C9 Unfilial Daughter!!

Upon uncovering the full story, Gu Zhiwei revealed Gu Ruoshan's act of impersonation. However, when Gu Tingchuan learned the truth, he not only refrained from blaming Lin Li and her daughter but also turned around and scolded Gu Zhiwei for unmasking the deception. As Gu Zhiwei threatened to disclose the truth to Old Mrs. Bo, Gu Tingchuan, in a fit of rage, smashed a bowl on the table. Had Gu Zhiwei not dodged swiftly, she might have been injured.

Gu Tingchuan, perceiving the malice in Gu Zhiwei's gaze, slammed his hand on the table and bellowed, "You ingrate! What kind of look is that? Is this the respect you show your elders? How did my family ever raise someone as ungrateful as you?"

"Elders? You mean the kind who sent me off to the countryside to fend for myself when I was ten and burning with fever?" Gu Zhiwei retorted with a sneer, her arms crossed and her chin lifted defiantly.

"Or perhaps you're referring to the kind who blamed their own miscarriage on a ten-year-old child?" She had been seriously ill, an illness that could have been treated promptly at a hospital. Yet, after Lin Li's miscarriage, she accused Gu Zhiwei of causing the child's death. That very night, Gu Tingchuan abandoned a feverish Gu Zhiwei in a desolate rural area, an act tantamount to murder. If not for the benevolent Ms. Zhu, who took her in and nursed her back to health with herbal remedies, Gu Zhiwei might have been reduced to bones over a decade ago.

A flicker of remorse crossed Gu Tingchuan's eyes as he recalled the past. Gu Ruoshan, seizing the moment, spoke gently, "Sister, Dad is only harsh because he cares about you. Please apologize to him. Once you do, he won't be angry anymore." Her words noticeably softened Gu Tingchuan's demeanor.

Gu Zhiwei shot her a cold look and asked, "Doesn't it exhaust you to keep up this act every day?" Gu Ruoshan's face paled, her lips quivered, and she retreated a couple of steps, clearly unsettled by the intense aura radiating from Gu Zhiwei.

Gu Zhiwei approached, whispering so only the two of them could hear, "Your eyes are truly beautiful. Imagine how stunning they would look on Zhinan."

"You…" Gu Ruoshan stumbled backward in horror, unintentionally or not, and fell. The back of her head struck the floor, her eyes rolled back, and she was silenced.

"Ruoshan!"

Gu Tingchuan and Lin Li dashed to her side, their faces etched with alarm.

"Monster!"

Enraged, Gu Tingchuan lunged at Gu Zhiwei, his hand raised to strike her across the face. But Zhiwei caught his wrist with a grip that belied her delicate fingers' surprising strength.

Humiliated by the rebuff, Gu Tingchuan barked, "You... How dare you defy me?"

Zhiwei scoffed, "Gu Tingchuan, the Qing Dynasty has been gone for over a century. Why do you persist in living as if in a feudal society?"

"You...!" Gu Tingchuan's fury caused his chest to tighten with pain, and he nearly stumbled into an expensive decorative piece nearby.

Lin Li steadied Gu Tingchuan, her glare fixed on Zhiwei, her initial composure gone. "What exactly do you want?"

Zhiwei's eyes narrowed, a chill flashing through them. "I've returned today solely to reclaim my mother's legacy."

That legacy was the sole jade pendant her mother had left for her and Zhinan. At ten years old, after being left unconscious in the countryside, she awoke to find the pendant that once hung around her neck had vanished without a trace.

Ms. Zhu had told her that when she was found, there was no pendant around her neck. Grandma Zhu would never lie to her. Gu Tingchuan had no interest in the pendant. It was only Lin Li who had long coveted it.