Chapter 494 - 433: A Little Unease
Chapter 494: Chapter 433: A Little Unease
The entire Sun family had arrived. Xiao Man had been the one to call and invite them. A few days ago, Sun Jingzu had seen Xiao Man and asked her in advance which day of the New Year would be most suitable for a visit to the Tang family. ’They’d have to visit sooner or later,’ Xiao Man had thought, ’so why not just have them come today, especially since Tang Qingshan was still home.’
Tang Qingshan had originally planned to head straight back to Liaozhou for the New Year after returning from G Province. After all, his leave had been extended by a few days, and he worried that a number of urgent matters had piled up at work. But Ai Wenli was pregnant and a little anxious, and she couldn’t bear for him to leave so soon. So, he had changed his plans and would now return to Liaozhou tomorrow, the second day of the New Year.
Upon hearing that the Sun family had arrived, Xiao Man went into the courtyard to greet them with her father and Second Uncle. Gu Shaojun naturally tagged along. He and Xiao Man had just gone upstairs to change; she was now wearing a bright red woolen dress in a chic, elegant English style that also felt auspiciously festive. Gu Shaojun, meanwhile, was in a slim-fitting, black twill suit that Gu Shaozheng had brought him that morning. He stood a tall 1.87 meters, with broad shoulders and a powerful, upright build. Xiao Man was so used to seeing him in his military uniform that it had become ordinary, but seeing him now in a finely tailored suit was a complete transformation. He looked like a noble, elegant, and exceptionally handsome gentleman, with none of his sharp military bearing visible. The moment Xiao Man saw him like this upstairs, her eyes had sparkled, and she’d instantly turned into a fangirl.
As the group walked onto the veranda, Gu Shaozheng peeked out from behind a large white pillar. He was munching on an apple. ’The fruit at the Tang Mansion was just too good; he had to eat his fill every time he visited.’ He’d also heard the Sun family arriving. Just then, he glanced over and was surprised to see that his brother wasn’t walking beside Xiao Man. Instead, Gu Shaojun was next to Tang Qingyun, deep in conversation, while Tang Qingshan walked ahead with his hand on Xiao Man’s shoulder.
Gu Shaozheng swallowed the apple in his mouth and gave a pointed cough. When Gu Shaojun glanced back at him, Gu Shaozheng sidled up and whispered in his ear,
"Bro, that Sun family descendant wants to marry Little Manman too, and he’s a worthy rival. He’s the direct great-grandson of Manman’s master, Imperial Doctor Sun. He studied Western medicine abroad, got his license, and is a fairly well-known surgeon. On top of that, he’s come back to China to study traditional medicine. Now he’s Manman’s classmate, so they see each other at medical school every day. Little Manman hasn’t made many friends, but she seems perfectly happy to spend time with him. Even our grandpa is worried you’ll lose out to him. He once even..."
Gu Shaojun’s expression tightened. Before Gu Shaozheng could finish, he turned and strode quickly down the steps.
Gu Shaozheng chuckled to himself and went back to munching on his apple. ’I’m so clever,’ he thought, ’giving my brother a timely heads-up. Otherwise, his rival would be scoring points by fawning all over his future sister-in-law right under his nose, and Big Bro wouldn’t even have a clue what was going on.’
Sun Yiming and Sun Yinong finally met Manman’s legendary fiancé from her childhood engagement. Perhaps they hadn’t expected him to be quite so impressive in person, as a flash of surprise flickered in both brothers’ eyes. They quickly composed themselves, however, remaining courteous and perfectly composed as they shook Gu Shaojun’s hand and exchanged pleasantries.
Sun Yiming acted as he always did, naturally falling into step on Xiao Man’s other side. He cheerfully told her how he and his family had spent New Year’s Eve, remarking what a new and fun experience it was to celebrate the Spring Festival in China. He smiled, pointed to a car parked outside, and said he had brought two cases of fireworks for her, which could be brought in later. This particular kind, he explained, was incredibly beautiful, something she would see for herself when she set them off that night.
Xiao Man was delighted. She shook Gu Shaojun’s arm excitedly. "Hao Hao and Shaoyu had their fun last night, so it’s our turn tonight. We should set off lots and lots of fireworks too!"
Gu Shaojun smiled and nodded, then expressed his gratitude to Sun Yiming. His thanks were sincere enough, but his tone was somewhat formulaic. He didn’t exactly dislike this elegant and handsome man, but he certainly didn’t feel any warmth toward him, either. Shaozheng had been right: Sun Yiming was definitely a rival. Despite his attempts to hide it, his intentions were obvious to any man.
No man feels charitable toward a potential love rival.
Inside the living room, Grandpa Tang and Grandpa Gu politely rose from their seats and walked forward to shake Sun Jingzu’s hand and exchange pleasantries. Some of the other guests, who were unaware of the Sun family’s standing, were taken aback by this show of respect, and their estimation of the visitors instantly rose.
Fate worked in mysterious ways. Xiao Man was deeply cherished by the Gu family, and while her relationship with Granny Gu wasn’t exactly intimate, it was certainly cordial and natural. Still, Xiao Man could never bring herself to get truly close to Granny Gu or act cute and affectionate like a real granddaughter would. In contrast, Sun Meirong of the Sun family had only visited the Gu family twice, yet she and Granny Gu had hit it off immediately. After greeting Grandma Tang, she let out a sweet giggle and nestled into Granny Gu’s arms affectionately. Granny Gu beamed from ear to ear, holding Sun Meirong’s hand and showering her with warmth and concern. Her expression was so full of love that anyone who didn’t know better would have mistaken them for a real grandmother and granddaughter.
"Don’t be jealous, and don’t try to copy her. I know my grandma. She doesn’t truly grow fond of anyone who isn’t family. Unless... she’s taken a fancy to Miss Sun and is thinking of matchmaking her with one of the boys in our family!"
Xiao Man: "..."
’He was probably right, wasn’t he?’ Now that she looked again, it really did seem that way.
As more guests arrived, Gu Shaojun had to help entertain them. But when he saw Sun Yiming—instead of sitting and drinking tea with the others—circle back to talk to Xiao Man again, Gu Shaojun walked right over and pulled her away.
’This was *his* girl. He’d missed her and worried about her for so long, and they had finally managed to reunite for a few precious days. How could he bear to let her spend that time with someone else?’
’He didn’t care if people called him petty. She was his fiancée, the woman he held dearest to his heart. Who would be willing to share? Of course he had to have her all to himself, to dote on her and her alone!’
Gu Shaojun didn’t want to admit it, but deep down he knew the truth: he was, in fact, on guard against Sun Yiming. It wasn’t because of Sun Yiming’s good looks or talent—what did those matter? He had them too! The one he was truly wary of was Imperial Doctor Sun!
Imperial Doctor Sun may have passed away, but he held a place in Xiao Man’s heart like that of a revered mentor. Xiao Man had once told him that the Imperial Physician had taken an immediate liking to her, giving her a valuable gift at their very first meeting. He had even lent her his family’s treasured medical texts to study, entrusting her to one day return the books to his direct descendants... Gu Shaojun could guess Imperial Doctor Sun’s intentions perfectly—he had been plotting to make Xiao Man a daughter-in-law of the Sun family!
’Too bad that for all his scheming, Imperial Doctor Sun couldn’t out-scheme the Gu family ancestors. The Gu ancestors had already tied Xiao Man securely to their family with a red string of fate long ago!’
’Gu Shaojun offered his heartfelt thanks to his ancestors. Still, a small seed of unease remained—a worry for Xiao Man. She was still young, after all; her heart wasn’t yet settled, and she could easily be swayed or confused. He, on the other hand, was a soldier, stationed with his unit year-round and unable to be by her side. And that was something Sun Yiming *could* do!’
’With constant companionship and sweet nothings, combined with the pressure of Imperial Doctor Sun’s supposed last wishes... given Xiao Man’s gentle, softhearted nature and her strong sense of gratitude, he feared she would find it impossible to resist!’