Chapter 4: Changes in Marriage

It turned out that she had let her guard down too early. Shen Guiya was not foolish, but had become more clever. After recognizing everyone in the courtyard, she pointed at Shen Guiyan and said, "Sister Guiyan is as beautiful as a flower. I presume she is the one favored by Master Gu?"

Speaking more politely than before, Shen Guiyan couldn't help but look at her more, and nodded in agreement.

"I understand," Shen Guiya touched her face and smiled, "Congratulations on your wedding, sister. Even if you get married, I won't stand in the way."

Shen Guiya, who had always been quick to scold her, suddenly became so gentle that Shen Guiyan was really not used to it. But she was grateful that she could let it go.

A mad monk had once read Shen Guiyan's fortune, saying that she would have a great disaster at fifteen, great joy at twenty, and great sorrow with white hair.

Shen Guiyan felt that those wandering sorcerers shaking bells and holding cloth sails on the street were not to be trusted, even if they shaved their heads. In the end, one's fate depended on how one lived.

She was about to turn fifteen, and nothing had happened yet, right?

She went back to prepare her wedding dress, and Qin Auntie also helped prepare some embroidered items. Gu Chaodong came to her on a moonlit night while she was embroidering the pattern on her skirt and said, "I have already talked to my father. I will only marry you. After you are married, I will find a good match for Miss Wu."

Shen Guiyan looked at the person at the window and was deeply moved because she lived on the second floor of the Swallow Tower, and it was not easy for him to hang outside.

So she believed him.

But for some reason, the predetermined horoscope suddenly changed. The matchmaker took her horoscope back and found that it clashed with Gu Chaodong's, and they were not suitable for marriage.

The Shen family was shocked, and Gu Chaodong was also dumbfounded. They looked at each other in silence.

When she was young, a fortune teller had said that she had a good husband's fate. Now, why would her horoscope clash with Gu Chaodong's? Shen Guiyan's face turned pale, but she didn't go back to cry like those other girls. Instead, she asked for Gu Chaodong's horoscope and secretly went to find someone else to calculate it with her own horoscope.

The fortune teller said, "Although it's not a perfect match, there is no harm in getting married."

Unable to figure out why the family's calculations showed a clash, Shen Guiyan returned to the mansion through the back door, bypassed the corridor, and just happened to see Gu Chaodong hurrying ahead, with Shen Guiya following behind, smiling and giggling.

"Do you really dislike me like this?" Shen Guiya asked with a smile.

Gu Chaodong didn't even look back. "Miss Wu, please behave yourself."

Shen Guiya pouted, looking very cute, but shameless, and she stuck to him and said, "You men are all hypocrites. I heard that I have already had intimate relations with you, so why do you ask me to behave myself? Hypocrite."

Gu Chaodong was probably speechless, so he shook his sleeve and left. As they turned the corner of the corridor, Shen Guiyan couldn't see anything.

"Why is Miss Wu so shameless?" Bao Shan stood behind Shen Guiyan, stomping her foot in anger. "As soon as Miss is not around, she sticks to Master Gu. Is she possessed by some demon from the lotus pond?"

Shen Guiyan sneered, "She has no manners, so naturally, Master Gu will not be interested in her. What's there to worry about?"

"But, I'm afraid Master Gu will be bewitched..." Bao Shan pursed her lips.

"He won't," Shen Guiyan smiled. "I have known him since childhood, and it has been six years now. I naturally understand his character. He won't betray me."

After all this time, she and he were familiar with each other. Even if Gu Chaodong was not great, he would not like a woman like Shen Guiya, who lacked talent and grace. She had that much confidence.

It's a pity that while books can be read a thousand times, a man only recognizes this one. Shen Guiyan was still too young and didn't understand that the more elegant a man was, the more reserved he was deep down.

And being reserved was more deadly than being open.

In a secluded part of the mansion, Shen Guiya boldly approached Gu Chaodong, hooked his belt, and pushed him into the nearby woodshed.

"What are you doing?" Gu Chaodong frowned.

Shen Guiya giggled and lifted her leg, wrapping it around his waist. "Master, you may deny it, but your body is very honest, isn't it?"

Her soul was from the 21st century, but she was not a good person. Having spent a long time in nightclubs and bars, she had a way of dealing with men. In this unfamiliar place, it was probably Gu Chaodong who barely met her standards. The original owner of this body seemed to like him, so it was probably him.

The man she set her sights on had never escaped her grasp.

Gu Chaodong was about to shout, but his face suddenly turned red. The woman's breath was like an orchid as she whispered in his ear, "Why struggle? This is something we both want, isn't it, Master... to have a good time with me? Hmm?"

It's not the good-looking ones you have to fear, but the ones who are skilled. Gu Chaodong was already tired and troubled by the horoscope, and Shen Guiya's seduction made him forget everything. He succumbed to his body's desires.

A passing servant heard the commotion and gasped, then ran to the courtyard of Lady Shen.

Lady Shen remained calm upon hearing the news and did not go all out to catch them. She just sent a few maids from her courtyard to follow and block the woodshed door. After they were done, they brought the two back to the courtyard to talk.

Shen Guiyan felt uneasy for some reason and spent some time embroidering her wedding dress before going to look at the stars in the sky.

"Miss, it's better to go to bed early. Everything is going smoothly," Bao Shan joked with a smile. "There's still over a month left, no need to rush."

Shen Guiyan nodded and went back to sleep. But her dreams were all chaotic, and she woke up the next day with dark circles under her eyes. She spent a long time trying to cover them up in front of the mirror.

"Today, I want to take my own birth chart to the Gu family to have a look," Shen Guiyan said. "The birth chart that Xi Niang took last time may have some issues."

"Alright," Bao Shan selected a light yellow long skirt for her, paired with a lotus-colored sash, giving her a fresh and dignified look.

But just as she reached the door, she was stopped by Madam Shen.

"The Gu family will send someone over later," Madam Shen said sternly. "You can just wait in the hall, no need to go over in person."

Shen Guiyan frowned slightly but couldn't disobey, so she nodded and went to sit in the hall.

To her surprise, Gu Chaodong, who usually carried himself with grace, appeared with a pale face. Shen Guiyan wanted to ask him what was wrong, but Xiu Rong, the maid, blocked her and didn't give her a chance to speak.

Gu Chaodong stood in the hall for a long time, his eyes filled with guilt and complexity. Finally, he gritted his teeth and said, "Miss San's birth chart is fine, and the wedding will proceed as scheduled."

"What did you say?" Madam Shen was furious. "Are you trying to say that it's San who forced you? Even now, you refuse to take responsibility for her?"

Shen Guiyan was confused, "What... the second time?"

Sitting quietly beside her, Shen Guiya lowered her head and forced a smile, "Mother, there's no need to be angry. Last time in the woodshed with Gu Gongzi... it was also the daughter's lowliness, willingly giving herself to Gu Gongzi again. If Gu Gongzi is unwilling to take responsibility, then I wish him and my sister a lifetime of happiness."

"Ya'er!" Madam Shen exclaimed angrily. "He defiled your innocence and made you bear the shame, and you still protect him?"

Shen Guiyan felt like she had been struck by lightning. Listening to these words, she couldn't move a muscle and could only stare blankly.

Unaware of the scandals and dramas of modern women, the naive women of ancient times naturally didn't understand the fierceness of women fighting for men. Faced with this situation, her mind went blank.

Shen Guiya cried in grievance, and Gu Chaodong lifted his robe and knelt down again, his eyes filled with struggle, "I am ashamed in front of Miss Wu, and I hope Miss Wu won't demean herself."

Shen Guiyan could only watch.

"What should we do about this?" Madam Shen looked at her and said, "Do you still want to marry this man who has taken advantage of your sister twice?"

Gu Chaodong anxiously looked up at her, and Shen Guiya also glanced at her indifferently.

No matter how she answered this question, it would be wrong. Shen Guiyan gritted her teeth and said, "Let Father make the decision."