Chapter 127 - 127: Dowry
Gu Zhixin initially had no concern for whether Wang Shi lived or died, but his elder brother had given him explicit instructions before going into seclusion to find a way to save Wang Shi.
He didn’t have the confidence to confront his elder brother now.
Moreover, Wang Shi was Gu Lingxue’s birth mother. If anything happened to her, Gu Lingxue would surely blame him when she returned.
He didn’t want to offend his niece, Gu Lingxue.
He paced back and forth in the hall when suddenly a thought struck him.
“The dowry! Big sister-in-law must have prepared a dowry for that girl, Gu Lingxue, right?”
“Well… the dowry was already entrusted to the Second Miss, and only she has the key. I can’t open it,” the steward replied cautiously.
Gu Zhixin furrowed his brow. “What about Gu Qin’er and Gu Si’er’s dowries?”
“They had very little dowry remaining, as the master had borrowed most of it to purchase the Universe Stabilizer.”
Steward Wang asked cautiously, ‘Second Master, how about about Fourth Miss’s dowry…'”
“‘Are you suggesting that we should use my daughter’s dowry?” Gu Zhixin glared at him, raising an eyebrow.
The steward smiled wryly. “I have no other choice, right? Where can we find so much money in such a short time? Moreover, if this news gets out, it will tarnish the reputation of the Gu family.”
Gu Zhixin immediately said, “Naturally, we cannot reveal anything to the outside.”
“So, the best option now is to borrow Fourth Miss’s dowry. Just think about it, when Madam wakes up and realizes that her life was saved by Fourth Miss’s dowry, she will be grateful to her. When Second Miss returns, she will also remember the favor Fourth Miss did to save her mother. And, the predicament of the Gu family is only temporary. When the master emerges from seclusion, the Gu family will surely thrive. They will definitely be able to return the dowry to Fourth Miss before she gets married, and it will probably be even more abundant than the current dowry. This is beneficial to Fourth Miss without bringing her any harm.”
Gu Zhixin listened to his analysis and found it reasonable.
So he went to find Gu Jinyue.
Gu Jinyue was in a foul mood that day, having spent a significant amount of money and feeling deeply troubled.
Gu Zhixin tried to soothe her for a while, then shifted the topic to her dowry.
He appealed to her emotionally and reasoned with her.
He conveyed the steward’s arguments to her.
Gu Jinyue couldn’t help but be moved.
But…
Her dowry was already gone!
Gu Jinyue was heartbroken, but she didn’t dare to let her father know and evaded the topic.
Gu Zhixin could see through her guilty demeanor, and under his questioning, Gu Jinyue revealed the truth.
“The dowry is gone? All for that worthless membership?” Gu Zhixin became so furious that his head was spinning. Without thinking, he gave Gu Jinyue a hard slap.
“You wasteful girl! What did I tell you before? I told you to endure it. There will be a chance for you to seek revenge, but you couldn’t control your temper!”
Gu Jinyue, who was favored at home, had never seen her father so angry with her. She felt aggrieved, angry, and couldn’t help but be afraid.
“But… Father, you don’t know how infuriating Gu Qingluan was at that time! If 1 didn’t spend the money, wouldn’t I become the laughingstock of all the noble ladies in the capital? Do you think they were just mocking me? They were mocking our Gu family! Once they spread the news, the whole capital will know that our Gu family is a bunch of paupers!”
Hearing this, Gu Zhixin furrowed his brow. His daughter’s worry wasn’t entirely unreasonable. But now, her dowry was also gone. Where could he find the money to save Wang Shi’s life?
Gu Zhi Xin was in agony. Time was running out, and he didn’t have the patience to argue with his daughter. He turned and walked out.
Seeing him leave, Gu Jinyue breathed a sigh of relief and slumped onto the chair.
“Miss, are you alright?”
“Just get out!” Gu Jinyue grabbed a teacup from the table and threw it at the servant.
Terrified, the maid fled the room.
Gu Jinyue was seething with anger. She swept the tea tray off the table, venting her frustration.. “Gu Qingluan! You wretched woman! It must be you who set a trap for me! 1 swear 1 will kill you!!!”