The arrival of two strangers naturally caught everyone’s attention, including the Gu Family.

The two Gu brothers felt imbalanced in their hearts. Why did the two long-time followers of the third brother manage to follow along?

The two brothers exchanged glances and angrily sought out Gu Kaiyuan.

"What’s going on? How are they here?"

"Second Brother, is there a problem with them being here?" Gu Kaiyuan feigned ignorance and asked.

"Weren’t all the servants of our family taken away by the authorities?" Gu Kaichen couldn’t help but think of his own long-time followers. Those two lads understood him well, and if they were around to serve him, he wouldn’t be suffering so much.

"Indeed, they were taken by the authorities, but we were all bought by Mrs. Bai, and now we are servants of the Bai Mansion," Lin Hua and Lin Wei said with neither arrogance nor servility.

These two masters barely paid attention to them before. Today, it’s rare for them to bother about the two, even coming to Gu Kaiyuan to question him.

The two brothers, "..."

The words they had prepared were now stuck in their throats. Why was the Bai family so annoying, couldn’t they just buy all the Gu family’s servants?

"Do you know where the other servants of the Gu Mansion went?"

Gu Kaiping still held some hope. Maybe Mrs. Bai had done a good deed, and if asked, given the marital relations, she might agree, right?

"We don’t know. At that time, the authorities took everyone away and handed them over to several brokers, and many got scattered.

We two brothers were lucky enough to be seen by Mrs. Bai, who then bought us."

"So this time, Mrs. Bai sent you to serve us?" Gu Kaichen’s eyes turned, wanting to categorize Lin Hua and Lin Wei directly.

"Second Young Master Gu misunderstood. We are following the lady’s orders to deliver some items to the young lady and the master-in-law.

We need to return to report, so we cannot serve our former masters," Lin Wei had previously received instructions and knew how to respond.

The two brothers returned, sullen-faced, to their ox cart and recounted what Lin Hua and Lin Wei had just said, prompting another round of cursing from Xu Huizhen.

She cursed the Bai family for being opportunistic and ungrateful.

She cursed Gu Kaiyuan for being unfilial, only knowing to ingratiate himself with Ms. Bai.

She said even harsher words about Bai Suihe...

Despite this, Liu Yun and Xu Yulan looked towards the back of the procession with eyes full of envy.

Why didn’t they have such supportive family backing?

They didn’t want to reestablish relations with Bai Suihe; it’s just that those escorts seemed to protect Bai Suihe, not only separating two carts far apart but also sometimes scolding them when they approached.

"Enough, stop arguing," Gu Baijiang finally spoke up as he could no longer bear the noise, "Kaiyuan has food. He will surely take care of us. When we take a break, go ask him for some."

"What? Will the third brother give it?" Gu Kaiping held no hope. Ever since the family was exiled, Gu Kaiyuan seemed to have changed and become estranged from the family.

But they never considered their own responsibility, as they had continuously pushed Gu Kaiyuan away themselves.

"You two brothers should apologize sincerely to your third brother. After all, you did go too far before.

If back then, you had left a space for Ms. Bai and not spoken so harshly, things wouldn’t be this divided."

Gu Kaiping looked at Gu Kaichen with reproachful eyes. If it weren’t for the second branch, would they have had to make a pregnant woman suffer?

"Listen to your father. You are brothers connected by blood and flesh. First, bring him back," Xu Huizhen thought of the coarse grain they had exchanged from the village and figured she could be generous this once and forgive the unfilial son.

Sitting in the cart, Bai Suihe watched Gu Kaiyuan with a smirk, "Shall we make a bet? There’s sure to be a spectacle today."

Gu Kaiyuan glanced at the two maids giggling while covering their mouths, then smiled at Bai Suihe with helplessness, "Aren’t you involved? Are you sure you want to watch this spectacle?"

Bai Suihe, "But their fire is directed at you. Why don’t you proactively send some help over?"

Gu Kaiyuan shook his head, "The next stop is the post station, and they have no reason."

Bai Suihe, "... Can we reach the post station today?"

Gu Kaiyuan, with experience, said, "Guaranteed, we’ll get there, and there’s a street right in front of the post station where each household can send one person to shop."

Bai Suihe, "Are we considered one household with them?" She also longed to stroll through the ancient street market, having previously focused solely on buying supplies without savoring the experience.

"We’ll talk to Mr. Liu and ask for some leeway. It shouldn’t be a significant issue.

If it doesn’t work, if there’s anything you need, we can have Chun Xiang and the others buy it."

Bai Suihe nodded, "It’s a pity we can’t see their expressions upon arriving at the post station."

Gu Kaiyuan straightened Bai Suihe’s hair, which had been blown astray by the wind, "Don’t be too curious, just remember to keep your distance from the Gu Family and don’t let them drag you down."

Bai Suihe frowned slightly, "What do you mean?"

Gu Kaiyuan nodded, "If possible, I don’t even want to stay the night at the post station."

He felt a little conflicted inside. After all, they were his parents who gave birth to him and raised him. Could he really leave them behind without assistance?

Bai Suihe sighed softly, realizing the first major turning point in the book, "If you want to help, then go ahead and help, as long as you have no regrets in your heart." 𝒻𝓇𝑒𝘦𝘸𝑒𝒷𝓃ℴ𝑣𝘦𝑙.𝒸ℴ𝘮

Gu Kaiyuan gently touched Bai Suihe’s belly, "I’ll think about it."

Dong Mei and Chun Xiang, not knowing what sort of puzzles the two masters were contemplating, continued attending to their tasks.

They still had to sew additional soles for the two men driving outside, as there were many errands for them to run, and thin soles wouldn’t do.

Sure enough, they arrived at the post station before nightfall.

"Then why did those escorts previously agree to the village exchanging food?" Bai Suihe was somewhat puzzled. Why make an extra effort, needlessly delaying much time?

Gu Kaiyuan’s gaze softened a bit, "Exchanging goods with the village is half as expensive as buying at the post station.

These people know that if everything were bought at the post station, many wouldn’t have enough to last until the place of exile.

By doing so, they helped themselves save on food rations and helped everyone save on living costs."

"These escorts are indeed quite considerate," Bai Suihe’s perception of these people improved significantly.

"Although they appear quite formidable now, they’ve also endured hardships.

If their families had some capability, they wouldn’t be doing this bitter work.

As long as you don’t challenge their bottom line, they generally won’t make things too difficult."

Bai Suihe also realized that the book’s portrayal of these secondary characters was certainly superficial, and to highlight the protagonists, some negative portrayals must be included.

But real human nature isn’t as terrifying unless pushed to the very edge.

These escorts, too, have families and children; how harsh can they be?

Perhaps to the protagonists, not having everything go their way makes someone an enemy.