Chapter 10: The Tigress

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Ji Sisi did not even need to lift a finger. A slight display of her strength was enough to frighten Ji Manrou and Ji Weilin into submission.

Meanwhile, Gu Yu’s comrades had also done their part, using their own methods to sober Dong Pengfei up.

No matter how many complicated thoughts were churning inside him, even the dullest man would know that he could do nothing in such a situation. He obediently cooperated and was escorted out together with Ji Manrou.

The relatives from the Ji family were left badly shaken. It seemed this was the first time they had realized that the eldest daughter of the Ji family was not someone to be trifled with.

As for the Gu family’s relatives, many of the women looked straight at Gu Yu’s mother as if to say:

Good heavens, your son has married himself a tigress. Life will not be easy for you as her mother-in-law.

This was also why, despite being the most outstanding young man in the entire residential compound, Gu Yu’s path to marriage had not been smooth.

The Gu family had an especially large number of sisters-in-law, aunts, and younger sisters. Three women could put on quite a show, and with so many of them together, they were more than capable of turning a perfectly respectable household into a complete mess.

Besides, Gu Yu’s mother had been widowed in middle age and had raised two sons and a daughter on her own. The fact that life was comfortable for the Gu family as a whole did not mean that things were equally easy for their branch.

For example, the thousand yuan that had to be provided for a wedding had come from Gu Yu’s earnings over the past few years. His grandmother and uncles had not contributed a single cent.

In fact, because such a large sum was being spent on his marriage, his grandmother, uncles, and aunts were all deeply dissatisfied with him.

The Gu family had never divided their property, so in their eyes, Gu Yu’s money should rightfully have belonged to them as well.

Unfortunately for them, Gu Yu’s special status and position, combined with his forceful temperament, meant that the elders could not oppose any decision he made.

Consequently, they had already begun taking out their resentment on Ji Sisi before she had even married into the family.

Of course, these people were no fools. They would not let their emotions show openly. At the very least, they understood that causing trouble on such an auspicious occasion would only bring shame upon the Gu family.

Thus, once Dong Pengfei and Ji Manrou had been dealt with, there was no further trouble, and the wedding proceeded smoothly.

After the banquet ended, the guests gradually dispersed. The Gu family and the women who had come to help naturally stayed behind to clean up.

Ji Sisi had originally planned to lend a hand, but she was driven into the bridal chamber instead.

They were all familiar neighbors from the same residential compound, so the older women teased her without the slightest restraint.

“An hour of spring nights is worth a thousand pieces of gold. Sisi doesn’t need to worry about any of this today.”

Since the guests had been served at a running banquet, with many tables set up outside the courtyard, the Gu family had borrowed a great number of tables and chairs.

Ji Sisi was not the only one exempted from the work. Gu Yu was likewise chased into the bridal chamber. On such an important day, naturally neither newlywed was expected to lift a finger.

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Sitting on the bridal bed, Ji Sisi was somewhat dazed. In the novel, it had been written that Gu Yu would suddenly die on their wedding night.

It had been mentioned in passing, and she had no idea what had actually happened.

Now that the wedding had been brought forward, would Gu Yu still…

More importantly, why would a perfectly healthy person suddenly die?

She had already been here for several days, and she had met Gu Yu more than once. Every time she saw him, he looked strong and vigorous.

The door opened, and Gu Yu walked in from outside. The dim candlelight still outlined his handsome features.

They were not yet familiar with each other, so consummating the marriage could be set aside for the moment. Although Ji Sisi possessed a system and believed she could live well on her own, having a husband was not necessarily a bad thing.

In the current circumstances, bearing the title of a widow would make many things inconvenient whenever she needed to go out.

Besides, up to now, Ji Sisi considered Gu Yu an upright and exemplary young man. If something truly happened to him, she could not bear to watch him die right before her eyes.

“Sisi, you must be tired after such a long day. I heated some water. Go wash up,” Gu Yu said with a smile.

Since the two of them had become husband and wife and were destined to become the most intimate people in each other’s lives, it was only natural to begin with their names.

“Sisi,” Gu Yu murmured, feeling that her name sounded especially lovely.

“That can wait. Gu Yu, I think we should have a proper talk.” Ji Sisi patted the space beside her and gestured for him to sit down. “Let’s begin by getting to know each other better.”

The two of them had married in a muddled rush, and during those three days, both had been busy with their own affairs. They had not had any time at all to sit down and speak frankly.

“Hm?”

Gu Yu was puzzled. On their wedding night, when everything was going well, she wanted to sit and discuss their feelings?

Ji Sisi began by speaking honestly. “You should have seen the true state of my family over the past two days. My younger brother is obviously the most favored, and my parents believe that, as his elder sister, I should give way to him and his wife in everything.”

In short, her father did not love her and her mother did not cherish her. Ji Sisi was telling Gu Yu:

By marrying me, you should not expect any help from my family.

There were advantages as well. Ji Sisi had essentially broken off relations with them, so she would not be dragged down if they got themselves into trouble.

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Gu Yu understood her immediately and did not beat around the bush. He frankly explained his own family’s circumstances.

The Gu family owed their current glory to the many exploits their old patriarch had achieved through years of risking his life. Unfortunately, after his death, none of his three sons had amounted to much.

They had barely managed to inherit the family’s legacy and preserve the outward appearance of their father’s prestige. The eldest son had died young, and in recent years, Madam Gu had lived with her second son’s family, upon whom she relied heavily.

For years, Gu Yu’s mother had supported her three children through the property left behind by the old patriarch, as well as assistance from the families of her second and third brothers-in-law. As a result, she held very little authority within the Gu family.

If Gu Yu himself had not been so capable—enlisting in the army after the age of eighteen, earning military honors and promotions, and eventually taking up a special occupation that gave him at least a modest degree of power—the three widows and orphans in their household would likely have been bullied to death within the sprawling Gu family.

This time was a perfect example. Because Gu Yu had insisted on paying such a substantial bride-price, Madam Gu had been furious.

She had not even shown up for her eldest grandson’s wedding, deliberately humiliating them.

Ji Sisi stared at him in utter disbelief. Without thinking, she blurted out, “Is your grandmother out of her mind?”

As things stood, Gu Yu was the most promising member of the entire third generation of the Gu family. What possible benefit could there be in offending him so thoroughly?

The moment the words left her mouth, Ji Sisi realized that saying such a thing in front of Gu Yu was somewhat inappropriate.

Her eyes immediately filled with apology.

Gu Yu merely smiled faintly. He did not think there was anything wrong with his wife having a stronger temper.

His own mother, after all, had suffered countless grievances throughout her life simply because she was kind-hearted and weak by nature.

“When my parents married, my grandmother opposed the match with all her strength. Later, when my father died young, she decided that it was all my mother’s fault.”

Ji Sisi understood at once. She suddenly gained some insight into why, in the novel, Gu Yu’s wife had been tormented so badly by the Gu family after his sudden death on their wedding night.

It was precisely because he had grown up seeing his mother shed tears in solitude that Gu Yu had become interested in Ji Sisi when she had suddenly lashed out at her own family.

His large hand stroked her cheek, and he said simply, “You are good just the way you are.”

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