Chapter Seventy-Four: Chaos

  A familiar figure suddenly appeared before his eyes.

  Ye Qinglan was startled, how did she also follow?

  Ye Qingning also followed her gaze and was taken aback: "How did Xiuyu's sister come too?" The beautiful girl with her head down, following behind Madame Zheng, wasn't Gu Xiuyu, who else could it be?

  Gu Xiuyu was naturally timid and had always been afraid of crowded places. How did she agree to attend the flower appreciation banquet this time?

  Ye Qinglan's sharp eyes caught sight of Gu Xiyu's body trembling slightly, and a surge of inexpressible anger rose up inside her. She knew that Gu Xiyu hadn't come out voluntarily, but must have been forced by Madame Zheng.

  Mrs. Zheng may also have her own considerations, but she doesn't know that the more she forces Gu Xiuyu to get close to people, the stronger Gu Xiuyu's rejection of people will become. Autism will not only fail to alleviate, but will instead worsen.

  Mrs. Zheng also seemed to have noticed Gu Xiuyu's abnormality, but she steeled herself and ignored it. It was because she had been too indulgent with her in the past that she allowed her to become more and more reclusive. As she grew older day by day, she had already reached the age of marriage, yet she still feared crowded places, how could this be?

  Xu Shi hurriedly smiled and went forward, exchanged a few pleasantries, and his eyes naturally fell on Gu Xiuyu's body.

  This beautiful and introverted girl, as soon as she entered, became the focus of everyone's attention. These curious gazes had kind inquiries, but also malicious speculations. Who didn't know that Miss Gu of Dingguo Gongfu never appeared in this kind of social gathering, and today suddenly showed up, causing a stir that was not small at all.

  Gu Xiuyu lowered her head, but she could still feel the numerous gazes falling on her body. Her pretty face was as pale as paper, and her mind was a complete blank. Her body trembled uncontrollably.

  She felt extremely uncomfortable, as if she was suffocating and couldn't catch her breath...

  It was unclear who it was, but someone accidentally bumped into her. This touch snapped the last string in her mind. She let out a sharp scream reflexively.

  That shrill cry was so sharp and high-pitched that everyone in the hall was startled.

  The girl who accidentally bumped into Gu Xiuyu was Zheng Min. She had not expected that her unintentional action would provoke such a fierce reaction from the other party, and her face suddenly turned bright red. Tears rolled in her eyes as she apologized incoherently: "I-I'm sorry, I didn't mean to..."

  Gu Xi Yu hid behind Madame Zheng and began to cry softly.

  Mrs. Xu didn't expect things to turn out this way either, and said with some embarrassment: "Meizi was just careless for a moment, I'm really sorry."

  At this moment, the most unbearable person is Mrs. Zheng. She has always been elegant and calm in her demeanor. But at this time, she was also a bit flustered and panicked, and for a moment, she didn't care about Mrs. Xu's reaction, turned around and hugged Gu Xiuyuan in her arms. Whispering non-stop: "Yu'er don't be afraid, mother is here, Yu'er don't be afraid..."

  At this time, she regretted until her intestines turned green.

  If she had known that Gu Xiuyu would react so fiercely, she would not have forced Gu Xiuyu to come to the British Embassy no matter what. Now it's too late. In front of so many noblewomen in Beijing, Gu Xiuyu has made such a big scene, and her reputation is completely ruined. Who will dare to propose marriage in the future?

  Zheng's face showed concern as she stepped forward to comfort her, but in her heart, a hint of imperceptible joy flashed by. This commotion was truly wonderful, Madam Xu had witnessed Gu Xiuyu's loss of composure with her own eyes, how could she still consider going to the Dingguo Duke's residence to propose marriage? Zheng Junyan, this son-in-law who had risen to prominence overnight, was destined to be his daughter Ye Qingning's, no one else could take him away...

  Gu Xiuyu shrank into Zheng's wife's arms and sobbed, refusing to lift her head again.

  Mrs. Zheng was anxious, vexed and regretful. Her mind was in a mess. She, who had always been calm and rational, lost her composure and glared at Zheng Min: "What did you touch Yu'er for?"

  As the youngest daughter, Zheng Min was already nervous about attending such a crowded and lively gathering for the first time. She accidentally made a mistake, and her tears were on the verge of falling. Mrs. Zheng's stern gaze swept over her, and her tears fell immediately.

  Mrs. Xü suppressed the discontent in her heart and scolded Zheng Min in a low voice. Zheng Min couldn't say anything, she just kept her head down and cried.

  Mr. Xu was the most embarrassed, and for a moment he didn't know who to comfort first. The two girls were both crying, their voices not loud but already attracting everyone's attention. This flower appreciation banquet hadn't even started yet, and already things were going wrong one after another.

  "Xī yù biǎo jiě," a gentle and soft voice called out.

  Everyone looked back unintentionally. Ye Qinglan, who had been silent all along, somehow quietly walked to Gu Xiuyu's side, her voice unusually calm and steady: "It's too noisy here, I'll accompany you out for some fresh air."

  A familiar voice came through the din of noise and entered my ears.

  Gu Xiyu's crying paused for a moment.

  Ye Qinglan said in a low and rapid voice: "Xi Yu sister, can you look up at me? I am Ye Qinglan, you must still remember me, right?"

  Ye Qinglan...

  Gu Xi Yu lifted her misty tearful eyes, with two streaks of tears exceptionally clear on her face. Her timid and fearful gaze evoked sympathy from others.

  Ye Qinglan didn't get too close to her, but instead looked at her with gentle and encouraging eyes: "Let's go out for a walk and come back later."

  In those warm and peaceful eyes, a mysterious light flickered, causing people to unconsciously calm down as well. Unbeknownst to her, Gu Xiuyu's crying had stopped.

  Mrs. Zheng saw that Gu Xiuyu had stopped crying and was overjoyed, so she softly chimed in, "Yu'er, I'll keep you company too."

  Gu Xiuyu finally nodded and walked out with the accompaniment of Zheng Furen and Ye Qinglan.

  As soon as Gu Xiuyu left, Zheng Min, who was still crying, became particularly annoying. Zhang Yue hurriedly smiled and walked over, softly coaxing: "Min, don't cry, why don't you go to the next room for a bit and come back later?" As she spoke, she pulled Zheng Min away.

  The storm has finally subsided.

  Xu's family let out a deep breath, and hurriedly put on a smile to continue greeting the ladies from various mansions. Everyone was very understanding, no one mentioned the commotion that had just occurred, and they started chatting and laughing casually. The hall immediately returned to its previous bustle.

  Madam Zheng and Madam Xu sat down together, with Madam Xu's expression as usual, but Madam Zheng knew that her current mood wouldn't be good. Just now, Madam Zheng had scolded Zheng Min in a moment of urgency, which was an extremely impolite move. Although Zheng Min was just an insignificant concubine-born daughter, Madam Zheng's actions still made Madam Xu lose face.

  "Sister is also heartbroken and pitied, just now she was anxious and only said one sentence to Sister Min. Zheng Shi comforted: "You must not take it to heart."

  Mrs. Xu smiled as if nothing was wrong: "Don't worry, these trivial matters, I haven't even put them in my heart."

  Zheng's heart secretly smiled. The more calm Xu's wife appeared, the more it proved that she was really annoyed in her heart. Let her be annoyed, she couldn't wait for Xu's wife to get even angrier...

  Mrs. Xü, however, was unwilling to continue the conversation and smiled at Ye Qingning: "Sister Ning, how have you been lately?"

  Yè Qīngníng tugged at the corner of her mouth: "Thank you, Aunt, for your concern. I've been doing quite well lately."

  Zheng's family disliked her attitude, which was not enthusiastic enough, and she subtly gave her a look. Ye Qingning was unwilling in her heart, but she could only squeeze out a sweet smile: "Right, Auntie, I learned a new piano piece the other day, and when the flower appreciation banquet starts later, I'll play it for you to listen to, okay?"

  Mrs. Xu nodded with a smile, and quickly made a decision in her heart.

  Compared with Gu Xiuyu who often cries and can't be seen by outsiders, Ye Qingning is more suitable to be the daughter-in-law of Zheng Guogong's mansion.

  Thinking of Gu Xiuyu, Mrs. Xu couldn't help but think of Ye Qinglan and asked tentatively: "When did Lan sister become so close to Xiuyu?" At a time when everyone was at a loss for what to do, Ye Qinglan's few words managed to coax Gu Xiuyu into stopping her crying and going out quietly, which wasn't something just anyone could accomplish.

  Zheng said lightly: "Maybe they just hit it off! After all, they've only met twice." She calmly changed the subject again.

  Mrs. Xue saw that she didn't want to say more, and didn't ask further questions, very cooperatively changing the subject. The small unexpected event just now seemed to have no effect at all. Only Zheng Shi and Mrs. Xue understood each other's hearts, some things would soon need to be taken care of...

  At this time, Gu Xiuyu, accompanied by Ye Qinglan and Zheng's wife, walked out of the crowded main hall. Her face was still wet with tears, her expression dazed, her head spinning, and she had no idea where to go, stopping her feet in distress. Like a wounded little deer, pitiful and helpless.

  Madam Zheng saw her like this and couldn't help but feel extremely sad, tears suddenly welling up in her eyes.

  Such a dignified and elegant middle-aged noblewoman, who usually attaches great importance to etiquette and demeanor, would never lose her composure in front of others. Now she actually shed tears in front of Ye Qinglan, an outsider...

  Ye Qinglan also felt a little sour in her heart, and the slight resentment she had towards Zheng Furen suddenly disappeared.

  As a loving mother of her daughter, Mrs. Zheng's move was absolutely well-intentioned. However, Gu Xiyu is not like ordinary girls, and such coercive methods will only have the opposite effect.

  Gu Xi Yu stared blankly at her tearfully crying mother, feeling increasingly distressed, with tears streaming down from the corners of her eyes. Yet, her expression was still that of being bewildered and at a loss. It was as if she had committed a grave mistake but didn't know how to make amends.

  The maidservants, including Mo Xiang and Fei Cui, were all flustered and hurried over to comfort her.

  Ye Qinglan's identity was somewhat awkward, and anything she did seemed inappropriate at this time. However, Ye Qinglan had a natural talent for turning embarrassment into normalcy, so she took a step forward and advised, "Auntie, it's not convenient to talk here, let's find a quiet place to wait for a while! It's not too late to come back after Xiuyu's emotions have calmed down."

  The sweet and gentle voice of a young girl seemed to have a magical power that could calm people down quickly.

  Mrs. Zheng lowered her head, wiped away tears with a handkerchief, and then lifted her head again, her expression much calmer. After a brief glance around, she led Gu Xiyu to a nearby pavilion.

  The pavilion is surrounded by trees and is quite secluded. The maidservants, well-trained, each stood guard outside the pavilion.

  Regretting the jade, but like opening a tear box, tears have never stopped.