Chapter 59: The news of her boasting about moving had spread throughout the village...
The news of the move had spread throughout the village, and the clan chief had to personally inform them in person to avoid being impolite.
Qiu Yuruo and Su Yunting went to the clan chief's house together.
If it were just a matter of informing the clan leader that Qiu Yu wouldn't come, all the formalities would have been said to her enough. Su Yunting was already awake, so it was better for him to handle these matters involving the clan.
Qiu Yuruo came to the clan chief's house with Su Yunting to visit her good friend Ni Yafeng.
Ni Yafeng is about to give birth and really can't go out. When Qiu Yuruo isn't in the county, she'll come to see her every two or three days.
Upon seeing Qiu Yuruo arrive, Ni Yafeng prepared to sit up.
Qiu Yuruo quickly said, "You should continue lying down. Don't move. It's tiring to watch."
Ni Yafeng: "I've been feeling really tired these past two days. I really want to give birth to him as soon as possible so I can relax a bit."
Qiu Yuruo then asked her, "What is your due date?"
Ni Yafeng: "It'll be in the next couple of days."
Qiu Yuruo: "...You said the same thing last time."
Seeing the accusing look in her eyes, Ni Yafeng chuckled and said, "Who knows exactly when it's time to give birth? Anyway, the due date has arrived. A few days earlier or later is normal."
Since Qiu Yu has neither experienced nor seen many pregnant women about to give birth, she is not in a position to comment further.
He handed a piece of silk cloth that he had found cheaply in the county to Ni Yafeng: "I bought it cheaply in the county. It's not enough for adults to make anything. Keep it for a few months and use it to make clothes for the children to wear when they go out for the New Year."
Ni Yafeng rarely stood on ceremony with her, but this piece of material wasn't the cheap stuff she used to have. She handed it back, saying, "I've already prepared all kinds of materials here. You can use it after two years."
Qiu Yuruo bought it intending to use it for her child, so naturally she wouldn't take it back. She smiled and said, "I won't keep it for that long. Besides, it's not for you, it's for the baby."
As soon as she finished speaking, Ni Yafeng's stomach bulged out.
The naive Qiu Yuruo: "!!!"
Seeing her surprised expression, Ni Yafeng couldn't help but laugh again.
Qiu Yuru squatted down and gently placed her hand on her stomach. After waiting for a while without any movement, just as she was about to withdraw her hand, she felt a push under her hand.
A sudden, indescribable feeling welled up inside her—perhaps a realization about life, or perhaps—awe.
...
Su Yunting needs to inform the clan head of Su Family Village before moving, and Qiu Yuruo needs to inform her parents' home before moving as well.
The two returned to Qianqiao Village the next day. Uncle San's family was still living in the old house. The new house needed to be aired out for a summer to completely remove the moisture before they could move in.
Ever since Qiu Yuruo tried to sow discord between Old Lady Zhou in front of Old Man Qiu, she has been keeping a close eye on their relationship.
After her third uncle's house was built, the relationship between the elderly couple was already very bad. So, even if Qiu Yuruo came to Qianqiao Village this time just to see more of their discord, she didn't mind coming to the old house again.
She not only wanted to see Old Man Qiu and the eldest son make a fool of themselves, but also wanted to show off her current life.
Just as I feel good when they are not doing well, they will not be happy when they see that I am doing well.
In summer, the train carriage only had one roof, with poles supporting the four corners, allowing drafts from all sides. So when Qiu Yu arrived at Qianqiao Village, she greeted the villagers warmly.
Since Qiu Yuruo got married, she rarely comes back. Now that she's back out of the holidays, people are asking her, "Why are you back at this time?"
Qiu Yuruo: "My husband has been favored by the county magistrate, who has helped him buy a two-courtyard house in the county so that it will be convenient for him to study at the academy. The house is almost ready, and we will be moving to the county in a few days. I will come back and tell Grandpa and Third Uncle."
Su Yunting not only didn't stop Qiu Yuruo from showing off, but also actively cooperated with her.
If Qiu Yu had told someone that his family was moving to the county, he would invite them to visit his home when they went to the county.
The villagers felt greatly respected by the scholar's invitation, regardless of whether they went or not.
Thinking about it, I'm just an old farmer from the countryside. The reason why the scholar treats me with such respect is because his wife is from my village. The scholar values his wife, which is why he's giving me face.
Along the way, before even entering her home, the news that Qiu Yuruo had married well, was living a good life, and was valued by her husband spread throughout the entire village.
Upon arriving at the Qiu family's old residence, the atmosphere inside was truly polarized.
My third uncle's family is busy frying meat and tofu. The market will be open in town tomorrow. My third uncle goes to town to set up a stall to sell stew on market days. The meat and tofu can be fried in advance today.
Although they were busy, the whole family was in good spirits, chatting and laughing as they finished their tasks.
Meanwhile, on Old Man Qiu's side, Old Mrs. Zhou, who had just been scolded by her husband inside the house, came out to vent her anger by scolding her daughter-in-law, but was rebuffed by her daughter-in-law. When Qiu Yuru came in, she was scolding her eldest granddaughter in the yard.
A 'helpful' neighbor came in with Qiu Yuruo and, hearing that Old Lady Zhou was still cursing, said to her, "Sister-in-law, stop cursing. If you keep cursing all day long, even if good fortune comes to your door, it won't dare to enter your house!"
When Old Qiu heard this from inside his house, he realized that others had also noticed that his wife was a jinx.
He considered himself a man of dignity. Even though he had previously believed his wife was a jinx, he had only cursed her in the house. Now that someone had pointed out that he had married a jinx, he felt ashamed and resentful.
Old Qiu was suppressing his anger when he heard his granddaughter, who had married a scholar, call out from outside: "Grandpa, I'm back."
Old Qiu didn't care much for his granddaughter, but he liked his scholar grandson-in-law. He couldn't care less about being angry and quickly came out of the house to see if his grandson-in-law had arrived.
Seeing Old Man Qiu rushing out in a panic, Su Yunting politely greeted him, "Grandpa."
Old Qiu immediately smiled and invited him to sit in the main room.
Since Qiu Yuruo got married, she has never entered the main room where the Qiu family elders lived. If the daughter-in-law doesn't enter the room, why would Su Yunting enter it?
Su Yunting ignored his question and asked him how he was feeling.
Old Qiu has been holding a grudge against his wife lately. To save face, he only mutters a few curses at her in the house, but he can't vent his anger and always feels a tightness in his throat.
He said that if it was something else, like a headache or fever, he wouldn't tell his grandson-in-law about things that made him angry and upset.
Old Qiu simply said it was fine.
Su Yunting exchanged pleasantries with Old Man Qiu, and Uncle Qiu and Aunt Qiu also put down their work and came over to greet them.
Qiu Yuruo first gave Old Lady Zhou two presentable gifts, which Old Lady Zhou accepted without hesitation.
The "helpful" neighbor deliberately said to her, "Sister-in-law, back when Yu Ruo wasn't married, you scolded your child so much every day. It's rare that your child didn't hold it against you and always brought you nice things whenever she came!"
You're really enjoying the blessings of your granddaughter!
Old Mrs. Zhou was still angry from his earlier rebuke, and when she heard him making sarcastic remarks about her again, she said, "Which family doesn't scold or beat their children? Even if I scolded her, I never let her go hungry or cold and raised her well. If she doesn't respect me, then she has no conscience!"
The "helpful" neighbor chuckled. The Qiu couple's relationship wasn't what it used to be. Others might not know, but he lived right behind his house, and every day Old Man Qiu would be cursing her from inside. How could he not know?
Just as the 'helpful' neighbor was about to have a good talk with her, Qiu Yuru handed him a bag of steamed cakes and said, "Sixth Master, please don't be angry. My grandmother has always been like this. For my grandfather's sake, please don't take it to heart."
The "helpful" neighbor chuckled as she took the steamed cake and said, "Yu Ruo, the suffering a person is destined to endure in this life is finite. If you endure all the suffering you are destined to endure before you get married, then all the good days will come from now on."
Whether the neighbor was deliberately trying to anger Old Mrs. Zhou or wanted to befriend her, Qiu Yu might genuinely enjoy hearing his words.
She turned back and gave him two more fruits. "My grandma has bad teeth. She used to always complain that the food I cooked was too hard for her to chew. Your sixth grandma has good teeth. Please take these back and let her try them."
The neighbor repeatedly said yes, took the things, and left with a chuckle.
Grandma Zhou actually has pretty good teeth, but she did scold Qiu Yuruo before because the food she cooked was too hard for her to chew.
As for Old Man Qiu, ever since Old Lady Zhou said that Qiu Yuruo was heartless for not being filial to her, Su Yunting stopped exchanging pleasantries with Old Man Qiu and focused all his attention on Qiu Yuruo, looking as if he would immediately lash out if Qiu Yuruo was unhappy.
Now that the outsiders were gone, Old Mrs. Zhou was still angry. She was angry at her neighbor, but even more angry at Qiu Yuruo. However, she could no longer yell at Qiu Yuruo at will. She could only glare at her and prepare to go back inside.
Seeing her like this, Su Yunting gave a heavy "humph".
Then she said to Old Man Qiu, "Grandpa, I asked Yu Ruo before why she wasn't close to Grandma. Yu Ruo only told me that Grandma had a bad temper, but she never told me that Grandma used to scold her every day. If the neighbor hadn't mentioned it today, I wouldn't have known that Yu Ruo used to live a life where she was scolded every day!"
Su Yunting said these things partly to cooperate with his wife, but more so because he was furious after witnessing how Old Lady Zhou treated Yu Ruo.
He served as a close advisor to the emperor for over a decade in his previous life, and now he usually keeps his imposing aura under control.
When he unleashed his aura, not only Old Madam Zhou, but even the Qiu family, including Uncle Qiu's family who were confident in their treatment of Qiu Yuruo, felt an urge to kneel down and admit their mistakes when they heard his questioning.
When faced with Su Yunting's questioning, Old Man Qiu was instantly drenched in sweat, his legs trembling and he could barely stand.
Everyone else was quite intimidated by Su Yunting's imposing aura. Qiu Yuruo was also seeing him like this for the first time, and her heart was pounding.
Her heart was pounding, not from fear, but from excitement.
Despite being tempted, Qiu Yuruo couldn't afford to fall out with Old Man Qiu. She helped Old Man Qiu up and said to Su Yunting, "What are you doing? Grandpa has never scolded me. Why are you taking your anger out on him?"
Su Yunting glanced at Old Man Qiu and said nothing more.
Uncle Qiu gave his wife, who was supporting his mother, a wink, signaling her to quickly take his mother inside. Then, after giving himself a pep talk, he went up to invite Su Yunting inside to talk.
Su Yunting was quite respectful to the only relative his wife was willing to acknowledge, so he followed him into the house...
After having lunch at Qiu's house and waiting for the summer heat to subside, the two boarded the mule cart they had arranged.
Qiu Yuruo returned to Sujiazhuang in a good mood. The food stalls were still open. Aunt Shuncai saw Qiu Yuruo and, before she could speak, said, "Yuruo, Ni Yafeng is having a difficult childbirth and is dying!"
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