家族の行方

It was late, but Gu Weizi was still with the old madam. Even though she was bored while she was with the old lady, it was the perfect opportunity to observe her surrounding environment. Eldest Young Master Mu would continue to allow her to stay at the Wangjiang Pavilion if she proved herself useful in keeping the old madam happy and helping her to recuperate.

She heard that the old madam’s son died because he tried to save Mu Zhanbei. That was why the old madam was the most important person in Eldest Young Master Mu's heart. Gu Weizi only needed to eliminate Gu Anran from the old madam's attention. Perhaps then the old madam would match her with Mu Zhanbei.

It was always nice to daydream. She had spent many hours and many days with the old madam, but the old lady did not seem to have any intention to match her with Eldest Young Master Mu. Why would she not do that?

“Grandmother, do you like these flower beds?”

Gu Weizi wheeled the old madam as they strolled along the flower beds. The servants trailed far behind them, so it was as if there were only two of them in the garden. However, the old madam gave her no response. She only stared at the young lady's face as if she was in a trance.

When she first saw Gu Weizi, the girl wore a blue vintage dress, quite similar to what Qingqing had worn in the photo. The girl was the spitting image of Qingqing. It almost took the old madam's breath away, and that was why she thought that Gu Weizi was Qingqing. However, why did that feeling seem to have dissipated after they had spent some time together?

“Grandmother, what's on your mind? Why are you staring at me?”

Gu Weizi noticed that the old madam was not herself. She seemed to be in a daze, and it had happened more frequently within the past couple of days. When the old madam studied Gu Weizi’s face, she looked a little lost, puzzled, and perhaps…even a little disappointed? Could she have realized something?

“It's nothing.”

The old madam was also confused by her own thoughts. She wondered where that familiar feeling had gone. Everything she saw seemed to have become stranger and more unfamiliar. Furthermore, Gu Weizi had only worn those long vintage dresses during her first few days there. Then she was usually seen in modern short skirts. The old madam felt some familiarity with Gu Weizi because of the long dresses that she had initially worn.

“Grandmother, you seem absent-minded today.” Gu Weizi pouted as she looked at the old madam.

The old madam sighed and tried to brighten up.

“It's nothing, don't overthink it. Maybe I’m just not feeling too well today.”

She turned and waved at the servant, a signal for them to help her back into the house.

"I think I should go back and rest. Don't you have any classes this afternoon? You should rest a little before you head to your university."

Gu Weizi was not in the best of mood. She was a little annoyed, but she managed to hide it well in front of the old madam. She gave one of the servants a look before they nodded and went to help the old madam back into the house.

"Is there something wrong, Old Madam? Do you not enjoy your time with Miss Weizi?"

The old madam did not answer them. She looked like she was in deep thoughts. The maid was about to say something else when the old madam lifted her head. She was surprised when she spotted a familiar figure in the distance. The maid followed her gaze and saw the person that caught the old madam's attention. Her face sank immediately.

“Old Madam, let me take you back to your room for a rest.” She sped up as she said that.

“Hold on!”

However, the maid acted as if she did not hear anything. She continued to push the wheelchair speedily toward the back of the house.

“Ah Xin, hold on.” The old madam noticed that the servant had ignored her order and proceeded to push her toward the house.

The old madam was anxious, so she beat on the wheelchair's handle and raised her voice. "Ah Xin, I said, hold on!”

The servant could no longer pretend as if she did not hear the old madam, so she reluctantly stopped. The old madam was perplexed with the servant's strange behavior, but her attention was diverted to the figure not far away from them.

The person stood under the tree, as they observed the old madam from afar. No one could tell how long she had been in that position. The slender form beneath the tree and the person in the old madam’s mind seemed to be one and the same.

She was quite far away, so the old madam could not see Gu Anran's face clearly. However, her facial features seemed to stand out even more from a distance. She had looked quite similar to...

“Ah Xin, you go on ahead. I want to spend some time out here by myself.”

“Old madam!” Ah Xin glowered at the lady who was still quite far away from them. She knew what the old madam wanted to do, but how could she leave her alone with Gu Anran?

“Old Madam, the doctor has advised you to rest more. I’ll take you back into the house now.”

“Ah Xin, I want…”

“Old Madam, I have to consider your health. You should not be out here for too long.”

Ah Xin decided not to give Gu Anran any chances to avoid any complicated issues. She wheeled the old madam toward the house decisively.

“Ah Xin! Ah Xin…”

The old madam was weak; her voice even sounded frail and shaky when she tried to yell. She wanted to stay in the garden, and she wanted to see Gu Anran. Even though she had acknowledged Gu Weizi as her granddaughter, she would still like to see Gu Anran. She had not seen the young lady for quite some time, so she missed her. Even though Gu Anran was not her granddaughter, she still missed her dearly.

“Ranran…”

“Grandmother said that she doesn’t want to go back in yet. Did you not hear her?” A cold and solemn voice suddenly echoed.

Before the maid could see who said that, Gu Anran had given her a hard shove. She lost her balance and then fell onto the ground.

“What are you doing?” She rose to her feet immediately and tried to snatch the handles of the wheelchair back into her hands.

Gu Anran glared at her and said, “Come any closer, and I’ll scream for help!”

“Scream all you want. You just want to bully the old madam. Do you think I’m afraid of you?”

The maid was not panicked at all, and she lunged forward to grab hold of the old madam.

“No… Don’t do this…” The old madam was dumbstruck; she had never seen Ah Xin behaved so aggressively.

“Ah Xin, Ah Xin, I want to talk to Ranran. Ah Xin…”

“She is not a good person, Old Madam. Have you forgotten how she bullied Miss Weizi, she…argh!”

The sound of a loud slap rang in the air. Gu Anran had slammed her palm across the servant's face with all of her strength.

The impact forced Ah Xin back onto the ground. She felt dizzy and struggled to find her balance for a few moments.

“You… You dare to hit me. You…”

“Ranran…” The old madam never thought that Gu Anran would use such force on another person.

Nonetheless, Ah Xin had been behaving very weirdly. There was a moment when the old madam felt as if she was restrained.

“I’m Eldest Young Master Mu’s fiancé, and you are just a maid. How dare you act so rudely toward me?”

“You…” Ah Xin got up with great difficulty and prepared to launch forward again.

However, Gu Anran managed to take control of the situation. She did not wait before she took another step forward as she swung her arm down and landed another loud slap on the servant.

Ah Xin cried when she was struck. “You b*tch, you hit me! You…argh!”

Another loud slap, and that time, Ah Xin fell onto the ground and did not get up for a long time. She continued to wail on the floor.

The security guards had hurried toward them to check on the situation, but they did not know what they should do when they saw what had happened. Ah Xin was only a maid, and Gu Anran was almost a part of the Mu family. It was not as if they could offend Gu Anran for a servant maid.

Finally, one of the security guards decided to turn to the person with the highest power and asked, "Old Madam, what happened?"

“She…” The old madam did not know what to say, so she stole a look at Gu Anran instinctively.

Gu Anran replied calmly, “There's a problem with this maid. Send her away, and she is never to return to the Mu family.”