CHAPTER 560: CHAPTER 286: BROTHERLY AFFECTION, KUI BA’S CORPSE

The affairs of the Gao family are ultimately a bewildering mess. With Qin’s intercession, the Yuan family also took Qin’s side and scolded Yuan Long, saying stern discipline was necessary, and thus the matter was settled.

But is Gao Yuanxing one to be trifled with?

Harassing virtuous women, insulting a foolish brother, Gao Yuanxing took advantage of looking identical to his twin brother to act recklessly, making Gao Yuanlong take the blame whenever something happened.

He could even righteously scold his brother as an elder, and the key was that Yuanlong was deaf and couldn’t understand that his brother was scolding him. Even when called a fool, he would just smile foolishly and scratch his head, thinking his brother was teasing him.

A fool is a fool, why tease him?

As if a fool isn’t human, born of parents, and deserved to be teased?

Gao Yuanxing thought so.

Not long after the matter had calmed down, Gao Yuanxing again set his sights on the second mother, Qin. This time, he practiced with a maid in the mansion, forcibly taking her body, and then turned around to blame foolish Yuanlong.

Anyway, Yuanlong was deaf and mute, unable to clear his name.

Landlord Gao found himself unable to beat or scold him effectively. In the end, he decided to betroth the maid to Gao Yuanlong. After all, the maid belonged to them, and she could keep Yuanlong company. Perhaps with a maid by his side, Yuanlong would no longer do such things...

Gao Yuanxing thought to himself, no, if he didn’t do bad things, life would lose all its fun. That would be worse than death for him.

On a day when the Landlord was examining the children’s studies and saw Yuanxing inferior even to five-year-old Gao Qin, he often reprimanded him instead of doting on Gao Qin, declaring that his family had produced a prodigy and predicting he would certainly become the top scholar in the future!

Gao Yuanxing, narrow-minded and petty, could not swallow this.

One day, when Gao Qin returned from an outing with the private tutor, the teacher handed two poems to Landlord Gao, saying they were composed by six-year-old Gao Qin.

The first was called "Spring Lake Outing," written in an inspirational script:

Lily pads stack like green coins, dragonflies perch on pole tips.

Suddenly rowing oars break through the duckweed, smiling and pointing to the white seagull in the misty clouds.

Landlord Gao was delighted, then looked at the second poem titled "Ode to the Foolish Brother":

In confusion knowing not craft, simple and naive in holding the truth.

The world mocks the slow, indeed unaware of the malicious hearts?

Landlord Gao fell silent, while the private tutor gently stroked his beard and smiled without a word.

Do the characters of the Gao brothers really look so simple on the surface that everyone fails to see, but only a six-year-old child can see clearly?

Landlord Gao said yes, and he also said no.

For who could make him seem a fool?

"Not bad, a good poem, a good poem indeed!"

The silent Landlord Gao immersed himself once again in his young son’s masterpiece.

Being able to write poems at six, even if he couldn’t surpass Wang Guowei and Huangmutong, wouldn’t be far behind...

Gao Qin’s prodigy name began to surface, and the entire Gao mansion especially favored this young master.

Seeing how a concubine’s child was so favored, Gao Yuanxing could not accept it.

Even his own birth mother often spoke little of Gao Qin, time and again. "Am I not your son, but rather that little bastard is your true son?"

Gao Yuanxing secretly gritted his teeth with hatred. One day, he tricked Gao Qin by saying, "First Lady wants you to come to the backyard, she has something important to say."

No matter how smart, Gao Qin was just a six-year-old child.

As soon as he passed through the moon gate, Yuanxing, seeing no one around, picked up the pre-hidden hammer and struck hard, ending it then and there.

Afterwards, Gao Yuanxing handed the blood-stained hammer to his brother Yuanlong, letting the foolish brother play with it, while he himself wiped his hands and pretended to study in the library, as if nothing had happened.

Landlord Gao, upon seeing his youngest son Gao Qin’s sudden death and his foolish son Yuanlong holding a treasured hammer, his heart wrenched sharply.

What a sin!

Landlord Gao felt deeply sorrowful, yet when he questioned Yuanlong, the foolish son just foolishly laughed, entirely oblivious to what had happened.

Qin attempted to take her own life in despair, nearly hitting her head with the wall, but luckily she was saved in time.

After handling the funeral arrangements for his young son, Landlord Gao often saw Gao Yuanlong lingering outside Gao Qin’s former residence.

When Landlord Gao questioned why no one chased this fool away, the gatekeeper Lao Ding sighed and said, "Second son grew up under my watch. Though foolish, he is not evil; he just can’t see the young master and is worried, so he comes around here. Master, how could the second son do such a thing..."

Lao Ding, with hands behind his back and hunched over, didn’t wait for Landlord Gao’s response before hunched over, returning to the gatehouse on his own.

Landlord Gao stood there for a long time.

That night, Landlord Gao repeatedly read the poems his young son composed during his lifetime in his study. After reciting "Ode to the Foolish Brother" again, Landlord Gao immediately called for the eldest son.

As soon as Gao Yuanxing arrived at the study and before he could sit down, Landlord Gao abruptly asked, "Was it really Yuanlong who killed Qin? Answer me!"

Gao Yuanxing reacted quickly, feigning confusion, "Father, why do you say this?"

Seeing Landlord Gao still staring at him without saying a word, Gao Yuanxing’s heart raced wildly, but his face remained impassive, "I don’t know what Father means, but I have never deceived Father."

Gao Yuanxing’s eyes reddened, "I am greatly distressed because of Qin’s incident. This morning I went out for solace and met a Taoist who claimed to be a divine predictor. I spoke of my sorrow and let him divine it. Do you know what he said, Father?"

Gao Yuanxing, self-posed and self-answered, said, "The Taoist said Yuanlong is foolish and Qin enlightened early, and that Qin took Yuanlong’s fortune, which is why Yuanlong was against Qin...

The Taoist also said that excessive wisdom leads to harm, and that those extremely clever often face the envy of heaven, leading to premature death."

Gao Yuanxing saw Landlord Gao’s face darken greatly and immediately comforted him, "Father, don’t be too sad. Some things might be destined and cannot be changed by human strength..."