Being her uncle and fearing that he wouldn't inherit any property if something happened, benefiting his younger brother, Gu Feng was still in shock and conflicted when Huang Family continued to say, "Don't you forget, ten years ago the Great Fairy said that the girl must not leave this house. This time, father has gone mad for some reason and suddenly wants to marry her off. Fine, once she leaves the house and suddenly dies, everyone will think it's the fulfillment of the Great Fairy's words and won't suspect that it was our doing."
Gu Feng was somewhat moved by her words and stammered, "Then... should we discuss it with third brother?"
"Forget it, that youngest brother is always on father's side, he's no good, haven't you seen how he's always opposing us? If we tell him, who knows if he'd turn around and betray us. Remember, you have to be wary of him in the future."
...
Early in the morning, the matchmaker arrived and, seeing the large trunks outside, smiled bloomingly.
"Mr. Gu, your family truly lives up to being one of the wealthiest in Lotus Village, marrying off a daughter with three large trunks. I've been a matchmaker all my life and this is the first time I've seen such a thing."
Gu Feng couldn't stand the overpowering smell of Matchmaker Zhang and quickly fanned the air with his hand, saying, "Alright, hurry inside. As soon as the affairs are settled, you won't miss out on your reward."
Matchmaker Zhang immediately smiled broadly and repeatedly responded, "Aye aye, rest assured, Matchmaker Zhang's affairs are the most securely handled for miles around, I guarantee you will be satisfied."
The third and second aunts went inside with Matchmaker Zhang, and the pitch-dark room, unusually, saw light again.
The sun hadn't risen yet and it was only dimly bright, but for Gu Youyou, this light was already very bright.
As the third aunt from Meng Family lit the lamp in the room, Matchmaker Zhang could barely make out the person on the bed.
"Oh, bride-to-be, still sleeping? You must get up quickly today, you can't sleep in."
Gu Youyou on the bed responded softly but did not get up.
Meng Family and Huang Family hurriedly helped her up and changed her into a newly bought, bright red bridal gown.
While changing her, both felt a pang of regret; the gown, being ready-made, had cost a good amount of silver.
Matchmaker Zhang let out a high-pitched scream upon seeing Gu Youyou being helped out of bed, "Ah, a ghost!"
Huang Family looked annoyed and glared at her, "Matchmaker Zhang, what are you screaming for? This is our Youyou. The old master has given you plenty of money, do you intend to ruin everything?"
Matchmaker Zhang, still shaken, patted her chest and gasped, "My my, so this is Youyou, how did she get so thin? You gave me quite a scare."
Meng Family said, "Youyou has been ill for so many years, how could she possibly be plump?"
"This... this is too thin!" Matchmaker Zhang smacked her lips, almost too afraid to approach.
Gu Youyou remained expressionless throughout, letting them fuss over her. After all, she didn't plan to exert any effort herself; she needed to save her energy for later when it would be most needed.
Her demeanor truly frightened Matchmaker Zhang, who nearly had to force herself through the whole process.
After the three finished preparing Gu Youyou, Meng Family and the matchmaker went out to grab a bite to fortify themselves, waiting for the groom to arrive.
Huang Family went to fetch the medicine that she was to drink today.
"Youyou, drink this medicine quickly so you'll be more alert today."
Gu Youyou fixed a cold stare on Huang Family, cracked a smile, and said, "Leave it there, I'll drink it later."
"Oh, on any other day letting you drink it late would be fine, but not today. The groom will be here soon. You'd better drink up now. I've tested it, it's not hot anymore."