Chapter 114

Gu Kang pressed his lips tightly; his closest relatives were utterly indifferent, and others were even more indifferent, turning a blind eye.

He was also the most contemptible existence in Shang Jing, and in others' eyes he was utterly worthless trash.

In this world no one would speak up for trash; the reason so many people speak up for Xiao Yin is because he used to be the war god of Southern Qi, wielding great influence in the military.

And Gu Kang... is nothing at all.

Gu Kang simply could not bring himself to lose face at this moment; he too is a person, not a beast that anyone can humiliate.

But now he has become a laughingstock; for the first time the word "humiliation" welled up in his heart, and the feeling of humiliation was intensely strong.

But when he thought of that woman with a smile like blossoms, his heart grew a bit more resolute.

Even if everyone in this world looks down on him, his Miss Ruoxi still thinks highly of him.

All he needs is to obtain this sum of silver; then he can redeem Miss Ruoxi from her bondage, marry her, and move out of the Gu household.

Over these past days, the attitudes of those in the Gu family have also chilled his heart, giving rise to a thought of separating from the Gu family.

As long as Ruoxi remains, he will live happily.

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Gu Kang slowly lowered his head, his voice seeming to be pressed beneath his body, feeling very muffled.

He stepped forward, standing before Bei Di Crown Prince Tuoba Heng, and drew a deep breath, saying: "I... you..."

"Listen well!"

Gu Kang's complexion turned pale repeatedly; he struggled to move his lips, after a long while...

"Woof... woof woof..."

"Hahahaha!" Tuoba Heng laughed, then turned to the aloof Gu Jiu Ling and said, "Princess Consort of Rui, how do you find the study? Does it resemble? The Du family's ventriloquy is not bad!"

Gu Jiu Ling clenched her fist tightly, glanced at Gu Kang's face flushed red, and gave a faint smile: "Not bad!"

But Gu Jiu Ling's smile did not reach her eyes; it was somewhat cold.

Seeing Gu Jiu Ling still unmoved, Tuoba Heng grew increasingly agitated, looking at Gu Kang whose cheeks were red enough to almost bleed, and laughed: "The Jiu Mu ventriloquy indeed lives up to its reputation, though ventriloquy usually unites sound and form; if one can reach this level, it is the best, isn't it?"

As soon as Tuoba Heng's words fell, even Emperor Longqing found it hard to keep his composure.

After all, Old Master Du and he were old acquaintances, but now he saw that Tuoba Heng intended to force Gu Jiu Ling to step forward.

He frowned slightly, unable to fathom why the Bei Di Crown Prince had traveled a thousand miles to Southern Qi, other than to test each other's limits; could it merely be to send a sum of silver to the Du family's descendants?

Obviously not; what then is it for?

He remained expressionless and did not intervene, instead wanting to see what Tuoba Heng really meant.

Since he could not see through it, he let the Gu family and the Rui Wang Fu people test the waters; he was not in a hurry.

The faces of several veteran generals in the army darkened; after all, to humiliate Southern Qi people in front of so many Southern Qi folks—even if the one being humiliated was a useless good-for-nothing—was still a slap to Southern Qi's face.

They wanted to stand up and say something, but upon seeing Prince Rui Xiao Yin give them a glance signaling them to stay calm, their hearts skipped a beat, and they suppressed the anger rising within.

Tuoba Heng was now somewhat impatient; after all this, Gu Jiu Ling still had not made a move?

Princess Yuan Qing beside them could not help but coldly sneer inwardly: Gu Jiu Ling said Xiao Yin liked her, yet now her own brother has been bullied almost into a dog, and Xiao Yin has not stepped forward to defend her—what kind of marital affection is this?

He had just wanted to say something, but was fiercely glared back by the royal brother beside him, clearly indicating she should shut up and stop spouting nonsense.

By now Tuoba Heng's words had gone this far; Gu Kang, let alone having a sense of shame, no ordinary person would turn himself into a dog for others to mock just for money.

But having that deep love in his heart, what does it matter if he sacrifices his life for that woman?

Gu Kang gritted his teeth, his heart chilled to the extreme, pained to the extreme, yet he slowly knelt before Tuoba Heng.

He bowed his head, shut his eyes tightly, and let out a low cry: "Woof!"

The onlookers around were filled with expressions of contempt.

Tuoba Heng's face sank cold and severe; Gu Jiu Ling showed no reaction at all, yet this was a slap to her face.

Are these two siblings truly shameless?

Tuoba Heng seemed purely to vent his inner anger and dissatisfaction, loudly sneering: "Tonight's banquet spread is so lavish; Master Gu, didn't you eat enough?"

Tears welled up in Gu Kang's eyes; he lifted his sleeve and fiercely wiped away his tears, then cried out loudly three times.

"Woof! Woof! Woof!"

Gu Kang's appearance at this moment was utterly ridiculous; aside from Tuoba Heng's unrestrained laughter, nobody else could laugh.

Xiao Yin could not help but turn his face to look at Gu Jiu Ling; for the first time he scrutinized her, able to endure to this extent—this girl is a tough one.

He whispered in her ear: "That potent drug you gave your brother is indeed powerful."

Gu Jiu Ling laughed softly and said, "Far from enough!"

"We haven't been forced to that extent yet; I'm just wondering what Tuoba Heng wants to trade this batch of bait for with me?"

Xiao Yin's eyes flashed as he opened the folding fan: "Probably it's tied to the prize from the last poetry gathering."

Gu Jiu Ling's brows twisted fiercely as she looked at Xiao Yin, and although everyone thought the prize at the last poetry gathering was the Du family's long‑kept Landscape Scroll, only she and Xiao Yin knew it was merely a chaotic ledger with the outer shell merely bearing the guise of a Landscape Scroll.

The thing her maternal grandfather had hidden was truly too important; even the Bei Di people placed such great value on it.

Earlier she had investigated the organizer of the last poetry gathering; the Heir Apparent of the Duke of Anguo showed no oddities. The prize was said to have been supplied by a stranger, after all the outer shell of the Landscape Scroll was genuine, but its exact contents wouldn't be revealed until after the gathering ended.

But it turned out to be nothing; inside was just a ledger, and it was terribly disordered.

While Gu Jiu Ling was lost in wild speculation, Tuoba Heng spoke.

He ordered someone to place the list of that batch of treasure before Gu Kang, as if a master were rewarding an obedient dog.

"Come! Good boy! Here you go! Keep it safe; tomorrow take this list with your men to the Bei Di Yi Guan to collect the goods."

Gu Kang snatched the list from Tuoba Heng's hand, hurriedly glanced at it, and immediately breathed a sigh of relief; that much treasure would be enough to ransom Miss Ruoxi from the Yi Hong Courtyard.

He quickly secured the list and, with meek obedience, returned to Gu family's side.

Gu Cheng, feeling disdainful, shifted his posture farther away, thinking that being tainted by this younger brother would bring bad luck upon him.

Gu Kang, this time clutching the list tightly, thought only of his Miss Ruoxi and paid no mind to his elder brother's disdain.

But before the list could even warm in his hands, his stern‑faced father Gu Shijie spoke up.

「You've always been careless; once things come into your hands, they're squandered in just a few days. Why don't you hand them over to your older brother for safekeeping? Tomorrow, let your older brother go retrieve them—you don't need to worry about these things anymore! 」

Gu Kang looked at his father in disbelief, and for the first time a feeling of dislike rose in his heart toward his father and older brother.