SGEIRS -Chapter 84 Walking on Thin Ice

The moment those words fell, Gu Xiuming’s mind shook. Guilt and panic flashed across his eyes as he hurriedly shook his head, defending himself. “Father, no—it’s not like that.”

Gu Jingxi looked at him heavily and said unhurriedly, “Even if I had only one son, the heir to the marquisate would not necessarily be you. The Gu family does not have only one child. Since you are unfit for great responsibility, then let the capable take the position.”

Gu Xiuming’s face turned deathly pale. Fear filled his eyes, his legs went weak, and with a thud he dropped to his knees, hastily admitting fault. “Father, your son truly knows he was wrong. There will absolutely be no next time. I beg Father to show mercy and give me one more chance to reform myself.”

As he spoke, his voice trembled. Before he had been adopted, his biological parents had told him that he was going to become the heir, that he would one day inherit the marquisate.

After being adopted, everyone in the Marquis of Changxing’s household treated him exceedingly well. He had adapted to life in the marquis’s residence, and at the same time he understood clearly that others were kind to him and flattered him only because he was Father’s son, the heir of the Changxing Marquisate.

He truly could not imagine what his days would be like if he lost his position as heir. Those who once fawned over him would likely trample him while he was down, mocking him; even the servants of the household might ridicule him.

Gu Jingxi took in every subtle change in his son’s expression, knowing exactly what his son cared about and feared. Toward this son in whom he had poured his heart and placed great hopes, he now felt only disappointment.

He frowned in thought, his expression dark and unreadable. Looking down from above at the son kneeling on the ground in anxious unease, he calmly uttered two words: “Get out.”

Gu Xiuming looked up in shock. “Father?”

Gu Jingxi said nothing, merely gazing at him lightly, his eyes dark and unfathomable.

Gu Xiuming felt alarmed but dared not say another word. He knocked his head once toward his father. “Please calm your anger, Father. Your son will return to reflect deeply and will never offend again.”

Leaving the study, Gu Xiuming’s face was bloodless, pale as paper. His whole body felt drained of strength. As he descended the steps, he stumbled, nearly falling.

His father had not given a result—had not said he would depose him, nor had he said that he would remain the heir and inherit the title. As long as the final outcome was not announced, the stone hanging in his heart could not be set down.

This feeling was like a sword hanging over his head, ready to plunge down at any moment and take his life. Anxiety would accompany him constantly. The sense of superiority that came with being the heir of the marquis’s household vanished in an instant, leaving only a sense of crisis—a crisis that he could be replaced at any time. Every step he took felt like walking on thin ice.

He lifted his head and looked at the boundless blue sky, feeling that his future was bleak. He wondered whether it was because he was not Father’s biological son that things were this way. If he were biological, Father would surely not treat him like this.

Even raising a dog for so many years would create affection—let alone a person. He had called Gu Jingxi “Father” for so many years, yet Gu Jingxi was truly hard-hearted.

Gu Xiuming returned to Qingyu Pavilion like a lost soul, as if he were a walking corpse. Seeing Li Wan’er crying like pear blossoms drenched in rain, hearing her soft, pitiful sobs, he did not, for once, pull her into his arms to comfort her. Instead, an inexplicable irritation rose in his heart.

When Li Wan’er saw him, it was as if she had found her pillar of support. She suddenly stood up and threw herself into his arms, her grievance deepening, tears falling even more fiercely as she choked, “Brother Xiuming, your family all dislikes me, they all look down on me. Are they blaming me for eloping with you that day and hurting your fiancée?”

As she spoke, she sank into self-abandonment. “That’s only right. She comes from the Yongchang Marquis’s household, from an official family, and she’s so beautiful. I’m just an orphan with nothing at all. It’s normal that your family prefers her.”

Gu Xiuming was irritated, but seeing the beloved girl sobbing softly in his arms, her slender shoulders trembling, he still felt heartache. Suppressing the irritation in his heart, he patiently comforted her with a couple of words. “Wan’er, don’t cry. It doesn’t matter whether they like you or not—as long as I like you, that’s enough.”

However, this time Li Wan’er was not so easily comforted. That sentence did not soothe her. As soon as she recalled the joke she had made of herself in Shou’an Hall due to her lack of etiquette, the way those pairs of eyes looked at her—their meaningful gazes—she felt utterly ashamed. Thinking that once she stepped out of the courtyard she would encounter those people and be mocked, her fear only deepened.

She slowly raised her head to look at Gu Xiuming. Her small face was streaked with tears, full of grievance, her misty eyes gazing at him pitifully as she spoke helplessly, “But in the Gu family, what I’ll have to face in the future won’t be just you—it’ll be them as well. What should I do?”

Gu Xiuming’s mind was echoing with his father’s words, his heart restless and irritated, and he had little patience left for her. Hearing this, he said, “Since you’re afraid, then go out less and avoid running into them.”

Li Wan’er froze when she heard this, hardly believing he would say such a thing. After a long moment, she reacted, feeling even more wronged. “Brother Xiuming, do you also think I embarrassed you today? If you despise me so much, then why didn’t you marry Meng Jinyao in the first place, instead of eloping with me?”

Looking at the girl who was usually so considerate yet seemed unreasonable today, Gu Xiuming grew even more irritated. But thinking that Wan’er had probably suffered grievances today—and that without her kindness, when he was bitten by a snake that day, he truly might have died—he ultimately could not bear to scold her. He gently shook his head. “Don’t overthink it. How could I despise you?”

As he spoke, he raised his hand to wipe away Li Wan’er’s tears and continued to coax her.
“Wan’er, Eldest Brother and Eldest Sister-in-law were married at the end of last year, and they still don’t have children. If we can give Grandmother a great-grandson before they do, for the sake of her first great-grandson, Grandmother will surely change her view of you. Once Grandmother’s attitude changes, everyone else will too.”

Hearing this, Li Wan’er was temporarily reassured. In any family, status rises with the child. For the child’s sake, the Gu family elders’ attitudes would surely soften and slowly accept her.

Seeing that she finally stopped crying, Gu Xiuming said, “Alright, stop crying. Have the maids come in and tidy up.”

Li Wan’er looked confused. “Tidy up what?”

Gu Xiuming replied, “Pack up your things and move to the west wing. You’ll be moving there.”

Li Wan’er did not understand. “Brother Xiuming, this place is perfectly fine, and I like it very much. Why do I need to move to the west wing?”

“The main residence is the quarters of the principal wife, so…” Gu Xiuming stopped halfway through his sentence and did not continue. He did not even dare to meet her eyes, shifting his gaze elsewhere—there was guilt there, and also shame.