FBC – Chapter 34 A Mother’s Love

Gu Hua basked in the presence of her birth mother, breathing in the faint fragrance from her body. Her emotions surged, and her brush danced swiftly across the paper—nearly three hundred characters written in one go.

As she finished the final stroke, a teardrop she couldn’t hold back fell, smudging the last character.

Gu Hua quickly took a deep breath and forced the tears back.

“Why are you crying again?” Madam Wang asked, her tone exceptionally gentle.

A sharp sting hit Gu Hua’s nose, and her tears almost burst out once more.

This was the first time she had ever heard genuine concern from her birth mother.

Madam Wang, distressed, grasped Gu Hua’s hand. Suddenly alarmed, she turned it over and saw the scabbed, red wound from a burn. Her face filled with shock.

“How did your hand get so badly injured? How can you possibly copy manuscripts like this?”

Gu Hua’s hand was still in her birth mother’s grasp. Seeing the concern on Madam Wang’s face, tears streamed uncontrollably again, falling into both of their palms.

Madam Wang was heartbroken. “This must hurt so much.”

She turned to Zhou Chunyu. “Hua’er is injured at the Duke’s estate. She can’t keep transcribing books like this. She must return home to properly recover.”

Gu Hua’s heart brimmed with warmth. So her mother did care for her—would protect her.

But now wasn’t the time to return.

She needed to use Mu Junyan’s power to uncover evidence of the baby swap. Once she had the strength to confront them, she would return and reunite with her mother.

“Mother…”

Just as Gu Hua spoke, her voice choked with emotion. That one word made Madam Wang feel strangely moved.

It was even more intimate than if her own son had called her “mother.”

After all, they were both daughters of the Gu family. As the matriarch, she naturally cared for her too.

Madam Wang patted her hand reassuringly. “Good child, if you ever feel wronged, you must come home and tell us. The Gu family will stand up for you.”

The Gu family… would stand up for her?

Impossible.

Gu Hua drew in a deep breath and respectfully knelt before Madam Wang. “Thank you for your love, Mother. I must thank the Duke for providing me with top-grade medicine from the palace. That’s why my hand has already scabbed over in just a few days. I wish to honor late duchess on behalf of my elder sister and show my gratitude for the guidance and care she’s given me over this past month.”

In Madam Wang’s eyes, Gu Wanru was a precious jewel held in her palm since childhood.

Gu Hua didn’t want her to know about Gu Wanru’s cruelty.

When she returned to her mother’s side as her rightful daughter, she would then expose the evil deeds of Concubine Pei and her daughter.

Mother, please take care of yourself and wait for your daughter to return.

Gu Yuan and Madam Wang each had complicated feelings and said no more.

The facts were before them. If they insisted on preventing her from returning to the Duke’s estate, they would likely offend Duke Yong.

After all, Duke Yong’s love for his late wife was well-known among the nobility of the capital.

If a young lady from the Marquis’s household could help him fulfill a cherished wish regarding his late wife, it would be a good thing. It would also make the relationship between the Duke’s estate and the Wen Chang Marquis estate closer.

Gu Yuan rubbed his fingers together. Perhaps in a few days, before Duke Yong returned to the southern frontier, he could visit and ask him to put in a word with the Emperor—maybe even push for the appointment of a hereditary heir?

Once a heir was established, the possibility of the title being passed down another generation would increase.

While Gu Yuan calculated in his mind, Concubine Pei was burning with anxiety.

Wanru had sent someone to inform her that at noon, Gu Hua was to be sent to Jiaochun Garden—but the hour was quickly slipping away.

If the eldest son-in-law were to take offense and blame Wanru, what then?

Moreover, if that wretched girl returned triumphantly to the Duke’s estate, it would be even harder to control her in the future.

If she really managed to seduce the Duke and gained his favor—that would be a disaster.

While everyone’s attention was elsewhere, Concubine Pei quietly stood up, walked over to Gu Yuan, and whispered, “Marquis, why not let Hua’er stay at the estate for one more day and send her to the Duke’s estate tomorrow? This Concubine just wants to speak with her—we haven’t seen each other in over a month, and I’ve missed her terribly.”

Gu Yuan saw the pleading in her eyes and couldn’t bear it. He looked to Zhou Chunyu for consultation. “It’s true the two haven’t seen each other for over a month. Why not let Hua’er stay one night and return tomorrow?”

Zhou Chunyu looked at Gu Hua. “Let Second Miss Gu decide.”

Gu Hua glanced at Concubine Pei. What were she and Gu Wanru scheming by forcing her to stay?

But if she insisted on returning to the Duke’s estate today, Gu Yuan and her mother would surely grow suspicious.

Besides, she wanted to use this opportunity to search the estate for any clues related to the baby swap.

And she had a purpose for bringing Shen Li with her.

“I’ll do as Father says.”

Gu Yuan, seeing her usual obedience, was gratified. “Then it’s settled.”

He smiled and nodded at Zhou Chunyu. “No need for thank you gifts—it’s too formal. She’s just copying some manuscripts, nothing more.”

Zhou Chunyu personally brought over the box of silver notes and handed it to Granny Zhou with both hands.

“It’s necessary. The Duke instructed that if the Marquis refuses the money, it’ll be treated as a part of Second Miss Gu’s dowry. Please, Madam, keep it on her behalf.”

Madam Wang was pleased for Gu Hua. “Then I shall thank the Duke on her behalf.”

Granny Sun received it with both hands.

Gu Yuan felt extremely frustrated.

A cooked duck flew away right under his nose!

Zhou Zhiluan added fuel to the fire: “That day, Concubine Pei came to the Duke’s estate and said that Madam had chosen a husband for Second Miss Gu, and that the marriage was being discussed. The dowry would be timely, then.”

Concubine Pei’s face turned pale.

Madam Wang and Gu Yuan both looked at her in unison, their faces darkening.

In front of her husband, Madam Wang deliberately asked, “Concubine Pei, are the marriages of the Marquis’s daughters yours to decide?”

Concubine Pei quickly knelt. “I wouldn’t dare. I… I only said that to prevent Hua’er from having inappropriate thoughts. I merely wanted to remind her to behave with propriety.”

Gu Hua blinked in surprise. “But that night when Concubine Pei came to the Duke’s estate, she clearly said that Mother had selected a good match for me. Could it be that Mother wasn’t aware?”

Madam Wang’s expression darkened, a cold smile forming. “Marquis, is Concubine Pei in charge of the household and the marriages of the girls now? Does the Marquis’s estate no longer need me?”

Though Gu Yuan favored Concubine Pei inwardly, he had to appear upright on the surface.

His tone immediately turned harsh. “Concubine Pei, what nonsense are you spewing? Even if she were your own daughter, it is still the Madam’s decision. When did you get to interfere in the girls’ marriages?”

Concubine Pei looked ready to weep. “I didn’t dare! I was just being a concerned mother.”

Gu Hua didn’t want to let Concubine Pei off so easily.

She secretly tugged at Zhou Zhiluan’s sleeve and blinked meaningfully.

Zhou Zhiluan immediately understood her intent.

“Manager Zhou, Dong Hua, Shen Li, and I will stay at the estate with Second Miss Gu. Please have someone bring over the slave contract documents that the young mistress is currently holding. The Marquis and Madam can confirm whether the seal on it is genuine. If it’s fake…”

She deliberately glanced at Concubine Pei’s ashen face and slowly added, “A concubine stealing the matriarch’s seal is a serious crime.”

Gu Yuan frowned. “Is there really such a document?”

Gu Hua, eyes full of aggrieved tears, said, “I thought it was Father and Mother’s intention. I didn’t dare to disobey and signed it.”

Gu Yuan exploded. “Nonsense! You are a legitimate young lady of the Marquis’s household. How could you be reduced to a servant? What would happen to the Gu family’s hundred-year reputation?”

Madam Wang agreed sternly. “We must investigate thoroughly. If it’s true, and the news spreads, people will curse our Gu family.”

Concubine Pei’s legs gave out, and she nearly collapsed.

Gu Hua breathed a sigh of relief.

In her past life, it was her own timidity that prevented her from suspecting that Concubine Pei had forged the document.

She had unknowingly given them the opportunity to kill her.

Zhou Chunyu left. Gu Yuan had no patience for women’s trifling matters. He glanced at Gu Hua. “Madam, handle it. I have other matters to attend to.”

“Alright.”

Madam Wang respectfully saw him off, then looked back at Concubine Pei and Gu Hua.

“Concubine Pei, your courtyard is small and Hua’er’s old room is too basic. Arrange for them to stay in the guest courtyard tonight.”

Concubine Pei had no choice but to force a smile. “Yes, I’ll see to it at once.”

After speaking, she looked at Gu Hua and signaled her to follow.

Gu Hua pretended not to see it.

Madam Wang noticed and said, “You go first. Once you’ve prepared the guest courtyard, send word. Hua’er and I will have lunch in my quarters today.”

Concubine Pei had no choice but to leave first.