Gu Liyan smiled awkwardly and did not deny it.
Gu Changyuan was about to say something when suddenly a voice shouting and cursing came from ahead, "You little brat! I told you not to steal! Stop right there!"
Gu Liyan looked up at the sound of the voice and saw a middle-aged man chasing a thin boy with a rolling pin. The boy ran past Gu Liyan, and their eyes met. For a moment, Gu Liyan was stunned, feeling that the man's gaze was somewhat familiar...
The skinny boy didn't have time to think. He turned around and saw that the big man behind him was about to catch up with him. He subconsciously slapped the rump of the horse that Gu Liyan was riding. The horse neighed in pain and jumped up and down, knocking the big man who was about to catch up with him to the ground.
Gu Liyan was shocked and reached out to firmly grasp the reins. Gu Changyuan reacted quickly and rushed forward to pull the reins. Under Gu Changyuan's intimidation, the horse immediately calmed down.
Gu Liyan breathed a sigh of relief and subconsciously looked at the young man, only to find that the latter had fled in a panic.
"That brat!" Gu Changyuan scolded irritably, then looked at Gu Liyan and asked with concern, "Xiao Li, are you alright?"
Gu Liyan paused for a moment, then shook his head. "It's nothing."
Seeing Gu Liyan's frightened expression, Gu Changyuan said fiercely, "If I catch this kid, I'll definitely teach him a lesson!"
Gu Liyan recognized the thin boy and said, "Senior brother, since I'm alright, let's just let this matter go..."
Seeing Gu Liyan's kind and innocent appearance, Gu Changyuan nodded with a look of relief. Before Gu Changyuan could praise Gu Liyan, an inappropriate voice suddenly rang out, "Forget it? How are you going to pay for the medical expenses of the two of your horses that injured me!"
The burly man got up from the ground, limped over to Gu Changyuan, pointed at them and began to complain to the surrounding crowd, "Come and see, everyone! This guy's horse knocked me over, and he doesn't want to pay for the medical bills!"
Immediately, the surrounding crowd surrounded Gu Liyan and Gu Changyuan. Gu Changyuan's face was gloomy; he hadn't expected that the escaped boy would drag them into such trivial matters.
"You were the one chasing the thief, and the thief turned around and used us to hinder you. How can you blame us?" Gu Changyuan said coldly.
"If you two hadn't been showing off your horses in the street, would that brat have had the chance to escape? By the way! It's because of you two that that kid got away! You two should also take responsibility for stealing my money!" The big man pointed at Gu Liyan and the other man and said.
After the burly man finished speaking, the surrounding crowd nodded in agreement.
"That's right, we should take responsibility!"
"Yes, it's all your fault!"
The accusations from the crowd enraged Gu Changyuan. "You, you're all utterly unreasonable! Get out of my way! Otherwise..."
Seeing that Gu Changyuan was angry, Gu Liyan hurriedly reminded him, "Senior brother!"
Gu Changyuan was slightly taken aback. He turned to look at Gu Liyan, only then realizing that he wasn't alone this time. Gu Liyan was also carrying a leg injury. He took a deep breath to calm his anger. "Tell me, how much compensation do you want?"
The burly man smiled smugly and held up one finger. "One hundred taels!"
Gu Changyuan was furious. "One hundred taels? Why don't you just rob me!"
The burly man sneered, "That thief who stole my things plus the medical expenses is worth this much! Give me a word or not! The officials are here today!"
"you……"
"Senior brother!" Gu Liyan interrupted Gu Changyuan, who looked at Gu Liyan with a puzzled expression.
Gu Liyan said pitifully, "Uncle, the responsibility for that thief is indeed ours, but we really can't afford the hundred taels. How about we give you fifty taels instead?"
The burly man frowned as he looked at Gu Liyan. "Little brother, do you think this is a market bargaining session? It's one hundred yuan, not a penny less!"
Gu Liyan pursed her lips, her eyes brimming with tears, and said, "Uncle, to tell you the truth, my brother and I came here from a very, very far place. I was born with a terminal illness, and I heard that there are immortals on the mountain, so we came here to seek medicine..."
As Gu Liyan spoke, he coughed a few times, his voice becoming hoarse and husky.
"Cough cough... My family has already spent most of their savings on me. If I can't be cured this time, I'm afraid... Uncle, please have pity on me. Even if I can't be cured, my brother can still send my body back to our hometown for burial. I beg you—"
The burly man was stunned, and everyone around him was also dumbfounded. Gu Changyuan stood there, staring at Gu Liyan in disbelief: Is this still his kind, cute, and innocent junior brother? How, how did he... become such a drama queen?!
Gu Liyan blinked, looking pitifully at everyone, choked up and unable to speak.
The burly man's eyes reddened, and he patted his chest, saying, "I won't say anything more, young man. I'm not a heartless person! Getting treatment is the priority, I don't need the money..."
"Little brother, if you need money, just tell your sister. I'm the top courtesan in that brothel—I'll take care of your illness!" A beautiful woman walked over, wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes, and spoke domineeringly.
A young girl looked at Gu Liyan with pity and murmured to herself, "What an adorable little brother, why didn't God give you a healthy body!"
Gu Liyan smiled at her upon hearing this, "It's alright, God gave me a happy family, otherwise I wouldn't be alive today!"
"Oh my, what a sensible child! I wish my Qiangzai was this sensible too!" a woman said.
Everyone gathered around Gu Liyan, offering words of comfort and concern, while leaving Gu Changyuan standing alone to the side.
Gu Changyuan glared at Gu Liyan, who was putting on airs in the crowd, and said with annoyance, "What a little fox!"
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