Gu Wanning

Biodata

Background

The original Gu Wanning grew up on a country estate and was brought back to the Gu family at twelve. She resented the difference between her upbringing and that of Gu Wanqing, whom she believed to be her twin sister. At the estate, her adoptive grandmother had treated her kindly, while her adoptive mother had been harsh 4 27 29.

Wanning later learned from First Concubine’s account of a dream that she and Wanqing had been switched as infants: Wanning was the Gu family’s biological daughter, while Wanqing was the daughter of Wanning’s adoptive mother. Wanqing subsequently confirmed that they were not related by blood 67 174.

The emperor granted her marriage to Xu Weibei, the Marquis of Yingchuan. In opposition to the match, Xu brought four concubines into the residence on their wedding day and immediately left for a military campaign. Three years later, a modern woman transmigrated into Gu Wanning’s body shortly before his return 1.

In her previous life, the transmigrator had grown up in the countryside with her grandfather, studied agronomy, and later worked in an office. She retained the original Gu Wanning’s memories and felt the force of her lingering resentment toward the Gu family 3 18 26 29.

Personality

Gu Wanning is sharp-tongued and resourceful under pressure. Although frightened by Xu Weibei’s return, she challenged his accusations and offered explanations for the concubines’ treatment. She often uses humor or a performance of deference to navigate confrontations 2 6.

She values independence, practical work, and the freedom to make her own choices. She wanted a divorce and a quiet life on a country estate, and saw growing corn as a possible route to financial independence 10 14 28. Even after growing close to Xu Weibei, she insisted on a relationship that respected her autonomy and refused to accept marriage at the cost of enduring grievances from his family 215 289 302 303.

Her sympathy extends to women whose circumstances differ from her own. When First Concubine lost the will to live after a romantic disappointment, Gu Wanning urged her to live for herself and cautioned Er Ya against judging her pain 38 39.

Skills

Agronomy and farming

Gu Wanning draws on her agronomy education and her interest in rural life to cultivate crops at the Marquis’s Residence 3 9.

• Recognized an ear of corn sold as an overseas curiosity and valued it for its potential yield 9.
• Protected her corn patch during a storm, with help from Xu Weibei and his guards 34 35.
• Burned her seedlings with fresh chicken manure; she later realized it should have been composted 41.
• Directed an estate steward to plant corn on land Xu Weibei allowed her to manage 43.
• Planned to sell some of her harvest to wealthy buyers while keeping most of it as seed for wider cultivation. She also began compiling corn-growing information for a booklet 75 106.
• Bought a tomato plant and peanuts and received two pumpkins from a shop selling overseas crops 143.

Other skills

• Calligraphy: Learned fine brush calligraphy from her grandfather in her previous life 16.
• Swimming: Swam ashore after deliberately falling into Jade Belt Lake 48.
• Food preservation: Said she could make jam from damaged fruit and wine from grapes 36.
• Sugar-making: Used the yellow-mud water-leaching method to make white sugar and planned to sell the recipe rather than operate a large workshop herself 187 194 195.
• Drawing: Copied and enlarged diagrams from ancient texts in her previous life; she later drew on those memories while considering a water-powered mill 194.

Relationships

• Xu Weibei — Her former husband and the Marquis of Yingchuan. Both initially wanted to separate; although he later helped protect her corn and lent her farmland to manage, she remained determined to leave the marriage 2 35 39 43 45. They divorced before the emperor, but later grew close again. Wanning agreed to be with him while resisting remarriage and insisting that each handle their own family’s affairs 163 289 302 303.
• Er Ya — Her personal maid and childhood companion from the estate. She accompanied Gu Wanning back to the Gu family and supports her at the Marquis’s Residence 1 28 29. She continued to support Wanning after the divorce and encouraged her when she considered pursuing Xu Weibei 163 274.
• Gu Anqi — Her elder brother. After she confronted him about the family’s treatment of her, he apologized and agreed to handle her requested divorce privately 26 28 32. Their relationship gradually improved, and he defended her interests in later family disputes 224 225 291.
• Gu Wanqing — Her sister by upbringing and the Princess Consort of Qin. The original Gu Wanning resented their unequal upbringing; the transmigrator initially chose to remain civil but distant 4 46. After learning they had been switched as infants, Wanning told Wanqing that her birth mother, not Wanqing herself, was responsible. They made peace, though Wanning warned her not to involve her in future trouble 67 174. Wanqing later asked her to help her son if he ever fell into hardship; Wanning declined to make an unconditional promise but indicated she would help if she could 295.
• Gu Yuanshi — Her father and the Chief Grand Secretary. Gu Anqi said he agreed to her marriage partly in hopes that Xu Weibei could protect her if his reforms failed 3 32. He supported the promotion of her corn and offered to bear the blame if it failed 103 105. Their relationship remained complicated: he publicly severed ties with her during Xu Weibei’s imprisonment, and she later acknowledged his protective intentions without claiming to forgive the earlier neglect 279 280 329 337.
• Grand Princess — Xu Weibei’s grandmother, who initially treated Gu Wanning warmly and defended her. Gu Anqi explained that she had also sought the marriage to strengthen ties between the families 5 20 31. Their relationship later became openly hostile over Wanning’s involvement with Xu Weibei; Wanning refused to submit to her for the sake of remarrying him 270 288 289 302.
• Li Jinxiu — Xu Weibei’s First Concubine. Gu Wanning cared for her during an illness brought on by heartbreak; Jinxiu later offered to accompany her when she leaves the residence 37 39 45. Wanning also supported Jinxiu’s freedom to decide whether to meet Qin Lie rather than forcing a match 100 101.
• Second Concubine — A member of the Jin family, which owns a pawnshop. She offered accounting help and an eight-hundred-tael note, and later spent time farming and socializing with Gu Wanning 12 23 41. Wanning remained concerned for her after the divorce, including over possible jealousy arising from gifts for her brother’s wedding 306 321.
• Hua Ying — Xu Weibei’s Third Concubine, who has medical training. She helped care for Jinxiu and examined Gu Wanning after her mouth swelled from eating figs 17 37 44. She remained Wanning’s close friend and adviser after the divorce, and Wanning later considered her possible relationship with Gu Anfang 215 338.
• Zhou Yaya — Xu Weibei’s Fourth Concubine. She initially complained about Gu Wanning’s punishments and withheld allowance, but later joined her and the other women in household activities 2 19 28.
• Shitou (Zhi Nu) — A boy Wanning met at an estate and brought home with Xu Weibei’s permission. He was later recognized as Gu Anqi’s son, making him her nephew; she encouraged him as he adjusted to the Gu family 149 166 167 170.
• Yiling — A woman from the Southern Border who became acquainted with Wanning and spent time in her quarters. Yiling offered to arrange for her brother Yi Xiu to examine Xu Weibei; Wanning later learned that Xu’s mother was Yiling’s paternal aunt 326 331 345.

Story Role

Household accounts and the corn venture

After Xu Weibei accused her of mistreating his concubines, Gu Wanning investigated the household accounts. She found that more than six hundred taels had been diverted in her name over three years and persuaded the steward not to report the shortfall immediately 2 4.

Seeking money, she sold the household’s poultry and tried to pawn tonics given to her by the Grand Princess. She then discovered corn at a goods shop, bought it after raising silver, and planted it as the basis for a venture of her own. Second Concubine offered help with the accounts and presented her with an eight-hundred-tael note 7 9 10 12 14.

As the crop approached harvest, Wanning planned to sell a portion to wealthy customers and reserve most of it for seed. She explained its cultivation and potential yield to Gu Yuanshi, who offered to promote it under his own name while ensuring the emperor knew the achievement was hers. Wanning began organizing cultivation instructions for a booklet 75 103 105 106.

Family dispute and divorce

Xu Weibei struck Gu Anqi at court and demanded that Gu Wanning cut ties with the Gu family. She refused, telling him to take the matter up with her father and brothers or divorce her 18 20.

After a public quarrel with Lu Baozhu, Gu Wanning confronted Gu Anqi about the original owner’s childhood and the family’s favoritism toward Gu Wanqing. She asked him to help her divorce Xu Weibei and establish an independent household; he later apologized and promised to handle the matter privately 26 27 28 32.

Despite Xu Weibei’s eventual wish to preserve the marriage, Wanning insisted on ending it before the emperor. The emperor ordered a divorce decree, and she returned to the Gu family before going back to the Marquis’s Residence to collect her belongings and bid the concubines farewell 163.

The corn patch and Jinxiu’s illness

Gu Wanning rushed out during a storm to shield her corn. Xu Weibei gave her a rain cape and ordered guards to erect a tent over the patch; she thanked the guards with silver and ginger soup 34 35.

Soon afterward, she found Jinxiu gravely ill and arranged care for her. Jinxiu eventually recovered, though she remained subdued. When Gu Wanning later damaged her corn with fresh manure, Xu sent her the estate’s remaining corn seeds and allowed her to manage thirty qing of farmland outside the capital 37 39 41 43.

Flower-viewing banquet

Gu Wanning attended the Grand Princess’s banquet with all four concubines. She sat by Jade Belt Lake with a fishing rod to avoid interruptions, but Lu Baozhu came to provoke her. Gu Wanning deliberately fell backward into the lake to teach her a lesson, then swam ashore and returned home early 45 47 48 49.

Kidnapping and rescue

After the Empress issued an edict reprimanding Wanning for extravagance over rare animals, Wanning was taken away by men impersonating Imperial Guards. Suspecting danger, she pulled apart a glass-bead bracelet and dropped beads along the road as a trail 111 114.

Her captor, Meng He, summoned Xu Weibei and Gu Yuanshi. When Meng He held a dagger to her, Wanning pretended to throw herself forward, then ducked, allowing Xu Weibei to attack him. She escaped with a cut on her neck and afterward thanked her father and brother for coming to rescue her 117 119 120 121.

Life after divorce

Wanning brought Shitou home after learning that he stayed at an estate in the hope that his parents would return for him. After the divorce, the Gu family recognized his resemblance to Gu Anqi; he was reunited with his family as Zhi Nu, and Wanning helped reassure him during the adjustment 149 163 166 167 170.

At a temple fair, Wanning became interested in the high price of white sugar and asked Fang Tingxiu about sugar-making. After learning that a sugar workshop did not use the yellow-mud water-leaching method, she used it to make white sugar. Lacking the resources to run a large workshop, she planned to offer the recipe to Baoji for ten thousand taels 185 187 194 195.

Renewed relationship with Xu Weibei

After the divorce, Wanning valued Xu Weibei’s abilities and character but initially preferred to remain friends, believing a marriage between them could leave her caught between him and her family. She wanted to be treated as an equal rather than as a dependent 215.

When Xu Weibei collapsed after being drugged, Wanning suspected Gu Xiaoxiao had tampered with his food. Third Concubine identified the drug as an aphrodisiac, and Wanning later interceded to prevent Xu from retaliating against the Gu family. He subsequently refused to see her when she tried to visit 232 245.

After a scheme by the Grand Princess left Xu humiliated, Wanning pretended to faint so he could take her away from a crowd and later comforted him. When he was imprisoned, she sought a way to help despite the political risks, visited and attempted to confess her feelings, then sent him food while he sent her daily love letters 270 278 280 283 287.

Wanning confronted the Grand Princess and declared that she would not remarry if marriage meant accepting mistreatment. She and Xu later became a couple on Wanning’s terms, with each responsible for their own family’s affairs. Xu publicly defended her at a feast, and they shared an affectionate moment afterward 288 289 302 303 321.

Later family and court affairs

During a confrontation before the emperor, Wanning acknowledged that Gu Yuanshi’s decision to sever ties with her had been intended for her good, but said she would not be grateful for it or claim to have forgiven the neglect of her childhood. Her emotional appeal was partly genuine and partly performed; Xu Weibei comforted her during the exchange 329 330.

The emperor subsequently revealed that Xu Weibei’s mother had been a Southern Border princess. Wanning later spoke with her father about their relationship, explaining that she respected his public service and recognized what he had done for her without wishing to judge, forgive, or hate on her predecessor’s behalf 331 337.

Notable Quotes

“I don’t want what you think is best. I want to make my own choice.” 28

“Only this time, don’t live for anyone else. Live well for yourself.” 39

“I am that crumbling wall.” 48

“I want him to treat me as an equal, as a person, not as someone dependent on him.” 215

“I’m with you to be happy. If I’m not happy, why should I make myself suffer?” 303