Chapter 20 Fire
Grandma Gu acted quickly, finding matchmaker Zhao to arrange a date for her to propose marriage to Chen Xiu's family in Xiahe Village.
On the day in advance,
Grandma Gu patted her clothes: "Hanhan, change your clothes and come to Xiahe Village with Grandma."
Gu Yihan was slightly taken aback: "Grandma, is it inappropriate for me to go there?"
Grandma Gu said with a smile, "We country folk don't care about these things. Chen Xiu came to our family to be a stepmother to us sisters. You should take a look."
She saw the expression on Grandma Gu's face, which insisted that she go and find a husband.
Wearing a newly made dress and with her hair styled in the modern braids, the country girl instantly transformed into a youthful and beautiful young woman.
Grandma Gu looked at her pretty granddaughter and said, "The new clothes are still the prettiest."
In fact, Gu Yihan felt that she was young and didn't need to dress particularly well.
But Grandma Gu was worried that she would be looked down upon if she went to school in the commune, so she spent a lot of money to make her a set of clothes.
The matchmaker, Zhao, led the group to Xiahe Village in an oxcart. The journey took two hours, and Gu Yihan was so jolted by the bumpy ride that she almost threw up.
They quickly found Chen Xiu's house and went inside. They saw a middle-aged woman wearing patched clothes, with dry hair, who looked frail.
Matchmaker Zhao introduced her to Grandma Gu, saying, "This is Sister Chen. Her daughter, Chen Xiu, is the eldest and is very capable."
Gu Yihan rolled her eyes inwardly. If she couldn't do anything, she'd starve to death. Judging from Chen Xiu's mother, she wasn't the type to do any physical labor.
Grandma Gu didn't waste any words: "You look younger than me, so I'll call you 'Big Sister'."
"My son is getting married for the second time, so we won't have a banquet. We'll just have a meal at home, and that will be our wedding."
Sister-in-law Chen didn't care whether or not there was a banquet; if you wanted to marry her daughter, you had to give money: "No banquet is fine too, but you have to give 55 yuan as a bride price."
While they were talking, Chen Xiu came out to pour them water so that Grandma Gu and the others could get to know each other.
Grandma Gu thought it was alright; she wasn't particularly outstanding in appearance, but she was young.
Seeing that Grandma Gu didn't reply, Zhao the matchmaker tried to smooth things over, saying, "Aunt Gu, this girl is only 23 years old. Her family has held her back."
“In 1959, there was no food at home. Her father went up the mountain to look for food and never came back. She could have found someone to marry and made a living, but she couldn’t bear to leave her younger siblings. She managed to support the family for several years.”
“I wouldn’t tell your second son if it’s not good, because that would ruin my reputation.”
Grandma Gu, who knew Zhao the matchmaker's reputation, said, "Okay, no wedding, just give 55 yuan as a bride price, and we'll also give you a piece of red cloth."
The two parties reached an agreement and set a wedding date.
After leaving Xiahe Village, Grandma Gu said, "Sister Zhao, find a suitable young man for me around here. My eldest granddaughter is 17 now, it's time to find her a husband."
The matchmaker, Zhao, patted his chest and assured her, "Don't worry, I've got it covered."
That night, Gu Yihan lay in bed alone, unable to sleep. While drinking milk, she thought to herself, "Time really flies. Tomorrow, my new stepmother will be moving in."
When she got home that day, Grandma Gu asked her what she thought of her stepmother. Was she testing her like a child? As long as she kept to herself, it didn't matter to her who came into the family.
Suddenly, Gu Yihan sniffed the air. What was that smell of cooking oil? Could something be on fire? Something felt off.
Upon going outside, I saw that the firewood next to the kitchen and the kitchen itself were on fire; someone had set the fire.
Gu Yihan immediately shouted in the courtyard, "Murder! Someone set fire! Catch the murderer!" Her sharp, childish voice was especially loud in the quiet night.
Not only did it wake up my family, but it also woke up all the neighbors.
The family members were startled by Gu Yihan's voice. After hearing what she said, they hurriedly threw on some clothes and came out, only to be furious when they saw what she said.
Before Gu Laoda and the others could say anything, they rushed to put out the fire.
The neighbors rushed to the fire and saw a dark figure flash by: "Quick, grab him, he's a murderer!"
The villagers were quite united; some carried water to put out the fire, while the rest intercepted the arsonist and finally caught him.
Gu Yihan was relieved to see the fire was out. Grandma Gu was also frightened; if it weren't for her little granddaughter's alertness, the whole family would have been wiped out.
When Gu Jiawang and the villagers turned the arsonist around, they saw it was Zhang Cuihua.
Grandma Gu and Sister-in-law Gu stepped forward, one grabbing the other's hair and the other kicking her to the ground, then picked up a wooden stick and started beating Zhang Cuihua.
Grandma Gu said angrily, "You son of a bitch, you ingrate, if you want to die, I'll grant your wish."
Zhang Cuihua curled up on the ground, rolling around while covering her head with her hands.
The captain rushed over and said, "Alright, stop fighting. If you kill someone, you'll go to jail."
Grandma Gu and Sister-in-law Zhang then let go.
Grandma Gu said, "Captain, call the police. This is murder."
After Gu Lao Da and Gu Lao Er finished their work, they said, "We have to call the police. She's going to burn our whole family down."
Zhang Cuihua's eyes were filled with deep hatred: "You will all die a horrible death. As long as I live, I will not let you go." Her face was contorted with rage as she looked at everyone in the courtyard, as if she wanted to tear them all to pieces.
The captain said, "Gag Zhang Cuihua, tie her up, have someone watch her tonight, and send her to the police station tomorrow."
An older woman in the village said, "I hope she won't retaliate against us later. She's a madwoman; who knows what she might do next?"
Jiawang's wife also said, "It's all Gu Aidang's fault. He divorced her, even though she was a perfectly good daughter-in-law."
Then, mysteriously, she said, "You don't know, after Zhang Cuihua went back to her parents' home, she had her family sell her to a man whose wife had died. That man was in a bad mood and beat her."
Liu Zhaodi was startled: "Really?" She was once again relieved that she had been given a precious son instead.
Jiawang's wife, with an air of superiority that none of you are as well-informed as she is, said smugly, "How could I possibly lie? My cousin married into the village where she remarried, and I heard she was beaten horribly."
Just as Liu Zhaodi was about to ask something, she heard the team leader shout, "Everyone hurry back to sleep, we have to work tomorrow."
Everyone dispersed.
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