"Cough, cough, cough." A fit of coughing interrupted Gu Yi's thoughts.
"Uncle, are you alright?" Gu Yi's brow furrowed, looking at him with concern, patting his back gently.
"I'm fine, cough, it's an old ailment," Uncle waved his hand as he coughed, telling Gu Yi not to worry.
"This is all an old ailment. I was much sicker before than I am now. Fortunately, this year I met a divine doctor who cured my illness, leaving only this lingering cough."
Seeing Uncle gasping for air with difficulty, Shen Xuan looked around the room. Perhaps it was the room itself; he had also felt it difficult to breathe here earlier.
"Uncle, perhaps the room is too stuffy. Shall I take you for a walk?" Gu Yi held Uncle's arm, asking for his opinion.
"That would be good, I'll go for a walk with you," Uncle nodded, leaning on Gu Yi's arm as he stood up, and they left the study with a smile.
"Uncle, I'm not familiar with this mansion. Where might one rest?"
This mansion was indeed vast, the only five-courtyard quadrangle in town. Anyone unfamiliar with it would surely get lost.
"Follow me," Uncle took Gu Yi's hand and led him to a courtyard further inside.
This place is so big, it must be Zheng Yu's courtyard, right?
"Uncle, is this Miss Zheng's courtyard?" Shen Xuan sat with Uncle on a stone bench near a tree in the courtyard, thoughtfully wiping the dust off the bench with a handkerchief.
"No," Uncle replied with a smile, as if fearing Gu Yi would ask further, and then explained, "I usually tend to the plants here."
So Uncle was the one cleaning this courtyard, no wonder he was so familiar with it.
"You are such a handsome child, how old are you this year?" Uncle looked at Gu Yi with a beaming smile, his eyes full of affection.
Gu Yi felt a little shy from the compliment, but still replied generously, "Thank you for your praise, Uncle. I am fifteen this year."
"You are such a good child, I like you very much. Have you found a partner yet?" Uncle asked, looking at Gu Yi with increasing fondness, his face beaming.
Gu Yi was truly shy this time, lowering his head, his face flushed, he whispered, "I am not yet married."
Uncle laughed heartily, "I have a daughter, four years older than you. I'll arrange for you two to meet in a few days, alright?"
"I truly like you," he said, holding Gu Yi's hand and rubbing it.
"Thank you for your kindness, but there's no need. I don't wish to think about this matter yet." Gu Yi was too shy to look up, only replying with his head down, missing the satisfied look in Uncle's eyes.
"Since you don't wish to marry, let's not talk about it," Uncle changed the subject with a smile, knowing that Gu Yi couldn't easily respond to such matters.
"You are so good-looking and so polite, so graceful. I truly wish to meet your father and learn from him how he raised such a fine young man."
Upon hearing this, the expression in Gu Yi's eyes suddenly dimmed. He lowered his gaze, remained silent for a moment, and then said, "My mother and father are no longer here."
"I'm truly sorry, I, Uncle, didn't know." Uncle hadn't expected that such a well-behaved and polite child would be without parents. He regretted his earlier inquiry, having brought up a painful memory.
"It's alright," Gu Yi shook his head and gave Uncle a comforting smile.
"Uncle, why are you still working here when your health isn't good?"
"Me? I usually have nothing to do, so I come here to walk around."
"It's not safe for a man to be alone at home. Why don't you move here and keep me company?" Uncle asked Gu Yi with a smile, his face always carrying a smile.
He genuinely liked this child and wanted him to stay as company.
"How can that be? This is Miss Zheng's residence. I cannot live here."
Gu Yi was alarmed by Uncle's words, but then realized his reaction might have been too strong and added, "I usually live with my sister. If you're bored, I can come and keep you company more often."
"Good child, I am very happy that you can come and talk to me," Uncle chuckled, growing fonder of him with every glance.
...
"Bastard!"
At the same time, Chen Yao was standing below, head bowed, obediently receiving a scolding.
"Were these matters yesterday all arranged by you?"
"You're going against the town mayor, are you trying to get me killed!" Chen Qi sat on the chair, gritting his teeth in anger.
"I didn't know the town mayor was part of their group. I was just helping Shen Jia vent his anger."
Hearing this, Chen Qi became even more furious. He slammed his hand on the table and pointed at Chen Yao, his face flushed red, "You! I'll beat you to death!"
"No, no, no, I was wrong, Mother. Don't worry, the town mayor won't know that I hired people to spread these rumors." Chen Yao, seeing his displeasure, apologized with a playful grin.
"Don't worry, I know what I'm doing," Chen Yao replied with a smile, and then found an opportunity to sneak away.
Lu Yu was in the Shen residence, conversing with Madam Shen.
It was more of a one-sided conversation, with Lu Yu doing all the talking.
"If we find the doctor who examined him at the time, we can prove that Shen Xuan is your biological son."
Madam Shen remained unyielding, as if completely blocking Lu Yu out. No matter what Lu Yu said, she acted as if she hadn't heard, continuing to drink tea and eat as usual.
"Fine, even if you don't believe me, are you willing to let the entire city mock the Shen family? Disregard the Shen family's reputation?"
Lu Yu, driven to desperation, had to use the Shen family's reputation to force Madam Shen to clarify the matter. She knew Madam Shen valued reputation above all else, otherwise, she wouldn't have sent Shen Xuan away quietly back then.
Hearing this, Madam Shen's eyes flickered.
Yesterday, when she heard such talk, she had been furious. But Shen Jia had comforted her, saying that from another perspective, she could also gain a reputation for being tolerant and magnanimous.
Since things had come to this, and someone had already spread the word, she might as well accept the situation and gain a good reputation for being deeply affectionate and kind-hearted. Even if she knew her husband had been involved with someone else, she couldn't bring herself to report him to the authorities or divorce him.
Now, hearing Lu Yu speak, Madam Shen sneered, "I was magnanimous then and couldn't bear to report him to the authorities and send him away. Today, someone has brought the truth to light, so I cannot speak falsely to deceive the public."
"I cannot speak falsely for the sake of the Shen family's reputation," Madam Shen said righteously, putting on an air of superiority. But everyone knew what she was really thinking; Lu Yu understood her ulterior motives perfectly.
However, she hadn't expected Madam Shen to be willing to be cuckolded in front of outsiders just to gain a reputation for magnanimity.
"Patriarch! A group of people are gathered outside the mansion, making a commotion. We don't know what they want." While the two were at an impasse, a servant from the mansion rushed in from outside to report the news.
"Did you arrange this?" Upon hearing this, Madam Shen turned and glared at Lu Yu, her eyes blazing with anger, her chest heaving. She wondered what trouble Lu Yu was causing this time.
"Patriarch Shen, with so many people gathered outside the mansion, I will immediately go out and publicly clarify this matter. You should consider carefully which reputation sounds better."
This was practically a threat. Although Madam Shen was unwilling to clarify Shen Xuan's father's innocence, she also didn't want to confirm the infidelity she had been subjected to.