Chapter 141: Humility
Niuniu did not agree immediately, but looked at Gu Zhao and said, "Mom has always protected me. I didn't get wet in the rain when I got off the carriage. Third brother's hair is wet, let him wash it first."
The old woman was anxious, and couldn't understand why everyone was being so humble. She couldn't help but look expectantly at Gu Zhao, hoping that he would be humble as well.
But Gu Zhao couldn't understand her eyes.
Gu Zhao didn't want to do his homework at all. Hearing this, he didn't give in at all. He suppressed his joy and said, "Brother, since my sister said so, then I won't be polite!"
The old woman clenched and unclenched her fists, but said nothing in the end. She obediently carried the hot water to the room at the side.
But Gu Zhao was not a good boy when taking a bath. He was thinking of delaying it as long as possible and did not really want to do his homework, so he just stayed in the bathtub.
"Young master, the water is getting cold, let's get up first." The old woman said in a gentle voice.
Gu Zhao rolled his eyes and said, "My back feels dirty, and my hair is not clean. Rub it again and again."
The old woman could only lower her head and continue to scrub the child reluctantly.
After finally scrubbing the man from head to toe, she thought the torture was over, but unexpectedly Gu Zhao leaned back.
"Mother-in-law, if you have other things to do, go ahead and I'll lie down for a while."
Anyway, for Gu Zhao, as long as he doesn't write big characters, he is happy to do anything.
When the old woman heard this, she couldn't help but clench her fists. How could she help Niu Niu take a bath if Gu Zhao didn't wash her well? After all, there was only this shallow bathtub for children in the guest house.
"Young master, if you feel there is something dirty, let me rub it for you again. The water is not hot anymore, so there is no need to keep soaking in it." The old woman could hardly remember how many times she had said this.
Gu Zhao, however, seemed to not understand the hint and said, "It's okay, it's okay. The water is still hot for me. I'll get dressed when I'm done. You don't have to stay here all the time, mother-in-law."
Seeing that hints were useless, the old woman could only say, "Young Master, your sister hasn't taken a bath yet. I'll go get some hot water for her."
After the old woman finished speaking, without waiting for Gu Zhao to react, she turned around and carried the wooden barrel to the kitchen.
Because of Mr. Li's extra instructions, there was still hot water on the stove in the kitchen. The old woman filled the cup with hot water as soon as she arrived, and then walked along the corridor into the guest courtyard.
When she came in, Gu Yan was also urging Gu Zhao.
"Proficiency comes from diligence and neglect comes from laziness. You never take so long to take a bath at home." Gu Yan said with a serious face.
Gu Zhao lowered his head and whispered, "Brother, I want to soak for a while longer..."
Gu Yan didn't hesitate, he took the book, grabbed a chair and sat next to the bathtub, and began to read into his brother's ear.
This sound, which was like a devil's voice, made Gu Zhao's head buzz.
"Brother, stop nagging. I'll get up right away!" Gu Zhao wiped his body hurriedly and put on his clothes in a hurry.
The old woman happily stepped forward to help.
She finally refilled the wooden tub with hot water and ran next door to urge Niu Niu to take a bath.
But Niuniu still shook her head and said, "It's the eldest brother's turn now. The corners of his clothes are wet, and he should have changed his clothes long ago."
Old woman: ...Why are you being so humble again!
The old woman wanted to curse.
She couldn't help but wonder if Niuniu knew something. She felt like she was being played around by this family.
Gu Yan waved his hand and was about to say no, but the next second his nose suddenly started to itch, and he couldn't help it:
“A-choo!”
Niuniu's eyes were immediately filled with worry, and she said, "Brother, go take a hot bath. I haven't been touched by any rain, and I'm as strong as a calf!"
Gu Yan couldn't help laughing and said, "You are a little girl, and you don't mind hearing me say 'little calf'."
While he was talking, his nose started to itch again and he couldn't help sneezing three times. Even in this state, he still refused to be humble to his sister.
But when he entered the small room to take a shower, he muttered quietly: "He was fine just now, why did he suddenly start sneezing?"
Gu Yan was older and already had a stronger sense of gender. He did not let the old woman help him bathe, but took clean clothes and took a bath himself.
The old woman stood outside the door carrying a wooden bucket filled with hot water, and the more she thought about it, the more unwilling she became.
Even though she was used to doing physical work all year round, it was not easy for her to lift such a big bucket of hot water.
She rolled her eyes and shouted to Gu Yan who was bathing in the cubicle: "Master, I will go to the kitchen to boil more water now. When you are done, I will wash you."
The purpose of her saying this was simple. After experiencing the incident where Gu Zhaolai couldn't get up from the bathtub, she was afraid that Gu Yan would have the same bad habit.
When Gu Yan in the cubicle heard this, he immediately sped up his actions.
The old woman returned to the kitchen with the wooden bucket and immediately urged: "Hurry up, the guest house is waiting for hot water."
The servant in charge of boiling water in the kitchen could not help but complain: "Although the master has ordered us to serve carefully, the people in the guest house are too rude. They use the water so quickly, how can I boil it?"
The old woman had something to hide, so she naturally didn't dare to explain. She could only come forward to help with the work, and then said, "I just need this bucket of hot water urgently, and I won't rush for the rest."
The servants in the kitchen reluctantly added more firewood to the earthen stove to make the fire burn more vigorously so that the water could heat up faster.
With the old woman's constant help and urging, the pot of water finally became hot. She hurriedly poured the water into the bucket, and then ran back in a hurry.
The kitchen servant looked at her hurried back and couldn't help muttering, "How strange! This old woman usually acts sneaky and cunning, but today she is very active."
The old woman was carrying a full bucket of hot water, and all she had in her mind was the one or two taels of silver from Mr. Li. Her monthly salary was only two cents of silver, and now she could get one or two taels of silver just by checking whether there was a birthmark on the girl's arm. Naturally, she was very enthusiastic.
If she counted carefully, this was the third time she had run with a full bucket of water, and she felt that the bucket was getting heavier and heavier.
For a tael of silver, the old woman used all her strength, and veins popped out on her forehead from the excessive force.
She arrived at the guest house, sweating profusely, carrying a wooden bucket. She was so tired that she felt everything in front of her was distorted.
"Hot water...hot water is here...I will help you take a bath..." the old woman said stubbornly.
Gu Yan had just finished taking a shower and changing his clothes. Sun Jiaxing, who had been accompanying the children, also returned to his room and was replaced by Zhang Yuniang.
Because Gu Mingda was out, Zhang Yuniang did not stay in the same room with Sun Jiaxing to avoid suspicion.
Zhang Yunniang took Gu Yan's hand and checked him up and down, and asked, "Ayan, Niuniu said you might have caught a cold. Where do you feel uncomfortable? You must tell me? Are you dizzy? Are you cold?"
Gu Yan shook his head and said, "Mom, after taking a bath, my son is much better. Now he doesn't even sneeze anymore."
Zhang Yunniang heaved a sigh of relief when she heard that. She turned to look at the old woman who came in with the wooden bucket and said, "Please change the water in the bathtub."
The old woman's eyes began to spin, but she still insisted on going into the house, pouring out Gu Yan's bath water, and then forcing herself to drink clean hot water.
"Young lady, it's your turn to take a bath. I...I will serve you." The old woman said, suppressing her discomfort.
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