she asked in a soft voice.

Xiao Gu wore a mocking sneer and said, “If he found out, you think he would still stay here?”

Mama Gu’s eyes flickered. “Lady, why don’t we…”

“It’s not time yet!” Xiao Gu interrupted her. Loosening her grip on the handkerchief, her voice softened. “Let’s wait. I want to see whether Qi Zheng was really stupid or just pretending all these years. If he forgot, then he’s really the Empress’s nephew.”

But if he was pretending...

Deep hatred filled Xiao Gu’s eyes.

Mama Gu didn’t detect Xiao Gu’s gaze. She started to curse about, feeling injustice. “It’s all Shen Ziqiao’s fault. If she didn’t beat Young Master, how could he possibly have recovered?”

When Shen Ziqiao was mentioned, Xiao Gu’s sneer became more obvious.

“... When Young Master was returning, he encountered the Shen Family’s horse carriage. He acted quite intimate with Shen Ziqiao on the streets. He knows no shame.” Mama Gu reported the news that her spy obtained. A delicate and charming figure floated in her mind, and her eyes filled with disgust.

“Where’s the Lord?” Xiao Gu asked faintly.

“In the study.” Mama Gu answered.

Xiao Gu sat up straight and caressed the loose strands of her hair, standing up and going to talk to her husband in the study. She was about to walk out when Mama Gu lowered her head and said in a low voice, “Young Master is also in the study.”

Xiao Gu breathed heavily and her expression changed. After a moment, she gradually sat back down and, for a while, she stayed completely silent.