CHAPTER 31: CHAPTER 31 UNWILLING

Mingming knows Gu Junming has no feelings for her, yet she shamelessly tags along to attend his grandfather’s birthday party. If people found out, they would surely laugh at her! She held back her tears several times.

Bai Chuan was also suppressing his anger, his fists tightly clenched under the table. This brat dared to humiliate the Bai Family like this! His several attempts to form an alliance were rejected by Gu Junming, and he couldn’t even secure a marriage for his granddaughter. Bai Chuan has completely given up on Gu Junming.

Because of this incident, Bai Fanglan stopped speaking. Except for Gu Juntao, everyone else knew about Bai Fanglan’s feelings for Gu Junming, but Gu Junming laid it bare without a trace of subtleness, making things awkward and the atmosphere palpably tense.

After eating for a while, Gu Junming put down his chopsticks and stood up, "Grandfather, I need to head back to X City. I only took a six-hour leave this time, so I have to go now."

"Alright, your work is important. Go ahead."

Gu Junming bid everyone a simple farewell and then left.

Bai Chuan also sat for a little longer before directly taking his leave, and naturally, the Gu Family warmly saw him off.

Once everyone had departed, Gu Dongfang returned to her room to rest.

Wang Guihua had the maid clean up the table, sighed, and said, "Even if he doesn’t like her, he shouldn’t reject her like this. A girl’s self-esteem gets hurt!"

Gu Zishan said nothing. He personally preferred to maintain closer ties with the Bai Family, but since his son didn’t like it, he couldn’t force him. His son had already been quite wronged over the years, so how could he force him into anything?

Gu Juntao said, "Mom, Sister Lanlan doesn’t like my brother. Didn’t she say they were just friends? Why are you worried?"

"Go, go, what business is it of yours?"

Gu Juntao didn’t mind and happily went upstairs.

Wang Guihua complained to Gu Zishan again, "I’m just the stepmother, so it’s hard to say anything, but when you have time, talk to your son. With a personality like his, he’ll suffer in the army. Offending the Bai Family like this, what future can there be?"

Gu Zishan replied unhappily, "If he doesn’t like her, he shouldn’t be forced to be together. Do you think the only way to succeed is to rely on the Bai Family? Are you looking down on me or my son?"

"That’s not what I meant, I wasn’t..."

"You don’t understand military matters, so don’t ask! I only spoke to him because I listened to you, and then my son mocked me. When have we ever raised someone in the Gu Family who is afraid to face life and death?"

Wang Guihua realized her husband was upset and kept quiet. Although she came from a high-ranking family, her parents didn’t really raise her, and once married, she wasn’t aware of the related complexities.

Bai Fanglan started crying again on the road. She really didn’t know how to face Gu Junming and the Gu Family in the future. She couldn’t believe Gu Junming could be so heartless!

"Enough!" Bai Chuan frowned and said, "Now, everything Grandfather can do for you has been done, and you know Gu Junming’s intentions. This brat didn’t reject your arrival to their house because he wanted to refuse you face-to-face. If you keep entangling him, the Bai Family would become a laughingstock! You’re not allowed to go find Gu Junming anymore!"

"But Grandfather, why... why doesn’t he like me? What’s wrong with me?" Bai Fanglan sobbed more intensely, feeling more and more wronged.

From childhood, everyone said she was smart and beautiful and came from a noble background. Even though her parents were deceased, they sacrificed for the country, making them a family to be admired. Why did Gu Junming reject her so coldly?

Bai Chuan knew the primary reason Gu Junming rejected Bai Fanglan was that he didn’t want any involvement and that the two could never stand on the same side. But he couldn’t say that to his granddaughter, so he just patted her shoulder and said, "Alright, I will find someone for you to date and get married soon. I will definitely find someone better and with a higher position than Gu Junming."

"No! I can’t give up like this. How will my colleagues and friends see me? I won’t give up!" Bai Fanglan cried more loudly, her unwillingness overshadowing her sadness.

Bai Chuan slightly frowned, feeling his granddaughter was spoiled and a bit unreasonable! But he knew anything he said now would fall on deaf ears, so he didn’t argue with her, deciding to let time cool things down first.

Sun Chan, after hours of bumpy travel, finally got off the bus and looked at the large city X City in front of her, feeling a bit lost. The city was much larger than the town she lived in before. Although it was only the 1980s, there were already many tall buildings, the streets were wide, and various small cars were driving around.

Unfamiliar with everything here, Sun Chan didn’t dare to wander around. She first found a guesthouse to stay.

She asked for the cheapest room, then went out to find work.

She went to several hospitals to ask if they needed caregivers. But she hit walls everywhere.

No one knew her, and she was young, so no one trusted her.

Sun Chan, unfamiliar with the paths, managed to visit only four or five hospitals before it turned dark. She bought a bun and returned to the guesthouse, eating while pondering what to do next. Though tired, she didn’t feel bitterness or grievance; as long as she didn’t have to marry a man she didn’t like, no matter what, she could manage.

While lost in thought, loud quarrels and fights erupted from the opposite room, creating chaos.

Sun Chan couldn’t help but listen because it was too close. Lying on the bed, she heard voices talking about a man fooling around and being caught by his pregnant wife, who was causing a scene.

"Wang Dabao, I’m carrying your child now, and you dare to treat me like this? You know how life was in your family before! As soon as life got a little better, you started acting like this. What did I ever do to you? You have no conscience!"

Everyone was chatting, and some were advising the woman to have an open mind.

"Guihua, I was wrong, please stop crying; it’s bad for your health." The man was almost crying.

"Now you care about me? Then why did you do it!" The woman cried, "The two of us have endured so many hardships together and couldn’t even have a full meal. With my family’s help, I started a small business, and just as we saw a bit of hope, you cheated. Can you justify this? Can you justify it to the child I’m carrying?!"

A man said awkwardly, "Guihua, please calm down. I was wrong. I really was. Let’s go home and talk about it."

"Step aside, I want to find that fox spirit and ask her properly. Who gave her the audacity! I took her in, gave her work, and paid her, yet she dared to take someone else’s man! Let me go beat her!"

More sounds of quarrels followed, and another girl said, "You really misunderstood, sister-in-law, there’s nothing between me and him! Please let me go!"