Clouds and Moon Shadow

Chapter 388 How far can jealousy change a person?

“Father is wise. Even without the Gu Family Army, the Gu family will still be soldiers of the Great Chu,” Gu Changling said helplessly.

“Yes, it’s alright. Even without the Gu family army, we still have the strength to protect ourselves. Your great-grandfather said that this strength can only be held by the descendants who become generals in each generation. This is an ancestral precept. When you come back, I will hand over the ink pendant to you.”

The old Duke added, word by word, "But you must remember that the ancestral precepts cannot be violated. This force is the last support and retreat of my Zhenguo Duke's Mansion. You must be cautious and keep it a secret."

As for what the two said next, Madam Liu didn't hear it at all. She only heard that the old Duke was preparing to hand over the most important thing in the Duke's mansion to Gu Changling, not the heir, her husband!

Such blatant favoritism!

From that time on, Liu was determined to make the second branch of the family disappear, and especially she could not bear to see the second branch of the family achieve anything in the army.

When the bad news about Gu Changling came back, she was happy for a whole month!

But who would have thought that even after Gu Changling died, the second wife was still the one the old Duke valued most, especially his soft, chubby little legitimate daughter, Gu Qingyue (who was then called Gu Feiyue).

Whenever the old Duke mentions her, he can't help but smile!

Every time she saw this scene, Liu felt a surge of resentment!

Does the second wife want to live happily ever after? She wants her son to join the army again and take the old Duke's inkstone pendant again?

She absolutely refused! She disagreed!

She even subtly suggested to Gu Changqing that he ask the old Duke for it, but Gu Changqing wasn't interested at all and told her not to overthink things and talk nonsense.

snort!

How could she just give up like that?

She also has three sons!

On the one hand, she urged her sons to practice martial arts every day so that they could join the army in the future. On the other hand, she was anxiously thinking about how to make the second wife suffer unbearably, and preferably make them all disappear.

Finally, an opportunity has arrived!

Because her grandmother was celebrating her birthday in Lizhou, Liu tricked Qin into bringing Gu Qingyue with her to Lizhou to offer her congratulations.

On the way back, they finally managed to sell that little girl!

Qin was unconscious for half a month as a result, while she enjoyed half a month of blissful pleasure...

Thinking of this, Gu Qingyue felt a chill run down her spine.

To what extent can jealousy completely change a person?

What could a three-year-old child possibly have done to hinder her life? What could possibly cause such a drastic change in a child's life, ultimately leading to a tragic death?!

Gu Qingyue closed her eyes.

Remembering what Lady Liu had said about the Prince of He'an's mansion, she frowned again.

It was thanks to Liu San that the connection was established with the Prince of An's mansion.

It is said that five years ago, Liu San met a steward from the Prince An's mansion. When the two were drinking together, he accidentally revealed that Liu Shi wanted to put Qin Shi to death.

Later, the manager got in touch with him.

However, since Liu San rarely appeared in people's sight, the steward contacted Granny Wang.

It was said that the Prince An's mansion had been entrusted by someone to torture Qin Shi, and that she should not die too quickly, but rather be tortured slowly.

But recently, the Prince An's mansion sent word, instructing Liu to find a way to kill Qin as soon as possible.

Thinking of this, Gu Qingyue clenched her fists.

Who exactly is that person? How could they have such a deep grudge against a woman confined to her home?

Since Madam Liu didn't know the reason either, they had to start by targeting the Prince An's residence!

However, there is one more thing we need to understand first.

"Grandfather, what is a ink pendant?" Gu Qingyue asked curiously.

In fact, Gu Yuanjin and his three brothers were also very curious. Upon hearing this, they all looked at the old Duke.

Liu took a risk for the sake of the ink pendant, causing such a terrible harm to the second branch of the family. She must know what that ink pendant is.

What exactly was the last resort and escape route that my grandfather mentioned?

Seeing the old Duke's tired expression and haggard face, Gu Qingyue felt a little sorry for him, but she still quietly looked at his face and waited.

You can hear a needle drop in the house.

After a cup of tea, Gu Qingyue thought the old Duke wouldn't speak again, but she heard his voice again.

"This story begins with our ancestors," the old Duke said softly, rubbing his temples.

"As you all know, my Zhenguo Duke's Mansion is a founding noble family. We established ourselves through military prowess. Back then, our ancestors followed Emperor Rong (the founding emperor of the Great Chu) on horseback to overthrow the tyranny of the Great Qin and together we built the Great Chu empire. We were as close as brothers with Emperor Rong," the old Duke paused.

“Even the closest brothers will be extremely cautious once the country is involved. Our ancestor was granted the title of Duke Zhenguo for his achievements, a title above the first rank, which is hereditary and will never be downgraded.”

(Generally, there are regulations on the number of years a title can be granted. For example, the title cannot be lowered within three or five generations. However, after three or five generations, the title will be lowered by one rank with each change of the title holder. For example, the title will be changed from a Duke's Mansion to a Marquis's Mansion, then from a Marquis's Mansion to an Earl's Mansion, and so on, until the title becomes an ordinary nobleman.)

This was unprecedented at the time; the other four dukedoms that were granted the same title were only awarded the first-class title.

But my ancestors made outstanding contributions, and no one else can say anything about it.

But who was our ancestor? He was incredibly intelligent!

Out of brotherly loyalty to Emperor Rong, he naturally wouldn't let the royal family be wary of him. Therefore, when his ancestor's son came to power, the country was pacified, and he took over a civil post and became a civil official.

However, he established a family rule that all descendants of the Gu family must learn martial arts from a young age, so that if the Great Chu were in trouble, they could don armor and go into battle at any time. This was also a promise made by their ancestor to Emperor Rong.

When the old Duke spoke of his ancestors, his eyes shone with admiration and appreciation.

Gu Qingyue and her brothers exchanged glances, and even Gu Changqing, who had been numb all along, brightened up.

"By my grandfather's generation, the atmosphere in the court was no longer as clean and honest as before. He served as a civil official for three years and was ostracized and suppressed for those three years."

"So, he joined the army?"

Gu Qingyue asked curiously.

"Indeed, mainly because at that time, foreign enemies were constantly harassing the borders, and most officials in the court advocated peace talks. Therefore, my grandfather disregarded the family's objections and resolutely resigned from his official post to join the army. He said he would drive the foreign enemies out of Great Chu, and he didn't want to listen to the cowardly words of those in the court seeking peace anymore. Great Chu needs the backbone of Great Chu!"

"My great-grandfather was truly a free-spirited and magnanimous man!" Gu Yuanming couldn't help but praise.

The old Duke's eyes were warm as he nodded. "My grandfather was the wisest man I've ever met. He was skilled in martial arts, capable of fighting on horseback, and also skilled in governing the country. He was a man of great righteousness, and fought countless battles throughout his life, almost never suffering a defeat!"

"Then what is the connection between him and Mo Pei?" Gu Yuanen asked, his blood boiling with excitement.

Upon hearing this, the old Duke looked at Gu Yuanen's curious and bright eyes and sighed.

"My grandfather fought on the border for more than 30 years. He helped many people in distress, including many talented people. In order to stick together and keep warm, they formed a Jianghu organization called Moge."

Among them were shrewd businessmen, skilled craftsmen, and many more down-on-their-luck martial arts practitioners. My grandfather provided them with a lot of help, enabling them to survive in the turbulent border region.

At this point, the old Duke looked at Gu Qingyue.