Chapter 12 If Qiu Yu could overlook the trouble at the Qiu family...
If Qiu Yu could disregard the food and clothing she ate at the Qiu family, and also disregard the verbal abuse and unfair treatment she received from Old Lady Zhou, she would understand that in this era, she was able to grow up safely thanks to their protection.
But if you are not afraid of death and have no other choice, you have to take revenge!
Uncle Qiu pondered Qiu Yuruo's words for a while, and the more he thought about it, the more tempted he became. He decided to go home and discuss it with his wife to come up with a strategy.
It was almost time, so the two stopped talking. Uncle Qiu went to turn the oxcart around, and Qiu Yuruo went back to the inner room, turned Su Yunting over, and said softly, "Take care of yourself at home. I'll be back after lunch."
Su Yunting silently replied, "Okay."
Qiu Yuruo went out and then instructed Su Jingshu, "Close the door and don't go out. Take good care of your brother. I've prepared lunch in advance. You just need to heat it up at noon."
Su Jingshu agreed to everything, and then Qiu Yuruo, along with Yun Che and her younger sister, boarded Uncle Qiu's oxcart.
The oxcart's arrival at Qianqiao Village attracted the attention of the villagers.
Seeing that Qiu Yuruo showed no resentment, others couldn't help but come over and strike up a conversation.
The uncle and nephew exchanged a glance, and Qiu Yuruo then proceeded to spread the good reputation of her third uncle all the way.
When I arrived home, a crowd of onlookers had already gathered, and my whole family came to the door to greet me.
Qiu Yuruo: It seems like you're giving me face, but actually Old Man Qiu just wants to hear compliments from others.
Ever since Old Qiu agreed to marry one of his granddaughters to the Su family, he had to use his integrity as an excuse to avoid being called a coward by the villagers.
Since Qiu Yuruo didn't cry or make a fuss when she got married, the villagers, no matter what they thought, always praised her.
Old Qiu has been thoroughly enjoying being fawned over these past two days.
Someone just ran over and said that Qiu Yuruo has returned, so Old Man Qiu had his wife call everyone in the house to come out and greet her.
It's just acting, Qiu Yuruo has become quite familiar with it in the past two days.
After getting off the oxcart, he first bowed and greeted Old Man Qiu, without showing any resentment on his face.
Old Qiu was in a great mood, feeling that the ten taels of silver he had spent were well worth it.
Qiu Yuruo then said to Grandma Zhou, "When I was at home, my grandmother was very strict with me. I didn't understand it at the time, but I only realized your good intentions after I got married."
When Grandma Zhou heard that Qiu Yuruo had been strict with her in the past, her expression changed, but remembering her husband's instructions, she could only take it as Qiu Yuruo praising her.
With a stiff face, he said, "Since you've lost your parents, I'll be the one to raise you. I'm not afraid you'll resent me."
Qiu Yuruo didn't retort, but just smiled at her, then walked past Qiu Laoda's family and looked at her third aunt. Without saying a word, she hugged her affectionately.
Third Aunt Guo's feelings for Qiu Yuruo were still stuck when Qiu Yuruo threatened her. Faced with Qiu Yuruo's sudden closeness, she froze for a moment, then quickly hugged her back and said, "I've been looking forward to your return for a long time. I'm so glad you're back."
Qiu Yuruo let go of her and said with a smile, "Third Uncle said that you made breakfast earlier than usual so that he could pick me up earlier."
Guo smiled and said to her three children, "Weren't you all looking forward to your second sister's return? Now that she's back, you've all fallen silent."
The three children called out to Qiu Yuruo, "Second Sister."
The cousins living in the same courtyard were all numbered together.
Qiu Yuruo patted her little cousin Sanliang's head and said with a smile to her three cousins, "From now on, you can call me 'elder sister' or 'Aruo sister,' but don't call me 'second sister' anymore."
After Qiu Yuruo finished speaking, the scene immediately fell silent. Qiu Laoda was already annoyed that Qiu Yuruo had bypassed him, and now that she said she wouldn't be ranked with his daughter, he flung his sleeves and turned back.
His son glared at Qiu Yuruo, then turned and followed him.
Qiu Yuruo wanted to applaud the Qiu family's behavior, but she immediately became indignant. Unfortunately, her acting skills were limited, and she couldn't shed any tears. She glanced at her third uncle, then hugged Guo Shi and said, "Third Aunt, from now on, only your place will be my maternal home!"
Uncle Qiu met Qiu Yuruo's gaze and recalled what she had said before he returned: "Opportunities are fleeting; some things, if you seize the opportunity, can turn the impossible into possible."
He gritted his teeth, stepped forward, and shouted into the courtyard, "Brother, I've tolerated you for too long. You were wrong about Yu Ruo from the start. You ruined the child's life, and you won't even let people suffer in silence?"
As the eldest son, you only enjoy the family's provisions. As an uncle, you are truly unkind. Put your hand on your heart and think about it—how can you face your second brother?
Uncle Qiu's words finally brought the long-awaited excitement to everyone.
The onlookers immediately started discussing. Qiu Laosan's words had exposed Qiu Laoda's true colors, and they, the onlookers, could finally talk about the once high and mighty Qiu Laoda without restraint.
Hearing the third son speak to the eldest son like that, Old Mrs. Zhou was furious and slapped the third son across the face: "How can you talk to your eldest brother like that? Haven't you seen how much effort your eldest brother has put into the family all these years? You've seen how wronged he is by being called a jinx, and you still dare to question your brother's conscience? I think your conscience has been eaten by dogs!"
Qiu Laosan had long known about his mother's favoritism, but being publicly humiliated by her bias still broke his heart.
He was always clever and knew that even if his son was right, arguing with his mother was still unfilial.
Since he couldn't argue, he knelt down directly in front of Old Lady Zhou and said, "Since I started to count things, most of the family's income has been used to send my eldest brother to school. While my second brother and I were working in the fields from dawn till dusk, my eldest brother was studying in school. While my second brother and I were eating coarse grains and rice husks, my eldest brother was eating refined grains and flour."
My eldest brother studies hard and is living up to the family's expectations. Have my second brother and I done anything to let the family down?
In other families, if one person is literate, all the men in the family can read. My eldest brother studied for so many years, but he never taught my second brother and me to read.
When it came to the next generation, he only taught his own son to read, saying my son wasn't cut out for studying. I didn't ask him to send my children to school; I only asked that he teach them to read. Mother, you should also ask your eldest son how many characters he taught my son!
After saying all this to Old Lady Zhou, he shouted into the yard, "Qiu Qishan, I can say with a clear conscience that I have done right by this family and by my second brother!"
Do you dare say these things with your hand on your heart?
Old Qiu's third son's outburst ruined Old Qiu's smugness. The third son had no respect for his elder brother and wouldn't even call him "elder brother" anymore. Just as Old Zhou was about to continue scolding him, Old Qiu kicked the third son first, saying, "What kind of nonsense are you spouting after drinking a couple of sips of cat pee? Hurry up and go home."
After hearing what Old Man Qiu said, Old Lady Zhou stopped scolding and pulled the third son towards the house, saying, "You're drinking so early in the morning, spouting all sorts of nonsense. Go home and get some sleep!"
Qiu Laosan said he hadn't been drinking, but the old man and woman insisted he was drunk.
My third aunt is usually a decisive person, but after working under her in-laws for so many years, she's good at doing things behind the scenes, but when it comes to direct confrontation, she becomes a bit timid.
Qiu Yuruo knew she couldn't let them drag her third uncle into the mess, so she whispered to her third aunt, "Don't let him go home. Call the clan chief over."
These words made Guo Shi grasp the key point instantly. She turned around to block others' view and said to Ersheng, "Go and call the clan chief over quickly. Tell him that your grandfather is going to beat your father to death."
Ersheng is ten years old this year. He is at the age where he doesn't understand things yet. Hearing his mother say this, he was terrified and squeezed out of the crowd to run to the clan chief's house.
Guo cried out, "Mother!" and knelt down next to her husband, saying, "We all eat the same breakfast. My husband only ate two mixed grain cakes and drank a bowl of porridge. Today we are welcoming Yu Ruo back to her parents' home, so why would he go drinking?"
Old Mrs. Zhou glared fiercely at Qiu Yuruo: "It was this jinx who gave her third uncle the wine!"
Qiu Yuruo naturally wanted to explain, but before she could speak, Yun Che, who had been following behind her, suddenly stood up and said loudly, "My sister-in-law is not a jinx, and she didn't let Uncle Qiu drink."
Qiu Yuruo wasn't afraid of facing Old Lady Zhou, but the feeling of being protected warmed her heart, and she decided to treat Su Yunting's younger siblings even better in the future.
Although Su Yunche was young, he was a relative and represented the girl's husband's family, so the surrounding relatives who were watching the spectacle couldn't help but chime in.
Some people said to Grandma Zhou, "Yu Ruo didn't do anything wrong, sister-in-law, your words are too harsh!"
Old Mrs. Zhou was harsh to Qiu Yuruo, and the villagers had talked about it behind her back countless times. However, as an elder, and with Qiu Yuruo's parents having passed away, as long as she was fed and allowed to grow up, the villagers wouldn't interfere.
However, the situation is different now. Qiu Yuruo is married off, but Old Lady Zhou still yells at her when she's in a bad mood, just like before. Qiu Yuruo's husband's family is unhappy about this, so the clansmen have to step in and speak up.
One person spoke first, and the others followed suit, speaking up for Qiu Yuruo.
Qiu Yuruo originally wanted to stay in the background and let them make a fuss, but now that it has spread to her, she still has to speak up when the time comes.
She said to those around her, "Thank you all for speaking up for me. I really didn't let my third uncle drink any alcohol. There's no alcohol at home either. The two jin of wine I bought yesterday for the homecoming is still unopened on the oxcart. I have nowhere to get wine for my third uncle to drink."
People around him thought the boy was genuine. Everyone here knew that Qiu Laosan hadn't been drinking; there was no smell of alcohol on him, and his thoughts were very clear. He didn't look drunk at all.
One of the old women who didn't get along with Old Lady Zhou said, "You're an honest child, we all know that. She's taking it out on you!"
After receiving a fair assessment from outsiders, Qiu Yuruo fell silent. Since it had nothing to do with her, what happened next had even less to do with her.
Old Mrs. Zhou was domineering towards her children and grandchildren, but she couldn't argue back with every outsider. So she slapped her daughter-in-law again: "What business is it of yours? You're a disgrace! Get home right now!"
Guo knelt here to delay going home. She didn't say anything after being slapped, she just lay there crying.
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