SGEIRS -Chapter 336 Secret Assistance

Gu Xuanyi had always respected her Third Uncle, so earlier she hadn’t dared to ask him directly, only daring to plead with Third Aunt. Now, after being reprimanded by Third Uncle, she instinctively stood up, no longer daring to kneel. But standing there facing him, her legs went weak and her body swayed, almost collapsing.

Seeing his niece in this state, Gu Jingxi said nothing further. He turned to a maid and instructed, “Go fetch a basin of clean water for the young lady to wash her face, and then comb her hair properly.”

The maid responded immediately and went to carry out the task.

Gu Xuanyi, uncertain of Third Uncle’s attitude, didn’t dare speak again, not even cry. Tears welled up in her eyes, and she could only look at Third Aunt as if begging for help, hoping she would speak a good word for her in front of Third Uncle, then intervene to help her secure a divorce. Only then would her promise to be the daughter of Third Uncle and Third Aunt, never marry, and dutifully care for them, feel sincere.

Seeing Xuanyi trembling and timidly standing there, looking so fragile, Meng Jinyao felt her heart ache. She signaled her husband with her eyes, telling him not to frighten the young girl, especially one who had just suffered serious harm.

Gu Jingxi understood his young wife’s signal and added, “Everyone else in the house has gone to your grandmother’s place. Whatever needs to be done, we’ll handle it later when we go over there. Don’t worry—no matter what happens, the elders of the family will surely stand by you and won’t let anyone bully you. But the details of the arrangements still need to be discussed with the family elders together.”

For Gu Xuanyi, these words were like a balm for her anxious heart. She finally felt a bit relieved. She knew that escaping from the Wu’an Marquis’s residence had not been easy at all. She had put in tremendous effort just to get away, unable even to bring her personal maid along for fear of attracting attention. She had slipped out the back gate of the Wu’an Marquis’s estate on her own two legs and returned to her natal home. In all her years, she had never been so utterly disheveled.

A short while later, the maid brought a basin of clean water and helped Xuanyi wash her face. Following Meng Jinyao’s instructions, she then led her to the inner chamber to comb and style her hair.

Meng Jinyao followed her in and, seeing Xuanyi’s hair tied up—revealing her neck without the usual thick black locks covering it—noticed finger marks on her fair skin. Her pupils contracted sharply. Aside from beating Xuanyi, the eldest young master had even grabbed her by the neck. Evidently, he had intended to kill her. What kind of hatred or grudge would drive him to try to end her life?

However, Xuanyi was injured, and the marks were obvious. Would the people of the Wu’an Marquis’s household really let her return to her natal home? If Xuanyi went back, the eldest young master’s abuse would be exposed. The Changxing Marquis household was no pushover—any sane person in his position wouldn’t dare let Xuanyi return home injured.

Meng Jinyao asked, puzzled, “Xuanyi, the eldest young master should have been keeping a close watch on you. How did you manage to leave the Wu’an Marquis’s residence?”

Xuanyi answered truthfully: “That beast didn’t return to the residence last night. I overheard a maid say he might come back today and beat me again. I was terrified because yesterday he nearly strangled me to death. If he hit me again, I probably wouldn’t survive.”

Shivering as she spoke, she continued: “So I decided to leave. Before dawn, when the household was still asleep, I guessed the maid watching me thought I was asleep and was taking a nap herself. That’s how I found the chance to sneak out of the courtyard. Luckily, from my courtyard to the back gate of the Marquis’s residence, I didn’t encounter anyone. At the back, I didn’t see the gatekeeper, so I quietly opened the door and escaped. In the end, I walked all the way back to my natal home by myself.”

Her voice trembled, her whole body shivering, revealing just how terrified she had been and how harrowing her escape was.

Meng Jinyao immediately sensed something was off. The escape had gone too smoothly—it felt like someone had secretly cleared obstacles, helping Xuanyi successfully get away. But who in the vast Wu’an Marquis’s residence would secretly help Xuanyi return safely to her home?

Soon, Meng Jinyao realized who might have helped her: the matriarch of the Wu’an Marquis’s household, the main wife of the late Wu’an Marquis. She was close in age to the Wu’an Marquis’s current wife, and the two women did not get along.

If not her, then it might have been the matriarch’s son, Fourth Master, and his wife. They were effectively rivals of the eldest branch, naturally not wishing the eldest branch well. Now, with an opportunity to leverage the Changxing Marquis household against the eldest branch, they certainly wouldn’t miss it.

Regardless, anyone who helped Xuanyi escape was a blessing for her—otherwise, who knew what she would have endured.

Seeing that Third Aunt hadn’t spoken, Xuanyi began to worry again. She anxiously asked, “Third Aunt, you and Third Uncle really won’t send me back, right? I worked so hard to escape. If I go back, he’ll kill me.”

Meng Jinyao shook her head and gently reassured her: “No, don’t think like that. Your hair’s all done—have some food first. Whatever needs to be done, we’ll handle it at your grandmother’s house. Our whole family will think of a solution. No one will let you suffer in vain.”

All Xuanyi wanted was to inform Third Uncle and Third Aunt so they could help her secure a divorce. They had the ability to do so. But seeing their attitude now, it was clear the whole family would need to take a stand. Her heart was anxious—what if her father opposed the divorce, thinking it shameful? Even so, she considered herself lucky to have escaped. If push came to shove, she thought she’d rather die than return.

Meng Jinyao, noticing the disappointment in her eyes, also felt puzzled. What had the Gu family done to cause her such despair? She comforted her: “Xuanyi, rest assured, the elders of the family won’t let anyone bully you. Not just your parents, but even your Second Uncle and Third Uncle will help you. You are a Gu daughter. The eldest young master hurting you also harmed the Gu family’s honor. Eat something first to fill your stomach, and then we’ll clarify everything and make things right as a family.”

Hearing this, Xuanyi’s anxious heart was calmed. She nodded slightly. When she ate breakfast, she was still fearful, her face uneasy, her eyes betraying lingering panic. Her hands trembled as she held the chopsticks.

Meng Jinyao and Gu Jingxi sat nearby, waiting for her to finish breakfast before going to Shou’an Hall, where they would discuss and resolve matters together. For now, they refrained from asking about details, so as not to reopen her wounds in front of other elders.

Xuanyi, still unsettled, ate only a few bites before putting down her bowl and looking anxiously at the two elders.

Gu Jingxi stood and said, “Let’s go.”