Miss Zhang's passionate hopes and fantasies about love were suddenly shattered by the harsh realities of a poor life and Scholar Li's dull mediocrity.
Noticing Miss Zhang's upset mood, he could only force himself to comfort her: "My dear, it's my fault. I don't even have money to buy lamp oil."
"After I pass the imperial exams, I'll surely light the whole room with candles for you. If you want to admire the moon, you can admire the moon. As long as you're happy, you can do whatever you want."
Faced with Scholar Li's sweet talk, Miss Zhang's mind was filled with thoughts of the wild vegetables they had eaten today. The idea of eating wild vegetables for the rest of her life terrified her into clarity.
She even began to reflect that they could go out to enjoy the moon right now, even if they had to fumble in the dark, she would be willing.
But her dear Li didn't make any move to do so.
He only knew how to talk about the future, the future...
How long until this future?!
Seeing that Scholar Li had no intention of leaving the bed, and even started to grope her body, Miss Zhang was startled and immediately found an excuse: "Dear Li, I'm afraid you'll have to sleep outside tonight."
"I've been weak since childhood, always needing medicinal soups."
"But today, after breaking ties with my parents, cough cough..."
"I didn't even take my medicine today, and I'm feeling a bit unwell."
This was actually a pre-arranged agreement with Gu Sang.
Gu Sang had convinced her parents to let her experience ten days of living on wild vegetables.
And she had promised Gu Sang that she would absolutely not engage in relations with Scholar Li.
Originally, she had only treated it as an agreement, thinking that if Scholar Li insisted, she would actually be quite willing...
But after experiencing a day of this life, Miss Zhang's words now held some truth. Perhaps she really should reconsider.
The strange, hard bed, the odd smell in her nostrils, the occasional squeaks of rats.
These things filled Miss Zhang's mind with countless thoughts, making sleep impossible.
She had thought that being with the man she loved would be happy, joyful, pleasant, and exciting, but now she felt more confused than happy.
After hearing Scholar Li's sleeping sounds, Miss Zhang finally spoke in a low voice:
"Divine Lady, why is it so different from what I imagined?"
"Moreover, before, everything he said to me seemed so sweet, but now, I actually feel a bit scared. But this isn't right, I shouldn't—"
Gu Sang interrupted her while munching on a fried chicken leg.
As Miss Zhang swallowed hard at the sight, Gu Sang said with a smile: "That's because you're being affected by your emotions. You were focused on the fact that your parents were preventing you from pursuing your own happiness."
"You thought your parents were just being snobs, preferring wealth. You just wanted to prove to them that your Scholar Li is capable, and you wanted to escape your parents' control."
"Now that your parents are no longer hindering you, you're facing the stark reality of the situation."
"When two people are actually together, the first problem you face is survival."
"When neither of you has money, all those beautiful and romantic things you imagined won't exist. You thought it would be simple meals, but in reality, you can't even afford to eat. You simply can't imagine how desperate and helpless poor people can become over a single coin. That's why you're experiencing this psychological gap."
"But you're still persisting now, you don't want to give up, you still want to prove that your judgment was correct. So watch for a few more days. What you need to observe is how this man treats you when you have no support."
"Also, pay attention to his plans for your future. These are things you need to see clearly for yourself."
Miss Zhang nodded seriously, only now understanding the Divine Lady's good intentions and her parents' love.
However, she still had hopes for love.
As she was lost in thought, her stomach suddenly began to ache violently, probably because the wild vegetables had upset her delicate stomach. She hurriedly shook Scholar Li's arm, wanting to go to the latrine.
Meanwhile, Gu Sang had already ended the livestream.
Seeing that Miss Zhang was now able to analyze from an outsider's perspective and knowing she wouldn't be easily fooled by men again, Gu Sang turned her attention to another matter.
Although the population of the Plague City had increased considerably, it was still too small for the Elder Princess.
Moreover, as the Plague City was developing, some ideological knowledge needed to keep up.
Gu Sang made online appointments with several experts in herbal planting and fish farming, intending to invite them to teach the Plague City residents some cultivation knowledge.
The appointments were set for a few days later, and Gu Sang set an alarm to avoid forgetting.
After taking care of these things, she prepared to continue watching the real-life script of Miss Zhang and Scholar Li.
Suddenly, her phone rang.
"Sang Sang, it's Sunday today. Do you have time to come home for dinner?" Her mother's cautious voice came through the phone.
Gu Sang opened her mouth to refuse, but feeling her mother's careful protection and thinking of Gu Qing's bright eyes, she said, "Okay."
After experiencing so many events and hardships, Gu Sang had come to understand.
It was enough that she had her grandmother's love.
As for her parents, there was no need to care too much about their differential treatment. They had raised Gu Qing from childhood, so it was natural for them to favor her a bit more.
It was because she cared that it hurt.
If she didn't care, then her parents' attitude towards her wouldn't matter.
Her relationship with her parents didn't need to be so cold and distant, like enemies. Maintaining a superficial connection was enough.
After agreeing on a time with her mother, Gu Sang hung up the phone.
When Gu Sang reopened the connection with Miss Zhang, she was startled by the woman's crying.
"Wuwuwu—"
??? What happened?
What had occurred in the time she wasn't paying attention?
Feeling the connection, Miss Zhang quickly wiped the tears from her face with a handkerchief: "Divine Lady, I'm sorry you had to see this. This is my mother, you've met her before."
The connection screen appeared in front of the two of them.
Seeing the slowly materializing screen, Mother Zhang gratefully kowtowed three times to Gu Sang.
"Divine Lady, thank you for helping my daughter wake up in time."
"Just now, my daughter came back to apologize to us, saying she now understands our good intentions, and that the scholar is not a suitable match."
"This is all thanks to you. If it weren't for your help, my little girl might have been taken away long ago."
Gu Sang breathed a sigh of relief. She had initially assured Miss Zhang's parents that their daughter would return pure and untouched.
If it weren't for the trustworthy image she had built through her livestreams, she wouldn't have been able to convince the parents to allow their daughter to cohabitate with a man.
Upon seeing the two of them crying earlier, Gu Sang's heart skipped a beat, thinking Miss Zhang had been mistreated by someone.
"It's good that Miss Zhang has come to her senses in time. In the future, when encountering such situations, observe more carefully and don't let your head get too hot over love."
Mother Zhang and Miss Zhang expressed their profuse gratitude once again, and then said to Gu Sang:
"Divine Lady, to show his appreciation for saving our daughter, my husband has already arranged for someone to send fifty thousand taels of silver in bank notes to the Elder Princess in Plague City."
"Please ensure that you and the Elder Princess accept it. Your ability to guide our daughter back from her misguided path is far more valuable than these fifty thousand taels of silver."
