The Prime Minister’s Darling-Chapter 436 - : 220 Beating the Scum Marquis (Second Update)

Chapter 436: 220 Beating the Scum Marquis (Second Update)

The old Marquis was not aware of the return of Madam Yao and her son to the Capital City, thinking they were still at the Hot Springs Villa, and therefore had not sent them any messages.

He began to question his son and three grandchildren: “What are all these rumors spreading in the Capital City about?”

He was shocked to discover that during his absence from the Capital City, numerous significant events had occurred in the Marquis Residence.

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The first of which was the real background of Gu Jinyu. It was unsettling to learn that the child they had been raising was not theirs.

Then came the matter concerning Aunt Ling.

This also explained why Gu Chenglin had changed.

Aunt Ling had already been dealt with by the Old Madam Gu. Whether she was alive or dead, the old Marquis didn’t ask. He didn’t have the time to concern himself with a concubine.

As for his real granddaughter, who was unwilling to return to the Residence, he didn’t care much about that either.

She was merely a girl, and therefore not important. Besides, she was already married. Once a daughter is married off, she no longer belongs to her birth family.

Neither the father nor the three sons mentioned the incident where Gu Jiao thrashed Gu Chenglin for bullying Gu Yan.

Speaking of it would do them no good; they were the ones who ended up getting beaten anyway.

Gu Yan was frail, incapable of withstanding a beating. No matter what wrong he committed, he was never punished physically.

Moreover, Gu Jinyu, who was the daughter of the Marquis Residence, was not expected to carry its burden. Regardless of whether she caused trouble, the old Marquis never laid a finger on her.

Therefore, Gu Jiao would not be punished either.

Regardless, the Marquis Residence was in chaos—those who should get punished, those who moved out, and those who were corrupt, all had to be punished!

The Marquis had been thrashed once already, so now he would receive another beating.

Marquis Gu: “…!!”

Are you still my real father?

The old Marquis turned to Gu Changqing: “As the older brother, you failed to control your two younger brothers. Shouldn’t you be punished?”

Gu Changqing, with his eyes lowered, replied, “I should be punished.”

The old Marquis had not seen the complexity in his eyes and said solemnly, “Alright, one hundred military whips.”

Gu Chengfeng was to receive fifty military whips, and Gu Chenglin fifty as well.

Gu Changqing said, “My third brother is still recovering from serious injuries and couldn’t withstand the whips. I’ll accept the punishment on his behalf.”

Gu Chengfeng quickly offered, “I can also take the punishment for our third brother!”

“Fine, add twenty more whips each,” the old Marquis said coldly, then turned to Gu Chenglin with half of his hair remaining, “Bear the remaining ten whips. If you can’t, then I’ll have to disown you as my grandson!”

No one was as ruthless as the old Marquis!

When Gu Changqing disciplined his two brothers, the Old Madam Gu dared to cry, cause a scene, and even threaten suicide. But when the old Marquis gave the order, and the whips cracked upon his son and grandsons, the Old Madam Gu dared not utter a single word.

Marquis Gu was whipped until his body was covered in wounds.

“That’s enough.” the old Marquis said, “Don’t beat him to death; we still have to go to the palace to apologize.”

Marquis Gu who felt he had nothing to live for: “…”

You really are my real father!

The old Marquis brought his son to the palace to apologize to the Emperor.

The old Marquis knelt down and saluted, then clenched his fists in front of his chest: “It is my fault as a father for not educating my child properly. The monstrous disaster that young girl caused was due to my indulgence. I have brought this unruly son here for Your Majesty to deal with however you see fit!”

The Emperor glanced at Marquis Gu, whose face was swollen and bruised beyond recognition.

Having been beaten to such an extent, the Emperor couldn’t bring himself to punish him further.

The Emperor cleared his throat and waved his hand, “Forget it. This matter is not Marquis Gu’s fault. The young girl was just being reckless due to her youth; she just needs more discipline in the future.”

The official reason given for Gu Jinyu’s punishment was still the damage caused to the jade seal, but a new charge of deceiving the Emperor was added.

However, whether the deception was related to the bellows or the sticky rice mortar, the officials did not elaborate on.

This kind of ambiguity just amplified the rumors, and by now there were quite a few voices in the public blaming Gu Jinyu for falsely claiming credit for the bellows.

Strictly speaking, the main responsibility of this incident does not lie with Gu Jinyu. Although she provided the blueprints for the modifications, it was the Ministry of Works who decided to use them.

The Ministry’s supervisor had detected problems with her modifications early on but they not only failed to prevent it, they leapt over the normal process of testing and moved into illegal mass production using under skilled laborers.

But the old Marquis couldn’t exonerate Gu Jinyu. He declared that the Marquis Residence would bear all the losses. Moreover, he requested the Emperor to revoke Gu Jinyu’s County Mistress title.

The Emperor sighed, “Ah, why the insistence, old Marquis? I have already revoked her title of Regional Mistress, let her keep the County Mistress’s title.”

“I urge Your Majesty to reconsider!” the old Marquis insisted.

The emperor, with an air of reluctance, decreed the revocation of Gu Jinyu’s county princess title.

Gu Jinyu finally walked out of the Ministry of Punishment, but she was not able to feel elated.

Just over half a month ago, she had been an eminent second-rank princess, but now she was stripped of everything.

It’s not painful when you fall on flat ground, but the sensation is a lot worse when you topple from a great height.

Upon returning to the Marquis Residence, she retreated to the courtyard, bathed comfortably in hot water, changed into clean clothes, groomed herself, and then went to the Flower Hall to pay homage to her grandfather, the Marquis.

She choked back her tears, her eyes slightly red: “Grandfather, Jin Yu knows her mistake, Jin Yu is willing to kneel in penance in the ancestral hall.”

“There’s no need for that,” the Old Marquis said.

Gu Jinyu was relieved – her grandfather still cherished her and would not make her kneel!

In the next moment, she heard the Old Marquis coldly say: “You are not of the Gu family, and have no rights to pay respect to its ancestors. And, do not call me grandfather from now on.”

Gu Jinyu was immediately stunned.

The Old Marquis has always been a strict and harsh head of the household, never hesitating to punish his children or grandchildren, except Gu Yan and Gu Jinyu.

Gu Jinyu used to think her grandfather was giving them special care, but now, she felt he simply didn’t care about them at all.

Gu Jinyu was wrong.

It wasn’t that the Old Marquis didn’t care about them; it was that he didn’t care about her in particular.

The Old Marquis did cherish Gu Yan, otherwise he wouldn’t have assigned him two covert guards, a luxury that not even Gu Chengfeng or Gu Chenglin had.

The Old Marquis blatantly prioritized males over females – even his own granddaughter was neglected, much more so a non-biological one.

After handling the affairs of his residence, the Old Marquis once again entered the palace.

News of the Old Marquis’ return quickly spread through the Capital City. Almost everyone knew that this once commanding veteran had returned, but it didn’t matter much as his military authority had been relinquished, and the Gu Family’s army had been reassigned to others.

Gu Jiao had always shown no interest in matters outside her purview; she didn’t know about the return of the Old Marquis. She was counting batches of healing ointment delivered from the factory.

This was the second batch of healing ointment custom-made for the military camp.

After randomly checking a few bottles, she found no issues with the quality.

“I don’t have much going on today; I’ll deliver it myself.” While she was at it, she was also going to deliver some items to Xue Ningxiang’s younger half-brother, Zhou Erzhuang.

Because she was delivering medicinal herbs, Gu Jiao was allowed to enter the military camp.

The soldiers had just finished their practice and were resting on an open ground. The air was heavy with the scent of sweat and weapons.

These were the familiar scents from her previous life.

Gu Jiao didn’t look around much; she took the carriage straight to the medical officers’ barracks.

She was greeted by a certain Medical Officer Lu.

Gu Changqing had informed him a few days ago, so Medical Officer Lu treated her with utmost courtesy, yet anxiously and cautiously warned her: “Don’t wander off later. Once I’ve checked the herbs, leave immediately.”

They had received news this morning that a prominent figure would be visiting the camp.

This figure was of such high rank that even the seldom-seen Marquis of Xuanping had been summoned to the camp.

The Marquis of Xuanping was disgruntled and grumbled from his ride in the carriage without relief. He refused to get out of the carriage: “I didn’t expect this from you, General R.”

General R was standing beside the carriage. He saluted deferentially and, with a smile, responded: “My lord must be jesting. How dare I disturb the Marquis’ sweet dreams? It’s just…”

He looked around, took a step forward, leaned closer to the carriage and whispered: “Someone’s arriving from the palace. The General is worried they won’t be able to handle the situation and hence asked me to request your presence here, no matter what. Half of the forces here are from the Gu Family. They can’t be restrained by just anyone, we need your presence, Marquis!”

The Marquis of Xuanping nonchalantly asked: “What part am I to play in this?”

General R awkwardly pulled back the curtains and said: “My lord, please descend from the carriage. It’s sultry inside. I’ve prepared some good wine and food to be served to you shortly.”

The conditions inside the carriage were indeed stifling.

The Marquis of Xuanping alighted from the carriage with a stern expression.

Despite his cold demeanor, his handsome and noble countenance was undeniable.

General R then continued: “There’s not much to it. The General suggests… perhaps you could lead the soldiers in drills, maybe arrange some troops, set up some formations or something, make it more intimidating! I’ll summon everyone!”

“Why the grand spectacle? The Emperor wouldn’t know the difference anyway,” replied the Marquis of Xuanping while adjusting his sleeve cuffs, languidly adding: “Just bluff your way through.”

The Emperor and the Old Marquis had just dismounted from their carriages when they heard this disrespectful remark.

The Old Marquis: “…”

The Emperor: “…”