Reborn as Tycoon's Wife in the Countryside-Chapter 251 Imperial Capital (1st Update)

Imperial Capital Xu Family

The Xu father and son sat in the study.

"Dad, I heard that Old Master Gu and the young man from the Gu Family have returned," Xu Hongtu relayed the latest news to his father, Xu Chengyun.

They had set up such a grand scheme in the Imperial Capital, all to force the Gu Family’s grandfather and grandson out into the open.

"Has any illness been discovered in the Gu Family’s young man?" Xu Chengyun wasn’t surprised at all upon hearing the news.

Xu Hongtu shook his head, "Not yet."

"No matter if he’s sick or not, the fact that he dares to come back this time probably means he’s mostly recovered. Now that the Gu Family’s old man is back, it’s only natural for us to pay a visit. Tell Xuezi to get ready, have her dress up nicely. We’ll go to the Gu Family for a visit tomorrow." Xuezi was his eldest granddaughter, born in the same year as the Gu Family’s son. If matching family status were taken into account, a marriage alliance between the Gu Family and Xu Family would be most suitable.

Xu Hongtu obviously understood what his grandfather was thinking; he simply wanted to test the Gu Family’s attitude to see if they were considering a marital alliance with the Xu Family.

If the Gu Family had no intention of an alliance, there would be no need for the Xu Family to curry favor with them.

Xu Xuezi was thrilled to learn that Gu Yecheng had returned to the Imperial Capital.

It had been three years, Yecheng had finally come back.

He had been gone for three years, and she had waited for him three years.

Now that he was finally back, the thought alone filled her with such emotional turbulence she could hardly contain herself.

"Xiao’ou," Xu Xuezi stood in front of the mirror and asked her servant, "Acheng is back. Quickly call the design studio and have them prepare an outfit for tomorrow’s visit to the Gu Family. It shouldn’t be too childish nor too mature, and it should radiate youthfulness all over."

She was twenty-three this year.

Girls her age in their circles had long been married and had children, but she was unwed; she had been waiting for Acheng.

"Miss, you’re so excited by Gu Young Master’s return, you’ve got eyes only for him," Xiao’ou stood behind Xu Xuezi, captivated by her mistress’s breathtaking beauty - a sight that intoxicated her anew each time. Miss was indeed too beautiful; if Xiao’ou were a man, she would definitely fall for her too.

In the past three years, the step at Xu Family’s door was nearly worn out by men from the Imperial Capital. The miss had rejected every suitor with the words ’my heart belongs to another.’

She couldn’t even begin to imagine what her mistress would do if Gu Young Master had married someone else or taken another woman during these years; perhaps she would go mad.

But that seemed unlikely; Gu Young Master, being as aloof as he was, besides their miss, who else could fancy him?

Moreover, given the Gu Family’s standing, a marriage alliance with the Xu Family would be perfect; as for other women, they probably wouldn’t even catch the Gu Family’s eye.

With a miss possessing such noble birth, beauty, and temperament, how could they consider any other lady?

...

Gu Family.

A woman looked at the young man entering and instantly, tears streamed down her face. She moved forward wanting to embrace him but didn’t dare to, only muttering softly in scold, "You rascal, you’ve finally decided to come back. I thought you might’ve settled down in some countryside and married a wife, forgetting your old mother entirely."

Gu Yecheng looked at the noblewoman before him, his usually cold face softening considerably, "You guessed right. I indeed got married."

Yan Junmei was startled by his words, swiftly retracting her tears in disbelief, "When did you learn to joke like this, getting married? If you’re married, where’s your wife then?"

Saying this, she even deliberately glanced outside the door, where no woman was in sight.

Old Master Gu coughed dryly, "The boy didn’t lie, he really is married. And I quite like that girl."

Prime Minister Gu and Yan Junmei exchanged a look of shock.

Could it be true, he was actually married?

Such an important matter, and they, as parents, were the last to know.

"Son." Yan Junmei, belatedly realizing she was being hugged by her son, was happier with this discovery than the news of his marriage, "Is your illness better?"

Back when he fell ill, she couldn’t even touch him; it was terrifying.

Had it not been for that, she would never have agreed to let the old master take him away.

Of course, in her view, it was all because her son was too smart from a young age that led to his physical conditions and all the subsequent turmoil.

Old Master Gu interjected, "There’s some improvement."

The implication was that it wasn’t fully resolved.

"There’s improvement, that’s good, thank heavens," Yan Junmei pressed her hands together in prayer, "Quick, tell me about it, which family’s girl is it? Why didn’t she come back with you this time?"

"When the time comes, she will naturally return," Ye Cheng helped his mother to sit down. "The Xu Family has discovered the place where Grandfather and I were hiding. If we don’t come back, they will find a way to force us to return."

Speaking of the Xu Family, the Prime Minister Gu snorted coldly, "They’re so anxious because they want you to marry their granddaughter Xuezi as soon as possible."

Talking about this matter made Yan Junmei somewhat troubled. "Before you came back, I thought if you liked Xuezi, arranging a marriage between you two wouldn’t be a bad thing. Now that you’re already married, there’s no chance of that happening. Without a marriage alliance, the Xu Family will definitely take some action."

Of course, it’s not hard to understand why the Xu Family was in a hurry.

Xuezi was already twenty-three. Many girls her age were already married with children. If Xuezi didn’t marry soon, she would become an old maid.

However, Xuezi would marry no one but Acheng, insisting on waiting for Acheng’s return.

Xuezi was a good girl, talented and beautiful; if she could marry Acheng, it would indeed be a good thing.

But now, the problem was that Acheng was already married.

Whether there were any promises between Acheng and Xuezi, his mother was not clear about. But Acheng was not a man without responsibility; if he had indeed made any promises to Xuezi, he wouldn’t have married someone else on the outside."

Yan Junmei could not understand why Xuezi, with such good prospects, would marry no one but Acheng.

Of course, if the Gu Family could form a marriage alliance with the Xun Family, they would naturally welcome it, but if they couldn’t, the Gu Family would definitely want to divide the Gu Family’s power.

Interests aligned, there would inevitably be a confrontation.

"We don’t owe the Xu Family anything. If Acheng fancied Xuezi, we would have married her without a second thought. But after the Xu Family did that disgusting thing in the past, they now expect us to marry their granddaughter, which is totally out of the question." If not for that old bastard’s tricks back then, Acheng wouldn’t have become sick.

"Dad, what exactly happened back then, and how did Acheng’s illness come about?" It terrified her how a healthy young boy suddenly developed such an aversion to women.

"I’ll seek revenge on that old fox sooner or later," Grandfather Gu snorted coldly. "We’re tired from the trip back; let’s talk about this tomorrow."

...

The news of Old Master Gu and Young Master Gu’s return immediately caused a big stir in the upper echelons of the Imperial Capital.

The Gu Family was one of the four great families in the Imperial Capital, holding a pivotal position there. The current generation of the Gu Family had only one direct descendant, Young Master Gu.

One can imagine the significance of Young Master Gu’s existence.

"Young Master." Ye Fei, who had returned to the Imperial Capital, donned his guard uniform again, looking spirited. "The Quan Family has gotten into trouble, and indeed, the Gu Family had a hand in it."

The Quan Family, one of the four great families.

Mr. and Mrs. Quan had a pair of boy and girl twins, who had just turned sixteen this year.

During the twins’ sixteenth birthday celebration, someone abducted them from the Quan Family, and they have been missing ever since.

The Quan Family is desperate, turning to the Gu Family for help.

This matter, while seeming a family affair of the Quan Family, in reality affects the vital interests of all four great families.

"Is there any lead on the whereabouts of the Quan siblings?" Right now, who did it isn’t the focus; the priority is to quickly find the Quan siblings.

"It should be soon."

"Let’s go, we’re heading to the Quan Family," Gu Yecheng was always decisive in his actions.

In the study, Quan Nianyan spoke with a harsh tone, "Nianyan and Nianfeng have always been sensible kids. This mishap is surely related to the recent power struggle. Someone wants to extract more benefits from me, that’s why they are using Nianyan and the girl to negotiate with me."

Listening to Quan Nianyan, Gu Yecheng, with a cold expression, spoke slowly, "No, the other party just wants to warn you, to make you think carefully about who to ally with."

Quan Sifang looked up, "Are you saying it was done by someone from within our four great families?"

"Everything is possible," Gu Yecheng neither confirmed nor denied.

With a sneer, Quan Sifang considered the possibility, "It seems someone is getting impatient and is using this to test me."

"No, it seems aimed at the Quan Family, but their real goal is to make me come back," Gu Yecheng looked out the window, his lips curving up slightly, "Because only when I return can their play continue."

Watching Acheng and Quan Sifang leave the study, Mrs. Quan Chu Qing approached them, "Acheng, you’re finally back. The Gu Family must help us find Erbao and Sanbao, my poor children, who are so young to be facing such turmoil."

Before, Mrs. Quan had a child who seemed to have passed away not long after its first month.

The following year, she gave birth to the twins.

In memory of Dabao, Mrs. Quan named her children Quan Nianyan and Quan Nianfeng.

Because their Dabao was called Quan Fengyao.