Are you afraid or not?

Gu Dao, however, remained unhurried. He finished the last bite of his apple before finally speaking.

"If you want to kill me, shouldn't you ask the Emperor first?"

"Hmph, I think you’ve truly gone mad. Have you forgotten that the Princess has already annulled your engagement? His Majesty is no longer your backer!" the Old Matriarch said coldly.

Gu Dao nodded. "True, I no longer have an engagement with the Princess. Now I finally understand why the Gu family has been declining day by day ever since my mother passed away. Old woman, if things continue like this, the Gu family will sooner or later be ruined in your hands."

Gu Dao’s tone was dripping with sarcasm.

"You rebellious son, what nonsense are you spouting! The Gu family is doing just fine," the Old Matriarch retorted in a rage.

"Oh yes, doing just fine—so fine that the whole family is practically standing at the edge of their graves!"

Gu Dao continued, "The world knows that my mother performed a great service for the Imperial family. For the Princess to break off our engagement is an act of ingratitude on the part of the royals..."

"If I were to die right now, the world would believe that the Princess’s broken engagement drove me to my grave. If I were to scream at the top of my lungs that the Princess killed me, the Royal family’s reputation for biting the hand that fed them would be set in stone!"

Hearing this, the others looked on, bewildered. Finally, the Old Matriarch spoke up: "So what? If the sovereign commands a subject to die, the subject cannot refuse. Even if you die, it will have been for nothing."

"Oh, how foolish! How could the Royal family possibly shoulder such a reputation? Once they investigate, they would discover it was the Gu family who abused me to death. A thousand-year-old noble house, murdering their own legitimate heir... tell me, would it be the Princess who killed me, or the Gu family?"

Hearing Gu Dao's words, the members of the Gu family felt a sudden chill run through them.

The Imperial family could never allow the Princess to be branded as ungrateful. Therefore, the culprit who killed Gu Dao would have to be the Gu family. It went without saying that the royals would then force the Gu family to be buried along with him to avenge Gu Dao, and afterwards, they might even step forward to offer a hollow apology for failing to look after their benefactor's offspring.

Yet, the Old Matriarch refused to back down. "That is all just your speculation..."

"It is my speculation, perhaps, or maybe the Royal family is so magnanimous that they would be willing to act as a scapegoat for the Gu family," Gu Dao laughed loudly.

The Imperial family willing to act as a scapegoat for the Gu family?

These words left the three women pale with terror. Who would dare force the Imperial family to take the fall for them? Were they tired of living, or just eager to see their nine generations wiped out?

In an instant, the implications became clear. To let Gu Dao die now would be equivalent to maliciously forcing the royals to take the blame for the Gu family's crimes.

In the end, the Old Matriarch could only grit her teeth, her face twitching with suppressed fury, as she said unwillingly:

"Go then, but from now on, you had best behave yourself!"

"Haha, I have always been well-behaved. However, I expect my share of what is rightfully mine to remain untouched. Otherwise, I might not be able to stop myself from having an ‘episode.’ Whether it’s murder, arson, or running out into the streets to scream at the top of my lungs—that, I cannot guarantee."

With a hearty laugh, Gu Dao turned and walked away.