"Miss, your pastries have fallen."
Hearing a loud shout from behind, Lu Yiner snapped back to reality and found that the oil paper bag she was holding was empty.
All the pastries had fallen to the ground.
"It’s a pity about these pastries, they’re all dirty now and can’t be eaten even if picked up."
The man who reminded Lu Yiner about the fallen pastries came to her side, looking regretful.
Gathering herself, Lu Yiner forced a smile and said, "If they’ve fallen, they’ve fallen."
This man was Gao Ming, a subordinate of Su Chengmin, who had come to Taohua Dessert on his day off to buy pastries for his mother, and happened to run into Lu Yiner.
These days, Lu Yiner frequently came to the Imperial Guard to see Su Chengmin, so he was quite familiar with her.
Su Chengmin was clearly avoiding her, yet she kept coming to wait for him. Every time he saw this, he privately sighed over why such a fine lady was hanging herself from one tree, behaving in a way that drew disdain.
Now that his master was engaged, this lady should give up.
Lu Yiner’s face turned pale, and she was on the verge of collapsing.
Gao Ming asked, "Miss Lu, are you alright?"
Recognizing the person as the subordinate who always advised her to leave whenever she looked for Su Chengmin, Lu Yiner couldn’t help but ask, "Is it true that my cousin is really engaged to Gu Taohua?"
Gao Ming nodded, "That’s no lie."
Lu Yiner bit her lip, her eyes reddening.
Gao Ming advised, "Miss Lu, a twisted melon isn’t sweet. You should stop thinking about my master."
Wiping her tears, Lu Yiner hurriedly left after hearing this.
Gao Ming shook his head and went into Taohua Dessert, where he encountered Gu Taohua inspecting the shop.
Gu Taohua knew Gao Ming.
He was among the first customers when Taohua Dessert opened.
Upon seeing Gu Taohua, Gao Ming congratulated her on her engagement to his master.
"Sister Taohua, you have no idea how popular my master is. His stepmother’s niece was persistently pursuing him every day for a while, but my master ignored her. I just saw her coming out of your shop looking devastated; she must have been shocked to hear about your engagement."
Gao Ming felt it was necessary to inform Gu Taohua of this to prevent any misunderstanding for his master.
Also, he wanted to warn Gu Taohua to guard against any mischief from Lu Yiner.
Gu Taohua dismissed Lu Yiner with indifference, saying, "Let her wait then. If your master is steadfast, no one can shake him."
Gao Ming said, "Don’t underestimate a woman’s jealousy. She might do something underhanded to entrap Lord Su."
Gu Taohua said, "If he can be ensnared by a woman, how can he be the Commander of the Imperial Guard?"
Gao Ming, gritting his teeth, replied, "Anyway, I’ve delivered the message. Give me an extra two pounds of pastries."
Gu Taohua teased, "You make enough for a month’s wages, yet you still want to take advantage of this small favor. I wonder what you’re saving all your silver for."
Gao Ming replied earnestly, "For getting married."
Speaking of marriage, Gao Ming sighed.
His father was a soldier who raised warhorses for the Mighty General and sacrificed himself at the border when Gao Ming was young.
Under the care of the Mighty General, he grew up learning martial arts alongside Su Chengmin. Due to limited talent, although loyal, he didn’t stand out on the battlefield and only because of Nie Xiaofeng’s influence in the recent border war was he promoted to the Imperial Guard.
Su Chengmin became the Commander of the Imperial Guard, and Gao Ming was placed under his command.
Gao Ming’s elderly mother was in poor health, requiring costly monthly medical treatments, not to mention occasional aid to his grandparents in the countryside.
Thus, despite a decent salary each month, Gao Ming’s life was not affluent, and several prospects brought by matchmakers failed to materialize.
Noble family’s daughters didn’t find him appealing, and girls from modest families didn’t want a military husband, fearing he’d be sent to war, leaving them alone to keep house.
Knowing the situation at Gao Ming’s home, Gu Taohua had the clerk package several pastries for him to take to his mother.
Receiving the pastries, Gao Ming asked Gu Taohua, "Sister Taohua, there are plenty of young women working at Taohua Dessert and Jufu Supermarket. Is there anyone who wouldn’t mind my situation and could be introduced as a potential bride?"
Gu Taohua rolled her eyes and said, "I don’t run a matchmaking business. If you like someone, pursue them yourself."
Gao Ming thought to himself, it’s not like I’m as capable as Great Commander Su.
"Sister Taohua, the Great Commander is here, so I won’t stay any longer. Off I go."
Seeing Su Chengmin approach, Gao Ming quickly took his pastries and ran off.
Su Chengmin had just finished confronting his father, Su Shihang.
He thought Su Shihang had lost his mind, demanding he break off his engagement with Gu Taohua upon meeting him.
After making his father storm off, he worried that Su Shihang would cause trouble for Gu Taohua at Taohua Dessert, so he took a shortcut there.
Indeed, Su Shihang was giving himself a headache being angered by Su Chengmin.
No matter how he analyzed the pros and cons, Su Chengmin seemed impossibly stubborn, determined to marry Gu Taohua.
He resented Mrs. Min and Han Niu the most, not only for not stopping but also encouraging, even going to Sui Feng Village Lady’s house to propose in person.
However much Su Shihang despised the Min Family, he dared not confront them, knowing that they didn’t even need their eldest brother-in-law; just the mother-in-law could harangue outside the Su Family’s door with different insults for three days straight.
After much consideration, he decided to approach Gu Taohua.
If Gu Taohua would voluntarily break the engagement, the marriage between her and Su Chengmin would be void.
Arriving at Taohua Dessert, Su Shihang hadn’t even set foot inside when he saw his son and Gu Taohua busy inside the shop.
Good heavens, his son, a dignified Commander of the Imperial Guard, standing behind the counter helping customers wrap pastries. The sight nearly made Su Shihang spit blood.
His son had arrived at Taohua Dessert before him, clearly to prevent him from speaking to Gu Taohua.
With a scowl, Su Shihang turned and headed toward Tong Huaqiong’s home.
Tong Huaqiong, upon receiving news of Lord Su’s visit, thought she must have misheard, having no prior dealings with Su Shihang.
After thinking it over, she realized it was due to Su Chengmin bypassing the Su Family to get engaged to Gu Taohua, and now Su Shihang was here to demand an explanation.
However, Tong Huaqiong was unafraid of Su Shihang and prepared herself for his entrance.
"Lord Su, what brings you to my doorstep?" Tong Huaqiong opened the conversation, ignoring the severe expression on his face, as he hadn’t even sipped his tea.
Placing the teacup on the table, Su Shihang said, "Sui Feng Village Lady, let’s speak openly. It’s said that since ancient times, children’s marriages are the parents’ decision facilitated by matchmakers. My son and your daughter engaged without parental consent, making this engagement void."
Tong Huaqiong found it laughable.
Su Shihang was brazenly here to unilaterally break off the engagement.
Tong Huaqiong replied, "So Lord Su has come about Chengmin and Taohua’s engagement. It’s already set, and it’s not up to you to invalidate it. Whether you agree or not isn’t important. If your opinion were of import, why didn’t your son let you decide? How do you manage as a father anyway? Isn’t it evident to you? Mrs. Min is right, apart from a few shivers, you haven’t contributed much as a father, so spare me the talk of parental mandates."
Su Shihang: "..."
His unannounced visit was indeed a misstep.
The Sui Feng Village Lady, as expected, shared the same coarse and unpleasant sharpness of tongue as his mother-in-law, speaking with similarly crude words.