Who is spreading rumors that my filial piety towards them has changed?

This matter was truly difficult for Gu Jun Gui. As a woman herself, and having lived in this vast mansion for so long, she naturally knew many unknown... dirty aspects.

I used to hear how glorious and splendid the Cui family was, but after marrying into the family and living there for a while, I realized that they were all show and no substance.

Perhaps only the two stone lions at the entrance of the glamorous Cui mansion are clean.

Feng Keqing's situation was actually quite tragic. Unlike Zhong Feihuang and other wives who married into the family, Zhong Feihuang and Gu Jungui were both arranged marriages and at least had their maternal families as a background.

But Feng Keqing was different. She was just an adopted daughter of a poor scholar. Because of her stunning beauty and allure, her father paid her some money. It was said that she was married into the family, but in reality, it was almost like being sold.

Looking around, Feng Keqing had no one she could rely on. Even if she told the old lady about the shameful deeds of the East Mansion clan leader, she would at most give him a few words of reprimand, but in reality, she would not punish the clan leader at all.

Zhong Feihuang wouldn't get involved in this family mess for Feng Keqing's sake, because Feng Keqing represents her own Zhong family within the Cui family, and reckless actions would only harm her own family.

As for Feng Keqing's own husband... he was quite an oddball.

Thinking about Feng Keqing's situation, Gu Jungui could only sigh deeply, and then pulled her to sit on the edge of the bed.

“You said you wanted to stay with Mingkong, and I was definitely going to agree. It would be great to help you avoid the clan leader’s place, but I can’t make up my mind. You’ll have to talk to him about this yourself. Of course, I’ll go with you.”

This matter concerns the relationship with the Cui family patriarch, so Gu Jun Gui dared not make a decision for Chu Ming Kong on her own. She was just his aunt, not his wife.

Even a wife shouldn't make such offensive decisions on behalf of her husband's family.

"It's already very kind of you, sister-in-law, to help me... Thank you, sister-in-law, Keqing!"

Feng Keqing stood up to bow in thanks, but Gu Jungui pulled her back.

"Just sit down. Putting aside the fact that you're a daughter-in-law of the Cui family, as a woman myself, I can't bear to see you go through what you've been through... But what happens next?"

"After that..." Feng Keqing lowered her head, unable to answer.

"You can't hide in Mingkong Mansion forever. What will you do after that?"

Gu Jungui couldn't bear to look that far ahead, because that dark future was too heavy a burden for Ke Qing.

but,

Now that things have come to this point, is there any point in continuing to run away from yourself?

We have to face it eventually.

Given Keqing's status as the clan leader's daughter-in-law, she could only hide with Mingkong for half a month at most, after which she would have to return to the Cui family's East Mansion and immerse herself in that shadowy place.

It's impossible that she, a beautiful and gentle married woman, would stay away from her husband's home and hide with Chu Mingkong all the time.

"Keqing, you've been targeted by the clan leader from the very beginning, even on your wedding night..." Gu Jungui paused here, worried that the maid would hear, and lowered his voice, barely making out the words: "The clan leader even had people make a ruckus on the wedding night, so Cui Rong was tied up in a stinky outhouse all night. You're still a virgin, aren't you?"

Upon hearing this, Feng Keqing almost bit her lower lip until it bled. She nodded with difficulty, her head bowed low, feeling ashamed to look her sister-in-law in the eye.

"......Um."

This is a huge scandal. If Cui Rong is on the path of cultivation, and is practicing some kind of demanding technique, then it is understandable that she, the daughter-in-law of the East Mansion, is still a novice.

But Cui Rong's carefree and irresponsible nature meant that his greatest purpose was to produce offspring for the family and have more male descendants. Therefore, his wife, Feng Keqing, should definitely not have been a virgin, since there were still many nights of marriage after their wedding night.

But her primordial yin is still intact, and given the clan leader's temperament, what does that only mean?

...He wanted to drink his daughter-in-law's first soup!

Gu Jungui's brows furrowed even in her imagination:

"You've been married into the Cui family for over a year now, haven't you? Doesn't your husband, Cui Rong, have any intention of rebelling against the clan leader at all? At least make a scene in front of the old lady!"

“Cui Rong is such a coward!” Feng Keqing dared not raise her voice and said aggrievedly, “Before, my father-in-law cursed and kicked Cui Rong, saying that if Cui Rong dared to touch a single finger of mine, he would cripple him. Since then, Cui Rong has not dared to touch me, at most he curses me… Sister-in-law, haven’t you seen that I have been sleeping in separate rooms with the maids for so long since I married into this family?”

This was the first time Gu Jun Gui had ever heard this inside story, and she now felt that her identity as "Cui family's daughter-in-law" was unlucky and shameful!

She then asked, "The old man still comes out from time to time, how can he not care?"

"...My father-in-law said that the old man is getting old and doesn't have much time left. He doesn't care so much about the family's reputation; he only cares about who can give the family a 'good son'..."

Gu Jungui was completely speechless.

Cui Rong's talent for cultivation is truly far inferior to that of his father, Cui Jiazhen, the clan chief!

Choi Gap-jin was a fifth-tier expert, indeed no match for the old man, but Choi Yong had lived for so many years...

Only level one!

First tier!

To put it bluntly, if Mingkong accidentally farted near Cui Rong, he would have to beg Cui Rong not to die, otherwise he would offend the Cui family!

His family can provide him with resources, but Cui Rong refuses to endure hardship! He only wants to play around with prostitutes!

So if a family scandal involving incest were to actually occur, and the old man were asked to step in and make a decision, whose child would the old man hope Feng Keqing would carry?

Is it Choi Gap-jin, the eunuch of Ke-qing who has a decent talent, or Choi Yong, the husband of Ke-qing who is completely unbearable?

It must be the clan leader; there is no other possibility!

Because this generation of the Cui family truly has no one worthy of consideration. Every time the old man comes out, the first question he asks is...

Has my Cui family had any new additions?

Have.

How talented is he?

No.

Go back and regenerate!

He didn't want the Cui family's glory to be ruined in his hands, otherwise he wouldn't be able to face his ancestors.

If future historical records document the decline and fall of the Cui family, they will certainly indicate that the decline began with him. As people age, they naturally value their reputation, and Old Master Cui did not want to be "infamous for eternity"!

If necessary, he might even kill Cui Rong to ensure that the affair between Feng Keqing and her father-in-law would not be exposed!

If nothing gets out, it won't affect the Cui family's reputation. This is an incredible but undeniable truth.

A silence fell over the room. Gu Jun Gui thought of Old Master Cui, who was the one who truly held power in the family now. He thought of his eagerness to reverse the decline of the Cui family's population, and then he thought of... his beloved Chu Mingkong, whose cultivation talent could only be described as monstrous.

Moreover, Mingkong now needs an heir to continue the Chu family line.

"Keqing, I have a question that's unrelated to this. What do you think of Mingkong?"

--------

P.S.: I wanted to finish before midnight, but I'm still a bit late. Good morning everyone!

Chapter Twenty-Seven: How about I buy your wife with medicinal herbs?

After being sent away by Gu Jungui, Chu Mingkong strolled around the nearby courtyard for a while, admiring the flowers, birds, and beautiful scenery of the pond, before sitting down and pretending to be asleep.

Because the women in the Cui family were staring at him, Chu Mingkong had developed a keen sense of being watched during his time as a hostage. He could sense who was staring at him for too long. Now, the women in the Cui family would glance at him every now and then, which affected his ability to perceive dangerous gazes.

This unease is a bit too cautious; it's like trying to outsmart the air. There's no need to go against one's instincts, in case there are actually hostile gazes hidden among those gazes.

That little scoundrel Cui Rong kept calling him "good brother," and secretly threw Yin Cores into the incense burner to treat him—he was incredibly kind.

"Indeed, it was only the women's eyes that were watching. I was being paranoid." After confirming, Chu Mingkong felt relieved for the time being. "Since we're just killing time anyway, why don't we eavesdrop on what Aunt Gu and Sister-in-law Keqing are having about their private conversations?"

"Could it be something like menstruation?"

—Qing, I have a question that's unrelated to this. What do you think of Mingkong?

"?"

Chu Mingkong immediately perked up his ears. Why are they talking about me now? And they have to talk about it in secret!

I was just looking at something, and now I have no idea what the previous text was!

......

"Sister-in-law Gu...why did you suddenly ask about this?" Feng Keqing was puzzled by this change of topic.

"You go first," Gu Jun Gui said with a smile.

Feng Keqing looked at her hands resting on her knees. Her fair and delicate fingers were quite beautiful, and they were painted with red nail polish.

In the halo of light reflected from her glossy nails, Feng Keqing's mind drifted to Chu Mingkong, recalling the few times she had spent with him.

"...He's a very good brother-in-law. He was the first to notice that something was wrong with the paintings hanging in my room. He's very considerate, generous, gentle, well-behaved, and not lecherous." Feng Keqing thought for a long time but couldn't think of a single word to say that he wasn't.

Chu Mingkong felt ashamed.

Good heavens, could it be that Aunt Gu asked Sister-in-law Keqing to introduce me to potential girlfriends?

Aunt Gu is in such a hurry.

But Chu Mingkong was also curious about who Keqing would introduce to him. The Cui family's daughter-in-law knew quite a few noble ladies and was considered a top figure in the capital's social circle of noblewomen.

Afraid of missing a single word, Chu Mingkong got up, moved to a closer seat, and continued to pretend to be asleep.

When Gu Jun Gui heard Ke Qing praise her precious darling so much, a smile of "You're absolutely right~" appeared on her face. But when she thought about the "serious words" she was about to say, she suppressed her smile.

"So you have a very good impression of Mingkong. No girl would be too happy to marry a boy like that, right?"

Chu Mingkong nodded. They were indeed talking about blind dates, and overall, their evaluation of me was quite accurate.

He kept listening.

"That's only natural. A man should be like Mingkong. To marry Mingkong would be a disservice to one's own good fortune. Even if you were just his concubine... which girl in the capital wouldn't want that?"

"I'm not joking." Gu Jun Gui lowered his voice and said seriously, "Why don't you get pregnant with Ming Kong's child?"

Chu Mingkong: ???

Planning a honey trap?

"Huh?" Feng Keqing was dumbfounded.

Gu Jungui explained:

"Isn't this the only way right now? Think about what Old Master Cui cares about most..."

After analyzing the various considerations and the clan leader's mindset, Feng Keqing had to admit that Gu Dasao's method was absurd, but effective.

If Mingkong were to have a child, the old man would most likely protect her, even though she wouldn't be a descendant of the Cui family by blood.

But the old man would definitely turn a blind eye to a child with extraordinary talent who came from the womb of the Cui family's daughter-in-law.