However, things didn't go as she wished. Gu Jiangyue sat alone in the room for over an hour, but the black - clothed man still didn't return. Gu Jiangyue yawned; she was almost falling asleep.
The bright moon hung high in the sky, and the night was like a beautiful painting. The gentle night breeze blew through the treetops, making the light and shadows mingle and flicker, like a dream, enchanting and fascinating.
She leaned lazily in the chair, propping her elbows on the table and squinting her eyes slightly. Just as she was about to give up waiting, a gust of cool wind blew into the room.
Was it him?
Gu Jiangyue opened her eyes, stood up, and ran to the door, looking around.
Finally, she saw the black - clothed man in the depths of the darkness.
Under the cold moonlight, he stood tall and straight. His hair was neatly tied up high. His eyes were cold and arrogant. The black robe on his body fluttered in the wind, making a rustling sound. With a cold and noble aura, he walked towards Gu Jiangyue. Every gesture showed his dignity, and his whole body exuded a natural majesty.
Gu Jiangyue stared at him, a bit dazed.
It was not until the black - clothed man walked up to her that Gu Jiangyue came to her senses. She quickly stepped forward and asked.
"You're finally here. Where's the money?"
The black - clothed man froze for a moment and twitched the corner of his mouth. He originally thought that after such a long time, this young lady should have fallen asleep long ago. He didn't expect that she was still waiting for him. No, it seemed that there was only money in this young lady's eyes.
He looked at Gu Jiangyue. At this moment, a natural smile finally appeared on the young lady's face. Under the moonlight, her skin was fair, making her lips look even redder. Her eyes sparkled as if they held starlight.
The two were very close. The black - clothed man could even clearly see the tiny tear mole under Gu Jiangyue's eyelid.
The black - clothed man paused for a moment, then took out a silver note worth five thousand taels from his bosom and honestly handed it to Gu Jiangyue.
Seeing the silver note, Gu Jiangyue's smile grew even wider, reaching the bottom of her eyes.
It's not that Gu Jiangyue was greedy for money. She simply needed silver. In the Gu Mansion, she hardly got even one tael of silver every month.
She had asked Shen Menglan for it before, but Shen Menglan always dismissed her with the words, "What monthly allowance do you have? It's all spent on your food and clothing."
Gu Jiangyue naturally didn't believe it. The other young ladies' food and clothing were no worse than hers, and even much better, yet they got a lot of silver every month.
Gu Jiangyue knew that Shen Menglan bullied her because she had no one to support her. But even if she knew, there was nothing she could do. She could only live a tight - fisted life in the mansion.
She clutched the silver notes tightly, smiling brightly in her heart. Finally, she had gotten back the silver that Shen Menglan had withheld from her in the mansion over the years.
While Gu Jiangyue was deep in thought, out of the corner of her eye, she saw the black - clothed man staring at her.
She coughed lightly twice and stared at the black - clothed man with big, inquisitive eyes.
"Are you short of money? We've cooperated, so we're friends from now on. Let's split this money. You take half, and I take half. How about it?"
Gu Jiangyue didn't need to put on the airs of a young lady in front of him. She casually patted the black - clothed man on the shoulder, then took out half of the silver notes and reached out her hand to give them to him.
The black - clothed man stared blankly at her outstretched hand. Gu Jiangyue's hand was small, with slender fingers, holding the silver note in front of him.
"You want to be friends with me?"
The black - clothed man didn't take the silver note from her hand. His voice was still hoarse and terrifying, but there was an obvious smile in it.
Under the moonlight, Gu Jiangyue reached up to straighten her cloak. The soft, white fur brushed against her fair little face. Gu Jiangyue looked up, her eyes meeting the black - clothed man's directly. Her bright and beautiful eyes were filled with sincerity.
"Of course."
Gu Jiangyue wasn't lying to him. This black - clothed man was indeed the first real friend she wanted to make since her rebirth.
In her previous life, in the power struggles in the imperial court, she had seen too many good sisters turn against each other. She never thought that she would be one of them. After being reborn, she thought she would see through everyone and never give her heart to others again.
But she was wrong. She was a human being with emotions. Moreover, she really liked the feeling of being with this black - clothed man. It was very free. Although she didn't know why the black - clothed man helped her or why he came to the Gu Mansion.
But she thought he was a good person. As for the feud the black - clothed man might have with the Gu Mansion, what did it matter to her? The Gu Mansion deserved it.
The black - clothed man didn't respond for a long time. Gu Jiangyue was a bit confused and looked at him curiously.
"Is your personality always like this?"
Looking at the cold - as - ice black - clothed man who seemed too aloof to even talk to others, Gu Jiangyue almost thought that it was because of his personality that he had offended some people in the jianghu and was forced to join the Qianyin Pavilion.
Then she thought again. With his skills, it was probably others who were on the receiving end of his attacks.
Hearing Gu Jiangyue's words, the black - clothed man gradually put away the smile in his eyes. It seemed that the young lady of the Gu Mansion wasn't all about ruthlessness and scheming. She was actually a bit of a chatterbox.
Poor Gu Jiangyue was completely unaware that she had been labeled a chatterbox by this person.
"Okay, we're friends, but I'm not short of money."
The black - clothed man nodded, indicating that he agreed.
Gu Jiangyue was stunned. She was just about to ask him why he came to the Gu Mansion and helped her act if he wasn't short of money.
But the words were swallowed back. She was afraid that even if she asked, the black - clothed man wouldn't tell her.
"Since you don't want it, I'll take it all."
Gu Jiangyue didn't stand on ceremony with him anymore. She put away the silver notes. She really needed this money because she had an even bigger plan.
"Are you really short of money?"
The black - clothed man finally asked the question that had been on his mind.
Gu Jiangyue had nothing to hide. After all, the black - clothed man seemed to have a bad relationship with the Gu Mansion. The enemy of one's enemy was a friend. Gu Jiangyue frowned slightly and said.
"I want to open a shop."
Gu Jiangyue wanted to open a shop. Before her father came back, she had no backer. If she wanted to survive in the Gu Mansion or in the capital, there were only two ways: to have power or to have money. Since she had neither, she had to find a way to create the conditions.
After much thought, Gu Jiangyue came up with this solution. She would save money to open a shop. This way, she would have a source of income and could also secretly gather some information.
Thinking of this, Gu Jiangyue's heart sank, and a faint glint of killing intent flashed in her eyes.
She also wanted to take revenge on Xie Chengrui.
The figures of that disgusting couple cuddling together appeared in her mind, and a feeling of nausea welled up in her heart.
In her previous life, she had used the flesh and blood of the Gu family's men to help him ascend to the position of the crown prince. But he actually had an affair with Gu Zhengwan. The 127 lives of the Gu family were all sacrificed in vain under their swords.
She must avenge this hatred.
Hearing that Gu Jiangyue planned to open a shop, the black - clothed man raised his eyebrows, gave a soft laugh, and took out another silver note worth five thousand taels from his bosom.
"Here, for you."