roccoschili Chapter 1280: Two Years
Chapter 1280: Two Years
Gu Jin’an had no objections. It was indeed their mistake, and keeping it from their parents would prevent them from worrying and protect Third Miss’s reputation.
The only thing he felt guilty about was Brother Cheng... the child was clearly helping him, yet he had to reprimand him.
"Doctor Sheng, Brother Cheng hasn’t eaten since yesterday afternoon. Can we feed him some rice porridge now?" Gu Jin’an was worried that Brother Cheng would be hungry, so he wanted to give him something to eat.
Doctor Sheng replied, "Let’s not trouble him. Let him eat some rice porridge when he wakes up."
After all, he wasn’t in a coma for days. Someone like the young master of the Gu Family, who wakes up in a day and a night, can go without eating.
He added, "Young Master Gu, take off your clothes, and let me clean your wounds."
Gu Jin’an also had wounds on his back. It had been mentioned since last night that he needed his wounds cleaned, but Gu Jin’an had been too busy taking care of his brother to pay attention to it.
Ah Song was surprised and said, "Good Brother An, are your wounds not treated yet? Doctor Sheng, quickly check Good Brother An."
"Oh." Doctor Sheng immediately opened his medicine box to treat Gu Jin’an’s wounds.
Seeing that Brother Cheng’s condition was stable, Gu Jin’an cooperatively took off his clothes.
Ah Song and Doctor Sheng gasped at the wounds on his back... Second Old Master was really harsh. This beating was much more severe than Brother Cheng’s. They wondered how Good Brother An endured it, acting as if he hadn’t been injured all night.
Moreover, Gu Jin’an took off his clothes smoothly, without the slightest hesitation, which tore some skin stuck to the fabric. Watching this made Doctor Sheng’s hands tremble... what a tough person he was.
But Gu Jin’an didn’t think much of it. Having been beaten many times by the Old Gu Family during his childhood and having survived a famine, these rattan-wrought wounds were not truly injuries to him.
After Gu Jin’an had his wounds dressed and changed into clean clothes, Ah Song left to report to Master Ouyang in the study.
Master Ouyang had also stayed up all night. When Ah Song arrived, he quickly asked, "How are things?"
Ah Song smiled, "Second Old Master, rest assured, both Brother Cheng and Good Brother An are fine."
Then he carefully detailed the conditions and injuries of Brother Cheng and Good Brother An.
Master Ouyang sighed after listening, "Good Brother An is a good brother, and Brother Cheng is also a good brother."
The brotherhood between them was extremely close. Seeing them, he was reminded of himself and his big brother.
During their childhood—or rather, throughout his life—his big brother always protected him. Even when he made mistakes, his brother, though heartbroken, would chastise him. Afterward, he himself would cry in grief.
"The Gu Family may not have high status, but they are rare in their deep familial affection. Having been through life-and-death trials together, they protect each other. Such families are far better than the noble families in the Capital."
In the noble families, siblings might kill each other over family inheritance and dukedom, making their shallow feelings frightening... Miss Ming is deeply emotional and has a free-spirited and chivalrous nature. If she were to marry into a noble family, it would stifle her character, making her live a life of restriction, unable to live freely.
Moreover, Miss Ming’s parents died early, and she has no brothers to support her. Such a background is despised by noble families. Even if she relies on the family connections of him and his brother to marry into a well-matched family, after they pass away, those people would certainly bully her.
Although Brother Shao and Miss Ming have a close relationship, Brother Shao will have his own family and career to build in the future. He will carry the burden of the entire Ouyang Family and won’t be able to protect Miss Ming at all times. The only person who could protect her would be her future husband.
Brother Shao is the eldest great-grandson of Old Man Ouyang, the legitimate heir of the Ouyang Family, and its future successor, three years older than Ouyang Ming, and the same age as Good Brother An.
The good relationship between Brother Shao and Miss Ming resulted from his older brother noticing that Miss Ming, after losing her parents and having no brothers, had been sent to his eldest daughter-in-law, Brother Shao’s grandmother, after his wife’s passing.
Brother Shao’s grandmother had the status of a Madam Imperial Decree. With her raising Miss Ming, it softened her reputation as the daughter of a widowed mother, benefiting her prospects in matchmaking later.
And because Miss Ming grew up in Brother Shao’s grandmother’s household, her relationship with the younger generation of her elder brother’s family was quite good.
Ah Song was taken aback, wondering what Second Old Master meant by this comment. Could it be that a decision had been made?
He responded, "What Second Old Master said is true; the Gu Family has an upright family culture, with brothers and sisters deeply bonded through sentiment and righteousness. The parents are honest and kind, indeed better than some families in the Capital."
Master Ouyang did not reply after hearing this. Instead, he gazed at the sky outside, saying, "After a heavy rain, today’s weather has improved a lot. This morning glow is rather comforting."
And he added, "It’s been a long time since I had breakfast with Miss Ming. Have the maid set a table in the inner courtyard flower hall and call Miss Ming over. I shall have breakfast with her."
After saying this, he stepped out of the study and headed to the rear courtyard flower hall.
The maid worked quickly, and soon, a breakfast table full of various small treats was set in the flower hall.
Upon receiving the message, Ouyang Ming, bringing along Mrs. Han, Shan Cong, and Shan Ru, accompanied the reporting nanny to the flower hall.
"Grandfather." She greeted Master Ouyang and sat down at his signal. Though eating breakfast, she was less at ease than usual because she had something on her mind.
Master Ouyang observed her carefully, and after eating to about seventy percent fullness, he put down his chopsticks with a heavy thud and said to Mrs. Han and the others, "Wait outside."
"Yes." Mrs. Han glanced at Ouyang Ming and immediately left with Shan Cong and the servants.
Seeing this, Ouyang Ming put down her chopsticks and stood.
Master Ouyang waved his hand, "Sit down, you’ve already admitted your mistake yesterday, no need to do it again."
Yesterday evening, when Good Brother An brought Brother Cheng to the door, Miss Ming knew about it. When the two brothers knelt outside in the rain, she couldn’t resist coming to apologize to him, saying she already forgave Brother Cheng and hoped he wouldn’t punish the two brothers further.
Because of Ouyang Ming’s plea, Master Ouyang let the brothers in. Otherwise, with his temper, he might have been angry for several days before seeing them.
However, through that plea, he saw the thoughts of his granddaughter.
"Truly, a grown girl can’t be kept," he thought. He hadn’t expected that Miss Ming had other feelings for Good Brother An.
And indeed, Good Brother An was very outstanding. The two of them had been busy together with the new bank project. Being two outstanding children at a tender age, it would be hard not to be attracted to one another.
Thinking this, Master Ouyang suddenly paused and gritted his teeth, cursing, "That Little Xiao Yu is despicable. If it weren’t for her, none of this would have happened."
It was Little Xiao Yu’s idea to open a bank and lend money to farmers, which gave Miss Ming the chance to interact with Good Brother An; now, his granddaughter had been coaxed away, which infuriated him.
"In the next two years, the family will not arrange a match for you. We will discuss it after the Imperial Examination the year after next," Master Ouyang said after cursing Gu Jinli, and then he paused for a moment, making this remark.