h their elders, so I stayed with those of the same generation as me, and Xiu Ming, who is the youngest in terms of seniority, to discuss academic matters."Meng Jinyao's eyes widened suddenly, and she...Li Wan'er exclaimed in a low voice, "How is this possible"

She looked utterly disbelieving, then asked, "Brother Xiu Ming, is there some misunderstanding here You are the only son of the Marquis and the heir to the Marquisate. How could he possibly do this"

Gu Xiuming said with certainty, "Silly girl, we've all been deceived by his appearance. Every time I asked him for academic guidance, he definitely kept things hidden and didn't teach me sincerely. It's also my fault for being foolish and trusting him too much. That's why I failed the autumn examination this time."

Seeing her hesitation, Gu Xiuming added another matter: "Father helped the fourth brother get in touch with Ling Shan Academy. At first, I didn't pay much attention to this matter. Later, I realized that he wanted to focus on cultivating the fourth brother and neglect me, then adopt the fourth brother and have him inherit the title of crown prince."

Li Wan'er was stunned, her breath catching in her throat as she struggled to regain her composure.

After a moment, she said angrily, "Brother Xiuming, what the Marquis did is simply too much. This is unfair to you. When he had no son, he adopted you to carry on the family line. Now that he has a nephew, he regrets his decision and wants to adopt his nephew instead."

Gu Xiuming let out a sneer, mockingly said: "Actually, I'm his cousin. My biological father is his cousin-brother. There's no blood relation between us. I guess Meng Jin Yao must have whispered sweet nothings in his ear, and he was blinded by beauty in the end. Between his daughter and son, he chose the venomous woman."

Li Wan'er's heart sank, and her voice trembled with a hint of anxiety: "What should we do then If Lord Hou abandons you, he probably won't pave the way for you in your career anymore. Although Brother Xiu Ming is capable, I still feel sorry for him that he lacks family support and has to fight alone, it must be hard."

Gu Xiuming gritted his teeth, adopting an air of determination: "The position of Crown Prince cannot be given to the fourth brother. If I even lose the title of Crown Prince and become just an ordinary son of Hou's Mansion, not to mention my future prospects being hindered, even the servants in the house would probably neglect me."

Li Wan'er questioned, "But that was the Hou Ye's decision. How can we possibly stop the Hou Ye's decision"

Gu Xiuming pondered for a moment before softly saying, "Grandmother is rather sentimental. At her age, she loves children the most. While she still sees me as her grandson in her eyes, let's quickly have a son to give her a great-grandson. This will captivate her heart. When Father wants to change the crown prince, he will have to get past Grandmother's approval. As long as Grandmother supports me, he won't dare disobey her."

Hearing this, Li Wan'er felt a little downhearted. She touched her flat stomach. It had been several months, and there was still no movement inside. She was very anxious too.

Gu Xiuming's gaze also fell on her lower abdomen, hesitating: "Wan'er, is there something wrong with your body We've been so intimate for so long, and you haven't shown any signs of pregnancy."

Li Wan'er's face turned pale, panic surged through her heart, and her heart beat wildly. For a woman, being unable to have children was worse than a man's inability to do so. A man who couldn't have children could still adopt like the Marquis, but a woman who couldn't have children would be forced to painfully push her husband to another woman, allowing another woman to bear children to avoid breaking the family line.

She steadied her nerves and tried to calm herself down, responding with a composed air: "Brother Xiu Ming, I rarely get sick in my daily life. My body should be fine. I guess it's just not our destined time, so there hasn't been any movement yet. We can wait a little longer and see."

Gu Xiuming retorted, "My father is usually in good health. He rarely gets even a common cold throughout the year. Doesn't he still have the ability to have children of his own"

When Li Wan'er heard this, a wave of grievance welled up in her heart, and her eyes soon turned red.

Gu Xiumin also realized that his tone had become heavy, and he softened his voice again, saying: "Wan'er, I was just a little anxious for a moment, but sometimes we can't ignore the illness. If you're not feeling well, let the doctor take good care of you first, what do you think"

Lee Wan-er's eyes were brimming with tears, and she looked at him with a trembling voice, choked with sobs, "If my body really has problems, will you have children with another woman"

Upon hearing this, Gu Xiuming hesitated for a moment, meeting her tear-filled eyes. He hurriedly soothed her, "What are you thinking about If you can't have children, we can just adopt one!"

Li Wan'er was surprised: "Really"

"Nature is real."

When Gu Xiuming said this, he averted his eyes and looked elsewhere.

He loved Wan'er very much, even to the point of not marrying for her sake. But if it meant he couldn't have his own biological children because of Wan'er, he found that unacceptable. He couldn't possibly let his family estate go to a child who wasn't his own in the future, could he

If Wan'er truly cannot bear children, he could have a son with another woman and then give him to Wan'er to raise. Let the child call Wan'er his mother – it would be the same anyway since they both plan to raise someone else's child. Raising his own would be better, as long as Wan'er doesn't know, she won't argue with him.

Li Wan'er nestled into his arms, lifting the corners of her mouth, a sweet smile blooming: "Xiuming gege, you are so good to me."

Gu Xiuming softly coaxed: "Wan'er, don't think too much, your body must be fine. I heard there are medicines that help with conception. If your body is alright, let the doctor prescribe you some pregnancy-assisting medicine to try Maybe after using the pregnancy-assisting medicine, you'll get pregnant in a month."

Li Wan'er nodded and said "mm," she also needed a child to establish herself, so that her elders would have a better impression of her. After having a child, her relationship with Brother Xiu Ming would be more stable. Now, without a child, even if Brother Xiu Ming didn't have other women, she would occasionally feel insecure.

Gu Xiuming held her in his arms, soothing her with soft and tender words for a while. Seeing that her mood had brightened, he let go of her and said, "Have the maid prepare water. I'll go take a bath first."

Li Wan'er nodded lightly, stood up, and was about to go out to find a maidservant when she suddenly remembered something and sat back down. She said in a low voice, "Xiuming gege, there is something I should have told you yesterday, but since you were busy yesterday, I didn't say it. I met her when I went out yesterday, and she pestered me. She wants money again.

"

Gu Xiumin frowned and said impatiently, "Again Isn't she a little too greedy"

Seeing his complexion, Li Wan'er hurriedly said: "But don't worry, I have already given her some benefits and sent her away. She won't bother us for a while. However, she did us a favor, and we have been supporting her with money ever since. What is the difference between this and a one-time solution"

Gu Xiuming narrowed his eyes slightly, a flash of killing intent appeared in them, and he said coldly: "Human desire is insatiable, like a snake swallowing an elephant. Be careful not to overreach yourself."

Li Wan'er heard a hint of danger and hesitated, "Brother Xiuming, what do you mean"

"... if necessary..."

Gu Xiuming stopped halfway through his sentence, but he made a gesture of slitting someone's throat. His meaning was very clear: if necessary, he would take that person's life.

Li Wan'er's face turned pale.ate: "Two days later will do, two days later it's the fifteenth day of the lunar month. Going to the temple to burn incense is just right, and we can stay there for two days. I don't believe that Lady...