Chapter 24 Rumors
The first and third wives of the old Gu family went out to sell tofu. Chen Chunhua took this opportunity to accompany her husband back to her parents' home, Chenjia Village. She wanted to stay there longer and also hoped to help her husband sell all the tofu.
Liu Erni was different. She was not familiar with the people in the next village and she could not help her husband if she went there. So she simply took a piece of tofu and went back to her parents' home while her mother-in-law was not paying attention.
When Gu Mingda was gathering people to go up the mountain to look for Niu Niu, Liu Erni wanted to come out to help, but was stopped by her mother.
Liu's mother's reason was also very good: "If you go out, what if they ask your brother to go with you to help? The person was lost in Daqing Mountain. That girl is very unlucky. Who knows if she was eaten by something because she was playing around. Don't drag your own brother down."
The Gu and Liu families are in-laws. According to secular conventions, if something happens to the Gu family, the Liu family will naturally lend a helping hand, and the men of the Liu family will even lead the team into the mountains.
Liu Erni obviously also valued her mother's home more. When she heard this, she immediately shrank back and pretended not to hear Gu Mingda calling people around the village. She also helped with work at her mother's home for a long time before she heard the noise in the village.
At first, the Liu family was just joining in the fun to laugh at the joke of Zhang Guangzong's family. But when they heard that the old Gu family had caught a wild boar in the mountains, they immediately became restless, fearing that the third branch of the Gu family would not get the upper hand.
After learning that the wild boar had to be divided equally with others, not only Liu Erni but even Liu Lao Niang was furious. The old lady's logic was very touching. If her daughter didn't get any benefits, it meant that her family also suffered a great loss. Liu Erni's and Gu Lao San's things had long been regarded as her own by Liu Lao Niang, and the wild boar meat of the Gu family was equal to her wild boar meat.
Encouraged by her mother, Liu Erni immediately ran back home in a hurry and tried to stop them from dividing the pork.
Gu Mingda in the room frowned slightly.
Zhang Yuniang immediately said, "I'll go out and take a look."
Gu Mingda frowned slightly: "I'll go with you."
The two sons also had curious looks on their faces, and even Niu Niu was stretching her neck as if looking outside.
"Dad, I want to go out and help grandma!" Gu Zhao said, thinking he was being very considerate.
Gu Mingda didn't indulge him and pointed it out directly: "If you want to watch the fun, just say so."
Gu Zhao laughed and didn't feel embarrassed at all.
Gu Mingda did not scold him, but looked at his eldest son Gu Yan and said, "You can't go out. Your eldest brother will explain the reason."
After saying that, he took Zhang Yuniang out mercilessly.
Gu Zhao looked at Gu Yan pitifully, and Niu Niu had the same expression.
Gu Yan reached out and touched the top of his sister's head, and said softly: "Third Aunt is an elder, grandma should scold her, a gentleman should not look at anything indecent."
Gu Zhao spoke quickly: "I am not a gentleman, and neither is Niuniu."
Gu Yan: ...
He took a deep breath and said, "The elders are about to fall into an embarrassing situation, and the younger generation should avoid it."
As he explained, the loud voice of Old Lady Gu outside could be heard throughout the house.
"Where have you been all afternoon? You didn't care about your nephew and niece going missing? You're so angry when I gave you some pork as a thank you to the villagers! When will it be your turn to be the boss of this family?"
Old Lady Gu didn't wait for the villagers who had entered the mountain to express their dissatisfaction and quickly made a judgment on the matter. Not only could Liu Erni not stop others from sharing the wild boar meat, she was also scolded by her mother-in-law.
"This is the wild boar that my father killed. You are willing to spend so much money for a girl who is not related to you by blood..." Liu Erni defended in a low voice.
But she didn't know that among the three daughters-in-law, her mother-in-law, Old Lady Gu, disliked her the most.
Although Chen Chunhua had her own little calculations, she was ultimately thinking about the first wife.
The third daughter-in-law, Liu Erni, not only has many petty calculations, but also stirs up many disputes in the family. More importantly, this daughter-in-law’s mind is entirely on her parents’ home!
What Old Lady Gu hates most is this kind of fool who can't see his own position clearly. He doesn't know how to feel sorry for his own children, but instead treats his nephews and nieces from his mother's side as ancestors. In Old Lady Gu's view, this is simply a case of brain damage.
"You also know that it was the old man who killed the wild boar. What does this have to do with you? If you have the ability, go up the mountain and kill one yourself! It is not your turn to make the decisions in the Gu family. If you make trouble again, I will let the third son divorce you!" said Old Mrs. Gu viciously.
She was not usually such a mean person and seldom said such words as divorce. But today she was really angry and in front of everyone, she did not give Liu Erni any face at all.
She was doing this for everyone present to see. The Gu people fled to Qingshui Village. Although they had settled there for decades and had divided into several households, they were still a small family in the village.
Regardless of whether Gu Mingda can pass the imperial examination and become a scholar in the future, or whether he will have a promising future, as long as it is what her own son said, even if Mrs. Gu feels painful, she will help her son save face.
Since the division of the meat is a foregone conclusion, it must be done beautifully so that no one can stop it.
Liu Erni had no idea what was going on in Grandma Gu's mind. She was always short-sighted and could only see her own family's losses. She was still calculating in her mind how much meat she had lost. She felt so aggrieved that she almost cried out loud on the spot and couldn't help wanting to make a fuss again.
Old Mrs. Gu was annoyed by what she saw, so she pulled people towards the woodshed. People in the yard could vaguely hear a few scoldings.
Gu Mingda didn't like outsiders watching his family's excitement, so he immediately urged everyone, "Is it time to give some meat to Brother Zhang Wu? How about some hind leg meat?"
Although it was a lively scene, the meat they got was real. The group of people immediately turned around and began to put all their enthusiasm into dividing the meat.
Someone who can talk, holding the meat in his hand, kept praising Gu Mingda: "Mingda, you are generous. With you, the Gu family will prosper in the future."
"Yes, yes, yes. You scholars keep your words. Most people are not willing to do so."
Some people also used Gu Mingda to criticize Zhang Guangzong, saying, "There aren't many scholars who are as sensible as Mingda. There's even a scholar in our village who wants to sell his daughter for a ghost marriage."
Gu Mingda listened to this, but his face did not show any joy, instead he said very seriously: "Although Guangzong sold his daughter to make money, he may not be well-off and has his own difficulties."
Everyone laughed and said, "What difficulty can he have? He can take thirty taels of silver at will. Does he really need the five taels of silver from the prostitute? It's because he is greedy and lustful!"
When country men gossip, it seems that women have nothing to do with them. Someone immediately heard something wrong and asked, "Lewd? How is Zhang Guangzong lustful? His wife is famous for her beauty in our village, and he has other affairs outside? Do you know something? Tell us."
The first person who spoke up, being questioned by everyone, looked very proud and said, "You don't know this. Zhang Guangzong looks honest on the surface, but he is actually a very playful person in private."
(End of this chapter)
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