Gu Yitong's current demeanor made it seem as if she were truly uninvolved. Lu Yu was so infuriated by Gu Yitong's attitude that she dropped a bombshell, leaving Gu Yitong frozen in place.
"Afu is pregnant."
Pregnant!
Pregnant!
Pregnant!
"What did you say!" Gu Yitong instantly stood up from her stool, as if struck by lightning.
"I, said, Afu, is, pregnant," Seeing Gu Yitong's astonishment, Lu Yu became much calmer, speaking word by word.
"And she's nearly a month and a half along. You know best how this happened."
"If you don't acknowledge itβ"
"I acknowledge it! Of course, I acknowledge it!" Gu Yitong interrupted Lu Yu before she could finish, striding over to Lu Yu and gripping her arm, "How is he now?"
Lu Yu raised an eyebrow, remaining silent.
"The child is mine. Afu was unconscious at the time, I forced him. Please don't blame him." Gu Yitong showed a rare pleading expression to Lu Yu.
Afu was currently Shen Xuan's personal attendant, his contract held by Shen Xuan. If Shen Xuan gave an order, Afu would certainly not dare to disobey. But the child was a small matter; Afu was the important one.
Afu was the victim in this matter. She had been careless and hadn't considered this, leading to Afu's unexpected pregnancy. It was her fault, and Afu had nothing to do with it. Afu shouldn't have to bear the blame for her.
She knew that Afu's reputation was tied to Shen Xuan's. In any ordinary wealthy family, if a servant boy encountered such a situation, being beaten or sold off would be considered lenient. Now, she could only beg Lu Yu.
Seeing the panic and worry in Gu Yitong's eyes, Lu Yu became even less hurried. Instead, she had the leisure to tease her. Now she was worried? Why didn't she think about taking responsibility back then?
Lu Yu knew that Afu had asked Gu Yitong not to say anything, but could this matter be ignored just because it wasn't spoken of? Even for Afu's reputation, she could have bypassed this and directly proposed marriage. Could she and Xuan'er have stopped them?
Now was the time to let her taste this experience and be punished.
Seeing Lu Yu's silence, Gu Yitong's heart sank halfway. "How is Afu now? Please tell me."
"Now you know to worry?"
"Yes, it's my fault, it has nothing to do with Afu. He wasn't conscious at the time. Afu has always valued you all. Don't make him sad, okay?"
Gu Yitong truly didn't know what to do. Her usual shrewdness had vanished, her mind filled only with Afu's current predicament.
"What would it take to not make him sad? Tell me?" Lu Yu said thoughtfully.
"Don't blame him for this matter. It wasn't his intention. Also, even if you must... don't harm his body. I know your medical skills, don't leave him with any lingering ailments."
"Is that all?"
"Yes, as long as you don't harm him." Gu Yitong tightly grasped Lu Yu's arm, her gaze anxious and full of entreaty. "For my sake."
"For your sake? What sake do you have?" Lu Yu pried Gu Yitong's hands away, stood up, and looked into her eyes, speaking slowly and firmly, "Afu is fine, but it's absolutely not for your sake."
"Afu grew up with Xuan'er, they are like brothers. Xuan'er would never harm him. Even if this child wasn't yours today, even if no one wanted this child, as long as Afu said he wanted to keep it, Xuan'er would not refuse."
"Don't worry, Afu is fine now, and I've given him some prenatal medication."
"But you said one thing incorrectly just now. There's an even more important condition for Afu not to be sad," Lu Yu said slowly. "Your unwavering affection."
"Afu's first reaction upon learning about this was to keep the child. He likes you, but you can't give him the courage of firm affection because he's afraid you'll look down on him."
"He thinks he's not good enough for you and always wants to retreat. If it weren't for this child, this affection might truly be buried in his heart forever."
"So, do you know what to do now?" Lu Yu gave Gu Yitong a meaningful look, patted her shoulder, and realizing the atmosphere was a bit heavy, added jokingly, "Don't beg me all the time, it makes one too excited."
"Get lost!" Gu Yitong finally realized she had been played by Lu Yu and playfully punched her shoulder, scolding her with a laugh.
Meanwhile, Gu Yi was quietly embroidering in the room, completely unaware of what had happened to her sister.
She was making a sachet, and the pattern was a pair of entwined lotuses. It was obvious who the sachet was intended for.
Lu Yu's task complete, she didn't linger, leaving to give Gu Yitong some time to prepare.
Gu Yitong understood Lu Yu's meaning. Since Afu lacked confidence, she would provide him with the strongest support.
Time was short, so Gu Yitong first went to the street to buy a pair of jade geese. A betrothal gift required a pair of wild geese.
Historically, live geese were preferred, but due to various reasons, jade geese gradually replaced them. Very few people could actually hunt wild geese, and Gu Yitong was not a martial artist, nor was it the season to hunt wild geese.
In this rush, she would use the purchased jade geese as a substitute. Before the formal wedding ceremony, she would personally carve a pair of large geese as a gift for Afu.
Gu Yitong arrived in the afternoon. Logically, she should have waited until the next morning, but Gu Yitong couldn't wait. She wanted to see Afu as soon as possible.
Since Gu Yitong had no elders, her visit alone seemed a bit lacking. She temporarily hired a matchmaker to make the ceremony more formal and to let more people know, giving Afu more confidence.
Lu Yu hadn't expected Gu Yitong to arrive in the afternoon, but since she was here, there was no reason to refuse her entry. This would be a good opportunity for Afu to see Gu Yitong's determination to marry him.
Ada, following Shen Xuan's instructions, ran back to the house to notify Afu.
"Afu, guess who's here?" Ada pretended to be mysterious, running to Afu's bedside and helping him up.
Afu, perhaps due to the emotional turmoil of yesterday, was even weaker today. His vomiting was more pronounced, his face pale and very frail.
"Who's here?" Afu's reaction was not as curious as Ada had imagined. Since yesterday's events, although Afu said he didn't mind, he had been dispirited, preoccupied, and uninterested in anything.
"Miss Gu has arrived with a matchmaker!" Ada's joy was evident. He was truly happy for Afu. "I specifically looked when I came. Miss Gu brought jade geese."
Bringing jade geese needed no further explanation. Afu knew what it meant. His master must have told her about this this morning.
But... was she truly completely willing? Did she really not mind at all?
ps:
Tangdou has started a new novel, a modern romance, a sweet short story, about ten thousand words and will be completed. Those interested can take a look. The title is "What a Coincidence, My Baby!"
You can find it on my homepage. However, as it has just been published, there are only twelve chapters. You can also choose to wait until it's fully updated. It will likely be completed by the end of January.