Gu Lili lifted her foot and looked outside, only to find that it was Niu Dali.
He had forgotten that he hadn't delivered the adobe bricks he'd asked to make before, and Gu Lili hadn't even gone to confront him about it, yet he had come knocking on his door today.
Beside Niu Dali was a woman dressed in rags. Even from a distance, one could still smell the pungent stench emanating from her.
The woman's face was smeared with black grime, making it impossible to tell who she was at first glance.
Moreover, the woman kept giggling, making Gu Lili's skin crawl.
Gu Lili couldn't help but frown and take a few steps back.
Niu Dali's face was fierce, and it was clear that he had come with ill intentions.
Before Gu Lili could speak, Gu Erniu and Gu Sigou stepped in front of her and shielded her behind them.
They are the men of the family; when something happens at home, they are naturally the first to step up.
Gu Huanhuan also came over trembling, her little hands tightly clutching Gu Lili's sleeve.
Gu Huanhuan still vividly remembered the time Niu Dali came to their house to steal things.
She was somewhat afraid of Niu Dali, but even more afraid that Gu Lili would get hurt.
Gu Lili reached out and patted Gu Huanhuan's hand to comfort her.
He then gently pushed aside Gu Sigou and Gu Erniu in front of him and coldly asked, "Niu Dali, what are you doing! Have you finished making your adobe bricks?"
Gu Erniu and Gu Sigou stood in front of her. Although Gu Lili was very touched, she felt it was safer for her to be in front if Niu Dali wanted to make a move.
After all, he could buy weapons himself, so he wasn't afraid of this ox-like giant at all.
Niu Dali didn't care about Gu Lili's question at all; instead, he spat on the ground.
"We'll talk about the adobe bricks later! Let's deal with your aunt's problem first!" Niu Dali roared.
Gu Lili then realized that the person standing in front of Niu Dali was actually Niu Cuihua, whom she hadn't seen for many days.
But, dear aunt, what are you talking about?
Gu Lili sneered, "I don't have any aunt, Niu Dali, don't get it wrong!"
Gu Lili was so angry she almost laughed. How could Niu Cuihua treat her and her brother like that? Didn't she say anything to her own brother at all?
Niu Dali's voice was very loud, and it was almost time for him to come home from working in the fields for dinner.
Before long, several neighbors gathered in front of Gu Lili's house.
Even Aunt Zhang and Zhang Dahua came out of their houses when they heard the commotion.
As more and more people gathered, Niu Dali's voice grew louder and louder.
"Fellow villagers, come and see! This is the so-called seventh-rank village head, personally appointed by the current emperor! Now that he has money, he doesn't even care about his own aunt, letting her suffer outside because she's mentally challenged!"
As Niu Dali spoke, tears streamed down his face, as if he had truly suffered a great injustice.
Niu Dali already knew that his sister was mentally unstable and that Gu Chuan was dead.
However, he never considered taking Niu Cuihua back.
In her mother's words, she was already mentally impaired and useless, so it was better to let her fend for herself.
If we bring them back, they won't be able to do any work, and they'll just waste food!
Yesterday, his mother overheard that Gu Lili had been granted the title of village princess by the emperor and was also rewarded with two hundred taels of gold.
They only sent me here today to settle scores with Gu Lili.
No matter how badly their sister Niu Cuihua treated them, she was still their aunt. Even if Gu Chuan was dead, they couldn't deny that.
They couldn't possibly remain indifferent to the plight of Gu Lili's aunt.
At least a few hundred taels of silver should be given to Niu Cuihua for her retirement.
However, his wishful thinking was clearly misguided.
None of the neighbors paid any attention to him; instead, they all looked at Niu Dali with mocking smiles.
"Niu Dali, you must have taken the wrong medicine. Gu Lili has already written a letter of severance with Gu Jingsheng. No matter how you look at it, Niu Cuihua can't be considered their aunt!"
"That's right. Besides, the second branch of the Gu family is all dead. You should be the one taking Niu Cuihua home and taking good care of her!"
"That's right, Gu Lili's surname is Gu, and Niu Cuihua's surname is Niu. They have two different surnames, so they can't be considered relatives."
The neighbors present chimed in with their own comments, and Niu Dali's face grew darker and darker as he listened.
Niu Dali, spitting as he spoke, cursed at the crowd, "You people from Gu Village have no conscience! My sister has been married into your village for so many years, and you say such heartless things? Do you even have hearts?"
Today, no matter what, we're going to make Gu Lili suffer a lot.
Gu Lili looked at Niu Dali with a cold smile, her voice authoritative without her being angry, and said, "I suppose your good sister didn't tell you before she went crazy, did she? How did her son die, and how did Gu Chuan die? Why don't we go and argue with the county magistrate! Do I really need to support your sister in her old age?"
It turned out that Niu Dali had come to him in a fit of rage because he wanted him to pay up.
Originally, when he came to my house to steal money last time, I let him off lightly by making him make mud bricks.
If he continues to push his luck, Gu Lili wouldn't mind sending him to the authorities and giving him a few dozen lashes.
When Niu Dali heard what Gu Lili said, his heart skipped a beat.
Could it be that both of their deaths were related to Gu Lili? He had no idea.
Did these two do something else besides abusing the siblings in the past?
Even if Niu Cuihua had beaten her and her brother before, it would have been understandable if they had gone to the county magistrate.
In this world, whose child didn't grow up being beaten, whose child didn't grow up going hungry or full?
"I don't care, you have to take care of your own aunt anyway!" Niu Dali's confidence was clearly waning.
Aunt Zhang stepped forward and said, "Erniu, go find some rope. I think this guy won't admit defeat until he's faced with a death sentence. There are many of us, let's tie him up like a county magistrate and see if he dares to cause trouble again next time!"
By this time, Aunt Zhang had already regarded Gu Lili's four children as her own family, so naturally she couldn't bear to see them being bullied.
Upon hearing this, Gu Erniu immediately agreed and ran back to the yard to find a rope.
Other villagers were also preparing to step forward and pin Niu Dali to the ground.
Upon seeing this, Niu Dali immediately took off running, not even caring about Niu Cuihua beside him.
Judging from Gu Lili and the others' attitude, Niu Cuihua and the others must have really done something heinous.
He'd better run away first. If he gets caught and taken to the county government, he'll definitely get a beating.
Niu Dali hadn't run more than a few steps when he was pinned to the ground by Tie Dan's father and the others and given a severe beating. Gu Lili also took the opportunity to kick him a few times.
Niu Daniu was pinned to the ground, begging for mercy repeatedly and promising never to come to Guzhuang again.
Gu Lili then told everyone to stop, saying that people like this would learn their lesson this time and probably wouldn't dare to come to Gu Manor again.
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