RPAGF Chapter 424 Full Moon Incident
Chapter 424 Full Moon Incident
The full moon banquet was held in a grand manner, attracting nobles and dignitaries from the capital. The atmosphere was lively, but also subtly scheming.
The Zhenguo General's Mansion was brightly decorated and bustling with activity as guests arrived in an endless stream. More than a dozen banquet tables were set up in the front courtyard, and guests presented their congratulatory gifts.
On the surface, they were very respectful, but behind their backs, they whispered and gossiped about the rumors about Chu Ruohan and Gu Chengan.
"Have you heard? That child might not necessarily be the General Zhenguo's." A woman dressed in fine clothes whispered to the person next to her, hiding her face behind a round fan.
"That's right, it's all over the streets, saying she's having an affair with that brother-in-law." The person next to her chimed in, but kept glancing at where Chu Ruohan was sitting.
Although Chu Ruohan greeted the guests with a smile, her eyes betrayed her exhaustion.
Several days before the banquet, Song Ruyan couldn't help but tell Chu Ruohan about the rumors circulating outside. At the time, Chu Ruohan remained calm and simply nodded.
But Song Ruyan knew that this seemingly weak woman must have already made up her mind.
"If you hold back for a moment, you'll only get angrier; if you back down, you'll only feel like you've lost out."
Chu Ruohan only said one sentence, letting Song Ruyan know that today's full moon banquet was going to be quite a show.
The members of the third and fourth branches of the Gu family sat at the same table. Madam Gu the Fourth specially wore a high-profile outfit today, as if she wanted to deliberately attract everyone's attention.
She sat there, occasionally casting disdainful glances at Chu Ruohan. She harbored resentment towards Chu Ruohan for not helping her earlier, and her words were equally sharp.
“Once you have your own child, other people’s children won’t be favored anymore.” Madam Gu Si deliberately raised her voice, looking at Madam Gu San.
Madam Gu responded indifferently, "Life goes on."
She picked up her teacup and sipped her tea, unwilling to say much. After all, although Xuan-ge'er was from the third wife's family, he was born to a concubine's son and not her biological grandson, so she was happy to watch the spectacle.
When Madam Gu Si saw that Madam Gu San did not respond, she changed the subject, speaking in a voice that was neither too loud nor too soft, just loud enough for the people at the surrounding tables to hear.
"They gave birth to a girl, and they don't even know if she's their own child!"
Finally, Madam Gu couldn't hold back any longer and said sarcastically, "In my opinion, most of those rumors from back then were true. No matter how high Gu Junze's official position is, in the end, he's still just raising someone else's child!"
Her words drew a number of meaningful glances.
Many guests stopped eating, wanting to see how Chu Ruohan would respond.
Upon hearing these words, a cold glint flashed in Chu Ruohan's eyes.
She slowly stood up, walked gracefully to Madam Gu, and said with a charming smile, "Aunt Gu, are you perhaps speaking from your own experience?"
Madam Gu was taken aback, clearly not expecting Chu Ruohan to come over and retaliate directly.
“That’s true. After all, the son my fourth uncle had with his mistress back then was much older than my husband.” Chu Ruohan’s tone was light, but every word was piercing. “My fourth aunt must have a deep understanding of the ‘cheap son’ issue.”
Before she could finish speaking, her words sparked a lot of speculation. Madam Gu's face turned ashen, and she trembled with anger, pointing at Chu Ruohan, unable to utter a word.
The surrounding guests tried hard to suppress their laughter, and several ladies even secretly covered the corners of their mouths with their sleeves.
This matter was not a secret in the capital, but few people mentioned it in front of Madam Gu.
Uncle Gu had a mistress who had a son with him, who was several years older than the legitimate son born to Madam Gu.
Madam Gu had always considered this a great humiliation, and now that Chu Ruohan had exposed it in public, it was a slap in the face for her.
"You, you..." Madam Gu was so angry that she trembled, but she couldn't utter a complete sentence.
Chu Ruohan smiled slightly, looked around, and said loudly, "Today is my daughter's one-month birthday, and I am grateful for everyone's presence."
"I didn't want to offend everyone's ears with some nonsense, but since someone has brought it up, I, Chu Ruohan, hereby swear that the child in my womb is indeed the biological offspring of General Gu Junze, the Great General Who Protects the Nation. If there is even the slightest falsehood in this, may I be struck by lightning and die a horrible death!"
Her words were earnest and her eyes were firm. Everyone present was involuntarily intimidated by her aura, and many people nodded in agreement, thinking to themselves that this general's wife was indeed not someone to be trifled with.
Just as the atmosphere eased slightly, Du Ruoling arrived late with two maids. She wore a bright red dress, adorned with gold hairpins and jewels, and heavily made up, trying to use her glamorous appearance to cover up the fierceness and haggardness between her brows.
When the ladies saw Du Ruoling, the other protagonist of the rumors, appear, they looked at each other in bewilderment, but none of them took the initiative to pay attention to her.
A woman who obtained the title of princess through despicable means and had no real power base was nothing more than a clown in the eyes of these noble ladies, and they felt it would be beneath them to even glance at her.
Du Ruoling noticed the cold stares directed at her from all around, and felt annoyed.
She gave a wink to the maid beside her, and one of the maids immediately understood. Taking advantage of the crowd and the chaos, she quietly slipped away towards the backyard.
However, the shadow guards had already laid in ambush in every corner, and they had complete control over the maid's every move.
Du Ruoling walked up to Chu Ruohan with feigned elegance and said with a forced smile, "Congratulations to the General's wife on the birth of your daughter. But I wonder, should this child call Gu Cheng'an Uncle, or... something else?"
She deliberately dragged out the last syllable, her eyes filled with provocation and innuendo.
Chu Ruohan took a leisurely sip of tea, looking at Du Ruoling with disdain, as if watching a clown putting on a great show but receiving no applause.
"Thank you for your 'concern,' Princess. Speaking of which, I'm quite curious. When you faked your pregnancy to cling to Gu Cheng'an, was it because you'd never seen a man before, that you were so desperate that even a letter of divorce couldn't stop your delusional fantasies? It's truly heartbreaking to hear and tearful to see!"
"Pfft—" The ladies around could no longer hold back and burst out laughing, making no attempt to hide their contempt for Du Ruoling.
Du Ruoling was publicly hit where it hurt, and her face turned red with anger. She trembled all over and pointed at Chu Ruohan, stammering "You, you..." for a long time, but she was suppressed by Chu Ruohan's aura and could not utter a complete sentence, like a defeated rooster.
Meanwhile, in the backyard, Gu's mother was furtively searching each room.
She figured that with so many people coming and going outside, the baby wouldn't be taken to the front so early; they would wait until the banquet to take the child there. Right now, the wet nurse was probably the only one looking after the baby.
She keenly noticed the sound of a baby crying in one of the rooms.
She crept closer and peered through the crack in the window. She saw a woman who looked like a wet nurse gently soothing a baby in a cradle.
Mother Gu held her breath and waited patiently for the right moment.
Not long after, the wet nurse suddenly clutched her stomach, looked anxious, and hurriedly left, seemingly in a hurry to use the restroom.
Mother Gu was overjoyed, thinking to herself that even Heaven was on her side...