Chapter 546 - 547: Choice

Chapter 546: Chapter 547: Choice

Gu Kaiyuan thought this made sense, but it still wasn’t the safest bet. "We should head over to the shipyard and take a look. They’ve already prepared everything and started construction.

"You drew the blueprints, so it’s a good time for you to go over and clear up any confusion for the craftsmen."

"You don’t need to be so nervous. They won’t be coming anytime soon, right?" Bai Suihe patted his hand comfortingly, wondering just what the Gu Family had done to scare Gu Kaiyuan to this extent.

Gu Kaiyuan wasn’t scared; he just didn’t want to deal with any more trouble. Yes, as far as he was concerned, the Gu Family was nothing but trouble now.

"I know that. I just wanted to take you to that small fishing village to look around. Although it’s a bit remote, the scenery is quite nice.

"Don’t you love looking at the sea and beachcombing? Let’s go stay there for a while. If it suits us, we can even settle down there."

As for the properties left behind here, they could just send someone to watch over them and come back to inspect them every now and then. As long as their family of three was together, anywhere would be home. Gu Baijiang would probably be too ashamed to come looking for him by then, but he was afraid they might send Liu Yun and the others over to cause a fuss again. It wasn’t that they had to move immediately; they just needed to see if there was a suitable place first.

Bai Suihe didn’t say anything more. She just suggested arranging things here first and talking about it again in a few days.

Gu Xingyang immediately perked up when she heard they were moving. She muttered several places, all of which Bai Suihe had taken her to before.

"Don’t be so greedy," Bai Suihe said in exasperation as she listened to her rattle off several location names. "Your father and I won’t let you suffer."

Gu Xingyang nodded in agreement. She believed that. "But I’m also a member of this family. I want to feel involved..."

"Fine, we’ll definitely let you be involved. When the time comes, you can pick the place, and you can also decide how the house is built," Bai Suihe humored her.

She was just a tiny child, yet she had so many ideas. Making a big promise to see how much she could actually achieve would stop her from being so greedy next time.

Oblivious to the trap, Gu Xingyang agreed wholeheartedly. She had forgotten that right now, apart from communicating with her parents in her mind, she couldn’t do a single thing.

Just as they were frantically preparing for their trip, they received several more invitations.

Among them was one from Mr. Gu. Bai Suihe picked out the invitation directly and handed it to Gu Kaiyuan. "This is for the day we’re traveling. See how you want to decline it."

Gu Kaiyuan was about to say they should just mention they were going on a long trip, but the words changed as they reached his lips. "It looks like we’ll have to delay our trip by a day."

"What does the invitation say?"

Bai Suihe had no good impression of the Gu Family, so she hadn’t bothered to read the contents at all.

"It invites us to be sure to attend the banquet. Tomorrow, people from the Gu Family in the Capital City are coming to celebrate their move to a new residence."

"They’re using the Duke Mansion to pressure people," Bai Suihe sighed. There really was no way to refuse this.

This Mr. Gu probably knew that the last banquet they hosted was a bit of a trap. Afraid that people would be unwilling to attend this time, he had specifically brought in his backers.

"If we had already left, we could ignore it. But since we’ve already received the invitation, leaving on that day would really forge an enmity." Gu Kaiyuan wasn’t afraid of Mr. Gu, but he couldn’t afford to offend the Duke Mansion behind him for the time being.

"Then let’s go. Hopefully, they won’t pull any more stunts this time."

Bai Suihe took the invitation and looked it over. They were actually inviting the whole family. That was quite a grand gesture. Last time, they had only invited the female family members. It seemed they hadn’t managed to buy much land and storefronts recently and were getting anxious.

They quickly set the matter aside. As for the specifics? They would find out when the day came.

Unexpectedly, Mrs. Qian and the others treated this as a major event and invited her out the very next day.

The group arrived at the teahouse again and began discussing the matter.

"Do you think they’ll force us to sell our farmland again this time?" Mrs. Qian was a bit nervous. Everyone present possessed modest wealth, but right now, no matter how high the offer, they would clutch their land tightly. If they really sold these things at a high price, they probably wouldn’t be far from having to move out of Zhang County.

"They probably wouldn’t dare," Mrs. Jiang said. The several estates she owned were all for planting mulberries and raising silkworms, so they received fewer inquiries, making her less nervous.

Among them, the most nervous was Mrs. Qian. After all, their family’s grain shop relied mostly on the produce from their farm estates, and they had just bought two more estates recently, so she was genuinely scared.

Madam Li comforted her. "I heard someone from the main family is also coming. It’s said to be the legitimate grandson of the Duke, the Empress’s own nephew.

"Didn’t we send people to ask around before? The main branch’s character is still quite good..."

Bai Suihe said, "If it really is the legitimate grandson of the Duke Mansion, then everyone doesn’t need to be too nervous.

"Someone has already memorialized the throne in the royal court about the fuss Madam Gu Jiu caused before. The Duke promised to send someone to investigate, and it’s likely this is the very person."

"Really?" The several madams all looked at Bai Suihe. Among them, Bai Suihe’s information sources were the most accurate.

"Of course it’s true. Rest assured, the Empress’s position in the palace is a bit awkward, but the Emperor hasn’t touched her position, which already holds profound meaning.

"Moreover, the ones who impeached the Duke Mansion last time were the maiden families of the other noble consorts. With so many people watching, even if the Duke Mansion wanted to engage in forced transactions, they’d have to weigh the consequences."

Bai Suihe comforted them. She had thought it was some huge matter since they called her out in such a hurry. Since it was just this, there was nothing to worry about.

"That’s good then," Mrs. Qian patted her chest. "You have no idea. Ever since receiving the invitation yesterday, I’ve been on pins and needles. I couldn’t sleep all night."

Bai Suihe and her husband had already dealt with most of their properties, and their remaining farm estates and shops were inconspicuous. Now, compared to them, it was actually Mrs. Qian’s family that was in more danger. Mrs. Qian had even discussed with her husband last night whether they should quickly sell off all their properties over the next few days.

Mr. Qian was reluctant. Every estate was carefully selected by him, and those fertile fields were meticulously maintained by people he hired. No matter which one it was, he was unwilling to part with it.

But since ancient times, commoners never fought with officials, let alone a colossal entity like the Duke Mansion. How could a lowly merchant family like them afford to provoke them?

So, he had Mrs. Qian come over today to test the waters and see what everyone else was doing. He also went to pull some strings, hoping it would be best if all the merchants in Zhang County could align their stories and present a united front to resist together.

They didn’t hide what they were doing, and the Gu Family also caught wind of the news.

Gu Yeshi cursed inwardly, but he still had to wear a smiling face in front of the main family’s young master. "Qian Yi, these unruly commoners are simply lawless. They still harbor resentment to this day just because of a little foolishness from my stupid wife.

"I’ve already apologized in person for that matter, and they all indicated that it was in the past. I didn’t expect them to dig up old grievances again."

He and Gu Qianyi were of the same generation, and he was slightly older, which was why he could address him directly by his given name.