Chapter 562 - 563: Thoughts
Chapter 562: Chapter 563: Thoughts
"Don’t be so pessimistic." Rong Ruiyuan suppressed his disgust as he stepped forward to grab her large hand. He had no idea how the servant girls here were serving her; the moment he got close, a foul odor hit his face.
Cai Hua was not here. Otherwise, she would have cried foul. With such a massive body, even squirming around was difficult for Gu Antong. If she wanted to wash up, how much water could a single servant girl possibly carry?
The cleaning women who originally worked in this courtyard had long used silver coins and connections to transfer elsewhere. Now, Cai Hua was the only servant girl bustling inside and out. Gu Antong’s current state was already the result of her utmost effort.
Gu Antong stared at his hand in a daze. Her hand currently rested on her thigh, but Rong Ruiyuan was only holding two of her fingers.
"If you are sick, we will seek medical treatment. If we have no money, we will find a way. It’s just a pity that I have spent too much recently to appease my followers. I truly lack the means to help you further.
"If the Gu Family has the capability, I think we should let them know so they can help figure something out. Rest assured, the Prince Ning Mansion should be responsible for all your expenses. This is just asking them to advance the payment first. I will definitely repay them double in the future.
"Both you and I are still young. I still want you to accompany me to the highest peak and admire the view in the future."
Through this period, Gu Antong had seen through the fickleness of human nature. She also realized that in the inner courtyard of the Prince Ning Mansion, everyone was scheming—including herself, of course.
Rong Ruiyuan had brought up the Gu Family multiple times. Connecting this to his earlier mention of the insufficient silver in the mansion’s treasury, she knew he had set his sights on her grandfather again. She had also suspected that it was impossible for her grandfather to give all the silver to Rong Ruiyuan. Perhaps he had hidden a sum in a place they didn’t know about. Now, she somewhat understood. During the family’s most difficult times, her grandfather had not taken out the silver. He was likely guarding against Rong Ruiyuan.
She was already in this state, but she had to consider her father and younger brother back home. Although she harbored resentment toward the Gu Family, they had raised her to adulthood and even helped scheme to get her married into the Third Prince Mansion.
Most importantly, her current enemies were definitely these women in the inner courtyard of the Third Prince Mansion. Even if the Gu Family had silver, she had to persuade her grandfather not to take out another coin, lest it empower her enemies.
On the surface, however, she wore a guilty expression and said, "In my current state, I don’t know how many days I have left to live.
"Even if I can somehow drag out my existence, I will only bring shame to you, Prince.
"Look at my courtyard. Besides you, Prince, who still remembers our old affections, it has already become desolate.
"Even the servant girl waiting on me has disappeared to who-knows-where at this hour. Seeing you come over, Prince, she didn’t even know to come and serve a cup of tea."
Rong Ruiyuan’s expression stiffened. He had previously only been thinking about how to convince Gu Antong to help him again, and he truly hadn’t noticed this. Taking this opportunity, he quickly released his hand and stood up. He stood outside the door and took a look around. To his surprise, he didn’t see a single one of the servants who used to work here.
He wondered how that damn Princess Consort was managing the inner residence.
Even if Gu Antong was currently out of favor, she was still his woman after all. No wonder she wasn’t as easy to talk to as before. Today’s matter would probably end in failure.
Suddenly, he remembered the servant girl he had ordered to be dragged away outside the courtyard earlier. It seemed she was Gu Antong’s dowry maid. Seeing her ugly face covered in blood at the time, he really hadn’t recalled who she was.
"Cai Hua." Gu Antong finally remembered her personal maid. She held this girl’s indenture contract in her hands, so even if Cai Hua had ulterior motives, she wouldn’t dare go overboard. But what was going on today? She hadn’t even shown her face.
It wasn’t that she hadn’t seen through the maid’s petty thoughts. She had brought two maids with her in the past, thinking they could help solidify her favor if they proved useful. She couldn’t possibly miss such an opportunity. In the past, whenever Rong Ruiyuan came to this courtyard, that maid had been exceptionally attentive. It was just a pity that her looks hadn’t caught Rong Ruiyuan’s eye. Therefore, Gu Antong could tolerate it, sometimes even treating it as a joke.
She only had this one maid by her side now. If Cai Hua wasn’t in this courtyard, how would she survive in the future? Could it be that those women in the inner residence still refused to let her off and had found a way to deal with Cai Hua?
The moment this speculation arose, Gu Antong let out a long breath. If that were true, what could she do? With all this flesh on her body, was she supposed to take those women down with her? Stop joking. She would probably even struggle to walk out of this courtyard. Thinking of this, her will to die grew stronger. Dragging out her existence like this was worse than a quick death.
With these thoughts, she struggled to kneel on the ground. "Prince, please give me a quick death.
"I know my current appearance brings shame to the Prince Mansion, but I haven’t done any heinous crimes. Please, for the sake of me having served you, give me a dignified end."
Gu Antong tried to bow her head, but due to her size, she couldn’t bend down at all. She could only sit back on her knees awkwardly and look at Rong Ruiyuan.
Seeing this comical scene, anger surged within Rong Ruiyuan. He was furious at the troublesome women in his inner courtyard. Even if they had a grudge against Gu Antong, they could have just given her a quick death. Why torture someone like this? Furthermore, the person who had drugged her had not yet been found. Who knew if there would be a second or third Gu Antong looking like this, or if the drug might even be used on him?
"Stand up and speak. I will seek justice for you in this matter."
If it had been a few days ago, he might have flicked his sleeves and left, but now he had no choice. He still needed to use the Gu Family. Even if he wanted to send Gu Antong away, it couldn’t be now. At the very least, he had to wait until Gu Baijiang coughed up the last of that silver.
"Prince, in my current state, if even my senior maid has been dealt with, I’m afraid I won’t survive many more days in this inner courtyard. I wonder if you could let me see my mother, to see her one last time."
Gu Antong guessed Rong Ruiyuan’s intentions and was willing to go along with his ideas. As for what she would say, that was up to her to decide. She couldn’t send out any messages now. If she could use this opportunity to get Liu Yun to come over, she believed that with her mother’s intelligence, she would be able to see the current situation clearly.
Rong Ruiyuan was conflicted. His original intention was for Gu Antong to write a letter, and by making a few promises to the Gu Family, the matter would likely be settled. But if the Gu Family came over and saw Gu Antong’s current state, they might make other plans.
"Let me think about this."
Since Gu Antong had already spoken, it was inappropriate to ask her to write a letter now. The most important thing at the moment was to liven up this courtyard again and find a few doctors to put on a show. At the very least, he needed to give Gu Antong hope so she could be of use to him.
In this odor-filled room, Rong Ruiyuan felt he had reached the limit of his endurance. In his heart, he also took out his anger on those damn servants. If they had served this inner courtyard well, he wouldn’t have to suffer through this.
Thus, he readily promised, "Stay here with peace of mind. I will go find the Princess Consort and demand an explanation right now..."