I Became The Stepmother of My Ex-husband

Lin Wei Xi regretted speaking as soon as the words left her mouth, but what’s done was done. What could she do? She could only brace herself and force herself to calm down, “Princess Consort Shen, Gu Cheng Yao’s mother, passed away ten years ago during the seventh year of Jianzhao. You’re different from Gu Cheng Yao and kept to the three year mourning period for your wife. Even though no one would dare force it on you because of your status, you still did it. It’s been ten years since Princess Consort Shen passed away and Shizi has also settled down. Although he has yet to have children, there will surely be one in the next few years.”

“What are you trying to say?”

Lin Wei Xi blushed but her voice remained firm, “The Princess Consort has been dead for many years and Shizi has grown up. You don’t need to worry about having a successor or your new bride mistreating the children of your previous wife. Since there’s no need to worry about family disputes, you should bring in a new Princess Consort.”

Gu Hui Yan put down his brush, no longer caring about the Grand Secretary’s ruined letter. Instead, he looked at Lin Wei Xi, his eyes calm and unruffled, “continue.”

Lin Wei Xi almost lowered her head unconsciously. How terrifying. This was scarier than the old-fashioned teacher who taught her how to read during her childhood. But there was no turning back. Lin Wei Xi couldn’t just tell Prince Yan ‘sorry, you heard wrong. I was just being delusional’.

Lin Wei Xi’s face was as red as an apple. Mustering all the courage she had, she said timidly, “why don’t you consider me?”

Gu Hui Yan had the same indifferent expression on his face as before. But he knew that wasn’t the case.

Gu Hui Yan’s fingers rested on the table. His reply to Grand Secretary Zhang, which had just been ruined by a drop of ink, sat under his fingertips. But under this letter hid an exquisite letter from the palace.

Princess Royal Shou Kang had written the letter, and in it, she wrote that she and Lin Wei Xi were extremely close. She felt that the Princess Residence was vacant and empty since she was an old woman living by herself. Lin Wei Xi happened to mention this, so Princess Royal Shou Kang wanted to let her live in the Princess Residence.

This suggestion actually satisfied both sides. Even if no one dared to gossip about the Prince Yan Residence, at the end of the day, Lin Wei Xi was an unmarried girl. She wasn’t related to anyone in the Prince Yan Residence, and the Residence had no female elder. Her reputation would be damaged if she continued to stay there.

It was a reasonable proposal, but Gu Hui Yan couldn’t write a single word even after staring at it for a long time. Rainy days tended to make people jittery, and Gu Hui Yan felt offended for no apparent reason. When he noticed this, he was shocked. Why was this so? Gu Hui Yan’s expression remained the same as usual, but his heart was a raging torrent of chaos. Instead of dealing with Princess Royal Shou Kang’s letter, he took out a new piece of paper, laid it out, and wrote a letter to Zhang Xiao Lian. As Gu Hui Yan wrote the letter, his thoughts constantly drifted unconsciously towards the other matter. It was at this moment that Lin Wei Xi opened the door and entered.

For a moment, Gu Hui Yan couldn’t tell if this was a coincidence or the inevitable result of a combination of several coincidences.

Those were the thoughts that flashed through his head. In reality, Lin Wei Xi had just finished recommending herself and was too distressed to lift her head.

Gu Hui Yan looked at Lin Wei Xi’s hair whorl. She looked especially lovable with her head lowered like that, and her neck looked like a swan’s, like it would break with a touch. Gu Hui Yan didn’t know how long he’d been staring, perhaps it had been ten minutes or a second, but he quickly snapped out of it and looked away, “You have a fever so go back and properly recuperate. I’ll pretend I didn’t hear anything. You can still live at ease in the Prince Yan Residence moving forward. Tell Gu Ming Da if you need anything.”

“I don’t!” Lin Wei Xi had been extremely ashamed, but was surprisingly indignant when she heard what he said, “Prince Yan, what do you mean? Even after what I said, you’ll only take it as me having a fever and nonchalantly send me back to rest. You’ll definitely treat me the same way again. What do I really mean to you? Am I just an object without thoughts and feelings, or am I an amusing pet that’s at your beck and call?”

The emotions in Gu Hui Yan’s eyes shifted slightly, finally revealing some of his true feelings, “Do you know what you’re saying?”

“I know!” Lin Wei Xi thought that since things had turned out like this, she might as well not hold back, and yelled, “I admire Prince Yan’s handsome and mighty bearing, and want to marry you as your second wife. My father entrusted you to look after me, and you’ve wanted to find me a good marriage from the beginning so that I have a husband to depend on in the future. But what if I make an error in my judgement of the person? What if he only covets your power and my dowry? You can support me once, but can you protect me my entire life? If that’s the case, wouldn’t letting me stay in the residence be the best way of looking after me… “

Lin Wei Xi trailed off under Gu Hui Yan’s gaze. Alright, she also knew that this was a preposterous and inappropriate suggestion. However, even if it didn’t sound good, it was reasonable. Lin Wei Xi had been in conflict with herself since she first started her journey to the capital. On one hand, she felt that her previous life was already over; she ought not to waste her new life and should instead start that new life. On the other hand, she looked at the people from her previous life, the events from her previous life, and couldn’t resign herself to it. She was already dead. Not only  were these people alive and well, but they also looked like they’d have a better future. This was truly a hard pill for her to swallow.

As she thought about it, tears filled her eyes. Gu Hui Yan got a headache when he saw this and sighed. He had yet to say a word about her rebellious behaviour, but the instigator of this whole thing looked like she was going to cry because she felt wronged. He could only say, “it’s easy to catch a cold after getting caught in the rain. Go back first and rest properly.”

This excuse again. Why were these people in high positions always so on the fence about things? Why couldn’t he give a solid yes or no answer?

Lin Wei Xi slightly opened her red lips to say something, but Gu Hui Yan turned his gaze to her immediately. The courage that Lin Wei Xi had mustered with difficulty crumbled instantly. She lowered her head and silently gave Gu Hui Yan a Wanfu salute before despondently walking away.

Lin Wei Xi’s withdrawal carried an element of anger, but at that moment, no one cared about it. She stepped out to find Gu Cheng Yao standing under the eaves and keeping his umbrella. Gu Ming Da diligently guarded the door. Seeing her unhappy expression, Gu Cheng Yao asked, “Why are you here?”

Lin Wei Xi didn’t wish to say anything so she coldly brushed past Gu Cheng Yao. Gu Ming Da had heard what seemed to be an argument. A close subordinate like him knew how to behave appropriately and wouldn’t pry into his master’s conversation. However, as Prince Yan’s closest subordinate, Gu Ming Da felt amazed. Someone actually dared to argue with Prince Yan? Or more accurately, someone was actually capable of arguing with Prince Yan?

So seeing Lin Wei Xi come out with a sour expression came to no surprise for Gu Ming Da. On the contrary, Gu Cheng Yao frowned silently after seeing her walk into the rain without looking back, “why does she look so drenched from the rain?”

After returning to Jingdan Garden, Lin Wei Xi got a headache as soon as she stepped through the door and burned through a fever all night. Her illness this time was fierce. She’d already caught a cold after returning from the palace and today she’d spent so much time in the rain, so she had a fever as soon as she returned. Lin Wei Xi’s illness alarmed many people and an imperial physician was brought into the residence that very night, half the lights in the residence lit through the night. It wasn’t until noon the next day that her fever subsided a little after great difficulty. She opened her eyes in a daze and saw an imperial dragon robe outside her bed curtain. The clothes were awe-inspiring and black as the night, with coiling dragons embroidered in golden thread. Amidst the refined and warm boudoir, it looked more majestic and dignified.

There was only one person who could wear such clothes in the residence.

Upon hearing movement from the bed^◇, the conversation outside stopped. After a moment, the bed curtains were lifted one by one. Gu Hui Yan stood on the other side of the partition and looked at Lin Wei Xi helplessly before sighing, “do you feel better?”

◇

Her body ached from head to toe, and she felt as if this round of fever had melted her bones. Lin Wei Xi pursed her lips, and said with some effort, “I’m fine.”

The hoarseness of her voice startled Lin Wei Xi. Gu Hui Yan sighed in disbelief that she was truly “fine”. Gu Hui Yan indicated for Wan Xing and Wan Yue to let the bed curtain down, “she doesn’t appear to have a cold anymore. Let her recuperate properly.”

Wan Yue obeyed and carefully released the innermost red gauze curtain. Gu Hui Yan stood outside as he dealt with a mountain of work that couldn’t be delayed any longer. He turned to move, but before he could take two steps, Lin Wei Xi’s voice sounded from behind him, her voice hoarse and tired, “Your Highness, the issue I brought up yesterday wasn’t just some random nonsense.”

Gu Hui Yan stopped and turned around halfway to see Lin Wei Xi half propped up on the bed behind the thin bed curtain. Even if he couldn’t see her expression, he could imagine how her eyes burned with fire. Even though she was uncomfortably ill, she stubbornly wanted an answer.

Wan Yue was keeping the bed curtain when she saw Miss Lin suddenly prop up her body to talk to Prince Yan despite her illness, with Prince Yan silently halting in his footsteps. She didn’t know what they had talked about the previous day. Although she had accompanied Lin Wei Xi to the study, she didn’t know the specifics.

Wan Yue held an exquisite curtain in her hand, not knowing what to do for a moment. She could only stand by the bed and wait quietly without disturbing Miss Lin and Prince Yan’s conversation.

Gu Hui Yan gave in and said, “If you’re worried about the issue with the second Qian son, you can rest assured. I’ve already handled it.”

He’d already handled the issue from yesterday afternoon. Lin Wei Xi felt emotional for a moment, pressure rising at the back of her throat, and she couldn’t help coughing. After finally containing it, she said hoarsely, “It’s not because of him.”

She knew she looked silly and impulsive, but she wanted him to understand.

Gu Hui Yan’s eyes darkened, and the temperature in the room slowly dropped, “do you know what you’re saying?”

“I know.” Lin Wei Xi said after much effort, and did her best to look him in the eyes.

Gu Hui Yan was separated by a gauze bed curtain, but in that moment, he was certain that she didn’t know. She was only acting rashly because she felt wronged.

And it was obvious who she’d been wronged by.

Gu Hui Yan paused for a moment and proceeded to walk out soon after, “you can rest assured and recuperate.”

Gu Hui Yan had just walked out of the building when sure enough, the sounds of a tantrum started up. Gu Hui Yan thought to himself that even with so little strength, she still managed to learn how to vent her anger by throwing things.

Gu Ming Da, who’d been waiting in the courtyard, immediately stepped behind Gu Hui Yan and bowed his head slightly when he saw him walk out, “my Prince.”

Gu Hui Yan brought people through the richly and extravagantly decorated winding corridors of the residence. When all the servants in the garden saw him, they scrambled out of the way and lowered their heads, waiting for him to walk past, not daring to look up. As Gu Hui Yan passed through a courtyard, he suddenly stopped. On the other side of the carved railing, the wisteria tree draping from the eaves gently swayed.

Gu Ming Da saw Gu Hui Yan stop and he looked to the front before stepping forward and whispering, “my Prince, maybe it’s the wind.”

The gardener in charge of the courtyard almost fell to his knees in fright. Was the Prince not satisfied with the wisteria tree? Did he dislike how dense it was?

Fortunately, Gu Hui Yan had only stopped to take a look, and he wordlessly continued on his way. He was silent the whole way, solemness permeated wherever he went.

Perhaps it wasn’t the wind.

After returning to the study, Gu Hui Yan peacefully dealt with the important official duties that had accumulated since the day before. After giving a few simple instructions to his aides, he had Gu Ming Da prepare his horse to visit the Princess Royal Shou Kang Residence.

The entire Princess Residence was alarmed by Prince Yan’s sudden visit. It was imperative that with his rank, he had to give a notice at least three days in advance no matter where he went. Princess Royal Shou Kang sat in the main hall and asked Gu Hui Yan somewhat doubtfully, “why are you here today? If you had sent someone in advance, I could’ve prepared myself properly.”

“I couldn’t trouble Aunt like that.” Gu Hui Yan smiled while nodding, and said unhurriedly, “I hastily visited today because I have something to request of Aunt.”

“Oh?” Princess Shou Kang became curious. What did Gu Hui Yan need that he required the help of someone else? She smiled and said, “you’re being modest again. Is there anything in the world that Prince Yan can’t do?”

Gu Hui Yan smiled. That wasn’t the case this time. He said, “I’m requesting for Aunt to act as matchmaker for Lin Wei Xi and I.”