Chapter 32

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S T E L L A R C L O U D

[Celeste S.] [Azurixa] [Robert K.]

O R A N G E S T A R

[Talia R.] [K.Rom]

Y E L L O W S T A R

[Camille] [Linds] [Esther D.]

G O L D S T A R

[Nem]

Gu Jiao had never shared a bed with anyone in her previous life; even with her female roommate, she never did. She thought she would have some trouble sleeping, but she soon fell asleep in that reassuring scent.

Compared to her who went to see the God of Dreams, Xiao Liulang wasn’t able to fall asleep so quickly.

He looked at Gu Jiao lying next to him. The thin light reflected from the snow passed through the window paper screen and fell on her face. She was lying sideways, and half of her face with the birthmark was pressed beneath.

She must be really afraid of the cold. Her little face was flushed with cold. Looking at her carefully, she had long eyelashes and her facial features were exquisite. If there had been no birthmark there, she should have been a beautiful and refined young girl.

Somehow, a trace of pity flashed through Xiao Liulang's heart.

But soon, he frowned and erased this emotion from the bottom of his heart.

Xiao Liulang had such good sleeping behavior that he rarely moved all night in his sleep.

Gu Jiao was also a good girl in her sleep. Apart from moving closer and closer to Xiao Liulang, embracing Xiao Liulang with both hands and feet, and also resting her little head on Xiao Liulang's shoulder, she was really well-behaved.

Gu Jiao slept till dawn. When she woke up, Xiao Liulang was already awake, and was sitting by the window, reading a book.

The light of the morning sky shone through the window paper screen, reflecting his jade-like handsome face. Gu Jiao wondered if it was just her illusion, but he seemed to be blushing a little bit.

"You’re awake." Xiao Liulang solemnly greeted Gu Jiao, but his eyes did not look at Gu Jiao on the bed at all.

"En, I’m awake, morning." Gu Jiao rubbed her eyes and yawned a little. She just woke up and was still in a daze; even her voice couldn’t avoid sounding languid and childlike.

Which normal man could stand this early in the morning?

Xiao Liulang only felt his chest rise, and he almost soar when he stood up, saying, "I'm going to buy us breakfast!"

As soon as he said that, he opened the door and rushed outside, leaving Gu Jiao scratching her little head with a bewildered look on her face.

It stopped snowing in the middle of the night, and the sunshine was particularly nice today.

Because the academy was closed today, after they had their breakfast, the two people hired a mule cart and went back to the village.

When passing by the entrance to the village, they heard the villagers, who were fetching water from the ancient well, talk about something. Apparently, because it suddenly snowed heavily yesterday, several people who returned to the village at night were hurt in an accident. The mule cart sending the people to the next village had overturned and even fell into the ditch. It seemed that all of them were barely alive after the accident.

Xiao Liulang had thought of hiring a cart to go back to the village last night. If Gu Jiao hadn't offered to just stay in the inn for the night, they might have gotten into an accident as well.

Xiao Liulang simply didn’t know what to say at the moment.

After all... This was the third time he had avoided a calamity because of her.

The two people went home.

The elderly woman was already up and was sitting in the main room, sulking.

Yesterday, Gu Jiao had thought that things would end very early, and she and Xiao Liulang could come back before it snowed, so she only left the elderly woman a lunch in the pot. Unexpectedly, the teachers in the academy were so committed to their work, pestering Xiao Liulang for answers until the heavy snow fell.

In order to avoid the misfortune in her dream, she could only stay in town with Xiao Liulang.

The elderly woman didn’t know how to start a fire. She gnawed at the cold steamed bread last night, and gnawed at the cold steamed bread again this morning. Her teeth were almost broken!

Gu Jiao was quite puzzled. Didn’t you say you’re a poor elderly woman from a poor family, so why don’t you know how to start a fire? Are you an Old Madame of a great family ah, or are you actually the Empress Dowager?

Gu Jiao silently took out a package of candied fruit and a box of osmanthus cake and said, "You are allowed to eat two more today."

Elderly woman: "No! Five!"

Gu Jiao: "Three."

Elderly woman: "Deal!"

Holding the candied fruit and osmanthus cake in her arms, the elderly woman turned her back and began to eat heartily.

The arrest of Gu Dashun, Zhou shi and Liu shi had already spread in the village, and even people in neighboring villages had come to watch the fun. For the time being, people didn’t know what connection Xiao Liulang and Gu Jiao had with this matter, so they all went to the Gu Family's old residence to inquire for information.

At noon, two constables came to Gu Jiao’s door, looking for Gu Jiao.

It turned out that after they were taken into the yamen, Zhou shi and Liu shi, under severe interrogation, told the truth about the origin of the silver. According to them, it fell from the man who fought with the little fool. They got greedy for a moment and came back to the village with the silver, leaving the little fool behind.

"Oh, so that’s the case. I’ve been wondering why I didn’t see my two aunts when I came back at that time." Gu Jiao said with an enlightened look on her face.

The constable looked at her and asked, "Why are you fighting with the man?"

Gu Jiao said coldly, "He bumped into me! Bullied me! Also cursed at me!"

You were bumped and cursed by someone, so you chased him with a sickle across several streets? Girl, you’re a hero.

If it was other people, the constables would probably only be suspicious. However, they had learned from Zhou shi and Liu shi that Gu Jiao was a fool, and her behavior couldn’t be judged by common sense.

Therefore, even though they came here, no one really suspected that Gu Jiao deliberately lay there in wait for the other party, and that she intentionally drove the thief away, leaving the money for Zhou shi and Liu shi to covet. Even Zhou shi and Liu shi themselves thought everything was just an accident.

Only Xiao Liulang had a faint feeling that everything was too coincidental.

"That man may be the thief. What happened to him in the end?" The constable asked hurriedly.

"He ran away." Gu Jiao spread out her hands.

"Do you remember what he looks like?" The constable asked again.

"He looks... Hmm..." Gu Jiao recalled the man’s appearance and described it. The other person was a yamen painter[1]. He drew a portrait of the thief and showed it to her, "Is this him?"

“This..." Gujiao frowned.

At this moment, Xiao Liulang came out with a portrait in his hand.

Gu Jiao's eyes lit up, "This! This is the man!"

The constable exchanged an awkward glance with the painter. A yamen painter unexpectedly couldn’t draw better than a student. Admit it, it felt like your livelihood was destroyed, right?

After getting the portrait, the yamen quickly solved the case.

However, Zhou shi and Liu shi were not immediately released by the yamen. The reason was that when the yamen constables approached the Gu Family and asked them where the money came from, they swore that they earned it from selling mountain goods.

The huge amount of money, coupled with the act of lying and refusing to hand the money in, properly constituted the crime of embezzlement. Each person was fined twenty taels of silver and thirty floggings with a heavy stick.

As for Gu Dashun, his mother and aunt made such a scandal. With people saying their family was unrighteous, he was also nailed to the pillar of shame[2].

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Also, please also have a look at our other translations!

Everyone But Me Is Reborn

Her father is a coward and senselessly filial. Her mother is weak and gullible. Her elder brother is a wastrel.

When she married into the Wangfu, she suffered and was coldly treated. And by the time she was in labour, she was fated to die with the unborn child in her belly.

This was supposed to be Ning Nuan's life.

However this time, everyone but her is reborn.

Ning Nuan is at a loss. She felt that her dad has suddenly become the pillar of the family, her mother’s temper became fierce, and even her elder brother, who would only walk the dogs and play with birds all day, has begun picking up books and reading them carefully.

There is also that juvenile that shows up at the wall of her courtyard everyday, calling her “Ah Nuan, Ah Nuan” with an honest face.