Gu Wangchen paused for a moment, thinking of what Xu Lanyin had said about "preparing food", clenched his fists and walked away angrily.
He was unwilling to believe that the silly girl he had led by the nose for eight years had suddenly changed her personality. Many times when he woke up in the middle of the night, the first thing that jumped into his eyes was this girl, holding a large sum of money in her hand and smiling at him foolishly...
But today, she got the upper hand again. Everything that happened before wasn't just a coincidence; this silly girl has truly become someone I don't recognize anymore. Then I thought, so what if she got the upper hand verbally? She's just a shrew. It's right to leave her.
Gu Wangchen returned to the backyard of the teahouse and saw Mrs. Gu settling accounts with Manager Lin. She was always afraid that the manager would embezzle her money.
Gu Wangchen smiled at Shopkeeper Lin and said, "Uncle Lin, go and get busy. You've done a great job. My mother and I trust you."
After Shopkeeper Lin left, Gu Wangchen whispered to Mrs. Gu, "Mom, don't cause any more trouble and don't say another word to Shopkeeper Lin. Otherwise, let's move back to Xiaozao Village."
Ever since the Xu family opened their shop on this street, her son had been in a bad mood. Seeing his face so gloomy it looked like water could be twisted out of it, Granny Gu thought he was angry with the Xu family again, so she advised, "Son, let's have the waiter at the teahouse go to the Xu family's shop and buy two pounds of snacks. Then, we'll say we've eaten rat shit and make a scene at the shop. We'll also say we'll file a complaint with the county government. If they get scared, they might move away and stay away from us."
Gu Wangchen looked at his mother, who wore a golden hairpin and silk clothes, but her temperament and ideas were still so vulgar and unpresentable.
He was so angry that his head hurt. He said, "Others are fine after eating it, but we are in trouble after eating it. We have such a case with the Xu family. What do you want others to think? When the time comes, it will not be them but us who will move out."
The old woman continued, "Then let's pay someone to make trouble. Money talks. I don't believe we can't drive out this family of peasants."
Gu Wangchen opened his mouth, thinking that no matter how much he talked to his mother, she wouldn't understand, or wouldn't listen. He had to spend money to hire a more capable maid to look after her.
He suppressed his anger and said, "Do you think everyone else is stupid? The Xu family has supporters behind them. If something happens to their shop, the first people they think of will be us. Maybe they are waiting for us to fall into their trap. If they find evidence against me and report me to the government, I won't even be able to participate in next year's Spring Examination. Mother, I beg you, please don't go out and cause trouble..."
When Mrs. Gu heard that her son's future might be affected, she temporarily gave up the idea of playing a trick on him.
On the third and fourth days, Xu Lanyin went to the shop for two consecutive days. On the fourth day, she brought Xu Lanting with her. After lunch at the shop, she took him to the clinic to see a doctor and get medicine.
He also gave Shopkeeper Qian and Doctor Wei a bag of snacks each, and they both happily accepted them.
Seeing that there were no outsiders around, Xu Lanyin whispered to Doctor Wei, "The other day I heard someone say there's a medicine called Black Something Grass that's worth a lot of money. Do you know what it looks like? I'll try to identify it when I pick herbs in the future, so I can sell it for a good price."
Doctor Wei thought for a moment and said, "The girl is probably talking about blackthorn. We don't have that kind of herb here. Because it's not available here, it will sell for a slightly higher price than ordinary herbs, but it's not worth much."
Gulan Yin seemed to suddenly understand and said with a smile, "Oh, it seems to be called Heijicao, but forget it if it's not there."
She felt very sorry. Doctor Wei was not only a skilled doctor, but also old, knowledgeable, and kind. That's why she dared to ask him. No matter how good the goods were, you had to know what they could be used for. If you didn't know, you might as well exchange them for money. She was very conflicted.
Afterwards, the brother and sister went to Hong Zhen's house with two bags of snacks.
Now the Xu family and the Hong family are very close. Xu Lanyin also has her own little plans, one for Xu Lanzhou and the other for Zhao Wu.
The Hong family lived in a beautifully decorated three-story house with four servants, and they lived a comfortable life. Hong Zhen's salary alone wasn't enough to support their standard of living; they relied heavily on Hu's dowry. Hu's family was a merchant in the capital, and when she married, she brought with her five hundred acres of fertile land, three shops, and over a thousand taels of silver.
As soon as she entered the house, Xu Lanyin felt that she had come to the wrong place today. The Hong family had a guest, Mrs. Hu, the second aunt of the Hu family. Xu Lanyin had met her once before. Mrs. Hu was crying so hard that her eyes were red, and Mrs. Hu was crying with her.
Xu Lanting was taken by the servants to Fang Jie'er's wing, where the two children played together. Xu Lanting felt awkward and thought she would just sit there for half a minute, exchange a few pleasantries, and then leave. But then she noticed the maid behind Mrs. Hu looked familiar, as if she had seen her somewhere before.
Mrs. Hu was heard advising Mrs. Hu, "Second Aunt, don't be too sad. If the provincial capital doesn't work, go to the capital. They say there are some good doctors working at the Baicaotang in the capital. Go there and have a look."
Mrs. Hu shook her head and said, "No matter how good they are, they can't compare to the imperial physicians at the Imperial Hospital." She then took Mrs. Hu's hand and said, "Hua Niang, Second Aunt is begging you, could your son-in-law ask Master Bo for help? I heard that Judge Li at the Imperial Hospital is an excellent doctor, especially in treating heart diseases. He's the best among the imperial physicians."
Mrs. Hu was in a difficult situation. Her husband's uncle was the Marquis Pingjin, but her husband's family was three generations away from the Marquis Pingjin's mansion. Every time her husband returned to Beijing, he would go to the Marquis Pingjin's mansion to pay a visit to the Marquis, but they would rarely say a few words. How could she dare to ask for this matter on behalf of her relative?
Mrs. Hu knew she was putting her niece in a difficult position, and she burst into tears again, saying, "I'm at my wit's end. The doctors all said she didn't have any heart disease, but rather that it was just a matter of internal stagnation. But Yi-ya-chan insists she's not unhappy about anything. She complains of chest pain, panic, and insomnia every day. She's worried she's going to die, and she's almost going crazy..."
Xu Lanyin remembered why that girl felt familiar. She was the one she had met a few months ago when she took Xu Lanting to see Dr. Wei. She had said her daughter had a heart disease, but Dr. Wei had said no. Now, after hearing what Mrs. Hu said, she must have sought medical treatment everywhere but to no avail.
She felt that since so many people had not diagnosed that Miss Hu had a heart disease, then she probably did not have a heart disease, but rather a mental illness that was difficult to express, so she could only say that she felt uncomfortable.
But she couldn't say it, so she thought about hinting it to Mrs. Hu privately later. So she stood up and said goodbye. Mrs. Hu didn't stay any longer, and sent the siblings away with an apology.
On the eighth day of the first lunar month, Xu Lanyin, carrying a bamboo basket and Huazi, went to Yefeng Valley again. The first snow of the winter had fallen last night. It wasn't heavy, but it had fallen all night, dyeing the ground a blanket of white.
Walking in the valley, seeing the snow-covered landscape, Xu Lanyin thought of Santa Claus in her previous life and the small wooden house he lived in. She also imagined Zhao Wu dressed as Santa Claus and standing at the door of the wooden house, and she couldn't help but smile.
Zhao Wu knew Xu Lanyin would definitely come today, so he stayed put and even kept the house warm. It was much colder in the mountains than outside, and wooden houses were even colder than brick and adobe houses. When he was alone, he'd be lazy, but if Xu Lanyin was coming, he'd get up before dawn to start lighting the fire.
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