Carrying the little lucky star, leading the villain on the road to exile

On her way here, Xu Shuanghong had mentally rehearsed the scene countless times, tears welling up in her eyes. "I know I'm just a stepmother who appeared halfway through my life, and I don't dare to expect you brothers to be filial to me. But you can't disregard human ethics like this. Just because I married your father, do you hate the three of us, mother and daughters, so much?"

I didn't want to either, if it weren't for that night..."

"Alright, you're getting more and more absurd," Gu Baijiang scolded impatiently. "These are just your guesses. Did you see the second brother leading people to sell you out?"

This isn't a small place; you'd better think before you speak.

"Master, are you looking down on us?" Xu Shuanghong knew this family well, and they might even be resenting them for not dying on the way. "But who would want to die when they can live?"

Gu Baijiang saw that she was going too far. Although these were his family members, he wondered if the people serving them were truly on their side. He was also concerned about how his boss would maintain his position in the officialdom if these words got out.

He now regrets it, wondering why he was so blinded by greed back then...

"You must be tired from your journey, go back to the courtyard and rest." Having learned everything, Gu Baijiang didn't want to argue with them anymore. He just wanted to get rid of them as soon as possible so he could discuss with his eldest son how to proceed.

After everyone left, Gu Kaiping also told Liu Yun to leave, and looked at Gu Baijiang with a heavy expression, "Father, if the second son really gets involved in gambling, what do you think we should do?"

The house is now on the verge of collapse, but there's no money to fill the hole.

"What's the rush?" Gu Baijiang was also having a headache. Gu Kaiyuan had become estranged from them, and Gu Kaichen seemed to be useless now. Of the three sons he had raised, he could only rely on the eldest son in the end.

"They're not in Lingnan right now, so don't send anyone to pick them up yet."

Gu Kaiping was secretly pleased. If this was the case, it wouldn't be bad.

But then he realized something was off, "The three of them, mother and daughters, could walk all the way from Lingnan to the capital, but what about the second son and his wife..."

He now regrets it a bit. If he had known that his second son would be so useless, he would have brought them back with him no matter what. At least with their father watching over them, they would not have picked up those bad habits.

In the end, it's all because of Xu Shuanghong and her two daughters. If it weren't for them, and to appease them, their whole family could have squeezed in and come back.

"Don't you know what kind of personality the second son has? He's the least able to endure hardship. If you make him suffer all the way from Lingnan to the capital, he'd rather stay there."

Gu Kaiping said, "The road from Lingnan to Shangjing is very easy to travel now. I've heard a lot of stories these past few days about many merchant caravans from the capital heading there. What if they come back with the caravans?"

The second son may not have much else, but he is quite clever. Those merchants are trying every means to get in touch with the government. As long as Gu Kaichen isn't stupid, with the help of the Third Prince, he will be well taken care of and sent to the capital.

Mentioning the merchants, Gu Kaiping's eyes flickered slightly, "And the Bai family, they recently had the escort agency deliver some goods to Lingnan again."

Gu Baijiang said, "Let's put the second brother's matter aside for now. Pack your things, and we'll go to the Bai family tomorrow."

Gu Kaiping was overjoyed; he had wanted to go to the Bai family for a long time.

Don't be fooled by the fact that they have such a large mansion now. Their accounts only have a little money left, and they're only spending money without bringing in any. I'm afraid it won't be long before they can't even afford to keep the mansion.

And then there's Xu Shuanghong and her daughter. Seeing them arrive in tattered clothes, the thought of getting them dressed from head to toe, and feeding them even more mouths, is terrifying. Time quickly passed and the next day arrived. Xu Shuanghong and her daughter were finally dressed in new clothes. The three of them already had some color on them, and now, dressed up, they completely outshone Liu Yun.

Even Gu Kaiping, who hadn't been near a woman for many days, spent a little more time with the two sisters.

"Are you going out to visit relatives?" Xu Shuanghong quickly straightened her clothes and followed beside her. "I'll go with you."

Gu Baijiang said, "You're new here and don't know anything. You should learn the rules from the eldest son's wife."

This is the capital, not some small place like Lingnan. The rules are different here. If you accidentally offend someone important outside, we won't be able to protect you.

Gu Baijiang is a man who cares a lot about his reputation. He's going to ask for money, so how could he possibly bring them along?

The father and son packed their things and headed out. Halfway there, they stopped the car to buy two packs of snacks. Although they were a bit stingy, it was better than arriving empty-handed.

Upon arriving at the Bai family's gate, the gatekeeper, upon hearing that they were looking for the master, immediately informed them, "You two have come at a very inopportune time. Our master has gone out to inspect the properties and won't be back for at least two or three months. If you have something to say, please come back in two months to inquire."

"How could it be gone?" Gu Kaiping asked in surprise. "I ran into it on the street before."

The gatekeeper was a little annoyed. "Can't you speak properly? What do you mean 'not here'? Our master went out to inspect the properties."

"We bumped into each other on the street earlier. Does this mean our master can't go anywhere? Does he have to wait for you at home?"

The gatekeeper rattled off a long string of words. He had finally found a good master, but these two idiots started cursing right away. Didn't they know that if the master was bad, they, the servants, would also fall into misfortune?
Looking at the two bags of cheap pastries they were carrying, he was even more disdainful. This was the Bai family, a wealthy family in the capital. These two people brought only two bags of pastries to their door. Who were they trying to embarrass?

"This is outrageous!" Gu Kaiping felt insulted. Even a gatekeeper didn't respect him, let alone a merchant's gatekeeper.

"Go in and inform your master that we are the Gu family, and we are related to your Bai family by marriage."

The doorman chuckled twice, "They've installed it again. Since you're in-laws, why didn't you introduce yourselves before?"

Besides, our Bai family doesn't have such shabby relatives. If people came to claim kinship with broken pastries every day, this doorstep would probably be worn down by the crowds.

"Alright, I won't make things difficult for you. Leave your visiting cards, and if we really have such a relationship, we'll definitely reply to you."

The gatekeeper looked at the two people with disdain. They dared to come and claim kinship? They didn't even understand the customs of the capital.

Which family comes to your door so bluntly? Don't they usually give you a visiting card first, see if it's convenient for the host, and then arrange a time to meet?

Do you really think it's a small, insignificant household where you can just drop by anytime?
The Gu family father and son blushed and turned pale as the gatekeeper spoke to them. After a period of hardship, they had really forgotten this rule.

They haven't followed any rules for so long, how could they possibly remember so much?

Both of them looked embarrassed and fled in panic, carrying the pastries. (End of Chapter)