273: Chapter 273 Proclaiming Sovereignty 273: Chapter 273 Proclaiming Sovereignty Fei Yang stood by, hearing everything Jiang You had said.
Daring to address the Master by his title so directly and with such temper, there weren’t many who would.
In a moment of impulsiveness, as soon as Jiang You finished shouting, she regretted it.
A chill ran down her spine as the harsh voice of the man came through the phone, making her anxious.
But she still stubbornly repeated, “You are being unreasonable.”
However, her tone was weakened, lacking the assertiveness from before.
“There are so many of them, and Beiyan is alone.
Isn’t that bullying the few with the many?”
“Jiang You, don’t tell me you feel sorry for him?”
“Why can’t I feel sorry for him?”
“Why?”
Jiang You said, “Beiyan is now my boyfriend.
If you cripple him, wouldn’t I be distressed?”
“Also, today is the first day of my relationship.
Are you as an older brother really going to squash my enthusiasm while it’s still in its beautiful cradle?”
“If I get a trauma from this and fear relationships forever, am I supposed to live a lonely life?”
After her speech, she heard the man on the phone say in a deep voice, “What did you just say?
He’s your boyfriend?”
Jiang Yan frowned, he had no idea that the two of them had gotten together.
Jiang You got a shock, realizing she had let it slip.
But then she thought since he already knew she had been intimately kissing Gu Beiyan, there was nothing left to hide.
“Yeah, we just started dating,” she answered confidently.
Then, a second later, she whined and pleaded, “So, bro, for the sake of your sister’s first love, could you stop targeting him?
After all, you guys are close brothers who grew up together.”
Jiang Yan: “…”
It was precisely because they grew up together that he acted.
He regarded him as a brother, and yet he went behind his back and stole his only sister.
Not to mention that he had premeditated it, even trying to keep it from him and secure the catch before telling him, looking to present a fait accompli.
So, hitting him was letting him off easy.
After a moment, Jiang Yan asked, “Are you sure you want to be with him?
No regrets?”
Jiang You blurted out immediately, “Yes, I have no regrets!”
Jiang Yan was calm, his voice still heavy, “Fine, then stay out of this and go back to your room to sleep.
I have plans.”
Jiang You heard this, “I won’t go, bro, you haven’t promised to let him go yet.”
Jiang Yan’s voice was unequivocal as he spoke again, “I said, I know what I’m doing.
If you don’t want to see him beaten to a pulp, then stop being stubborn with me!”
Jiang You pouted, momentarily unable to retort.
“Bro, you better keep your word, or else I’ll go to your wife!”
She hung up the phone after dropping that line.
Jiang Yan pinched the bridge of his nose, “…”
Seeing her hang up, Fei Yang immediately said, “Second Miss, please calm down.”
He said this because he was worried Jiang You might take her anger out on his phone.
Even though the phone wasn’t worth much, there were a lot of important documents inside, and it would be a hassle if it broke.
He stretched out his hand, gesturing for her to give him his phone back.
Jiang You tossed the phone back to him, glanced at Gu Beiyan who was still being besieged, bit her teeth, steeled her heart, and turned to leave.
Fei Yang caught his phone steadily, and soon Jiang Yan’s call came in.
“Hello, Master…
Understood, I’ll comply.”
Right after Fei Yang finished speaking, he looked up in Gu Beiyan’s direction; he was still holding up, not yet knocked down.
He shouted, “Stop, all of you.”
After his shout, everyone ceased their actions.
Gu Beiyan was a bit out of breath, his forehead covered with sweat.
These five men were indeed formidable; in less than half an hour, they had drained half his strength.
His face was now marked with bruises—though somewhat battered, it did not affect his handsomeness and presence.
Fei Yang walked a few steps forward, stood in front of him, and respectfully said, “Mr.
Gu, the Master has a message for you.”
With that, he handed over his phone to him.
Gu Beiyan glanced at him, nudged his back molars with his tongue, and finally took it.
“Speak your mind, fart if you must!” Gu Beiyan’s tone was particularly aggressive.
He didn’t care at that moment whether Jiang Yan was Jiang You’s brother or not; his stomach was churning with anger, frustration, and even a bit of grievance.
Jiang Yan wasn’t fazed by his attitude, and let out a light laugh, “What’s this?
You’re courting my sister and now you feel wronged by me?”
Gu Beiyan was silent for a few seconds before saying, “I’m not f*cking around; I seriously want to be with her!
Is this how you act as a brother?
I’ve kept myself pure for thirty years, and you can’t even offer support, instead, you’ve become the biggest stumbling block on my path to love.
Do you really want me to end up alone without descendants for the Gu Family?”
Jiang Yan scoffed, “Blaming the end of the Gu Family’s lineage on me?
Don’t you think that hat is a bit too big for my head?”
Gu Beiyan retorted, “If I don’t blame you, who should I blame?
The offspring of the Gu Family can only come from her, and if you cut off my marriage, isn’t that the same as cutting off my lineage?”
“…”
Jiang Yan was silent on the other end for a moment before asking again, “Are you sure you’ve thought this through?”
“Listen, I’m not against you two; you know what Jiang You means to me, I don’t want to see her hurt!”
Gu Beiyan was well aware, both of them had grown up without the company of their parents, and Jiang You, even more so, having lost her father at birth and abandoned by her mother.
The siblings had only each other to rely on, but fortunately, the two elder families were there for them.
Jiang Yan adored his sister greatly since childhood, often saying the eldest brother is like a father, especially when he raised her himself.
Gu Beiyan could understand what he was doing.
“What kind of man I am, you know that; you don’t want her to get hurt, neither do I.”
Even though he often teased her and bullied her, every time he made sure she came out on top.
“You can rest assured; Jiang You is more important to me than my own life, otherwise, I wouldn’t have waited until now.”
This was Gu Beiyan’s promise to Jiang Yan as well as to Jiang You.
Hearing this, Jiang Yan knew he should no longer interfere in these two’s affair.
He fully trusted Gu Beiyan’s words.
Jiang Yan said, “You can get your medical expenses reimbursed by Jiang Qi.”
Gu Beiyan retorted, “Do you think I need that petty cash from you?”
Jiang Yan replied, “Fine, you don’t need it, but the beating wasn’t for nothing—at least you still have a place in that girl’s heart.
But, whether you can become a son-in-law of the Jiang Family, that’s up to your own fate.”
At that, Gu Beiyan’s eyes and eyebrows lifted, “As long as you don’t become the stumbling block, brother, you don’t have to worry about it.
Just prepare to become my brother-in-law!”
Jiang Yan didn’t know what to say to his asking-for-a-beating tone, so he chose to say nothing, “Alright, then I will wait for the good news.”
With that, he hung up the call.
Seeing Gu Beiyan put away his phone, Fei Yang immediately reached out with a smile to ask for his phone back, “Mr.
Gu, my phone.”
There’s a saying, after all, that one does not slap a smiling face.
Gu Beiyan tossed the phone back to him.
This scene seemed so familiar…
Because just earlier, his youngest sister had made the same gesture.
Could it be said that… ‘Like family, like attitude’?
Gu Beiyan looked at him and said with a heavy voice, “Are we fighting more?”
Fei Yang still maintained a light smile, “Mr.
Gu, the Master says you can leave now, but if you wish to continue fighting, they are willing to accompany you.”
“…”
Gu Beiyan gave him a glance, completely speechless.
“A dog can’t spit out ivory!”
Fei Yang coughed lightly without responding.
Immediately after, Gu Beiyan ordered another line, “Have someone send me back!”
Fei Yang replied, “Yes, Mr.
Gu.”
He quickly arranged for someone to take Gu Beiyan back.
When Jiang You returned to the house, she didn’t immediately go to her room but appeared restless and anxious as she sat on the living room sofa.
Soon, she heard footsteps.
Then, Fei Yang walked in.
“Miss Second, your phone.” Fei Yang had picked up her phone and placed it on the coffee table.
Jiang You couldn’t care less about the phone at the moment; she anxiously asked, “Where’s Beiyan?”
Fei Yang answered, “Mr.
Gu has left, Miss Second.”
“He left?”
“Yes.”
“He got hurt?”
Fei Yang fell silent for a moment, as if recalling, “It’s alright, not serious.”
Jiang You frowned and said, “Not serious means he did get hurt!
How could you guys be like this, can’t you be more gentle?
I’m going to complain about you to my sister-in-law!”
Fei Yang: “…”
After saying that, Jiang You grabbed her phone and turned to head upstairs.
She had just entered her room when her phone rang.
Seeing that it was a call from Gu Beiyan, she immediately answered.
“Hello, Beiyan, are you alright?”
Gu Beiyan raised his hand and pressed the corner of his mouth with his fingertip, feeling a bit of pain where he had been punched.
“I’m fine, don’t worry,” Gu Beiyan comforted her, “Go to sleep now, don’t worry about me.”
“Are you really okay?” Jiang You was still concerned, for she knew the people her brother had trained, “Turn on the video and let me see you.”
Gu Beiyan couldn’t help but laugh at her words, “See what?
I’m in the car and it’s not convenient for me to undress for your inspection.”
Hearing him mention undressing, Jiang You wasn’t shy at all, she directly responded, “Then you take it off when you get back, I’ll wait for you, I’m not sleepy anyway.”
Gu Beiyan: “…”
What is this, talk of a temptress?
After she changed her identity, how come her character became so bold, with not a trace of shyness?
Gu Beiyan didn’t continue to tease her about this, instead, he changed the subject, “Your brother said he won’t interfere with us anymore, so I guess I don’t have to hide, right?”
Sure enough, Jiang You perked up upon hearing this, “Really?
My brother truly agreed not to meddle?”
“Yes, really.”
“That’s great, otherwise I would have to sneak around even for dating once.
It’s thrilling, but also makes me anxious every day, afraid my brother would suddenly appear.”
Jiang You laid on her bed, babbling on and on.
Gu Beiyan didn’t interrupt her, just let her speak and responded to her from time to time.
As they were chatting, suddenly there was no sound from the other end of the call.
He glanced at the phone which had not been hung up, and then heard an even breathing sound.
The woman who had claimed not to be sleepy had fallen asleep in half an hour; did that seem like she wasn’t sleepy?
He smiled helplessly and fondly, shook his head, and did not hang up the phone immediately.
Instead, he listened to her even breathing for about ten minutes, making sure she was truly asleep before he hung up the phone.
…
Without Jiang Yan’s interference, the two of them acted like they were liberating their nature, especially Jiang You.
After waking up that day, Jiang You composed a post for her circle of friends, staking her claim, and she made sure the visibility was set to people within her social circle.
As soon as she published it, it caused quite a stir; her circle of friends was abuzz.
People under the comments came to gossip and congratulate her.
Jing Xuan was stunned when she stumbled upon the post.
She hadn’t known about Jiang You and Gu Beiyan.
She was too lazy to even type a message, and dialed a voice call directly.
Jiang You, being supportive, quickly answered her voice call.
“Hello, Ms.
Xuan, what’s up?”
“Xiao Youyou, are you busy?”
Jiang You knew she was definitely there to gossip about the post she made, “Ms.
Xuan, are you asking if my boyfriend is Beiyan?”
Being pinpointed, Jing Xuan wasn’t embarrassed, instead, she said cheerfully, “You know me well, come on, spill and tell me your story, how did the two of you end up together?
I’m really too curious.
Satisfy your sister’s curiosity, I’m home nurturing the baby all day and I’m already getting moldy.”
If this were before, she wouldn’t have even thought about it.
Jiang You didn’t skimp and recounted to her everything from beginning to end.
“…”
“Wow, not bad, Gu Beiyan really kept it deep, truly a hidden dragon, he’s been planning for a long time.”
Come to think of it, she had never noticed before, at best, she thought these two were simply bickering frenemies.
She hadn’t expected them to become a perfect match…
“However, your brother’s approach isn’t wrong; after all, you are his only sister, and he can’t just hand you over to someone else just because they are brothers without any consideration,” Jing Xuan offered her analysis along the way.
Jiang You also knew that what her brother did, he did for her.
Because this morning, she had received a recorded conversation, which happened to be the dialogue between her brother and Gu Beiyan from last night.
After listening to it, she couldn’t help but be moved, knowing it in her heart, and hearing it with her own ears were two different things.
Jing Xuan could especially understand Jiang Yan’s approach, as well as Jiang You’s feelings.
After all, she had gone through it once herself.
When her elder brother was still around, he found out about her and Lu Zhiyang, and without saying anything, he beat up the guy.
Even though they were friends, her brother didn’t go easy.
Perhaps this is what they call a sister-complex to the extreme; you can bully and preach to her all you want, but the day a man takes her away, the brothers can’t stand it anymore…
If her brother was still around, maybe these past few years wouldn’t have been so difficult for her…
Jing Xuan quickly pulled herself out of the emotions of missing her brother.
“Little Youyou, if you two have any new developments, remember to tell your sister at any time.
Sister has recently taken a liking to gossip,” Jing Xuan said with a laugh and teasingly added, “If there’s something you don’t understand in that regard, remember to ask your sister.
I can find you some good stuff to learn from.
Don’t go to your sister-in-law; she’s a straightforward girl and can’t teach you those things.”
Jiang You didn’t want to instantly understand the final meaning of her words, but she did.
However, she agreed swiftly, “Ms.
Xuan, I’ll have to rely on you for my future happiness.”
“No problem, leave it to me.”
“By the way, Ms.
Xuan, when is your due date?”
“It’s in four more months, why do you ask?”
“I want to prepare a big gift for my goddaughter.”
Since Jing Xuan had always wanted Su Baobao to be her son-in-law, everyone automatically assumed she was having a daughter, and no one really knew the answer.
Jing Xuan said, “The titles and seniority among our group of people are all tangled up like a knotted mess that can’t be unraveled.
Gu Beiyan is Xixi’s godfather, and now there’s a good chance he’ll become your husband.
Should Xixi call him godfather, or ‘Little Uncle’ in the future?”
“…”
Half a month later.
Today was Jiang You’s final scene for the drama, and once it was done, she would wrap up filming.
The crew arranged a simple farewell party for her.
“Xiao You, happy wrap.”
Lu Yunzhan held a bouquet of flowers, handed them to her, and the two shared a symbolic hug.
“Thank you.”
Jiang You smiled and thanked him.
This was their second time working together, so they were both happy and in sync while filming.
“I’m envious you’re done; I still have a few days left,” Lu Yunzhan said.
Jiang You was naturally happy to think that she could take a break now, but as the wrap-up approached, she felt a bit reluctant; after all, no banquet in the world lasts forever.
“Mr.
Lu, keep it up, we’ll see you at the wrap party.”
After everyone wraps up, the crew will arrange one more wrap party.
Jiang You playfully patted his arm.
The two played a couple in the drama and had a harmonious relationship off-screen as well, creating a strong couple vibe.
They chatted and laughed for a while.
Not far away, a man stood watching them with narrow, dark eyes and a gloomy expression.
Lu Yunzhan was the first to notice Gu Beiyan, maybe it was a man’s intuition.
They looked at each other.
Lu Yunzhan recognized him at a glance; wasn’t this the man they ran into at the restaurant entrance before?
He remembered that last time Jiang You introduced Gu Beiyan as her brother.
But the way this man looked at him was like he wanted to eat him alive; how did that resemble a brother’s demeanor?
Men’s sixth sense can also be quite accurate sometimes.
Although Lu Yunzhan had Jiang You’s WeChat, he didn’t have access to her friends’ circle.
Jiang You had set privacy filters, and usually, for people she knew in the entertainment industry, she did not share her posts with them.
“Jiang You, is that man over there your brother?”
“Ah?
My brother?
Where is he?”
Jiang You turned her head and glanced left and right.