"It's my fault, I'm a bastard, I'm not human... If you don't want to drink it, then don't drink it. I'll brew it again tomorrow." He pulled Gu Fengyan, who was only wearing a thin nightgown, over, wrapped him in a blanket, and hugged him.
Gu Fengyan shrank back. "If you curse me a couple more times, I'll drink it if I feel better."
Huo Duan smiled, nuzzled his head, and cursed him again. Gu Fengyan listened and nodded... After a while, Gu Fengyan finally drank his medicine and went to sleep.
The next day, after seeing Liu Zhengshan off, Gu Fengyan and Huo Duancai began to plan where to find out about Zhu Kuo.
According to Liu Zhengshan, Zhu Kuo was originally from Yunze County. Later, his father made a fortune in business and donated money to Zhu Kuo to get him a minor official position, which became the magistrate of Qianmo County.
Yunze County is quite far from Qianmo County. It is said that not long after Zhu Kuo became the county magistrate, his father suddenly fell ill and died, and his family declined. Zhu Kuo has not been seen returning home for many years.
"To investigate this matter, we'll probably have to make the trip ourselves," Huo Duan said.
Gu Fengyan had just taken his medicine and was frowning from the bitter taste, so Huo hurriedly fed him a pine nut candy... Gu Fengyan finally recovered.
“Zhu Kuo must have realized it by now. He’s not stupid; he’ll definitely guess what we’re going to do. We can still leave now.” He put down the white porcelain bowl and crunched the pine nut candy he was biting.
After discussing and agreeing on the plan, they instructed Father Huo to pretend he wasn't there whenever someone came. Once everything was settled and the household arrangements were made, Gu Fengyan and Huo Duan took their travel expenses and drove their carriage out of Qianmo County.
The journey was very smooth, and it only took half a day to reach Yunze County.
As its name suggests, Yunze County is full of water. It was already afternoon, and Gu Fengyan and Huo Duan, seeing that they couldn't go back today, booked a room at a riverside inn to rest for a while.
Before they had lunch, Huo Duan told Gu Fengyan to sit down first, and then went downstairs to ask the owner for more food.
The inn was called "Yunlai," and the owner was a middle-aged woman who was fanning herself with a palm-leaf fan, her silver hairpin swaying in her hair as she cracked pumpkin seeds and fiddled with an abacus.
The hall was empty; the waiter was dozing by the window.
"Madam, please bring up the food. Choose light dishes and a pot of light tea... Please don't put scallions, garlic, or other strong spices in the food, as my wife doesn't eat those." Huo Duan walked over, tapped on the counter, and said a string of words.
The proprietress looked up and smiled, "Young master is a considerate person. I'll arrange for someone to send it up right away."
Looking at the waiter dozing by the window, he cursed, "You little brats, are you all dead?! The guests have come down and you're still sleeping! Get to work!"
The waiter jumped up suddenly, agreeing as he went to the kitchen to deliver the dishes.
The proprietress rolled her eyes and smiled at Huo Duan as if her expression had suddenly changed, "Young master and young mistress, you're probably not from around here... are you here for a visit?"
Huo Duan smiled but remained silent.
Seeing that Huo Duansheng was handsome and extraordinary, the proprietress started talking, "Since you are guests, I should do my best to be a good host and give you a dish."
Huo Duan thanked them, but then remembered that Gu Fengyan was alone upstairs, so he turned to leave. However, he remembered the purpose of their visit.
"Madam, I have something to ask you..." he said, turning around without much hope.
The proprietress beamed, "Ask away! There's nothing in Yunze County that I, Zhao San Niang, don't know!"
Huo Duan looked around and, seeing no one, tentatively asked, "Madam, have you ever heard of the Zhu family in the north of the city... or the name 'Yao Chunlan'?"
"Yao Chunlan?" Zhao Sanniang paused in her abacus work, looked up at Huo Duan with a strange expression, and asked, "Why are you asking about her?"
Seeing this reaction, Huo Duan knew he had a chance, so he made up a reason on the spot: "Yao Chunlan was an old friend of my mother's. My wife and I were passing through this place on business, and my mother asked us to say hello, but we couldn't find our way."
Zhao Sanniang stared at him for a while before saying, "Is that so? You two just need to go and look for the biggest house in the north of the city... But I'm afraid it will make your mother worry."
"What do you mean?" Huo Duan was overjoyed to learn that Yao Chunlan was still alive, but he didn't know where Zhao Sanniang's disappointment came from.
Zhao Sanniang sighed, "She's been traumatized and often loses her mind, acting crazy. I'm afraid she doesn't even remember who your mother is anymore."
"So that's how it is." Huo Duan sighed.
But as long as we can find the person, we can always find out.
The waiter carried the dishes upstairs. After asking his question, Huo Duan nodded and said, "There's one more thing... Does the proprietress know about the Zhu family of Yunze County in the past?"
Once Yao Chunlan was found, the Zhu family was no longer important. Huo Duan's question was just a casual remark; he didn't expect Zhao Sanniang to answer him.
Zhao Sanniang's expression became even stranger. "Young master, did your mother forget to tell you...? The Zhu family in the north of the city was once the wealthiest family in Yunze County. Yao Chunlan was Master Zhu's eleventh concubine..."
As she spoke, she remembered another piece of gossip and continued, "Back then, Yao Chunlan was the most beautiful woman in Yunze County, but she was sold to Master Zhu because of her family's poverty... This Yao Chunlan used to be deeply in love with Zhu Kuo, the eldest son of the Zhu family. It was just like Emperor Xuanzong of Tang and Yang Guifei and Prince Shou, a complete mess!"
She was so engrossed in her conversation that she completely forgot that Yao Chunlan and the young man's mother were good friends... Gossiping about someone to their face, wasn't that a slap in their face?
"Ah, that's not what I meant..." Zhao Sanniang really wanted to slap herself twice, and hurriedly explained, "I just blurted it out..."
"Yao Chunlan is Master Zhu's concubine?!" Huo Duan suddenly looked up, his gaze fixed on Zhao Sanniang.
Zhao Sanniang shuddered in fright, "Oh dear, young master, why are you making such a fuss?"
Overwhelmed by the sheer volume of information, Huo Duan was overjoyed and quickly apologized, "I'm sorry, I startled you. Thank you, I'll go upstairs now."
After saying that, he took a few steps up the steps to talk to Gu Fengyan. He bumped into the delivery boy on the steps.
He hurriedly apologized and left.
Zhao Sanniang looked puzzled... She shook her head and went back to fiddling with the abacus.
A note from the author:
Thank you so much for your support! I will continue to work hard!
Chapter Forty-Eight
Huo Duan went upstairs, pushed open the door, and immediately blurted out, "Ah Yan, what a juicy piece of gossip... Yao Chunlan is Zhu Kuo's stepmother!"
Yunze County has abundant geothermal heating and water, ensuring a year-round supply of fresh fruits and vegetables.
The kitchen staff watched as the dishes were placed on a golden sandalwood table. Several stir-fried seasonal vegetables and a large bowl of loofah and sliced pork soup were served on snow-white porcelain plates.
Gu Fengyan, with her sleeves rolled up, her fair wrists gleaming white, was serving soup to the two of them.
"Come and eat, I think this dish is quite good." He smiled and waved to Huo Duan as he entered, seemingly not at all surprised by the relationship between Zhu Kuo and Yao Chunlan.
Huo Duan sat down and drank the tea that Gu Fengyan poured for him before looking up and saying, "Ayan, why aren't you surprised at all... Did you already know?"
“It’s not early,” Gu Fengyan smiled and handed Huo Duan a slightly larger portion of rice. “When the waiter brought the dishes up just now, I chatted with him for a bit. As soon as I mentioned Yao Chunlan’s name, he started talking non-stop and told me everything.”
Huo Duan accepted the food and nodded, "That saves us trouble. We can just go find Yao Chunlan."
Gu Fengyan picked up a piece of food with his chopsticks and handed it to Huo Duan, sighing, "I never expected Zhu Kuo to be so bold... to have an affair with my father's concubine. If such a shameful affair were to get out, his official career and reputation would be ruined."
It's a cruel twist of fate. He and Yao Chunlan were deeply in love, but his beloved married another man, who turned out to be his own father…
Huo Duan remained unmoved, slowly ate his food, and sneered, "Does Ayan think Zhu Kuo is some pitiful person?"
Gu Fengyan put down his chopsticks and raised an eyebrow. "What do you mean by that?"
There was a plate of boiled shrimp on the table. Huo Duan picked up one, carefully peeled it, and then placed it in Gu Fengyan's bowl.
"These shrimp are very fresh, have a taste." He smiled gently, watching Gu Fengyan eat the whole shrimp, and then peeled a second one for him.
As she peeled the skin, she said, "Ah Yan only thinks of Zhu Kuo and Yao Chunlan's past love and affection, like a match made in heaven. But Zhu Kuo is the most heartless and unfaithful person!"
Peel a shrimp, place it in Gu Fengyan's bowl, wipe his hands, and continue, "If he truly cared for Yao Chunlan, he shouldn't have watched her marry his father as a concubine, much less ruin her reputation and seduce her into an affair with him..."
He paused before continuing, "If he truly cared for Yao Chunlan, why didn't he take her with him instead of leaving her here to suffer the torment of gossip?"
Gu Fengyan picked up the peeled shrimp meat and paused for a moment.
Although he didn't think Zhu Kuo was a pitiful person, he still felt sorry for him.
Upon hearing this, Huo Duan realized that he had thought things through very carefully.
He placed the shrimp back on the plate, looked up and smiled, "Then, according to Mr. Huo, what should we do?"
Huo Duanzheng was drinking soup when he heard this. He put down his porcelain spoon, took a sip of tea, and said, "Me? If it were me... none of these things would have happened."
He looked at Gu Fengyan with a smile.
Gu Fengyan's face flushed. "Are you that sure?"
"Of course." Huo Duan's smile deepened as he gazed intently at Gu Fengyan. "My love, I will protect him and cherish him dearly. No one can harm him in the slightest. He is the only one for me in this life..."
The conversation quickly went off track... it sounded like Huo Duan was confessing his feelings.
Gu Fengyan buried his head in his food, but didn't even know what it tasted like.
Having done everything, he was now flustered by a few nonsensical words of confession. He didn't dare look at Huo Duan and pretended to be calm, saying, "Really? Then your lover is quite happy."
Huo Duan chuckled softly, poured himself a cup of tea, and gazed at Gu Fengyan with half-lowered eyes. "Yes, it's just that my lover's thoughts are hard to fathom. I have no idea what he's thinking... Ah Yan, what do you think?"
As if he were concentrating, Huo Duan emphasized the words "my lover" with particular force, making them resound in Gu Fengyan's ears, burning his whole body and making his head spin.
"Pah! Shameless!" Gu Fengyan cursed, her face flushed. "How would I know what he's thinking..."
Huo Duan leaned closer and looked down at him, "Ayan doesn't know? You really don't know?"
"Get lost!" Gu Fengyan shouted angrily.
Huo Duan didn't move, but looked at him with a smile, "Ayan, I'm so glad... I have you."
The words were incoherent and nonsensical.
Gu Fengyan paused for a moment, then looked up at Huo Duan and saw the seriousness in his eyes, like a bottomless black spring that could drown a person.
All was quiet. The wind rustled through the treetops, and a sycamore fruit fell from a tree... He heard his own heartbeat, like thunder and drums.
Gu Fengyan couldn't look away for a second. He opened his lips and finally kissed Huo Duan's lips. "I know."
Huo Duan stroked the back of his neck. "Eating."
Gu Fengyan froze, and the atmosphere instantly vanished.
So this bastard is actually looking down on me.
"Get lost!" He shoved Huo Duan away and wiped his lips hard with the back of his hand.
Huo Duan laughed for a while, then held Gu Fengyan tightly and gave her a light kiss on the lips. "I was just joking. Ayan is fine no matter what."
One after another… Gu Fengyan’s body went limp on one side, and he could no longer speak. He could only glare at Huo Duan with his eyes.
Huo Duan pulled him into his arms again.
The restaurant had a nice ambiance, situated by the water and overlooking the street. After their meal, they had some tea and, not daring to linger for a moment, headed to the north of the city, as Zhao Sanniang had mentioned.
The Zhu family had produced several generations of prefects, top scholars, and countless other scholars... a truly scholarly family. However, in the generation of Zhu Kuo's father, they switched to business.
Zhu Kuo's father was not a scholar, but when the family fell into poverty, he switched to business and became a wealthy merchant in the area.
Since ancient times, farming and studying have been valued over commerce. Zhu Kuo's father's actions were tantamount to disobeying his ancestors and being extremely unfilial. The locals were quite disdainful of his actions, and some scholars even gossiped about him behind his back.
I may poke at them, but they're rich!