After being forced into a marriage with a wealthy family, the virtuous wife caused a huge uproar.

He really wanted to just do it to him, but then he remembered that his wife wasn't ready yet and the poison in his body hadn't been cured, so he forced himself to look away.

No, he wasn't a lecherous playboy. He took another deep breath before turning his gaze away, and then gently lifted Rong Yingluo's nightgown sleeve, trying to pull her arm away.

But just as she was halfway through the conversation, Rong Yingluo seemed to sense something, and with a jerk, she pulled him back, saying, "Master, I'm scared."

Rong Yinglu muttered something.

She dreamed of the time when she first came to her master's side. She was only three years and five months old then, just beginning to remember things. She had never been separated from her mother and needed someone to sleep with her at night to fall asleep. The only person she felt close to was her master.

As soon as it got dark at night, she would climb onto her master's bed. Her master felt sorry for her and only chased her away twice. He never chased her away again until she was five years old and could sleep alone.

The fear of leaving her mother for the first time has stayed with her ever since, and even though she doesn't need anyone's care now, she can't forget those lonely days.

Rong Yingluo hugged his arm tighter and tighter, and murmured in her sleep again, "Master, don't send me away, I want to sleep with you."

Gu Ce could hardly believe his ears when he heard this.

Did she sleep with her master?

Was her master male or female?

He thought about it carefully and realized that he had never heard of whether the hermit of Lingyin was male or female. People assumed he was a man, and that only someone who had traveled through various mountains and rivers could paint such magnificent paintings, which was why people thought so.

Gu Ce put aside his previous romantic thoughts and decided to take this opportunity to ask.

"Liuli, Liuli, wake up," Gu Ce called softly.

"Huh? Liuli? Don't call me Liuli, call me Yingluo." Rong Yingluo mumbled, her words a little unclear, but Gu Ce still understood.

Isn't she Liuli?

How could that be? The Rong family only has one daughter.

"Who is Liuli?" Gu Ce asked tentatively.

"Liuli is... no, Liuli is me, I am Liuli." Rong Yingluo still knew her father's repeated instructions that she must wait until her eldest sister got married before revealing herself.

Gu Ce finally felt relieved, but he still had a strange feeling.

"Yingluo?" he called again.

This time, there was no response.

Rong Yingluo had stayed up late last night and had already fallen asleep while drunk.

Now, lying in bed with a human heater in my arms, it's even easier to fall into a deep sleep.

Gu Ce called her name a few more times, but received no response. He then gently adjusted Rong Yingluo's sleeping position and closed his eyes to fall asleep.

When Rong Yingluo woke up the next day, she remembered nothing, not even how she got back to the Gu residence.

All she knew was that she closed her eyes while looking at Li Xuanye's face.

How did I get home last night?

"Miss, it was the young master who carried you back," Yinghong explained.

Rong Yingluo was stunned. Apart from her master, no man had ever carried her on his back. And that was when she was little.

The thought of Gu Ce carrying her through the alleyway filled her with a sweet feeling.

"Yinghong, go and get two more doses of medicine according to last month's prescription," Rong Yingluo instructed.

Tomorrow is the fifteenth again, and Gu Ce is going to suffer once more.

Li Xuanye said that the red-striped toads he sent to find had all died, and the people Gu Ce sent out also reported back that the red-striped toads had also died after only three days.

The guard came up with a plan: he put the toad in a basket made of small hand warmers, but it still died after three more days of travel.

Rong Yingluo didn't have any good solutions and could only wait until next spring and summer.

The weather is cold now, which is the time when toads hibernate. Perhaps this is why they die as soon as they leave their habitat.

Rong Yingluo went to pay her respects to the old lady and learned how to manage the household under her guidance.

Just then, an old woman came to report that the Prince An's residence had sent an old nanny to request an audience. The Duchess was currently under house arrest, and although Madam Guo was temporarily in charge of the household, the old nanny knew what had happened at the Prince's residence the day before and directly requested an audience with the old lady.

The old lady was somewhat stunned. The Prince An's Mansion and the Duke of Zhenguo's Mansion did not have much contact. The old princess had passed away more than ten years ago, and now the Crown Princess was in charge. They only exchanged some festival gifts with the Gu family to maintain a lukewarm superficial relationship.

Why was an old nanny suddenly sent? And she's even someone from the Crown Princess's side.

"Grandmother, it's alright. They're probably here to give gifts," Rong Yingluo said with a smile, putting down the brush in her hand.

Seeing Rong Yingluo's expression, the old lady knew that something must have happened that she didn't know about.

"Granny Ye, go and greet them yourself," the old lady immediately instructed.

Not long after, Granny Ye led in an elderly woman who looked to be around fifty years old.

"This servant, Wei, greets the late Duchess." Wei Mama performed the kneeling ceremony.

The old lady was a first-rank noblewoman, her status no less than that of the heir apparent's wife in the Prince An's mansion. It was not inappropriate for Granny Wei to perform such a grand ceremony.

"Please rise quickly," the old lady said with a smile.

"Thank you, Madam." After standing up, Granny Wei squatted down again. "Madam, this is an apology gift sent by our Heir Apparent's wife. The other day, Lord Gu and his wife visited our Prince's residence, and a little unpleasantness occurred. Please forgive them, Madam."

Granny Wei spoke very humbly, without any airs of someone from the royal palace.

After she finished speaking, she instructed the two maids following behind her to present the two brocade boxes.

"A century-old ginseng root and a pair of jade bracelets." After introducing them, Granny Wei asked the old lady to accept them.

The old lady was still in the dark: "Liuli, this..."

Both items are quite valuable; should I accept them?

The old lady looked at Rong Yingluo, seeking her opinion.

"Grandmother, please accept it. I'll tell you later." Rong Yingluo could see the sincerity of the Prince An's mansion.

The old lady said, "Then I'll accept it. Granny Wei, please thank the Crown Princess for me."

"Yinghong, go to my room, to the far left of the medicine cabinet, and bring me a white porcelain bottle," Rong Yingluo said.

Having received the gift, we should reciprocate. We can have Granny Wei take it back to Old Prince An so he can recuperate.

Yinghong left.

Just after Rong Yingluo recounted her visit to the Prince's Mansion the day before yesterday, Yinghong returned.

Rong Yingluo took the porcelain bottle, checked it, and confirmed that it was correct.

"Granny Wei, this is something I prepared for Prince An. Please take it back and tell him to take one pill a day. Come back to me for more when he finishes it." Rong Yingluo handed over the porcelain bottle.

"Thank you, Madam Gu." Old Prince An had given instructions before Granny Wei came, so it wasn't surprising at all.

After Granny Wei left, the old lady held Rong Yingluo's hand, her eyes conveying an unfathomable meaning.

"Grandmother, what's wrong?" Rong Yingluo was a little confused.

"Liuli, how well does A-Ce treat you?" The old lady's eyes were filled with affection.

"It's fine." Rong Yingluo felt that the two got along very well.

We haven't argued or fought in over two months.

Seeing Rong Yingluo's bewildered expression, the old lady knew that she had not yet realized what it meant for a man to take a concubine.

She waved her hand, signaling the servants to leave, leaving only the grandmother and granddaughter in the main hall.

"Liuli, if A-Ce takes a fancy to another woman and wants to bring her into the household, what will you do?" the old lady asked directly.

Rong Yingluo had thought about this question the day Yuwen Jing wanted to marry Gu Ce.

There cannot be any other women between her and Gu Ce at the moment.

She was afraid that a third party would find out about her relationship with Gu Ce.

But what should she do if Gu Ce really takes a liking to a woman? Actually, there's no need to think about it; she should leave Gu Ce.

She never intended to spend her life with Gu Ce.

"Grandmother, I see that the men in high-ranking families have all taken concubines, and I can't stop them. But I'll wait at least two years."

The agreement she signed with Gu Ce stipulated that it would be completed within two years. However, she estimated that it wouldn't take two years.

But the thought of Gu Ce lying in bed with another woman, and even kissing her, made me feel a little down.