Forced to be a concubine? I turned around and married the scumbag's father.

Wang Heng naturally didn't want to offend Mu Junyan.

He clasped his hands in a fist salute to Gu Yuan and said, “Brother-in-law, Gu Hua is truly pitiful, but since things have come to this point, in order to avoid criticism of both families, it is not convenient to publicize this matter. How about we follow the method I just mentioned, register Gu Hua under the name of the legal mother as the legitimate daughter, and record her in the Gu family genealogy? Is that alright?”

Gu Yuan thought so too, and quickly nodded: "Excellent, excellent, Uncle's idea is good."

Gu Hua laughed in exasperation.

"Does my uncle and father mean that Gu Wanru will continue to be the eldest daughter of the Gu family?"

Gu Yuan glared at her, then gently advised, "Hua'er, you are also a daughter of the Gu family. If this gets out, your mother's reputation will be ruined, and it will also ruin the reputations of the Gu family's unmarried sisters and two brothers. Is this the result you want to see?"

Gu Hua felt a sharp pain in her heart and couldn't speak for a long time.

Yes, she didn't dare to expose the matter easily before she had evidence.

It was because she cared about her mother.

As the mother chosen by the Langya Wang clan to marry the Marquis of Wenchang as his principal wife to consolidate the rise and fall of the family, she carried the honor of both the Gu and Wang families on her shoulders.

Even if Lady Pei dies, it cannot erase Lady Wang's incompetence and the Marquis of Wenchang's behavior of favoring his concubine over his wife.

Gu Wanru hurriedly said, "It has nothing to do with me. I was young and was deceived by Pei. She said that Gu Hua, as a concubine's daughter, should pave the way for the legitimate daughter."

Gu Hua looked at Gu Wanru with cold eyes: "Paving the road or disregarding human life? Sister, there's a murder case involved here."

Gu Wanru shuddered, crawled over on her knees, and kowtowed repeatedly to Gu Hua, crying, "I'm sorry, I'm sorry, I really didn't know. But, sister, regardless of whether I am the legitimate daughter or not, I have been commended by the Empress. If I suddenly become a concubine's daughter, and those poems were all written by you, we would be guilty of deceiving the Emperor!"

These words struck a nerve with Gu Yuan and Wang Heng.

The charges are getting bigger and bigger, and the danger is getting bigger and bigger!

Gu Wanru grabbed Gu Hua's ankle: "Sister, I am the young mistress of the Duke's mansion. I wanted to protect you. I helped you because I thought you liked your husband. I wanted to find you a good family. I did nothing wrong."

Gu Hua raised her foot and kicked her away, breaking free from Mu Junyan's hand, and suddenly stepped forward.

Her eyes were bloodshot: "You drove me to the brink, drugged my son-in-law and forced him to rape me, and this is what you call protection? You want me to secure your favor, yet you hate that the young master has taken a liking to my beauty. You scalded my hands with a teapot and pricked my nails with needles—you gave the orders yourself. Gu Wanru, don't you dream of Jin Kui when you sleep? Isn't she coming to take your life?!"

When Jin Kui was mentioned, Gu Wanru was terrified.

"Jin Kui, Jin Kui, I'm so sorry for her. I caused her to be killed by bandits. I sent her family one hundred taels of silver."

Gu Hua sneered: "Who else is in her family? And who did you give it to? Pei Shi controlled Jin Kui's monthly allowance, using her seriously ill mother to blackmail her into becoming your accomplice. Her mother was almost killed by Pei Shi, and her younger brother almost starved to death as well."

Wang was stunned and forgot to cry.

How could her daughter, whom she had raised with such care, do such a thing?

Gu Yuan, his face turning ashen with anxiety, grabbed Wang Shi and said, "Say something! If you keep making a scene like this, I might as well divorce you. Look at the mess you've made! You're utterly useless!"

Wang was taken aback: "You want to divorce me? What did I do wrong? Did I violate one of the seven grounds for divorce?"

Seeing that she still dared to talk back, Gu Yuan's face darkened: "You raised Gu Wanru, didn't you? How can you have the face to be the mistress of the Gu family after raising such a vicious daughter? You can't even control a concubine like Pei Shi, do you think you are worthy of being the mistress of the house?"

If Lady Wang is divorced, the Langya Wang clan will lose all face.

Wang Heng was displeased and stopped calling her brother-in-law: "My lord, you're wrong to say that. If you hadn't favored Pei Shi and had entrusted the management of the household to a concubine, would this have happened? Is the unrest in the household solely my sister's fault? Don't you, as the head of the family, bear any responsibility?"

"What qualifications does she have to manage the household?" Madam Pei suddenly burst into laughter.

Provoked by Gu Wanru's words, Pei Shi disregarded everything else.

As if she had gone mad, she struggled to break free from the old woman's grasp, pointed at Wang Shi, and cursed, "I've been supporting the entire Gu family, and you can't even come up with Ru'er's dowry. What kind of damn mistress are you!"

Wang was so angry that she trembled all over.

She adjusted the pearl hairpin in her hair: "The mistress of the house is dressed worse than a concubine like me, what are you pretending to be! How much silver did the Marquis use from the Pei family to get an official position? Without me, the Wenchang Marquis's mansion would have fallen into ruin long ago."

Gu Yuan already knew whose side he was going to take.

Regardless of who gains power, she is still his daughter.

The only difference is that the young mistress of the Duke's mansion was replaced by the Duke's concubine.

Besides, Gu Hua is the only woman by the Duke's side.

Judging from the way he's protecting her now, he must really care about her.

As for Gu Wanru, once a daughter is married, she's no longer like water spilled from a cup.

Judging from this situation, she is very likely to be divorced.

That would be a useless piece.

It's worthless now.

Now, the only right thing to do is to let Gu Hua vent her anger and cover up the family scandal.

Gu Yuan's expression changed instantly. He glared at Pei Shi with a cold look in his eyes, then kicked her hard in the stomach, sending her flying.

She angrily cursed, "You wicked woman! How could you do such a heinous thing, corrupting Ru'er, ruining Hua'er, and dragging my son Jinwen down with you? Disrespecting your wife and committing such a rebellious act, I will divorce you and send you to the inner prison to set an example for the family!"

Madam Pei couldn't believe it; the man who had been coaxing and begging her all day had changed his attitude in the blink of an eye.

She endured the pain and got up, tears streaming down her face. With one hand covering her stomach where she had been kicked, she pointed at Gu Yuan and cursed back.

"You blame me? If it weren't for your tacit approval, Lord Marquis, would I dare to disrespect the principal wife? Would I dare to manage the household? You spend my money and trample on my dignity, what right do you have? I should be the principal wife! The dignified Pei family of Jiangling is not to be bullied!"

Gu Yuan's face paled, and he shouted sternly, "You audacious criminal! You are guilty but do not know how to admit your guilt. You are truly despicable! Guards, tie her up and take her back to the Marquis's residence!"

"Wait!"

Gu Hua stepped forward.

"This isn't over yet; you can't take the person with you!"

She knew very well that her father wouldn't really harm her if he took her back.

After all, the Gu family needed Pei's financial support.

She can't possibly let the Pei family turn things around!

Gu Yuan suppressed his anger: "Hua'er, this is our family matter. How about we go back to the Gu family to severely punish this wicked woman? Don't worry, tomorrow I will ask the clan elders to record your name in the family genealogy and under your stepmother's name. From now on, you will have the title of legitimate daughter."

Gu Hua smiled, tears streaming down her face.

She really didn't know what to say.

She was just too naive before.

How could a father who could turn his home into this state possibly be fair to her?

In his father's eyes, the only balance was saving face.

Grant her the status of a legitimate daughter?

She was just an illegitimate daughter registered under her stepmother's name!

Does she care about the status of a legitimate daughter?

All she wanted was fairness!

Seeing this, Wang Heng also said to Mu Junyan, "Lord Duke, although you are a first-rank Duke, you are now considered the son-in-law of the Gu family. Hua'er's marriage was bestowed by the Emperor. If the wedding day is chaotic, it will damage Hua'er's reputation."

Before Mu Junyan could speak, Gu Hua shouted, "I'm not afraid!"

She's already died, what does she have to be afraid of?

Wang Heng said sternly, "Gu Hua, you are already a legitimate daughter. Don't you care about your reputation? You will be walking among the women of prominent families in the future. If people know that you forced your own sister and aunt to their deaths, what will they think of you?"

Zhou Zhilan and the others were furious; they had never seen such an unreasonable person.

Gu Hua lowered her eyes.

At this moment, my heart aches more than if Mu An had held me underwater and drowned me.

Raising his eyes again, his crimson gaze was filled with icy coldness as he said, word by word, "The Pei family poisoned the stepmother and has at least six lives on their hands. They deserve to die!"

Upon hearing this, the entire room fell silent.

Mu Junyan looked at the girl's straight back with admiration.

Gu Hua is no longer a kitten stretching out its claws; she has transformed into a tiger cub.

Even with a disparity in strength, she was not afraid to extend her claws.

Both Gu Yuan and Wang Heng could tell that Gu Hua was not going to give up easily.

However, the death of the Pei family is a minor matter; the reputation and face of both families are of paramount importance.