Chapter 606 | Chapter 607 | Chapter 608
Chapter 606: Mother Gu is Satisfied
“These are some visiting gifts I brought. I hope you won’t mind them.”
Mother Gu and Grandma Gu exchanged a look. Grandma Gu nodded, and only then did Mother Gu step forward, taking Yang Dongxia’s hand to guide her to a seat.
“Sit down. There was no need to bring anything; just coming over is enough.”
Pulled into a seat by Mother Gu, Yang Dongxia felt a bit flustered and unsure of what to do, so she could only keep a smile on her face.
“Child, where are you from?”
“Auntie, I’m from Xinjiang Province.”
“Xinjiang? The environment over there can be quite harsh. It must have been hard on you.”
Mother Gu patted her hand. Flattered and overwhelmed by the attention, Yang Dongxia hurriedly shook her head.
“It wasn’t hard.”
Mother Gu couldn’t find a single flaw in her. She was satisfied with this first meeting. Since the girl was well-mannered and knew when to advance or retreat, Mother Gu naturally treated her with a warm and pleasant countenance.
“Child, do you know about Tinghao’s situation?”
“Auntie, I know.”
Seeing that there was no dissatisfaction or aversion on her face, Mother Gu also let out a sigh of relief.
“Tinghao has a daughter named Jingjing, who is ten years old this year.”
“Jingjing went through some incidents previously, so she was transferred under the first branch’s name.”
“Even though Jingjing is now a child of the first branch, she is still Tinghao’s flesh and blood after all. Therefore, child support must be paid every single month.”
Yang Dongxia nodded repeatedly. She knew all about these matters and could accept them.
“Auntie, I know.”
“Good child, it has been hard on you.”
Mother Gu looked at Yang Dongxia affectionately. The tiny knot that had been lingering in Yang Dongxia’s heart instantly vanished.
She had been constantly worried that the Gu family might hold a prejudice against her because of Gu Jingjing.
“In the future, you just live your own life with Tinghao. Jingjing’s matters have nothing to do with you.”
“I can still distinguish these things clearly.”
Yang Dongxia let out a massive sigh of relief. She had thought her first visit wouldn’t go so smoothly, but it turned out much better than she had anticipated.
“Thank you, Auntie.”
Mother Gu smiled and nodded. At this time, the children of the household returned one after another. Gu Jingjing saw Gu Tinghao and Yang Dongxia but didn’t say a word.
“Jingjing…”
Seeing her, Gu Tinghao wanted to get a little closer, but Gu Jingjing ran straight over to sit beside Big Brother Gu.
Hearing Gu Tinghao call out to Gu Jingjing, Yang Dongxia looked over as well. Sensing the gazes of the two, Gu Jingjing felt somewhat uncomfortable.
Big Brother Gu reached out to ruffle her hair, and Gu Jingjing looked up at him.
“Is my daughter shy around strangers?”
Hearing Big Brother Gu refer to Gu Jingjing as his daughter, Gu Tinghao’s heart swelled with bitterness. Meanwhile, Gu Jingjing looked at Gu Tinghao.
“Fourth Uncle…”
Gu Tinghao’s body swayed slightly. What did she just call him?!
“What… did you call me?”
Gu Tinghao looked at Gu Jingjing in utter disbelief. This was the first time he had seen Gu Jingjing in the past six months.
He had thought he could communicate with her properly, connect with her well, and cherish her dearly, but she… called him Fourth Uncle!
She no longer wanted him as her biological father!
Gu Tinghao was forced to face reality. Nothing could be more brutally real than this single phrase, “Fourth Uncle,” from Gu Jingjing.
Seeing Gu Tinghao’s somewhat despondent appearance, Yang Dongxia also made some conjectures in her heart.
To make a child refuse to recognize her own father, Gu Tinghao must have done something to break the child’s heart.
Yang Dongxia tugged at the edge of Gu Tinghao’s clothes, signaling him not to scare the child.
“Auntie, I bought some gifts for the children as well.”
As Yang Dongxia spoke, she brought out the gifts for the children. How could Mother Gu not see through her thoughtfulness?
“You are very mindful.”
The gift for Gu Jinfang was a pair of athletic shoes, the one for Gu Jingjing was a set of drawing pens, and the one for Yi Yi was a newly released dress.
As for Chouwa, Lailai, and Maomao, they were all given toys meant for boys.
“This is far too expensive.”
“Auntie, it’s just a small token of my regard.”
Mother Gu grew more and more pleased with Yang Dongxia. For the fourth brother to find a woman like this was truly a stroke of massive good fortune.
“Then let’s accept them.”
The children all thanked her very politely. Yi Yi only felt the dress looked a bit familiar, but no matter how she tried, she couldn’t remember where she had seen it.
“Let’s eat.”
After exchanging pleasantries, Mother Gu invited Yang Dongxia to the table for dinner. Seeing such a sumptuous spread of dishes, Yang Dongxia was overwhelmed by the hospitality.
“I didn’t know what you like to eat.”
“These are all my specialty dishes. Give them a try.”
Mother Gu scooped a few dishes into her bowl, and Yang Dongxia hurriedly expressed her gratitude: “Thank you, Auntie. These are all things I love to eat.”
“That’s good then.”
Yang Dongxia didn’t dare to move her chopsticks at first. Only when the members of the Gu family picked up their bowls and began to eat did she relax a little.
“Eat up.”
Gu Tinghao placed some meat into her bowl. Yang Dongxia glanced at him, then smiled and placed some food into Gu Jingjing’s bowl.
“Jingjing, eat more.”
Looking at the meat in her bowl, Gu Jingjing’s body paused. Seeing the fatty meat in Gu Jingjing’s bowl, Sister-in-Law Gu smiled and scooped it away.
“My daughter doesn’t like to eat fatty meat. Go ahead and eat more yourself, no need to worry about the child.”
“Today you are the guest. There’s no reason for the guest to take care of the host.”
Sister-in-Law Gu smiled as she placed the meat into her own bowl. Gu Jingjing kept her head down to eat, remaining silent.
Hearing that Gu Jingjing didn’t like fatty meat, Yang Dongxia also felt somewhat embarrassed. Her eagerness had resulted in a blunder.
She had wanted to draw a bit closer to Gu Jingjing so that the father and daughter wouldn’t be so awkward with each other in the future.
No matter what, she was still Gu Tinghao’s child, and she was already ten years old. Moreover, she was registered under the Gu family’s first branch now, so she had even less reason to dislike her.
She wanted to get along well, but it seemed she had underestimated the sheer depth of Gu Jingjing’s internal resistance toward Gu Tinghao.
“I’m sorry, I didn’t know.”
“It’s fine, it’s no big deal. Eat more.”
Sister-in-Law Gu placed two pieces of lean meat into her bowl. Yang Dongxia accepted them and lowered her head to eat, while Gu Jingjing’s grip on her chopsticks gradually tightened.
In her heart, Sister-in-Law Gu felt somewhat dissatisfied with Gu Tinghao. To place food in Yang Dongxia’s bowl in front of so many people, yet completely ignore Gu Jingjing.
No wonder Jingjing grew more and more resistant to Gu Tinghao; he simply didn’t keep the child in his heart!
“Jingjing, eat more.”
“Mama won’t be cooking any midnight snacks for you tonight.”
Sister-in-Law Gu pulled Gu Jingjing’s thoughts back, scooping quite a few of her favorite dishes into her bowl.
Gu Jingjing looked at Sister-in-Law Gu, nodded, and lowered her head to continue eating, never casting another glance at Gu Tinghao sitting opposite her.
After dinner, Sister-in-Law Gu and Sheng Wanyan cleared away the dishes while Mother Gu chatted with Yang Dongxia in the living room.
As the conversation went on, Mother Gu brought up the matter of visiting her family to propose marriage. Yang Dongxia’s parents were both in Xinjiang, so coming over to the Capital wasn’t that easy.
“Do your parents know you are dating Tinghao?”
“They know.”
“My parents are thinking of coming to the Capital for a visit in a little while.”
Mother Gu was just about to say that her own family would go to propose marriage when she heard Yang Dongxia’s words. This Yang Dongxia was even more eager than she, the mother.
Mother Gu also went along with the flow. After all, traveling to Xinjiang would take quite some time, and Father Gu might not necessarily have that many days of leave.
“That’s a perfect coincidence then. When the time comes, the two families can meet to settle your marriage.”
“Ask your parents to see when they will have time.”
“Alright, Auntie.”
The chat went very smoothly. After settling the arrangements, Yang Dongxia and Gu Tinghao headed back.
Once the guests had left, Mother Gu let out a long sigh, her eyes filled with exhaustion.
Chapter 607: Discussing Marriage
“This child is a good one.”
“I just don’t know what her family is like.”
Mother Gu could see that Yang Dongxia truly liked Gu Tinghao and was even willing to accept Gu Jingjing for his sake.
Or rather, she was a woman with a brain. She wasn’t foolish enough to think, like the previous one, that Gu Jingjing would threaten her own interests.
“We’ll know once we meet them in a little while,” Grandma Gu remarked. Her favorites remained the wives of the eldest and third brothers; they had been wonderful for so many years.
She only hoped that now that the fourth brother had a new partner, the household wouldn’t be thrown into unrest like before.
As for Gu Jingjing… she was already a child of the first branch.
Time flew by, and Sheng Wanyan officially became a senior on the cusp of graduation.
Yang Dongxia’s parents had also traveled to the Gu residence. Initially, they were highly dissatisfied with the fact that their daughter wanted to marry a man who had been married before.
Their trip to the Capital was disguised as a vacation, but in reality, they had come to put an end to their daughter’s relationship.
When Yang Dongxia brought her parents to the Gu residence, the Yang parents fully intended to lay everything out clearly—their daughter would not marry a divorced man.
However, the moment they entered the military compound, all their prepared arguments dissolved into thin air.
In particular, Father Yang was a military man himself, holding the rank of regiment commander in Xinjiang. The moment he saw Grandpa Gu and Father Gu, he was scared out of his wits.
He immediately saluted, standing stick-straight, not daring to move a single muscle.
“Old General! Commander-in-Chief!”
Father Yang truly couldn’t believe that this divorced man belonged to the Gu family—that he was Old General Gu’s grandson and Commander-in-Chief Gu’s son!
If he had known earlier, he would never have harbored such thoughts in his mind!
Father Gu glanced at them, nodded, and gestured for them to take a seat inside. Mother Yang wanted to say something, but Father Yang immediately pulled at her.
Mother Yang had a stomach full of words, but since her own man was holding her back, she could only shut her mouth.
“Come in and sit.”
Mother Gu politely escorted Mother Yang inside to sit down. Seeing her own husband looking too terrified to move, Mother Yang also realized that this household was extraordinary.
“Ah, yes~”
Father and Mother Yang followed them inside. Sheng Wanyan and Gu Tingxiao stayed at their own courtyard today and hadn’t come over; after all, Sister-in-Law Gu was at the main house.
There was no need for their branch to bring the children back just to join the commotion, lest they disrupt Gu Tinghao’s major life event.
“Is this Jingjing?”
Mother Yang knew about Gu Jingjing’s existence. Yang Dongxia had already laid out Gu Tinghao’s background to her before.
A divorced man with a daughter… any family would have reservations about that.
“Yes, this is Jingjing.”
Mother Gu nodded with a smile. Mother Yang sized Gu Jingjing up, twitched the corners of her mouth into a smile, and opened the visiting gifts they had brought.
“This is a set of drawing pens Old Yang and I bought for Jingjing. We heard from Xiaoxia that Jingjing likes to draw.”
“Thank you, future in-laws.”
Mother Gu accepted it. Gu Jingjing showed no reaction upon hearing Mother Yang’s words. Sensing this, Sister-in-Law Gu took her hand to lead her upstairs.
“Uncle, Aunt, my daughter still has homework to finish. I’ll take her upstairs first.”
Hearing Sister-in-Law Gu refer to Gu Jingjing as her daughter, Mother Yang’s body stiffened slightly, a trace of lingering fear rising in her heart.
She understood the underlying message. The eldest daughter-in-law of the Gu family was telling her that this was her daughter, and no one was permitted to look down on her.
As for Gu Tinghao, the biological father, he wasn’t allowed to mistreat the child either!
Needless to say, the family of the bride—a stepmother’s relatives—had absolutely no right to point fingers at a child belonging to the Gu family’s first branch.
“Ah, yes~”
Mother Yang looked a bit embarrassed. Sister-in-Law Gu didn’t care much about that, telling Gu Jinfang to take Gu Jingjing upstairs to do her homework.
“Jingjing, finish your homework today, and our family will go out to play tomorrow.”
“Understood… Mama.”
Gu Jingjing called out carefully. Hearing this, Sister-in-Law Gu’s face instantly bloomed into a radiant smile, and she ruffled the girl’s hair.
“Go on.”
“Xiaofang, keep an eye on your sister. You need to finish your homework too.”
Gu Jinfang’s face was filled with joy during the first half of the sentence, but the moment he heard the latter half, all the life instantly drained from him.
“It’s rare for the children to have a break. They ought to have a good time playing,” Mother Yang remarked with a smile. Yang Dongxia immediately tugged at her mother’s hand, signaling her not to speak out of turn.
“Future in-law, you must be joking. There is no reason for the children of the Gu family to be so undisciplined.”
“Fortunately, the children in my family are all hardworking. If any lazy children crop up, my Gu family wouldn’t dare accept them!”
Mother Gu spoke in a lukewarm tone. Hearing this, Mother Yang’s body froze slightly, and she nodded with a strained smile.
Mother Yang felt somewhat slighted. They had traveled from afar, yet Mother Gu was so overtly biased toward the first branch. She didn’t even dare to imagine what her daughter’s status in the Gu family would be after marrying in.
Mother Yang took a deep breath. Remembering that there was still a third branch caught in the middle, the worry in her heart eased a bit.
Anything was better than the third branch. The Gu family was an influential clan; once her daughter married in, it would provide a reliable backing for her son’s and husband’s careers in the future.
“You speak the truth, future in-law. It was narrow-minded of me.”
“It’s nothing. Just a difference in exposure.”
Mother Gu spoke indifferently, standing up to smooth her clothes before instructing the kitchen maid to prepare the meal.
Seeing that Mother Gu was handling the hospitality with ease, Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu felt a bit weary and returned to their room to rest.
Father and Mother Yang smilingly watched Grandpa Gu and Grandma Gu leave, offering a few pleasant words.
“Call the third brother to bring the children back for dinner,” Mother Gu instructed. The maid immediately went to place a call to Sheng Wanyan’s house. Sheng Wanyan had long since installed a telephone in the courtyard where they regularly stayed in the Capital.
Sheng Wanyan was just about to cook when she received the call from the compound. She could only pack things up and head back with the three children.
The maid at the main house had prepared the dishes, and Gu Tingxiao and Sheng Wanyan soon arrived home with the three children.
After greeting Father and Mother Yang, they carried the twins over to join Chouwa so they could be fed some soft food.
“Future in-law, are these twins?”
Father and Mother Yang looked at Lailai and Maomao in surprise. Mother Gu nodded with a smile, shared an affectionate moment with the twins, and then picked up Yi Yi.
“Yes, and this is the older sister.”
“Yi Yi seems to have gotten heavier again.”
Mother Gu found Yi Yi a bit too heavy to hold. Yi Yi kicked her little feet, wanting to be let down, so Mother Gu could only place her on the ground.
“Grandma, I’m not heavy. This is baby fat from being happy~”
“Yes, yes, yes. Our Yi Yi is the most beautiful child; it’s all happy fat.”
Mother Gu happily pinched Yi Yi’s little face. Yi Yi’s hair wasn’t short; since she had wanted curly hair previously, Sheng Wanyan had taken her to get the ends curled.
With her hair tied in twin ponytails and wearing children’s clothing from Sheng Wanyan’s shop, she looked both adorable and elegant.
Mother Yang gazed at the twins dotingly, occasionally unable to resist playing with them. Twins were truly a rare sight.
They were chubby, round, looked exactly alike, and wore identical clothes; she had no idea how the Gu family managed to tell who was the older brother and who was the younger brother.
“Let’s eat.”
Mother Gu didn’t dawdle and called everyone to the table. Setting Yi Yi down, she hosted Father and Mother Yang, as well as Yang Dongxia.
Mother Gu saw right through the Yang parents. Even if Father Yang harbored his own little calculations, he didn’t dare to act out of line. Instead, he wanted to maintain this relative connection properly.
Chapter 608: Gu Tinghao’s Remarriage
Mother Yang, however, was a different story. The underlying meaning woven throughout her words was that Yang Dongxia was an unmarried maiden and could not be made to act as a stepmother.
She carried her own little calculations, but since they were entirely for Yang Dongxia’s sake, that bit of self-interest was nothing to worry about. Furthermore, Yang Dongxia had been raised quite well under Father Yang’s guidance.
Mother Gu prepared ten dishes, several of which were substantial meat entrees, giving the Yang family ample face and demonstrating her high regard for Yang Dongxia.
“This… such wonderful food. Future in-law, you are far too polite.”
“Why be polite? We will all be one family from now on.”
Mother Gu hosted them with a smile. Seeing that his parents were satisfied with Yang Dongxia, Gu Tinghao finally felt at ease.
Gu Tinghao stole a glance at Gu Jingjing, who was sitting next to Sister-in-Law Gu. Smiling, he picked up two pieces of her favorite meat with his chopsticks and placed them into her bowl.
Gu Jingjing said nothing upon seeing this, simply lowering her head to eat it.
Her mama had said… the world is vast, but one should never pick a fight with meat.
Sister-in-Law Gu: “…”
Out of everything I taught you, how is this the only sentence you remembered?
Father and Mother Yang smiled at the sight. Seeing this, Yang Dongxia also picked up a piece of lean meat and placed it into Gu Jingjing’s bowl.
She still remembered the last time she came to the Gu residence for dinner; she had given Gu Jingjing a piece of fatty meat, which had displeased Sister-in-Law Gu.
This time she remembered the lesson. She looked at Gu Jingjing with a gentle smile. Gu Jingjing’s body paused slightly, but Sister-in-Law Gu gently patted her hand.
Looking into Sister-in-Law Gu’s eyes, Gu Jingjing took a deep breath and quietly picked up the meat to eat it.
Her mama had said… guests must be respected.
If Sister-in-Law Gu knew that Yang Dongxia thought her previous displeasure was directed at her, it would be a massive misunderstanding.
She had no reason to hold a prejudice against Yang Dongxia, whom she had only met once. Her issue was entirely with Gu Tinghao, the biological father.
Time after time, he was capable of doing infuriating things all for the sake of a woman.
She had realized by now that the person causing unrest in the Gu household was never the sisters-in-law, but Gu Tinghao himself!
To use the Third Sister-in-Law’s phrase… Gu Tinghao was a total “love-brain”!
Sheng Wanyan: “…”
I definitely never said that.
The meal proceeded very smoothly. After dinner, everyone sat in the living room, and the parents of both sides began discussing the wedding dowry and bride price.
Mother Gu had her own plans in mind. It was impossible for her to subsidize the fourth branch just because Gu Tinghao was entering a second marriage.
“Future in-laws.”
“You both are surely aware that Old Gu and I have already divided the family assets among the children.”
Father and Mother Yang nodded. Yang Dongxia had already explained these matters to them beforehand.
“The money from the family division is entirely in the fourth brother’s own hands. Once Xiaoxia marries over, she and the fourth brother just need to live their own lives well.”
“As for Jingjing, the fourth brother previously signed an agreement with the eldest brother. The fourth brother must bear his financial obligation for her upbringing and provide child support every month.”
“Additionally, our elder support money must also be paid. These are things that must be fulfilled.”
Hearing this, Father and Mother Yang frowned deeply. Mother Gu gave them no opportunity to speak and continued.
“Since the family is already divided, Old Gu and I naturally cannot give more things to the fourth branch just because he is marrying again.”
“When the family was divided, the things that were meant to be split were already distributed.”
Mother Gu had no intention of dipping into her and Old Gu’s pockets for a second bride price and new furniture just for Gu Tinghao’s second marriage, which would only make her eldest and third daughters-in-law unhappy. She saw things very clearly now.
The fourth brother… was completely unreliable.
“We will host the wedding banquet; our Gu family will take charge of that.”
“The bride price from the fourth brother’s ex-wife is still held in his hands. That sum of money naturally cannot be given to Xiaoxia as her bride price—it wouldn’t sound proper.”
Gu Tinghao’s body paused slightly upon hearing this. Looking at Mother Gu, he understood the underlying meaning in her words.
“I will bring it over to Mom tomorrow.”
Gu Tinghao spoke up in accordance with the flow. Mother Gu nodded; that was exactly what she meant!
Hearing this, Father and Mother Yang smiled and nodded. This was for the best; their daughter was marrying in as a properly wedded wife, not to clean up someone else’s leftovers.
She deserved a proper, honorable marriage!
“For the bride price, we will give $999$ yuan, signifying a long and enduring marriage.”
“The same amount as the third branch.”
Although the markets had opened up over the past few years, prices hadn’t risen by much. After all, everyone was strapped for cash at the beginning, and the state wouldn’t allow the common people to go hungry.
Father and Mother Yang were satisfied with what they heard. Since Mother Gu had laid it out so clearly, what else did they have to complain about?
“The settling-in allowance and the money from the family division are all in the fourth brother’s hands. When the time comes, we will also have new furniture made for you.”
“Tables, cabinets, wardrobes, bedding—not a single item will be missing.”
“We will also provide a brand-new bicycle.”
As for the existing furniture and bicycle currently in his place, the moment the new furniture arrived, Mother Gu would have people haul every single piece back without leaving a trace!
Mother Gu truly refused to let Gu Tinghao siphon off even a single bit of advantage, while outwardly showing immense respect to Yang Dongxia as the new daughter-in-law.
Hearing that everything would be brand new, Father and Mother Yang were naturally pleased, and they also stated the dowry they would provide.
“In-laws, you have been very mindful.”
“For the dowry, we will provide $300$ yuan and a wristwatch.”
“Furthermore, the bride price will be returned in its entirety.”
Father Yang made his stance clear. Hearing him directly offer so much, Mother Yang was instantly dumbfounded. They had clearly agreed beforehand to give $300$ yuan and a wristwatch!
Why did he suddenly change his tune here?
Father Yang had his own calculations. The Gu family was a prestigious and influential household; doing this would allow the Gu family to think highly of Yang Dongxia.
Mother Yang opened her mouth to speak, but Father Yang shot her a sharp look, forcing her to shut her mouth.
Since the words had already been spoken by Father Yang, if she were to take them back… wouldn’t the Gu family look down on her daughter?
Mother Yang was left stranded in an awkward position, unable to speak up or stay silent.
Mother Gu showed no reaction. In any case, it was all the fourth brother’s money, so it didn’t hurt her pockets.
The family had already been divided. If the fourth brother lived a miserable life and ended up marrying into the Yang family as a matrilocal husband, she wouldn’t even bat an eye.
If it weren’t for the fact that as his mother she was forced to show her face for his second marriage, she wouldn’t have allowed this rebellious son back into the house at all!
Once both sides reached an agreement, they picked an auspicious date to host the banquet and conduct the wedding.
Gu Tinghao’s major life event was finally settled. The moment the Yang family left, Mother Gu straight up demanded the ex-wife’s bride price money from Gu Tinghao.
Helpless, Gu Tinghao handed the money over to Mother Gu. Knowing that his parents were still angry with him, he could only be compliant.
The date was set for the fifth of May. On this day, the Gu residence was bustling with noise and excitement, and Yang Dongxia officially stepped through the threshold of the Gu family.
Sister-in-Law Gu and Sheng Wanyan had each prepared a wedding gift. Sister-in-Law Gu gave a red silk scarf and a pair of red pillow covers, while Sheng Wanyan gave a red dress from her own shop.
“Big Sister-in-Law, Third Sister-in-Law, this is far too expensive.”
Seeing them offer such costly gifts, Yang Dongxia didn’t dare accept. Sister-in-Law Gu smiled gently and took her hand.
“It’s not expensive. Go ahead and accept it.”
“Yes, take it.”
Sheng Wanyan chimed in with a smile. Seeing Sheng Wanyan smile, Yang Dongxia finally accepted the gifts and expressed her gratitude to them.
Yang Dongxia felt a very peculiar sensation in her heart. Clearly, Big Sister-in-Law was the future matriarch of the Gu family, yet she always felt that the aura surrounding Third Sister-in-Law was even sharper than Big Sister-in-Law’s.
Big Sister-in-Law’s aura was gentle and elegant, whereas her Third Sister-in-Law’s aura, though gentle, carried a subtle touch of imperious dominance.
