Chapter Fifteen: Turmoil Within the Gu Family (2)

This time, the trouble in the Gu family was not particularly serious.
Someone had helped organize the evidence, and the lawyers barely needed to lift a finger—Gu Zhiheng only had to wait for the outcome.
At noon, he arranged for Gu Zhixia to take He Yu—his sister’s daughter—to the hospital to deliver lunch.
Gu Zhiheng lounged alone on a bench beneath the shade of a tree, feeling languid. The temperature was high, and before long, the sun made him dizzy.
“Young Master, the sons and daughters of the eldest and third masters have come over. Shall I let them in?” the butler asked cautiously.
He respected this young master—who was returning home for the first time—as the head of the Gu family. After all, he had been the personal assistant of the former patriarch, Gu Zhiheng’s grandfather, and only became the family’s butler after the old man passed away.
Looking at Gu Zhiheng now was like seeing a smaller version of the old patriarch; naturally, his loyalties leaned toward him.
“What’s the thirteenth rule in the Gu family’s ancestral code?” Forgive him, he was so dizzy from the sun he didn’t want to think.
“Young Master, it states: ‘All affairs of the Gu family are to be decided by the head of the family; no direct or collateral descendant may object.’”
Ah, such a rule—so autocratic!
“Let them in, then. Visitors to the door are not to be refused; let them have some tea and send them on their way.”
Let them drink some tea, hear the gossip, and then usher them out.
Seeing Gu Zhiheng looking on the verge of fainting, the butler broke into a cold sweat and hurried over to help him up.
He asked anxiously, “Young Master, with your health, you really shouldn’t be out in the sun. Let me help you inside to rest.”
A little more sun, and he really would have passed out.
“Yes, my health is indeed poor. I ought to nourish myself better.” Mostly, he’d eaten too many things he should have avoided, and was likely malnourished by now.
It was a miracle he’d survived this long, considering the meals cooked by the ghostly woman in the ancestral hall kitchen were only just edible.
When Chu Xingran occasionally came back for a while, it was either insanely spicy food or a cold banquet of things he wasn’t supposed to eat.
His poor health wasn’t solely due to the Gu family’s circumstances; a large part of it stemmed from his long-term diet.
No sooner had Gu Zhiheng reclined on the sofa than a voice came from the doorway: “Well, you’ve barely returned and already thrown the house into chaos, yet still have the leisure for a midday nap!”
Just listen to that!
Who’s the chicken, who’s the dog?
Who’s flying, who’s jumping?
To have a mouth and not know how to use it—truly pitiful. But pitiful people often have only themselves to blame.
“What are you shouting for? No manners, no respect!” Gu Zhiheng retorted, frowning in irritation.
What kind of upbringing had these Gu children received, that each was worse than the last?
“Manners? Since when is it your place to talk about the family rules?” This time, the speaker was a greasy man—so repulsive it was hard to look at him.
The Gu family was known for its looks; how did a toad like this slip in?
Gu Zhiheng couldn’t be bothered to answer this crowd. He simply gestured to the butler to bring over what he had prepared, then handed it out to the group.
The butler, quick on the uptake, dashed to the first floor storage room and returned with a stack of books, distributing one to each of these hopeless sons and daughters.
Perhaps fearing they’d miss the point, he made sure to set the books down face up in front of everyone.
The greasy man could not contain himself and shouted at Gu Zhiheng, “What the hell do you mean by this—bringing out the family rule book?”
“Nothing much, just thought your memories are poor and you could use a little refresher on the family code.”
Let them see clearly that the Gu family is not a place for tantrums and childish antics.
Having said his piece, Gu Zhiheng closed his eyes, ignoring their angry outbursts. The harsher their scolding, the harsher the penalties he would impose.
Before he’d returned, the Gu family had been like a pile of loose sand. It was time to put things in order.
Though the Gu family had declined compared to its former glory, it was still a major household by worldly standards.
At the very least, the Gu family was now on par with the Mo family in rank.
One could well imagine the Gu family’s current strength and influence was not to be underestimated.
“One hour. Take a good look at it—I’ll be quizzing you all afterwards.” His casual tone was classic Gu Zhiheng.
“Oh, and allow me to introduce myself: Gu Zhiheng, current head of the Gu family!”
Before waking up these fools, he had to make sure they knew who they were dealing with.
He felt exhausted from talking so much lately.
He missed the quiet of the ancestral hall, where no one—human or spirit—would disturb him when he wanted solitude.
The outside world was different; dealing with people was nothing like life in that remote mountain village, Jinfeng Town.
That place had a name that sounded rich and powerful, but in reality, it was anything but.
Compared to big towns like Mingshui and Mingmu, both famous enclaves for the wealthy, it was so poor that people could barely afford to eat.
Perhaps the problem wasn’t the people, but the feng shui.
Yet the feng shui of Jinfeng Town was actually quite good—especially the land where his family's ancestral hall stood; it was first-rate.
But never mind, he was out now. No need to dwell on those matters for the time being.
“Young Master, the air conditioning is a bit low. Cover yourself with a blanket while you nap,” the butler said, his concern for Gu Zhiheng obvious.
The others, however, he ignored completely.
Gu Zhiheng had said to serve them tea, but the butler gave them only plain boiled water—no tea leaves for them.
They simply didn’t deserve it.
He’d thought that after the old witch was taken away by the police this morning, things would quiet down, but these people were like a swarm of flies—buzzing incessantly.
“That’s enough, Gu Zhiheng! We didn’t come here to watch you show off—hand over the position of family head!”
A jinx from some backwater—what right did he have to be the patriarch?
He hadn’t contributed a thing to the Gu family’s growth and achievements—how could he be entitled to it all?
A wicked, mocking smile played about Gu Zhiheng’s lips as he replied, “Oh, getting impatient already? How dull!”
Dealing with these losers would take no more than a moment, but he couldn’t be bothered—he’d rather watch them tear each other apart.
“The majority of the company shares are in my hands. If any of you can get ten percent, I’ll give you five more!”
His predatory gaze made their scalps tingle.
When the snipe and the clam struggle, the fisherman profits!
Sometimes, playing games like this was quite entertaining.
The Gu family was already a tangled mess—he didn’t mind stirring the pot a little more.
Of course, in the end, the only one to benefit would be Gu Zhiheng.
Once everything was in his hands, he alone would decide how to distribute and arrange it all.
“What did you say? The majority of shares are in your hands?” The greasy man stared at Gu Zhiheng in disbelief.
The controlling shares had always been with the old woman; how had he managed, in less than a day, to seize control of the company?
Impossible! A clueless bumpkin from the countryside—how could he have that kind of ability? Absolutely impossible!