Chapter 9: Like Father, Like Son

Hearing Gu Ping'an's voice, Gu Tang's eyes lit up. She hurriedly whispered back, "Hurry inside!"

With a "creak," Gu Ping'an pushed the door open, darted in, and quickly shut it behind him.

Knowing full well what kind of temperament Gu Tang had, Gu Ping'an didn't even wait for her to prompt him; he poured everything out in one go.

"Just now outside the courtyard gate, I heard that precious darling of the First Branch tricking Great Uncle, saying that Grandma is failing and about to draw her last breath!

Great Uncle was drunk from drinking. He was originally sulking and unwilling to come back, but as soon as he heard that, he panicked!

You didn't hear it just now, but Great Uncle said that Grandma can't die right now—if Grandma dies, who will provide the silver to support his studies!"

Tsk, tsk!

Gu Tang clicked her tongue. She had wondered why they were all crying as if a biological mother had died.

So, this one actually believed his own mother was dying!

This father and son were truly breathtaking; they really were cut from the same cloth!

A wicked smile curled at the corners of Gu Tang's mouth as she came up with a devious idea: "Go out and repeat exactly what you just said to everyone in the courtyard! Let the whole family see just how filial this father and son are! The kind of filial piety you couldn't find even with a lantern!"

"You got it!" Gu Ping'an also had a temperament that thrived on chaos. He went off to the courtyard to report the "misdeeds" with great excitement.

Gu Liansheng had drunk too much, and since he always became drowsy whenever he drank, his crying had already subsided.

Lying on Feng's lap, he let out occasional, intermittent wails, looking as if he were about to fall asleep.

Feng was still crying, and there wasn't a single person in the courtyard trying to comfort her.

In the main hall, Old Master Gu could not stand the wailing that sounded like a funeral dirge. With a dark face, he stepped out of the hall, intending to scold his second son, Gu Lianshan, for not knowing how to console her.

Just as he was about to speak a single word, Gu Ping'an came running from the west wing and shouted to him with a slightly cheerful voice, "Grandpa! You have no idea, my Great Uncle and cousin are so filial!"

As he spoke, Gu Ping'an repeated, word for word, what he had just told Gu Tang to the entire crowd.

After finishing, he even went out of his way to ask, "Tell me, isn't my Great Uncle extremely filial?"

This time, Old Master Gu's face wasn't just dark; his entire body shook with rage!

Feng instantly fell silent, her sorrowful gaze turning cold in an instant.

Hiding in the east wing, Gu Tianbao was now panicking and lost. He hadn't expected his casual lie to be exposed, and he instinctively tried to hide behind Gu Lian.

Seeing his behavior, Gu Lian understood exactly what was happening. She could only shield him behind her, secretly cursing Gu Ping'an for meddling in things!

At a time like this, her parents were unreliable and her eldest sister wouldn't come out of her room, so Gu Lian had no choice but to step up and take the heat.

"Don't frame people! Tianbao is a scholar! Scholars are the most reasonable and filial; it is absolutely impossible for him to say such unfilial words!"

Gu Lian spoke with absolute certainty, then turned the blame back: "In my opinion, such unfilial words likely came from your mouth! You are naturally stupid and jealous of Tianbao's intelligence and studies, so you want to ruin his reputation!"

These words seemed to provide Feng with a way out and a reason to lash out. She turned and scolded Gu Ping'an, "At such a young age, instead of learning good things, you learn such lowly gossiping! You're a boy! How are you ten percent identical to your father?"

Gu Ping'an didn't care about being scolded by Feng. It was just as his second sister had said: if a dog bites you, are you going to turn around and bite the dog back?

As long as he was being scolded by "Grandma," he would just treat her like a dog; it wasn't worth getting upset about.

But Gu Lian was different.

Her second sister had said: do not be timid when facing the three siblings of the First Branch; just go at them and hit them!

Run away after hitting them, and leave the rest to Father.

But at this moment, going up to hit Gu Lian seemed inappropriate since there were too many people around; it was better to just scold her a bit.

Thus, Gu Ping'an ignored Feng's existence and addressed Gu Lian directly: "It's not enough that you won't admit it. If those unfilial words were said by me, I wouldn't have peace for the rest of my life!

But if they were said by my cousin, then let him never be able to focus on his studies again. May he never pass the exams in his entire life and remain a commoner until he dies!"

These words were like poking a hornet's nest!

Before the person involved could even react, Wei, who had been hiding in the main hall, rushed out with a distorted face: "You little brat seeking death! How dare you curse people in broad daylight! I'll beat you to death! Lest you curse away my son's good fortune!"

Wei gripped a club she had found from somewhere and swung it toward Gu Ping'an's head!

Gu Ping'an wasn't afraid at all; his father was there.

Sure enough, Gu Lianshan kicked out directly, knocking both the person and the club down under the corridor.

"What's the rush? San-ya said your precious darling is reasonable and filial, and that those unfilial words weren't his.

Since they weren't said by your precious darling, why are you throwing a tantrum? My son is cursing the turtle who said unfilial things but doesn't dare admit it! Why are you so worked up?"

Wei trembled all over, clutching her stomach with a pale face.

Gu Lian wasn't doing any better; her small face was filled with shock and panic, her hands trembling as she twisted them together, her palms drenched in sweat.

Behind her, Gu Tianbao was as timid as a mouse. Seeing his mother get kicked, his courage was nearly shattered.

His gaze shifted upward, colliding with Gu Lianshan's sideways glance, and he immediately began to beg for mercy: "Se... Second Uncle! I didn't mean to say those words!

My father was enjoying his drinking and refused to come back with me. I... I had no choice, so I just made up an excuse... I really didn't mean to curse Grandma to death! Truly! I swear!"

Gu Lian closed her eyes and lowered her head quickly, her eyes full of resentment and indignation, inwardly cursing him a "fool"!

"Er-lang, oh Er-lang, look at you. If you had just admitted it sooner, it would have been over. Look at the mess this has caused, all because of you..."

"Second son!" Old Master Gu's eyes darkened as he interrupted him, striking down with his cane, "You rebellious child! You actually dared to lay hands on your sister-in-law!"

"Hit him! If you don't give him a good beating, he will become even more disrespectful of seniority!" Feng, who was still sitting on the ground, also began to clamor, her expression unreadable.

Feng wanted to get up to help her husband discipline the second son, but her eldest son, who was lying on her lap, had already fallen asleep.

She struggled to push him a few times but failed. Her face stretched into a long, weary expression, and she turned to scold Wei instead.

"It was just one kick. Are you dead or did you break your leg? Who are you trying to impress by huddling on the ground?! Hurry up and help the eldest one up and take him back to his room to sleep!"

Wei wiped away her tears, not daring to utter a single word of defiance. Enduring the pain, she stood up and tried to help Gu Liansheng up.

A drunk person is naturally heavy, and since Wei was feeling unwell, she couldn't lift him at all, which prompted Feng to scold her repeatedly.

Beside them, Gu Lianshan, who was constantly dodging the cane, had a flash in his eyes. He deliberately tilted his body, leaning toward Gu Liansheng—

The cane Old Master Gu was swinging also followed his movement toward Gu Liansheng—

But unexpectedly, halfway through, Gu Lianshan made a sharp turn! He ran straight away?!

Old Master Gu did not have such agile movements; he couldn't pull the cane back in time, and it struck Gu Liansheng squarely on the forehead.

(End of Chapter)