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Chapter 19: Agreement to Marry (Part 7)

Seeing that the other person still had concerns, Gu Leyou set down her basket and rolled up her sleeves.

“Miss Gu, what are you doing?” Lu Yan looked at her actions, puzzled.

“Of course, I’m going to prove to you that I’m not afraid of hardship. You’re afraid that after marrying you, I won’t be happy, that I’ll suffer and regret it, right? But we’re daughters of farming families—what’s so scary about a bit of hardship?”

Gu Leyou raised her voice a little, which caused some passersby to stop in their tracks.

Soon, some gossipy aunties behind her started talking.

“Do you think that girl from the second Gu family is bewitched? Who rushes to get married like that? Sure, country girls marry young, but none throw themselves at a man like her.”

“Shameless. Who knows how that couple from the Gu family raised her—no wonder she did something so disgraceful back then.”

Hearing these unpleasant words, Gu Leyou clenched her fists. Lu Yan wanted to defend her, but she stopped him.

“These aunties speak way too harshly. I know you’re a good girl—you’re not like what they say. I should explain this to them clearly.”

But Gu Leyou looked indifferent and replied, “It’s useless. No matter how you explain, they won’t believe you. They’ve already decided I’m someone without morals. Even if you reason with them till the sky falls, they still won’t believe you. So why bother? It’s better to ignore all these outside voices.”

After all, she had a clear conscience—she wasn’t afraid of baseless gossip.

So the two of them continued walking until they reached Lu Yan’s home. Before they even entered the courtyard, they heard the sound of a child’s cheerful laughter.

Lu Yan smiled warmly and said to Gu Leyou, “I haven’t heard Xiao Yao laugh so happily in a long time. Looks like Little Xu really knows what he’s doing.”

Turns out, the young miracle doctor was there too. But just as Gu Leyou approached the entrance, she stopped.

If that little doctor was there, it was only a matter of time before her secret—her medical knowledge—was exposed. Instead of being found out later, maybe it was better not to face him now. But she had promised to visit Lu Yan’s son, and backing out now wouldn’t seem right either.

Gu Leyou felt very conflicted.

Seeing her hesitate, Lu Yan asked, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Why aren’t you going in?”

She struggled to explain. After all, she had promised to visit his son. Would he think she was unreliable if she backed out now?

“I… I don’t know how to say this…” she stammered.

Seeing her troubled expression, Lu Yan gently reassured her: “We’re almost married—almost husband and wife. There’s nothing you can’t tell me. Just say what’s on your mind.”

“Brother Lu,” Gu Leyou began, “I just want you to keep my secret in front of that little miracle doctor. I’m afraid he’ll ask me questions, and if I don’t have good answers, it’ll be really awkward.”

While they were talking, the courtyard door suddenly opened and Xiao Yao came running out, hugging Gu Leyou’s leg. He looked up with sparkling eyes and said excitedly, “Sister, you came to see me again! It’s so lively today—so many people came to play with me! I’m so happy!”

Gu Leyou smiled and gently patted his head.

Now that the child had personally come to welcome her, she had no choice but to go in.

So she let Xiao Yao hold her hand and lead her inside.

When Xu Qingshan saw her, he stood up and greeted her politely, “Hello, future sister-in-law.”

Gu Leyou blushed immediately.

Lu Yan shot a look at the young doctor and said, “Don’t talk nonsense—she’s not yet.”

But Xiao Yao quickly chimed in, correcting his father: “She will be soon! I heard the neighbor aunties say grandma and grandpa already agreed to let her marry you. The wedding is soon!”

“You cheeky rascal, don’t get too excited. You know you’re still recovering,” Lu Yan scolded gently.

Gu Leyou noticed some herbs on the small table and walked over to examine them carefully.

Seeing her interest, Xu Qingshan came over to introduce them: “I bought this at a high price from the pharmacy. It can help stabilize the child’s condition. I want to get him treated as soon as possible.”

Gu Leyou recognized the herbs instantly.

Weren’t these the same ones she had grown in her Spiritual Spring Space and sold? So he had bought them.

Although she had medical skills, she still needed some guidance from him.

“Little doctor, how much did you pay for this?” Gu Leyou asked curiously.

“Fifty taels of silver. The pharmacy owner told me it was extremely rare, so it was expensive.”

So the pharmacy owner took advantage of him. She had sold it for two taels, and they resold it for fifty—a markup of 25 times!

But this was how business worked. Even though she knew the truth, she decided not to reveal it.

“Oh, it does look very rare. That price makes sense,” Gu Leyou played along.

The little doctor asked, “Miss, you keep staring at that herb—have you seen it before? I heard from Brother Lu that you often go into the mountains to gather herbs. Did you see it there?”

“Yes, I’ve seen it. But the place was dangerous, so I didn’t go. After all, I’m just a girl going into the mountains alone. If anything happened, there’d be no one to help.”

After that, she played with Xiao Yao and took the chance to check his pulse.

After a while, she had a good sense of his condition.

Thankfully, his pulse was much steadier now. As long as he wasn’t triggered emotionally, there should be no relapse in the short term.

But she still needed to investigate what kind of poison the child had been afflicted with in the first place.

She had wanted to ask Lu Yan, but they weren’t close enough yet, and it would’ve been awkward. Even if she had asked, he might not have answered—so the question was never raised again.

Once they were officially married, she’d need to find a chance to ask. She also had her doubts about their identities. She had never seen the child’s mother, and the father and son never mentioned her. That was quite suspicious.

But today, she had come with another purpose: to have a proper face-to-face conversation with Lu Yan.

After all, with too many people around earlier, it hadn’t been the right time.

She needed to finalize this matter quickly—just as her aunt had warned—before things got complicated.

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