CHAPTER 323: CHAPTER 296: YOU STILL WANT TO LEAVE?

Gu Mansion.

Ji Xiaoxiao didn’t leave at night and stayed in the East Courtyard.

When Ji Xiaoxiao and Gu Yicheng quarreled, Gu Linhai and his wife were not at the Gu Mansion.

After returning, seeing that more than half of the decorations in the living room were missing, the couple guessed they had quarreled.

But Gu Yicheng didn’t say anything, so neither of them asked much.

Gu Yicheng knew that Ji Xiaoxiao was staying at the East Courtyard.

He bravely went to the East Courtyard once.

But Ji Xiaoxiao didn’t want to see him.

He intended to stay there cheekily, but was scared off by a look from Gu Yanjing.

After dinner, Qiao Yuxian chatted with Ji Xiaoxiao in the guest room.

Gu Yanjing went to the front yard to see Old Sir Gu.

After making sure Old Sir Gu took his medicine and lay down, he returned to the study in the East Courtyard, working while watching Qiao Zhiang do his homework.

Qiao Yuxian also spent a long time chatting with Ji Xiaoxiao.

Rather than chatting, it felt like they argued for a long time.

The two seem to be incompatible; they couldn’t say more than three sentences without snapping at each other.

They kept snapping at each other for nearly two hours.

Eventually, it was Ji Xiaoxiao’s mother calling her that led Qiao Yuxian to leave for the study.

After Qiao Yuxian left, Ji Xiaoxiao looked at the caller ID on her phone but didn’t answer.

But after it automatically hung up, the caller quickly redialed.

Ji Xiaoxiao still didn’t answer.

The caller kept dialing.

Just as Ji Xiaoxiao was about to turn off her phone, her finger paused for a moment.

She murmured softly, "What if they’re calling to check on me?"

In that moment of hesitation, the call came in again.

Ji Xiaoxiao sighed lightly and answered the phone.

Just as the call connected, before Ji Xiaoxiao could speak, her mother began, "Xiaoxiao, did you and Yicheng have a fight?"

Ji Xiaoxiao sat by the bed, wearing Qiao Yuxian’s clothes, which were a bit baggy. She kept her head down, slowly scratching her pants with her left hand, and said, "Yes. Did he call you?"

"He came to the house personally," said Mrs. Ji.

Ji Xiaoxiao fell silent for a moment.

Mrs. Ji sighed slightly and said, "Why did you argue? Yicheng is so considerate to you and takes such good care of you. You should restrain your temper. Our status and their status, you need to be content."

Ji Xiaoxiao tightened her hand on her leg.

"I heard you want to come home," Mrs. Ji said, "Why come back? Don’t come back. There are no overnight grudge between a husband and wife; if you come back and stir things up, Yicheng will have to go home every day. Old Sir Gu is still sick, and he has to stay at the old house. You’re just causing trouble for them."

"Mom," Ji Xiaoxiao called softly, "You know we argued, but why don’t you first ask why we fought, or if I’ve been wronged."

"What else could it be between a husband and wife, just trivial matters," Mrs. Ji said, "You might feel wronged, but I think Yicheng feels even more wronged. I saw a bruise on his neck covered by his collar; you hit him, right?"

Listening to her mother’s words, Ji Xiaoxiao took two deep breaths and said, "Mom, he has another woman outside. We haven’t been married long, and he’s already like this. What will I do in the future? Do I have to serve him with a bunch of other women? What’s the difference between holding a legal certificate and selling myself outside?"

Mrs. Ji suddenly fell silent.

After a brief silence, Mr. Ji’s voice sounded from the other end of the phone, "So what, do you want a divorce?"

Ji Xiaoxiao’s lips moved, but she couldn’t speak.

"What man is ever faithful? He’s a wealthy and powerful man. How could he possibly stay faithful to you his whole life," Mr. Ji shouted on the other line, "You’re marrying into the Gu Family, and that’s already a fortune from your ancestors. Don’t have too high expectations."

Ji Xiaoxiao couldn’t believe what she heard, her eyes staring blankly, too shocked to speak.

"You are in the position of Young Madam Gu; you should learn to be content," Mr. Ji continued, "He’s a man; he has needs too. Your task is to maintain your position as Young Madam Gu and keep Gu Yicheng happy. You’re grown up now; you should embrace reality and not always think about love and a lifelong partner."

Ji Xiaoxiao couldn’t speak.

The phone sat in her hand, but she felt like her whole body lacked any strength, unable to hang up the call, unable to press the end call button.

"Do you know what kind of honor the title ’Young Madam Gu’ brings to our family?" Mr. Ji said, "When your parents go out now, those high-status people they hadn’t interacted with before now greet them warmly. Do you know how much the family business has earned since your engagement with Gu Yicheng?"

Ji Family’s status in the Capital City was not low.

But it was incomparable to the Gu Family.

Status is always relative.

Since Gu Yicheng and Ji Xiaoxiao’s engagement, the Ji Family’s status had risen continuously. Even those who looked down on his family had to bow their heads to them.

"And your brother," Mr. Ji said, "Aren’t you concerned about your brother? All his expenses for school abroad are thanks to the Gu Family’s kindness. Your current fuss could anger Gu Yicheng to the point of bringing your brother back from abroad. At his age, dropping out in the middle of his studies with no degree, how will he manage? How will he find a perfect wife for the Ji Family?"

"In your eyes, there’s only my brother. You gave birth to me just to pave his way," Ji Xiaoxiao choked out, "Even if I didn’t marry Gu Yicheng, you would have sold me to a relatively good family. You never consider how I’m really doing. You only think about yourselves and my brother."

"What do you mean sold you," Mrs. Ji suddenly said, "We raised you; shouldn’t you repay us? You and your brother are of one blood; if you have the ability, shouldn’t you help him? And let’s not pretend, Gu Yicheng was your choice, not ours. Did we interfere in your relationship?"

"What if the person I dated had no money or power? Would you really stay out of it?" Ji Xiaoxiao asked, "In high school, I was studying both academics and arts. I studied acting; my academic scores were good enough for Kyoto University. I worked so hard to get in, and you secretly changed my major. You made me study English to become a teacher because it’s a job that allows time for family with summer and winter breaks, and someone was willing to marry a teacher."

"If that were the case, we would definitely have intervened. Would you have lived well with a man like that? And don’t bring up past grievances; we never agreed to your study of acting from the start," Mrs. Ji said, "You don’t think about what Gu Yicheng gave you after getting together. Your studio was established by him; your TV dramas were funded by him. What more do you want? Do you not want any of it anymore?"

Ji Xiaoxiao fell silent again.

Mrs. Ji also paused for a while and said, "Now, quickly have a child, secure your position as Young Madam Gu. If you keep acting up, sooner or later, they won’t want you anymore."

"I won’t have one. I’ve just entered my career," Ji Xiaoxiao said, "I don’t have time."

"You...." Mrs. Ji’s voice halted for a moment.

Mr. Ji added, "Don’t come home. There’s nowhere for you to stay. Have a good talk with Yicheng. Don’t think about staying at your other apartment; all your properties were bought for you by Yicheng. If you have the guts, don’t go there."

With that, Mr. Ji hung up.

Ji Xiaoxiao kept the phone to her ear, her gaze dull and blank.

All the properties under her name were bought for her by Gu Yicheng, all as the Gu Family’s bride price.

Despite Ji Family’s good conditions, they never bought her any property.

Everything in the Ji Family belonged to her brother.

She had nowhere else to go but the Ji Family.