She suppressed her unhappiness and gave Senior Master Gu a dutiful and adorable smile. She also used public chopsticks to give Senior Master Gu a few bites of food. âGrandpa Gu, you should also eat.â
âGood, good child,â Senior Master Gu said with a smile, âLanlan, Iâve discussed it with your aunt and uncle, and youâll live in the servantsâ building of your uncleâs house in the future. The cook there will look after you. She is especially skilled, so your future meals will be a treat.â
Senior Master Gu repeatedly referred to Gu Chi as Lanlanâs uncle, subtly underlining their generation gap, hoping Sheng Ruolan would dismiss any impractical notions about his son.
âLi⦠living in the servantsâ house?â Sheng Ruolan trembled and nearly dropped the chopsticks on the table, her eyes wide in disbelief.
âYes,â nodded Senior Master Gu, âYour aunt and uncle are very close, and this main house is where they spend their time. Young people need their private space. Itâs inconvenient for you to live here. The servantsâ house is right next to the main house, and itâs also quite nice. We will arrange the largest room for you.â
âBu⦠Butâ¦â Sheng Ruolan started stuttering with her face turning pale. âGrandpa Gu, Iâm⦠Iâm a guest, arenât I? You⦠Youâ¦â
Sheng Ruolan was thrown into disruption.
She was a guest, right!
A beloved guest!
And they wanted her to live in the servantsâ quarters!
Was this a joke?
âLanlan, since I promise your grandpa to take care of you, you are my family, and this is your home. Donât see yourself as an outsider!â Senior Master Gu picked up some more vegetables for her. âThat handsome young man who took you out earlier, his name is Gu Chi, your uncleâs personal bodyguard. He also lives in the servantsâ quarters and will take care of you in the future.â
Sheng Ruolanâs face turned even paler, and she was trembling as she held her chopsticks.
What did this mean?
Did they want to match her with Gu family bodyguard?
When they said they were finding a good future for her, was a bodyguard what they meant?
Sheng Ruolan was so upset that she was close to tears, but she knew that Senior Master Gu was her only support now and she couldnât afford to fall out with him.
If she fell out with Senior Master Gu and left the Gu family, she would be a homeless stray dog with nothing left.
But she couldnât accept living in the servantsâ quarters or being paired with a bodyguard.
Sheâd worked so hard to have her grandpa call for Senior Master Gu on his deathbed and entrust her to him. It was all just to find a reliable foothold for leading a good life in the future.
How could she live in the servantsâ quarters?
Just by the name, you could tell it was a place for servants to live!
She was struggling to control her emotions, forcing a smile to Senior Master Gu, âGrandpa Gu, it would probably not be very appropriate for me to live in the servantsâ quarters, would it? My family was once the richest in Sheng City, and I am the only child. My grandpa loved me more than anything. If he knew I was living in the servantsâ quarters, he would be heartbroken.â
âWhy would he be heartbroken by you living in the servantsâ quarters?â Senior Master Gu wondered. âWhen your grandpa was with me, he lived in the servantsâ quarters too. What difference does it make where one lives?â
Sheng Ruolan was so angry she felt chest pain.
How could she be the same as her grandpa?
She knew her grandpa had been a soldier under Senior Master Gu and was there to serve him.
But she wasnât like that!
She stammered, âGrandpa Gu, L⦠Iâm also your granddaughter, arenât I? Since I am your granddaughter, I should be the mistress of this house, shouldnât I? Why⦠why do I have to live in the servantsâ quarters?â