Chapter 51: Rare and Mysterious Ancient Tree
Seeing that Gu Yuexuan was so enthusiastic, the old grandfather didn't want to go against her wishes, so he made appropriate adjustments to his plans for the day.
Tu Suye took over the task of chopping wood in the mountains which was originally responsible by Tu Su Minfei, while Tu Su Minfei stayed to guard the charcoal pit at home and be responsible for burning charcoal in place of Gu Yuexuan.
Tu Suminfei nodded slightly and agreed obediently. But when Gu Yuexuan was about to leave, he gently reminded her, "The mountain road is steep. Big brother, please don't be as impatient as you were yesterday. I hope you can take good care of your sister-in-law on the way."
"Sister-in-law, please be careful."
Gu Yuexuan didn't say anything, just nodded silently.
Tu Subo looked at Tu Su Minfei, a faint smile appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he said meaningfully: "Thank you for your advice, second brother. I will always pay attention to it."
At the front of the team, Tu Subo led the way with his head held high. He noticed that Gu Yuexuan behind him seemed to be struggling, so he quietly slowed down his pace to prevent her from feeling left behind.
This path leading into the mountains had become familiar to them. They followed yesterday's trail with ease, quickly defining the scope of their exploration for the day. However, Tu Subo seemed to have no intention of stopping.
Tu Suting reached out and pushed aside an obstructing branch beside him. He asked in confusion, "Tu Subo, the trees here are growing so vigorously, why do you want to go deeper?"
Tu Subo glanced at Gu Yuexuan. The outline of the pottery jar on her back was particularly eye-catching. He replied, "This place is enough. It will also be convenient for us to transport the results."
"Gu Yuexuan rarely has the opportunity to go out, so I'll take her for a walk."
Tu Suting looked around. The dense shadows of the trees were dappled by the sunlight. He muttered to himself in confusion, "What could be worth visiting in this deep mountain forest? Are all young people's interests so unique?"
Although his heart was full of doubts, he did not dare to slack off in the slightest.
That morning, under the gaze of the crowd, several shovels carefully uncovered the charcoal pit that had been covered with mud the previous night. The charcoal blocks dug out were of pure color, perfect shape and size, and impeccable.
The grandfather brought a borrowed large scale and weighed the sorted charcoal pieces one by one. A sack of charcoal was heavy, weighing a staggering 40 jin (150 kilograms). Even at the market price of 1 fen per jin (150 kilograms), he could earn 40 fen (150 kilograms) from this trip!
This income is a world of difference compared to the hard labor of moving bricks!
He gritted his teeth, breathing heavily as he swung the heavy hatchet. Seeing Tu Suye standing motionless with an expressionless face, a hint of sneer appeared on the corner of his mouth, and he said sarcastically, "Second brother, remember what grandfather said before we parted. Every day, everyone must chop at least three neat rounds of firewood. Not a single piece less will be recorded in the account."
"Min Fei already grabbed his full share yesterday. As a father, do you really want to fall behind your son?"
Tu Suye's face turned ashen, his eyes widened with anger. He glared at him, gritted his teeth, and said in a low voice, "You don't need to ridicule me. I will do my best to complete my duties."
"But then again, in all those years, I never realized you, Third Brother, possessed such remarkable skill in manipulating the wind. From the venerable Third Master of the Marquisate to a rough woodcutter in the mountains, all this transformation was thanks to the eldest branch. And now that you're still willing to assist Tu Subo without reservation, it shows you truly have a broad mind and have long since put aside old grudges."
Originally, the relationship between the second and third houses was closer, but over the years, the second elders and the people of the third house had accumulated deep resentment towards Tu Subo and others.
However, within just a month, those allies who had fought alongside him changed their sides one after another. Even in his own room, his wife and son seemed to have been drugged, obeying his orders and working hard without complaint, as if they had forgotten all the grudges of the past!
Don't they remember how they got into this situation?
Tu Suting's tone contained an irrepressible resentment. He seemed to have exhausted all his energy to squeeze out this helpless question: "Can harboring hatred really achieve anything?"
"The old lady has revealed everything she can to you. If you still can't understand the twists and turns, then there's nothing I can do."
In this time when survival itself is a daunting challenge, holding grudges is of no benefit. Only unity can bring warmth in the cold. Any act of isolation will make it difficult to sustain life.
Faced with the current predicament of the Tu Su family, those who remain stubborn and unwilling to face reality are truly extremely stupid.
Having said this, he seemed a little impatient and didn't want to waste any more words, so he deliberately kept a distance from Tu Suye, just to get a moment of peace.
Tu Suye took a deep breath again and again, trying to suppress the anger in his heart. His eyes were burning with unspeakable anger and resentment, and the hatchet in his hand was swung violently.
On the other side, Tu Subo pointed to the cut marks on the tree trunk in front of him and said nonchalantly, "Look, this is the mysterious ancient tree you kept telling me about last night."
This tree is indeed full of weirdness.
During his time in Shengjing, Tu Subo often traveled through the densely forested hunting grounds, but he had never encountered such a species. However, here was a dense forest of trees.
He looked at the tall and straight tree trunks in front of him and couldn't help but sigh in regret.
These trees seem to be naturally made for burning charcoal, but their trunks are slippery and sticky, which is disgusting and a real flaw.
On the winding way here, Gu Yuexuan did not reveal the purpose of her trip, but Tu Subo seemed to have already seen through her deepest desire and led her here with ease.
She caught a hint of subtle contempt in Tu Subo's words, but the corners of her mouth rose involuntarily, her eyes flashed with excitement, and she couldn't wait to rush towards the tree.
However, in her haste, she forgot the road conditions under her feet.
The ground was piled with dead leaves and wet mud, and as soon as her soles stepped on it, her whole body slid to the side involuntarily.
Gu Yuexuan frantically tried to grab the nearest tree trunk to steady herself, but unexpectedly fell backwards into an embrace as hot as lava.
Tu Subo almost failed to catch her.
With unspeakable regret, he whispered, "I told you a long time ago..."
"Tu Subo..."
Tu Subo was somewhat bewildered by the fact that her words revealed no panic at all, but instead were filled with joy. He tightened his jaw and said in a deep voice, "Xuanxuan..."
"You're really lucky this time."
Gu Yuexuan's entire mind was attracted by the magical tree, and she didn't notice the strange look in Tu Subo's eyes at all.
She stood up impatiently, broke free from Tu Subo's arms, snatched the hatchet from his hand, and chopped at the tree trunk without hesitation.
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