Chapter 37: This House Will Soon Welcome Its New Mistress

Meng Shutang glanced at it and set her phone down.

She looked at Bai Cixian. "Qiao Mo just called you… Tangtang?"

Bai Cixian nodded. "Tangtang is my childhood name."

Qiao Mo's words could not hurt Meng Shutang.

Bai Cixian coming in person could not hurt her either.

But Gu Yeheng's words and that final @ shattered Meng Shutang so thoroughly that her heart ached until she could barely breathe.

During her three years in the Gu family, she had served Gu Yeheng sincerely, even though he had never once looked at her directly.

That final @ was clearly something the father and son had agreed upon together, deliberately meant to humiliate her.

In truth, none of that even mattered much. What hurt her the very most was that Bai Cixian's childhood name was Tangtang.

So in all those nights when Gu Yunci held her, coaxing her tenderly by her ear, was it "Tangtang" or "Tangtang" that he called out, over and over?

Were those tender words meant for her, or poured out for Bai Cixian?

When he kissed her, was he looking at her, or at Bai Cixian?

A suffocating sensation crept up from the soles of her feet, and that heartbroken feeling instantly wrapped tightly around her.

She had once thought that Gu Yunci had at least loved her.

Even though he used her as a tool for revenge, the feeling of having been passionately loved could not be wrong.

After being divorced, she had struggled alone for so long, appearing strong on the surface, but only she herself knew how much it hurt.

But today, she understood completely—that tiny, negligible bit of love she had vaguely sensed was, in fact, all meant for someone else.

Gu Yunci had never loved her, from beginning to end.

Her anguish, her pain, was an utter and complete joke.

From start to finish, she had been a stand-in—whether in appearance or in name!

Qiao Mo was about to speak again when the studio door creaked open.

Old Madam Gu and Aunt Song walked in.

Bai Cixian rose abruptly at the sight of them and grabbed Qiao Mo. "Stop talking. The matriarch is here."

"I'd like to see who dares to tell my grandson's wife to get out, who dares to run wild on Gu family territory!"

The old lady's cane struck the floor with a "thud," her voice commanding, carrying an aura that brooked no doubt.

The studio fell dead silent. Seeing this, Meng Shutang rose and steadied the old lady.

The old lady, elegant and sharp-eyed, deliberately walked past Bai Cixian and then sat down across from her. She took Meng Shutang's hand and had her stand at her side.

"Bai Cixian, is it? Pregnant with Yunci's child? How is it that I didn't know a great-grandchild of my Gu family was being carried by an outsider like you?"

Bai Cixian's face went deathly pale in an instant. She stammered, "Grandma, I… I really am pregnant with Brother Yunci's child. Brother Yunci and Uncle Gu acknowledged it…"

"Acknowledged?" The old lady sneered, her voice carrying the authority of a matriarch of a prominent family. "Gu Yunci acknowledges it, Gu Yeheng acknowledges it, but I do not!"

"When it comes to the wives of our Gu family, we look at character—not at who can play the victim or who can use a pregnant belly to force her way in!"

"Never mind that the child you're carrying now may not even be real—even if it were, the doors of my Gu family are not something just any Tom, Dick, or Harry can walk through with a swollen belly!"

After speaking, she looked up at Qiao Mo, her eyes even colder. "Whose daughter are you? Coming to my grandson's wife's studio to run wild."

"And siding with a girl who isn't even married yet but whose belly is already swelling—is that how your father and mother raised you?"

Qiao Mo, cowed by the old lady's presence, did not dare make a sound.

Bai Cixian was trembling even more, tears falling as she tried to play the victim. "Grandma, I wasn't forcing my way in, I was just…"

"Shut up!" the old lady cut her off.

She gripped Meng Shutang's hand tightly and looked at everyone, her voice ringing with conviction. "The Gu family's grandson's wife is Tangtang and no one else. If anyone dares provoke her again, they'll have this old woman to answer to."

Hearing this, Qiao Mo and Bai Cixian beat a hasty retreat from the studio, not even daring to look back.

The studio fell quiet again. The old lady pinched Meng Shutang's cheek, her tone full of heartache. "You must be upset. Next time something like this happens, call me directly. Then they won't dare bully you."

Meng Shutang shook her head slightly. "I'm fine. It's you I've troubled to make the trip, Grandma."

Seeing her suddenly so polite, the old lady seemed to reach some kind of decision.

"Tangtang, Yunci is the one who wronged you. Bringing this kind of trash into his bed—he must be blind."

Meng Shutang said, "No. From the very beginning, they were truly in love."

It was she who had been delusional!

……

As soon as Bai Cixian stepped outside, she called Gu Yeheng in tears.

"Uncle Gu, I did as you said and went to the studio to find Meng Shutang, but Grandma suddenly showed up and scolded me terribly."

"It's nothing for me to suffer a little grievance, but I just didn't carry out your instructions."

Gu Yeheng soothed her: "That old woman just loves to be unreasonable."

"Don't be upset, Cixian. I called your aunt in France. She'll call the old lady in a bit. Tonight, the old lady will be going to France."

The studio.

The old lady was admiring Meng Shutang's craftsmanship, and the two were chatting very congenially.

The old lady really liked this studio and said she would come again in a few days.

As they were talking, a phone rang.

The old lady saw it was a call from her son-in-law, far away in France.

"What's wrong with Yuanyuan?"

"Mom, Yuanyuan just finished chemotherapy, but she's not doing well. Her reaction to the chemo was too severe—she suddenly has a high fever."

"If she has a fever, then call a doctor right away! I'm not a doctor!"

"No, Mom. Yuanyuan just regained consciousness. She's afraid…"

The old lady's hand tightened slightly. "Yuanyuan wants me to go over and stay with her, is that it?"

Her son-in-law said, "Yes. I'm also afraid she won't make it through. If I didn't tell you, you'd blame me later."

The old lady hung up the phone.

She told Meng Shutang about the matter. Meng Shutang already knew that her aunt, far away in France, was ill. "Grandma, don't worry, go ahead. I can manage things here."

The old lady squeezed her hand firmly. "Wait for me to come back."

Meng Shutang accompanied the old lady back to the old residence to pack her things.

She and Gu Yunci went together to see her off at the airport.

Before leaving, the old lady repeatedly exhorted them, "I'll only be gone a few days. Be good to each other. You cannot get divorced."

Watching the old lady go inside, Meng Shutang smiled faintly.

They made the return trip together, but on the way, Gu Yunci received a call from Shen Duan, asking him to go out for drinks.

At the end of the call, someone else asked, "Is Bai Cixian coming?"

Gu Yunci said nothing. Shen Duan answered for him, "Miss Bai is pregnant. Yunci can't bear to let her."

The car was very quiet. After hanging up, Gu Yunci turned his eyes slightly and glanced at her.

Meng Shutang didn't move. She just sat there quietly, gazing into the distance.

When they arrived at Qian Shui Wan, Meng Shutang got out. The Rolls-Royce's door shut with a dull thud and soon disappeared into the night.

Meng Shutang returned to the attic room and began to pack.

She didn't have much. It was all packed in a little over ten minutes.

She pulled her suitcase downstairs. Aunt Zhang saw her and hurriedly tried to stop her. "Young Madam, what are you doing?"

Meng Shutang said, "Aunt Zhang, there's no need to try to keep me. Miss Bai... is pregnant. This house will soon welcome its new mistress."

With that, she pulled her suitcase and left.

When this moment truly arrived, Meng Shutang found that she was far calmer than she had imagined.