Allure of a Country Maiden
Chapter 531 - 527

Chapter 531: 527

Du Yijin returned to the mansion, just as dusk was falling.

Although the Du Mansion had only a small courtyard, it contained a rockery and a corridor.

Du Yijin walked through the corridor towards her half-brother’s room.

Du Chunkang, Du Yijin’s half-brother, was a premature birth brought into the world when Mrs. Gu was only seven months pregnant. This is because Mrs. Gu’s brother had accumulated a huge gambling debt and when the debt collectors came knocking at their door, she hurried home, stressing her into premature labor. This made the child inherently weak and often ill upon birth.

Du Chunkang’s real mother was unreliable, so Du Yijin had raised him worth her own hands. The siblings shared a profound bond, and Du Yijin made it a habit to take a peek into Chunkang’s room before retiring to her own every night. Today was no exception.

As she was walking and lost in her thoughts, suddenly, from behind the rockery, a man sprang out and grabbed her, "Cousin, are you looking for me?"

Gu Honggen, reeking of alcohol, terrified Du Yijin into consecutive screams.

Gu Honggen drew his face to Du Yijin’s, attempting to kiss her.

"Slap!"

A slap landed on his face from Du Yijin.

Enraged by the slap, Gu Honggen retaliated with a slap of his own, then pinned Yijin against a column in the corridor, trapping her between himself and the hard surface. "You wench, sooner or later you’ll be mine! What’s the act for?"

With that, he brutally ripped open the front of her dress.

"Help!..." Du Yijin screamed, struggling and kicking with all her might.

Just at this moment, Du Chun’an walked in, hearing Du Yijin’s cry for help, he quickly ran over, dragged Gu Honggen away and started to punch and kick him.

Du Yijin hastily adjusted her clothes and couldn’t help breaking down into tears.

At this time, Mr. Du and Mrs. Gu, alerted by the commotion, also rushed over followed by a few servants.

Seeing her son being beaten up, Mrs. Gu shrieked and commanded the servants, "Quickly, pull the young master away, are you all deaf!"

"Back off!" Du Chun’an barked angrily!

Upon hearing this, none of the servants dared to step forward.

"Stop it!" Mr. Du ordered angrily.

Du Chun’an used all his strength to land a punch on Gu Honggen’s nose, twisting it before finally releasing him. Standing up, he glared furiously at Gu Honggen, who lay curled up on the ground.

Mrs. Gu, bawling, threw herself to the ground, "My lord, you must avenge Honggen!"

Gu Hongxia hurriedly picked up a piece of paper from the ground and hid it in her bosom before she spoke furiously, "Uncle, look at the state my brother is in after being beaten by Chunkang. This cannot be let go easily! Our Gu family expects an answer!"

Mr. Du looked at his disheveled daughter, her eyes red from crying, and then at his son, whose eyes were ablaze with fury, and began to suspect the true nature of what had happened.

"Everyone, follow me!" Mr. Du, anger simmering, strode off.

"My lord!" Mrs. Gu raised her voice in protest, "Aren’t you supposed to be questioning Chunkang for beating Honggen?"

And just where was he going now?

"Silence! If you utter a single word more, I will divorce you!" Mr. Du whipped his head around and glared fiercely at Mrs. Gu.

Mrs. Gu bittered inwardly but held back, realizing the dramatic turn in events. Anyone with eyes could see what had transpired.

As for Du Yijin, there would be no wedding even if she did not want it.

She was forced into this due to circumstances beyond her control. There wasn’t a single decent girl in the Imperial Capital willing to marry her nephew. Gu family could not end their lineage. Otherwise, how could she face the ancestors of the Gu family?

Today, when the gatekeeper told her that Du Yijin left the mansion in tears and rode away in the Marquis Shengping’s carriage, she guessed that Du Yijin might have overheard the conversation between her and her sister-in-law.

Worried that something unexpected might happen, her sister-in-law suggested a plan that Mrs. Gu was initially hesitant to agree to. However, her sister-in-law insisted, stating that her husband would never agree to their plan. But, if a situation like this arises, he would have no choice but to consent. After all, Du Yijin was bound to marry into the Gu family, so they would not mind if her reputation was tarnished.

Thinking of her nephew who couldn’t find a wife, Mrs. Gu agreed.

Besides, after Du Yijin married into their family, she would not mistreat her. Anything good from Du Mansion would surely be sent to her.

They all followed Mr. Du into the main house.

Mr. Du dismissed all the servants and left Chun’an’s wet nurse on guard outside the door before finally asking: "What happened?"

Du Yijin did not respond. She had no face to speak of such things, and she was staunch in her resolution - she would never marry that man. If anyone insisted on her marriage, she would hang herself.

Sick of her life, she was already contemplating ending it. It was unbearable.

Du Chun’an bitterly recounted the incident.

"Father, Gu Honggen is not a human being! In the future, our house absolutely cannot let such a person set foot inside!" Du Chun’an added after his explanation.

"What are you talking about? Gu Honggen will be our son-in-law, how can he not enter our house!"

"Don’t spread nonsense. Gu Honggen becoming my household’s son-in-law? With his behavior, he dreams of marrying Yijin? There’s no such door, and all the windows are closed too! It is absolutely impossible!" He would never let his sister marry such a useless man.

"Yijin and Gu Honggen have already... Who else can she marry? Who would want a woman who’s lost her honour? Gu Honggen at least knows her, and when she goes over, my sister will certainly not mistreat her." Mrs. Gu tried to persuade, as this was about forming marriage connections, not creating enemies.

Unfortunately, Du Chun’an didn’t care: "Because we know him, she absolutely cannot marry him. It’s a rotten and bad root! Do you think the Gu family is a good place? It’s just a pit of fire! Even if my sister never marries in her life, she can’t jump into the fire pit of the Gu family!"

Mrs. Gu was not pleased with these words. What rotten and bad root! What fire pit! She herself came from there! Are her brother and nephew from her family that bad? Don’t they just have a bit of a gambling problem? They are not bad men!

"The matter of marriage is decided by parental orders and matchmaker’s words. Yijin’s matter is not your decision! I said she must marry, so it’s settled!"

"Bah, I’ve already held her, she’s just pretending. I would be kind not to despise her for being dirty! I might not marry her now, but later I will not!" Gu Honggen said this while grimacing in pain.

"Shut your mouth!" Du Chun’an wanted to hit him again, but was stopped by Mr. Du.

"Yijin, what are your thoughts? Even if you don’t marry in this lifetime, your father and elder brother will support you for the rest of your life."

Du Yijin’s eyes reddened when she heard this, "Father, I absolutely will not marry."

"You must marry!" Mrs. Gu stomped her foot.

"Why must she?" Mr. Du asked.

He needed to settle accounts with her still! Drinking her in, wondering if she thought him, an official at the Ministry of Justice, was naive? How come there was not a single servant nearby when Yijin was being assaulted by Gu Honggen?

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