Chapter 4 Gu Family
Zhang Yunniang suppressed the bitterness in her heart and said softly, "Aunt wants Niuniu to live well and grow up healthily. It will be very sad for me to think that I can't see you grow up."
When Niu Niu heard this, she was immediately conflicted. She was reluctant to let her aunt spend money, but at the same time she didn't want her aunt to feel sad. The five-year-old girl was so confused that she couldn't think.
Zhang Yunniang whispered again: "Niuniu can't make Auntie poor by eating. Auntie still has a lot of copper coins."
Then, when no one was watching, she showed Niu Niu her purse.
When Niu Niu saw a handful of copper coins and even a small silver coin inside, her eyes widened immediately.
The little girl had never seen so much money before, but she still said, "Aunt's money belongs to Aunt, Niuniu can't spend it carelessly."
Zhang Yunniang was full of tenderness: "Aunt likes Niuniu and wants to spend money on Niuniu."
She was afraid that the little girl would continue to be entangled, so she deliberately asked: "When Niuniu grows up and can earn money, can you also spend money on your aunt?"
Niu Niu nodded vigorously.
Zhang Yuniang reached out and touched the little girl's soft hair.
"Can Auntie earn money by herself?" Niu Niu asked in a low voice.
Zhang Yunniang looked at the silly look of the little girl and thought she was adorable. She smiled and said, "Yes, Auntie can make a lot of money and buy a lot of food for Niuniu, and raise her strong."
When Niu Niu heard this, the heavy stone in her heart finally fell.
The wonton in front had already gone cold, so Zhang Yunniang replaced it with a hot one and fed it to Niu Niu. This time the little girl finally stopped refusing.
After taking a bite of wonton, the little girl's eyes lit up again and she said vaguely, "Great...Great! Auntie is also great!"
After taking a bite, Zhang Yunniang thought that the five copper coins were well spent. No wonder everyone said that the wontons in this restaurant tasted delicious.
After finishing the wontons, Zhang Yunniang did not leave in a hurry, but asked softly: "Niuniu, can you be your aunt and uncle's daughter in the future?"
When Niu Niu heard the last sentence, her big eyes sparkled and the joy in her eyes almost overflowed.
But soon she looked a little disappointed again, and said, "Dad, Mom and Grandma always say that raising Niuniu costs a lot of food, and Niuniu doesn't want to spend the food from her aunt's house."
Zhang Yunniang was a little angry after hearing this. She didn't want Niu Niu to stay in that home any longer. She even regretted not adopting Niu Niu earlier.
"Niuniu, you are still young and don't need to worry about these things. Tell your aunt if you are willing to be her daughter?" Zhang Yunniang asked seriously.
Niu Niu nodded vigorously. She didn't tell her aunt that last night when she was having the worst fever, she was lying in the woodshed and made a wish to God that she would have a mother who loved her as much as her aunt did.
Zhang Yunniang smiled and said, "Then you can call me mom from now on."
Niuniu immediately snuggled into Zhang Yunniang's arms and couldn't wait to shout, "Mom!"
Zhang Yunniang felt a pang of sadness in her heart. She already had three sons and this was not her first time being a mother, but when she heard the little girl's cry, she still felt an indescribable sense of satisfaction.
She had always liked Niu Niu, and at this moment she felt as if this child should be her daughter.
According to convention, Uncle Niu's ox cart would return in the evening, and Zhang Yunniang obviously couldn't wait until then. As for Niu Niu's matter, she had to go back and discuss it with her husband's family.
"Mom, let me get down and walk by myself. You will be tired."
Halfway through the journey, Niu Niu was afraid that Zhang Yuniang was too tired, so she wanted to get off and walk by herself.
But even though Zhang Yunniang's legs were sore from walking, she still insisted on carrying him, saying, "It's okay, I have plenty of strength. You just recovered from your illness, so you should rest more."
Niu Niu couldn't do anything about her and could only silently hope in her heart that it would be great if she could ride in a ox cart.
Strangely enough, Zhang Yunniang had only taken two steps when she heard some noise behind her. Turning back, she saw Uncle Niu running towards her with an empty ox cart.
Zhang Yunniang paid a copper coin and got on the car. She asked in confusion, "Uncle Niu? Why are you going home so early?"
Uncle Niu said with a gloomy face: "The goods I brought for someone were left at home. The people in the town are in a hurry and need to deliver them today. If you deliver them tomorrow, you won't be paid."
Zhang Yunniang looked dazed and looked down at Niuniu who was nestling in her arms obediently.
Just catching up with the ox cart was not enough for Zhang Yunniang to believe that she was lucky today, but considering that Niu Niu's fever subsided as soon as she entered the city, and the medical consultation was free, and the ox cart fell from the sky just when she felt tired on the way back, her luck seemed too good?
Zhang Yunniang thought of what the old people in the village secretly said about Niu Niu being blessed, and she became more and more convinced of this.
The ox cart entered Qingshui Village and dropped off Zhang Yunniang and her daughter.
Zhang Yuniang was feeling uneasy, and she pulled the little girl into Gu's house on the left side of the village entrance.
The Gu family is still headed by Old Lady Gu. Old Man Gu is old and his mind is not very good now. Sometimes he is clear-headed and sometimes confused. Sometimes he doesn’t even recognize his family members.
Old Mrs. Gu gave birth to three sons and one daughter. The eldest, Gu Mingshu, and his wife, Chen Chunhua, gave birth to two sons and one daughter. The second, Gu Mingda, was Zhang Yunni's husband, and the couple had three sons. The third, Gu Mingli, and his wife, Liu Erni, gave birth to a son and a daughter. The couple's youngest daughter died before she grew up.
Now the entire Gu family has not yet split up, and there are fifteen people living here.
After Zhang Yunniang finished telling her about her plan to adopt Niuniu, her eldest sister-in-law Chen Chunhua jumped up in anxiety and shouted, "Oh my God, there are so many people at home who can't even afford to eat, and you're still pretending to be a big shot outside, rushing to adopt a girl who has nothing to do with you! I don't agree with this!"
Old Lady Gu ignored her eldest daughter-in-law's shouting. She had already heard the whole story in the village. At this moment, she looked at Zhang Yunniang's husband Gu Mingda with a sullen face and said, "Second brother, was it your wife's idea to adopt this child, or was it your idea?"
Zhang Yuniang immediately looked at her husband Gu Mingda with expectant eyes.
Gu Mingda looked at his wife gently, nodded gently, and turned to Old Lady Gu and said, "Mom, this child has a miserable life in the Zhang family. She had a fever all night yesterday and almost lost her life. Adopting her is both Yunniang's idea and my idea."
After hearing this, Mrs. Gu looked a little hesitant.
Chen Chunhua knew that her mother-in-law always listened to her second brother, so she quickly said, "Mom, raising a child is no small matter. This is no ordinary child. I heard from the Zhang family that this girl is an unlucky plague god, full of bad luck!"
When Niu Niu heard this, tears welled up in her eyes, but she didn't dare to refute. She looked extremely pitiful.
Zhang Yunniang immediately protected the child behind her and said, "Sister-in-law, don't listen to my family's nonsense. My Niuniu is obviously a lucky girl, not unlucky at all!"
Chen Chunhua curled her lips and said, "She is not unlucky. Why is the Zhang family so unlucky because of her? Mother, my second brother is going to take the scholar exam again this year. Don't let him end up like Zhang Guangzong, who was unlucky enough to have his hand broken before the exam."
When Mrs. Gu heard this, her face changed immediately. Among her three sons, only Gu Mingda was a scholar.
His teachers clearly said that he was very knowledgeable and would definitely pass the examination to become a scholar, but something unexpected always happened to him before each exam, either he caught a cold or had diarrhea, or he overslept and couldn't get into the examination room. It took him from the age of fifteen to twenty-five before he finally passed.
When it was time to take the exam for the scholar, Gu Mingda encountered all kinds of bad luck again, such as sitting in a bad seat, the rain getting the test paper wet, or sitting in the toilet and being knocked unconscious by the stench. He encountered all kinds of strange things.
"Yunniang, we should send this child back to Zhang..."
Before Mrs. Gu could finish her words, Father Gu, who had been sitting next to her without saying anything, suddenly started to move. He stood up, stared at Niuniu with his cloudy eyes, and said vaguely, "Nannan..."
Old Mrs. Gu's expression changed instantly.
(End of this chapter)
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