Chapter 2

Chapter 2: Slacking Off to the End

Right on cue, Gu Nan Xi finally decided it was time to “open for business.”

She lifted her eyelids and saw a tall youth in mourning hemp standing guard in front of a bright, pretty girl. He stared at Gu Nan Xi like she was a threat.

That had to be her eldest son, Su Xuan Ming.

Gu Nan Xi met the girl’s gaze. The girl didn’t retreat—she smiled faintly instead, fingers casually toying with the hemp rope at her waist, as if victory was already in her pocket.

Li Ning Jing. The female lead.

“Sister-in-law,” a man snapped, “Su Xuan Ming has gone too far! How can he bring a merchant girl into the mourning hall? Does he care at all about Marquis Manor’s reputation? You should deal with this immediately.”

The speaker had bronzed skin, darting eyes, and a face that screamed trouble. His words claimed concern for Marquis Manor, but the gleam in his gaze said he wanted the scandal to explode as loudly as possible.

If Gu Nan Xi were still the original marchioness, she would have already flown into a rage and tossed Jing Niang out by the collar.

So this was likely Marquis Yong Chang’s brother.

Gu Nan Xi had two sons and one daughter. The second was sickly. If the eldest was ruined, the title might well fall into the hands of the elder branch.

What a cursed household. From top to bottom, everyone was either villain cannon fodder… or a ghost hiding a knife behind a smile.

“Mother…”

Su Yun Yan hesitated, swallowing her words.

Gu Nan Xi’s eyes flicked to Su Yun Yan’s hair. A pure jade hairpin sat in her bun—fine carving, the sort of piece that could be worth a small fortune.

Su Yun Yan only received five taels a month. There was no way she’d bought that herself.

Someone had given it to her.

Gu Nan Xi looked at Jing Niang again. Jing Niang kept her head lowered, not the slightest bit disappointed that Su Yun Yan hadn’t spoken up to defend her.

“Cough… cough…” Su Yun Ting covered his mouth with a handkerchief, coughing until his chest seemed to split. “Mother, life is short. With my health, I’m afraid I can’t carry on Marquis Manor’s line. Why not let Brother have what he wants? Then you can hold your sweet grandson sooner.”

He was dressed in plain white, austere to the point of severity. Only a short sword hung at his waist—something that didn’t look like it belonged in this household.

From time to time, he stroked the hilt with a gentleness that betrayed how much he loved it.

Then the old madam of Marquis Manor appeared as if she’d been waiting for her cue. Her voice was calm, but every word had edges.

“Daughter-in-law, Xuan Ming was taken from you when he was young and raised at my knee. You’ve never liked him. But in a matter this important, you should show a mother’s mercy—have some pity for Xuan Ming.”

The old madam’s words were all jab and hook. Su Xuan Ming’s face darkened, his temper swelling like a powder keg.

At the most dangerous moment, Jing Niang tugged lightly on his sleeve.

Su Xuan Ming swallowed his anger. He pressed his lips together hard, eyes burning as he stared at Gu Nan Xi as if she were his mortal enemy.

Outside, guests who had been paying respects heard the commotion and drifted in, smelling entertainment like blood in the water.

In Gu Nan Xi’s mind, kind mother system clapped its hands. “Look at her! She gave your daughter jewelry and your second son a sword. Your mother-in-law already doesn’t get along with you—she’s isolating you. Show her who’s boss!”

Gu Nan Xi only gave the room a lazy sweep, then crooked a finger at Su Xuan Ming.

Su Xuan Ming glanced at Jing Niang. Her eyes shimmered with worry, and that worry ignited him like oil on flame.

He walked up as if marching toward execution.

He was tall—nearly a head and shoulders above the crowd.

Gu Nan Xi sat on her stool and had to tilt her chin up to see him properly. Her neck twinged.

With a small gesture, she signaled him to crouch.

He hesitated, then dropped into a squat in front of her.

“I don’t agree,” Gu Nan Xi said flatly.

Su Xuan Ming’s anger flared. He looked ready to leap up and argue, while kind mother system whooped in her mind, practically chanting, Fight! Fight!

Gu Nan Xi continued, as calm as if they were discussing the weather. “That sword on your second brother’s waist. That jade hairpin on your little sister’s head. Jing Niang gave them, didn’t she?”

Su Xuan Ming’s expression flickered. He hated gift-giving—always had. But the gifts were from Jing Niang, and the reason was their marriage. He’d pretended not to notice.

Now his mother tore it open with a single sentence. His momentum collapsed.

“Ah… yes,” he muttered, shoulders drooping. “It’s… it’s true.”

A mastiff poised to pounce turned into a drenched puppy in the space of a breath.

Gu Nan Xi almost laughed. “You, honestly.”

“Madam,” Jing Niang said quickly, voice trembling just right, “it’s my fault. Don’t blame Su-lang—he only agreed because I begged him. The Old Marquis has passed, and Su-lang hasn’t eaten or slept… I only wanted to accompany him and see the Old Marquis off.”

She dropped to her knees with a solid thump.

The women in the room were all seasoned household matriarchs. What courtyard didn’t have a few “green tea” types? They could smell the act from across the room.

“The Marchioness of Marquis Yong Chang is truly unlucky,” someone said, not quite whispering. “Her husband’s household has a ‘green tea,’ and now her son wants to marry one too. Just thinking about it makes my chest tighten for her.”

“Good thing Jing Niang latched onto Su Xuan Ming,” another madam said with a snort. “If she latched onto my son, I’d bring out the family discipline and break the brat’s legs.”

Their voices were perfectly pitched—loud enough for everyone to hear, but still dressed up as “polite conversation.”

Jing Niang didn’t react at all. She’d managed shops for years; she’d heard worse than this before breakfast. Besides, the harder they mocked her, the more Su-lang would pity her.

Sure enough, Su Xuan Ming’s gaze softened with guilt as he looked at her.

He dropped to his knees beside her. “Mother, it’s my fault. Jing Niang has nothing to do with it. If you want to scold, scold me. If you want to hit, hit me. I accept it.”

Gu Nan Xi rested her elbow on the armrest like she was tired to the bone. “You are at fault.”

Su Yun Yan watched, uneasy. Her mother had always been composed, careful with every word and gesture. Why did she seem so… unbothered?

Had she been driven beyond endurance by the brothers?

Gu Nan Xi lifted a cup of tea, took a slow sip, and then set it down under the weight of countless staring eyes.

“You know how to please her,” she said. “Why don’t you know how to please me?”

Su Xuan Ming froze, genuinely baffled.

Gu Nan Xi tilted her head, studied him, and then—like she’d suddenly realized something—clicked her tongue.

“Don’t tell me you don’t even know what your mother likes?”

Su Xuan Ming couldn’t tell if she was mocking him or speaking plainly.

Even Jing Niang’s pitiful mask tightened. Her whole body went taut, braced for the blow.

Gu Nan Xi beckoned Su Xuan Ming close. When he leaned in, she spoke softly into his ear, as if sharing a secret worth more than gold itself.

“I’ll tell you this once,” she murmured. “In my life, I’ve only ever been loyal to one thing. Gold.”

“What?” Su Xuan Ming blurted, as if his ears had betrayed him.

Gu Nan Xi’s eyes flashed. “Why are you so shocked? The son I raised—if I sold you by weight, you’d be worth a hundred gold at least. She’s a merchant girl. Does she not know the price, that she thinks she can take my good son for free?”

The entire mourning hall went dead silent.