After saying this, she couldn’t help but ask in a hushed tone, “You and Li Qinyuan…”
She wasn’t blind. The way Gu Wuyou treated Li Qinyuan—protecting him, finding evidence for him, even secretly saving a skewer for him during a meal—it was impossible to say she didn’t like him.
But what about Li Qinyuan?
What did he think?
And what exactly was going on between the two of them now?
“I and he…” Gu Wuyou had just started to answer when Gu Yu suddenly didn’t want to hear it anymore. She frowned, keeping her voice low, “Forget it, forget it. Don’t tell me, I don’t want to bother with your matters. Just… be careful.”
Then, as if still uneasy, she added, “Don’t be stupid and let yourself get bullied.”
“Pfft—”
“What are you laughing at?” Gu Yu felt embarrassed.
“Nothing, nothing.” Gu Wuyou waved her hand, still smiling. But her bright apricot eyes were filled with an irrepressible amusement, making Gu Yu feel even more flustered. Annoyed, she shook off Gu Wuyou’s hand and moved aside, sulking.
“Hey, I wasn’t laughing at you.”
Gu Wuyou, still smiling, reached over and tugged at her sleeve. “It’s just… he wouldn’t bully me, don’t worry.”
Her great general would never bully her.
He,
if anything, was even easier to fluster, even more prone to blushing than she was.
Gu Yu glanced at her with suspicion, clearly unconvinced, but she didn’t argue. As they neared a fork in the road, she finally asked, “Are you going to the academy early again tomorrow?”
“You’re not planning to…”
The words were on the tip of her tongue, but she swallowed them back down.
Gu Wuyou seemed to have thought of something. Looking into Gu Yu’s eyes, she suddenly asked, “Can you come out with me tomorrow? A little earlier.”
“Hmm?”
Gu Yu was stunned.
—
The next morning.
Yawning, Gu Yu climbed into the carriage with Gu Wuyou. She had never woken up this early before and was unbearably drowsy. She yawned so much that tears welled up in her eyes.
Looking at Gu Wuyou sitting beside her, she grumbled unhappily, “You really know how to make trouble.”
“Didn’t you already make yourself clear yesterday? Those people are terrified of you. How could they possibly ignore your words?” She yawned again, rubbing at her eyes as she continued, “If it really comes to it, you could just tell Dean Xu. The moment he gives an order, none of them would dare disobey.”
“It’s different.”
Gu Wuyou handed her a warm lotus leaf-wrapped rice bundle.
Gu Yu hadn’t eaten breakfast and didn’t bother with courtesy, taking it directly. “How is it different?”
“Hmm.” Gu Wuyou tilted her head, furrowing her brows as she thought about how to explain. “I don’t really know how to put it. It’s just… I really want to do something for him. I want to tell him that he’s great. I want him to see that this world isn’t so bad after all.”
“I also want others to see that he’s great.”
“It’s just—”
Gu Wuyou turned to look at Gu Yu. Seeing her staring at her so intently, she suddenly blushed. “Do you understand?”
Gu Yu didn’t understand.
But she saw the passion and hope in Gu Wuyou’s eyes—like a rising sun. She suddenly felt that if, in this world, there was someone who was willing to unconditionally trust and protect you like this…
Then it would truly be worth living.
Unable to hold back, Gu Yu muttered under her breath, “What’s so great about him?”
“What?” Gu Wuyou didn’t catch her words.
“Nothing.” Gu Yu turned away, slowly eating the lotus leaf rice. Fine, I’ll just be foolish along with this fool for once.
—
Meanwhile, near the shadowed wall.
Anhe watched as the carriage moved farther away, then glanced at Gu Jiufei beside him and whispered, “Young Master, the County Princess and Seventh Miss’s carriage has already left.”
“Mm.”
Gu Jiufei, still watching where the carriage had disappeared, gave a soft acknowledgment but didn’t withdraw his gaze.
“So should we…”
“Who sent them back last night?” Gu Jiufei suddenly asked.
“Huh?”
Anhe was startled but quickly answered, “I heard from the gatekeeper that it was the Jing family’s young master’s carriage.”
Jing Yubai?
Gu Jiufei pressed his thin lips together, gazing ahead without speaking. Just as Anhe hesitated on whether to say something else, the young man beside him finally withdrew his gaze and spoke, “Let’s go.” With that, he climbed into the carriage on his own, his expression calm and unreadable, as if lost in thought.
—
It wasn’t even morning proper, yet Pingshuo Hall was already bustling.
However, today’s commotion was different from the usual discussions about clothes and makeup. Even though no one dared to openly voice their complaints due to Gu Wuyou’s influence, private grumbling was inevitable.
“Didn’t we already agree to apologize to him? Why do we have to go to the gate together? That’s way too humiliating.”
“Exactly! I’m not going.”
Now that Xiao Yi had returned, some couldn’t resist seeking her help. “Ah Yi, you’re the most fair-minded. You say something.”
Xiao Yi had already heard about what had happened at the academy yesterday. As soon as class ended, Xu Wan had run to the royal manor, sobbing as she ranted about Gu Wuyou for nearly half an hour.
To be honest, she didn’t want to get involved in this matter.
First, there was no benefit to it. Second, this involved Gu Wuyou… After everything that had happened before, she really didn’t want to clash with Gu Wuyou at this moment.
Besides, with Gu Wuyou’s temperament, if things escalated, the only one who would end up embarrassed was herself.
But now, with everyone watching her, Xiao Yi, who had been playing the “good girl” role since childhood, hesitated for a moment before forcing herself to step forward. “County Princess Leping, the others do have a point. After all, we are young ladies. Going out to apologize to a man like this is truly a loss of dignity.”
“Why not… just forget about it?”
Gu Wuyou, who had been silent all this time, finally raised an eyebrow at these words. She glanced at Xiao Yi and asked meaningfully, “Does the esteemed County Princess Changning believe that apologizing is disgraceful, or is it speaking falsehoods that truly diminishes one’s status?”
Xiao Yi’s heart skipped a beat.
She had the strange feeling that Gu Wuyou’s words carried a hidden meaning. Did she actually know something?
However, Gu Wuyou did not pursue the matter. Instead, she stood up and addressed everyone in the room. “You are all from prestigious families. Since childhood, your elders have surely taught you that one should not speak recklessly.”
“Making mistakes is not frightening.”
“What’s frightening is knowing you were wrong and choosing to run from it rather than correcting it.”
She rarely spoke so earnestly. The former Gu Wuyou wouldn’t have said such things, and the later Gu Wuyou wouldn’t have bothered. But now, for the sake of her young general, she wanted to speak calmly and make them understand.
She wanted them to willingly apologize to her young general.
The young ladies in the room were stunned into silence, their faces flushing with embarrassment. Sensing the moment, Gu Yu added, “Enough, what’s so humiliating about apologizing? Admitting one’s mistakes and correcting them is the right thing to do.”
“If you think it’s shameful, then I’ll apologize to Li Qilang first.”
“Just because we’re women doesn’t mean we’re lesser than anyone. Let’s show them that even as daughters, we have pride and dignity.”
One played the stern role, the other the gentle one.
The initial reluctance in the room gradually faded. After a while, one of the girls from a military family spoke up first. “Gu Yu is right. Just because we’re women doesn’t mean we lack pride and dignity!”
“Let’s show them the pride of Pingshuo Hall!”
Once the first person spoke, more quickly followed. Soon, voices echoed in agreement throughout the room.
Only Xu Wan remained clinging to Xiao Yi’s sleeve, her face pale as she whispered, “Ah Yi…”
But at this moment, Xiao Yi’s mind was entirely preoccupied with Gu Wuyou’s ambiguous remark from earlier. She had no patience to pay attention to Xu Wan.
—
It was almost time.
This time, without needing Gu Wuyou to say anything, the girls all headed straight outside on their own.
Instead, it was Gu Wuyou who lingered at the back. Seeing that Gu Yu was about to move forward, she reached out to pull her back and asked, “Did you tell them?”
Seeing how nervous she was, Gu Yu couldn’t help but roll her eyes. “Yes, yes, Jing Yubai and the others all know.”
“Oh…”
Gu Wuyou nodded. “And him… he still doesn’t know, right?”
“How would I know?” Gu Yu glared at her in irritation. Seeing her still looking so worried, she got even more frustrated. This girl could be fearless against anyone, yet when it came to Li Qinyuan, it was like she’d lost her soul.
She almost wanted to ask what kind of spell Li Qinyuan had cast on her!
“Aren’t you leaving?”
“Let’s go.” Gu Wuyou sighed. There was no point in worrying about it anymore.
—
By the time they arrived, the Buzhi Hall and Pingshuo Hall students were already gathered. The two groups stood apart, neither acknowledging the other. Gu Yu walked straight to the front.
But Gu Wuyou didn’t move forward. She stood at the back, her gaze fixed on the gate.
Not far away, Jing Yubai and the others also noticed her figure. Qi Xu muttered, “The little chili pepper is here too.”
Fu Xian turned to glance at her before turning back, clicking his tongue. “So what if she is?” Though his words were still stiff, his tone was much more relaxed than before.
“Where’s Qilang? He’s not going to bail on this, is he?”
Jing Yubai smiled. “He won’t.” As soon as he spoke, his eyes lit up slightly. “Look, he’s here.”
—
Li Qinyuan entered, holding a small oil-paper-wrapped parcel in his hand. Seeing the scene before him, even he couldn’t help but pause, his steps momentarily halting. Instinctively, he moved his hand behind his back, hiding the parcel completely.
“He’s here.”
Voices rose on both sides.
Although they had all spoken confidently earlier, now that it was time to act, hesitation still lingered—until Gu Yu stepped forward first.
“Bow!”
The moment her voice fell—
She led by example, offering a formal bow.
Seeing her actions, the rest gradually put aside their hesitation, took a deep breath, and bowed deeply in Li Qinyuan’s direction.
Under the bright morning sun, in this vast world, two entire halls of students collectively bowed toward Li Qinyuan.
Then, Gu Yu stepped forward, coughed lightly, and spoke, “Li Qinyuan, I shouldn’t have spoken recklessly without knowing the truth. I apologize.”
“You’re a good person. I misunderstood you before.”
Since she had taken the lead, the others followed suit. One by one, they stepped forward, facing Li Qinyuan, and sincerely apologized.
Li Qinyuan stood frozen in place.
He had already guessed what this was about. He instinctively looked around, searching for someone, but with so many people in front of him, it took a while before he finally saw her.
Standing at the very back.
Gu Wuyou.
Sure enough… it was this girl.
He didn’t say anything.
He just looked at her.
As if sensing his gaze, Gu Wuyou took a deep breath and then stepped toward Li Qinyuan. The surrounding students had yet to disperse, but she kept her eyes fixed on her young general, walking toward him one step at a time.
“You’re here to apologize to me too?” Li Qinyuan looked at her and raised an eyebrow.
His expression remained as calm as ever, just like before, yet the hand hidden behind his back tightened ever so slightly.
The girl who used to blush whenever she saw him didn’t turn red this time. Instead, she looked at him with utmost seriousness and said softly, “No.”
Of course, he knew it wasn’t.
Yet he still teased, “If not, then what are you doing standing in front of me?”
“Li Qinyuan.” She called his name, solemn and earnest.
“Hmm?” Li Qinyuan was momentarily stunned.
“I wanted to tell you—” Gu Wuyou’s face bloomed into a radiant smile, but her apricot eyes never wavered from him. “You are great. You deserve an apology from everyone, sincerely and wholeheartedly. You deserve to be treated well by the world.”
At the very beginning—
She had told him that even if no one else in the world believed in him, it didn’t matter. She would always stand by his side.
But now—
She wanted to tell him, No, you are good. You deserve for everyone to treat you well.
Her great general, her young warrior, deserved nothing but the best in this world.
And this—this was the way she would welcome him home.