Chapter 86
Since Liu Niang is back, it is natural to inform Village Chief Wu.
After Pei Liu took a break, Gu Ran told Village Chief Wu that she had to leave Xiaxi Village for a while because of something.
In view of Gu Ran's outstanding performance and Pei Liuniang's move to the village and settling down, Village Chief Wu didn't say anything until Pei Liuniang showed up beyond the time Gu Ran had told her at the beginning, and Village Chief Wu became suspicious.
Could it be that Pei Liuniang took the opportunity to escape?
However, firstly, Pei Liuniang was in Qinghuai Village two years ago, where her situation was better than her current one, and she had never thought of escaping. Secondly, most of Pei Liuniang's things were left in the Gu family's small house. Thirdly, Gu Ran had repeatedly assured her. Finally, she didn't want to miss any matter, so she suppressed the fact that Pei Liuniang was not in Xiaxi Village for some time.
But the longer the time dragged on, the more uneasy Village Chief Wu became.
Could it be that she made a mistake this time?
Now that he saw Gu Ran coming with Pei Liuniang, whom he hadn't seen for a long time and some souvenirs, Village Chief Wu finally breathed a sigh of relief.
"What's taking so long?"
"Things are a bit tricky." Pei Liu was frugal with his words.
Gu Ran said quickly, "Village Chief, Liu Niang said that she has an older sister who is also in Minzhou. She ran into trouble when she was trying to find her sister, so she was delayed."
"Sister?" Village Chief Wu was puzzled, but when he saw Pei Liuniang nod gently, he felt relieved.
Could it be that my elder sister had drifted to Minzhou?
Since they are all in Minzhou, there is no need to worry that Pei Liuniang will run away in the future.
"In that case, next time you want to leave the village, you must tell me in advance, otherwise I might think you ran away and almost report you to the county government and register you as a fugitive."
Pei Liuniang nodded.
Over there, Mrs. Lin Er heard that Gu Ran and Pei Liuniang had arrived, so she came over to talk to them.
Pei Liu was shocked to see that Lin Ersao was so pregnant after not seeing her for a few months. Gu Ran quickly stepped forward to support her: "Be careful, your belly is so big now?"
"It's okay, my mother-in-law asked Jinling to take care of me!" Sister Lin smiled and turned to look at Yang Jinling who was helping her carry her things, "Right, Jinling!"
The Lin family only has the second branch and a daughter named Xiaolan.
Lin Erlang had to look after the farmland and the hired workers. Xiaolan went to study at a private school in Donglin Township. Village chief Wu not only had to go to the fields with his second son, but also had to take care of the village affairs. There was no one to look after Lin Ersao, so he asked the women or girls who were free in the village to help take care of her, so he hired Yang Jinling.
"Then you have to be careful too." Yang Jinling followed and steadied her body. "Don't run around."
"I'm not running around, I'm at home!" Second Sister Lin glanced at Yang Jinling, then took her hand and introduced her: "Look, this is the Sixth Lady I told you about. Isn't she pretty?"
Yang Jinling glanced at Pei Liu and said nothing.
Pei Liu also glanced at Yang Jinling and frowned.
This person was like this the last time she came to the cottage to avoid the miasma, and she was like this this time too. She was inexplicably hostile towards me, and I didn't seem to have provoked her, right?
If the enemy doesn't move, he won't move either.
He doesn't bother with such young ladies.
After reporting the matter to Village Chief Wu and talking to Mrs. Lin Er for a while, Gu Ran took Pei Liuniang back to the cottage.
As soon as the gate opened, the family of Daju who were locked in the cat yard saw the two grandmas coming back and meowed. Pei Liu walked to the side of the cat yard and looked at the cat climbing frame and cat bed inside, and was very surprised.
He had never seen these strange toys made for the raccoon slave, and didn't know what their purpose was. The three little ones gathered in front of the bamboo gate and meowed. It was obvious that they recognized this two-legged beast as the one who had fed them with dried fish yesterday, so they were extremely affectionate to him, calling out to him in a flattering way, wanting him to give them freedom.
"Can you let it out?"
"able."
So Pei Liu opened the bamboo door, and the three little ones ran out happily, strolled around the patio, and then came back to Pei Liu, wagging their kitten tails and rubbing them between his legs. Then they jumped and grabbed hold of his pants, and then climbed up slitheringly.
Pei Liu: ...
Gu Ran looked at the three little ones climbing Pei Liuniang as if she were a tree, and immediately laughed out loud.
Okay, okay, now there is one more person who can help the three little ones crawl, which just reduces my burden.
Pei Liu also laughed, took down the kitten that had climbed onto his body, bent down and put it on the ground, but another one immediately climbed up.
"Meow~"
"Meow~"
In the end, Pei Liu had no choice but to hold one in each hand, with a cat pendant on his leg, and then he took them into the kitchen to prepare food for them.
At this time, Big Orange Auntie slowly walked out of the cat yard, stood calmly at Gu Ran's feet, raised her head and meowed.
"Big orange is still the best."
Gu Ran squatted down and reached out to touch Daju's little head.
Daju squinted his eyes and enjoyed it very much.
While she was serving Daju, Pei Liu prepared cat food and fed the three little ones in the corridor.
When he saw her standing up, Gu Ran noticed that her trouser legs were a little shorter. Then he looked at Pei Liuniang, who had stood up straight, and realized that she still hadn't: "Liu Niang, come here."
Pei Liu turned around, confused.
After Gu Ran stood up, he walked directly to Pei Liu. Pei Liu was not used to being too close, so he was about to take a step back. However, Gu Ran had already grabbed Pei Liu's arm, looked at them face to face, and then stretched out his hand to measure the height of both of them.
"Pei Liu, you've grown taller." Gu Ran was surprised.
I thought about how she was half a head shorter than me before, but after going out, she became as tall as me. If she continues like this, I'm afraid Liu Niang will soon be taller than me.
Pei Liu looked at Gu Ran and nodded.
Before I knew it, I had grown to be as tall as her.
"You've grown so fast!" Gu Ran glanced at Pei Liu's shoulders, then looked down at the shortened trouser legs. "This dress is too small. We need to make new ones."
"Yes."
"Then let's go to the county town someday and buy some cloth to make you autumn and winter clothes!"
Pei Liu nodded in agreement, and turned around to see the three little ones finishing their cat food and licking their mouths and washing their faces, while Gu Ran was putting out the collected dry goods to dry. Pei Liu saw this and went over to help.
They had just finished drying the dried goods when there was a knock on the door outside the yard.
"Excuse me, is Gu Erniang at home?"
"Who is it?" Gu Ran thought the voice was unfamiliar, so he walked out and saw that it was an old woman dressed festively.
"Hey, I'm the Fu Po from Donglin Township. Congratulations to Second Madam Gu. I'm here to propose marriage to you on behalf of a family in Donglin Township." Fu Po smiled at Gu Ran standing at the gate of the courtyard. Then, she saw another woman coming up behind Gu Ran. She was stunned for a long moment before cautiously asking, "Which one of you is Second Madam Gu?"
"I am." Gu Ran glanced back at Pei Liu and replied, "Oh, you actually came to propose to me. Do you know my identity and background?"
"I know. Aren't you the Second Lady Gu from Xiaxi Village?" Mrs. Fu glanced at Pei Liu several times before she said to Gu Ran with a smile, "I brought you such good news. Why don't you treat me to some tea and chat?"
"Oh, I have a cat in my house, and I just let it out. It's not convenient for me to invite you in, so let's just leave it that way!"
Gu Ran glanced at the stone table by the osmanthus tree and asked Pei Liu to help make tea while he invited Mrs. Fu to sit down. "Excuse me, Mrs. Fu, which family in Donglin Township are you proposing to me for?"
Grandma Fu glanced at the gate of the courtyard and felt a little dissatisfied, but she had no choice but to smile and follow Gu Ran to sit under the osmanthus tree.
"Hey, you know the Tian family in Donglin Township, right? They're a well-known wealthy family in Donglin Township. They're rich and capable. The one who wants to marry you is the eldest son of this family. He's twenty years old and very handsome. You and the lady from the Gu family are a perfect match."
Pei Liu happened to come out of the courtyard gate holding a teacup. When he heard Fu Po praising the eldest son of the Tian family, he pursed his lips and his face darkened.
Who dares to be a perfect match with Gu Er Niang?
Gu Ran smiled lightly: "The eldest son of the Tian family? I have never heard of his name, nor have I seen him. Has he ever seen me? How can he be satisfied with me?"
"You haven't met him, but he has met you. Naturally, he likes you, so he asked me to come and propose to you." Mrs. Fu smiled, and then saw Pei Liu pouring tea for her, and couldn't help but take a few more glances, "Hey, this lady, who is it?"
"My sister." Gu Ran didn't want to explain any more to Mrs. Fu.
Anyway, these matchmakers are the best at finding out information. Even if she doesn't tell them, she will be able to find out everything clearly in Xiaxi Village in the future.
"Oh, when did he see me? Why did he like me so much?"
"This... Hey, this is Mr. Tian's own business. We, as matchmakers, are only responsible for helping people propose marriage. We don't have the time to ask so many detailed questions." Grandma Fu picked up the tea and started drinking.
"He likes me, but I don't like him!" Gu Ran said, "It's a waste of trouble for Mrs. Fu to come here."
"Oh, this is really ridiculous. You said you haven't seen him, so how can you say you don't like him?" Grandma Fu was anxious.
"So, Mr. Tian didn't even bother to find out whether I was happy or not, and whether I was willing or not, before proposing marriage. Why didn't he ask me in advance?"
Mrs. Fu was speechless, and then she said, "But you are a divorced woman, single, you must have a companion, right?"
"Then when I choose a partner, I have to choose someone who is satisfactory to me, right?"
"Then maybe Mr. Tian Dalang is the one who can satisfy your every desire?"
"A man who comes to me to propose marriage without even being sure whether I like him or not is definitely not the one I want." Gu Ran said, rummaging in his purse, and found some small change, which he stuffed into Fu Po's hand. "Fu Po, if someone asks you to be a matchmaker next time, you won't have to come to me in vain. I just got divorced not long ago, and in the past two years, I haven't had any intention of getting married. If I want to get married by then, I will definitely ask you to take a look."
No matter when, matchmakers should not be offended easily.
Because people like Fu Po who can act as matchmakers are generally good at speaking and can both make things happen and ruin them: they can praise you to the skies or bring you down to earth with just a few words.
It would be bad if the matchmaker failed to provide good hospitality and became malicious because of the failed matchmaking, thus ruining her reputation outside.
Although she didn't like inviting this lucky lady into her house, she still had to show due courtesy and respect.
"Hey?" Grandma Fu pinched the silver in her palm and felt it. It was quite heavy, but she didn't say anything. Then she looked at Pei Liuniang and said, "Madam Gu, how old are your sisters?"
Gu Ran glanced at Pei Liuniang.
Pei Liu understood what Grandma Fu meant and said, "You're still young, no need."
Fu Po smiled and said, "Oh, this lady is so beautiful. If you want to find a husband in the future, please remember to look for me, Fu Po. I am beautiful and kind-hearted, and I will definitely find a good family for you."
"Of course, of course."
After seeing off the lucky lady, Gu Ran's smiling face suddenly turned cold.
"The Tian family!"
"Do you know the Tian family?" Pei Liu was surprised. Didn't she just say that she had never seen the eldest son of the Tian family?
"I haven't met him formally, but I've heard of him."
Gu Ran said this, picked up the teacup and took a sip.
"It's a hunting family."
Pei Liu didn't understand, and Gu Ran was too lazy to explain.
The Tian family of Donglin Township were among the earliest hunters to go hunting in the island forest.
When Mr. Tian went on an adventure into Dayu Lin with others, she was picking fairy grass in the field, and Mrs. Lin happened to be there too.
After all, Mrs. Lin Er was the daughter-in-law of the village chief of Xiaxi Village, and had seen more people than her. So every time she saw a hunter entering the miasmic forest, she would talk to her enthusiastically. Of course, she also mentioned the story of the Tian family. At that time, Gu Ran only glanced at them from a distance. Although he could not see their faces, he remembered that there was a hunter family named Tian in Donglin Township.
Because hunting in the miasma forest is too risky and there have been reports of hunters getting into accidents, the number of people coming to Dayu Forest to hunt has gradually decreased recently.
After all, everyone values life.
However, although these hunters value their lives, they have evil intentions towards themselves.
Some wanted to break into the house and steal things, some came openly to ask me to be their guide, and some asked me secretly if I was willing to get married again. Today, they came directly to my house to propose marriage through a matchmaker.
They all thought that she had the ability to enter the Lantau Forest, so they thought of marrying her, a divorced woman who was a hunter, so that they would have an extra helper who could ensure that their hunting in the Lantau Forest would be safe.
What a nice thought.
whispering sound.
Gu Ran disagreed.
"Sixth Mother, let's go back to the house and continue working!" Gu Ran stretched out his hands, stood up and walked into the cottage.
Pei Liu looked at the courtyard and saw the Daju family gathered around her feet and called out to her. She lowered her eyes and put away the teacup.
He had forgotten that Gu Er Niang was a woman and would probably have to get married in the future.
If she got married, what would happen to the small house? What would happen to Daju's family? What would happen to him?
He finally found a place to stay and came back carefully and with great difficulty, just to continue living with them.
If Gu Er Niang got married, wouldn’t the days he was looking forward to be over?
Pei Liu frowned slightly.
Fortunately, from what Gu Er Niang said, she had no plans to get married in the next two years.
Does this mean that there are only two years left of this peaceful life?
Pei Liu secretly breathed a sigh of relief, but at the same time, he was worried: two years had passed in the blink of an eye. Should he make some preparations for the days to come two years from now?
However, when he thought about the fact that Gu Er Niang would have to live with a man other than him and raise an orange cat in the future, he felt a little upset.
Because he planned to deliver the dried fairy grass that the He family wanted when he went to the county town, Gu Ran first collected the hay that had been dried in the house, and then went to the fields outside with Pei Liu to harvest a batch of fairy grass and dry it in the sun.
While the two were busy working in the fields, a man came hurriedly from afar. After passing the windmill in Gu Ran's field, he turned back and stood at the edge of the field. He looked at the two and called out, "Gu Er Niang?"
Gu Ran and Pei Liu, who were squatting among the fairy grass in the field, turned their heads at the same time.
The man looked at one, then at the other, and was stunned: "Who is Gu Erniang?"
"Is there something wrong?" Gu Ran stood up and asked.
"Hey, I am, I am the eldest son of the Tian family in Donglin Township." Mr. Tian rubbed his hands with a smile and walked towards them along the ridge of the field.
Pei Liu saw this and slowly stood up and walked to Gu Ran.
"I, I heard that you rejected Fu Po? Is that a lie?" Tian Dalangjun couldn't believe it. "Second Lady Gu, did Fu Po give you a hard time?"
"You are making things difficult for me! Didn't I tell Mrs. Fu that I won't get married? Once something is said, it cannot be taken back." Gu Ran said impatiently.
"Hey, you woman, do you know who my Tian family is?" Mr. Tian's face was sullen. "I, Tian Dahu, am the most powerful hunter in the surrounding area. Who do you think you are? You dare not marry me, are you looking down on the Tian family?"
"Whether I look down on the Tian family or not is another matter, but right now I look down on you."
"Second Lady Gu, don't refuse the honor you've been given. You're just an unwanted abandoned woman. I'm asking someone to propose to you because I think highly of you. You..."
Mr. Tian was so angry that he took a step forward into the fairy grass field, cursing and pointing his finger at Gu Ran. Pei Liu, who was protecting Gu Ran in front of him, could no longer hold back and reached out to grab Mr. Tian's clothes.
Mr. Tian was shocked.
"What are you doing? You little slut...Ahhhhhhh!"
Before he could even utter the word "woman", Mr. Tian was lifted up, his feet dangling in the air, and his original arrogance turned into fear.
She, she, she, who is she?
How could he have the strength of a bull to lift himself up?
"You, what do you want to do? Put me down now."
Gu Ran, who was standing nearby, came forward and said to Pei Liu, "Lift it lower."
Pei Liu followed his instructions and lowered the person he had easily picked up.
Tian Dalangjun finally breathed a sigh of relief, but Gu Ran had already slapped him in the face: "You're so foul-mouthed, swearing at people, right? This slap is for me!" Then he slapped him again with his backhand, "This slap is for Liu Niang."
Pei Liu raised the corners of his mouth.
"I'm telling you, Mr. Tian, you don't understand what people are saying. Ask your father and mother to teach you what it means to not marry. Do you understand?"
Tian Dalangjun had two slap marks on his cheeks. He looked at Gu Erniang and nodded desperately: "I, I know, I know, it's my fault. I won't dare to do it again next time."
Gu Ran nodded to Pei Liu, signaling him to let the man go, then turned around to pick the fairy grass.
Pei Liu turned his head slightly and saw Gu Ran squatting down. He grabbed Tian Dalangjun's collar and came forward with a cold look in his eyes: "Next time, I will kill you."
Mr. Tian trembled, and before he could beg for mercy, Pei Liu flicked his hand and threw him to the ground at the other end of the ridge.
Tian Dalangjun fell to the ground, howling in pain, and ran away stumbling and falling.
Gu Ran glanced at Mr. Tian who had fled far away, sneered, and then said to Pei Liu who was squatting beside him working: "Six-Niang, you did a good job. You should be more ruthless when dealing with such ungrateful people."
Pei Liu smiled and nodded.
After picking all the new batch of fairy grass, Gu Ran went to check on the konjac.
Because konjac plants mature at different times, those with withered leaves can be dug up first. Select the tubers that are big enough underground to eat, and the small konjac can be planted again.
When he saw konjac, Gu Ran remembered Mai Xiang, who had just taught him how to grow it a while ago.
I don’t know how her crops are doing?
However, the climate in Fujian is suitable for growing konjac, and Maixiang has experience, so it shouldn't be difficult.
However, after entering the city, I have to remind the He family that when signing the contract with the Mai family, they have to sign it with Mai Xiang himself.
Gu Ran thought so, and did so. When she and Pei Liu brought dried immortal grass to sell to the He family, Huan Huan happened to be home on vacation that day. After hearing about it, she nodded and said, "Don't worry, I will tell my mother and uncle." Then she asked curiously, "Sister Gu, my grandfather's family is pretty good. The cousin I introduced to the lady of the Mai family is also a good person. She really doesn't want to consider it?"
"Huanhuan, Xiangxiang is about the same age as you. If I ask you to get married now, will you marry?" Gu Ran asked back.
"That's different. I can still go to school and do things I want to do. I also want to go to Damao City in the future. Talking about marriage has to wait until I finish my studies."
"Just like you, Xiangxiang also has things she wants to do." Gu Ran said.
"Growing konjac?"
"We're growing konjac now, but who knows what will happen in the future!"
"Oh, what a pity that I lost such a good cousin-in-law!" Huanhuan said with a smile, "Okay, Sister Gu, don't worry, I will definitely help you get this done."
After Gu Ran said goodbye to Huanhuan and left the He family, he planned to go to Sihai Cloth Shop with Pei Liu.
"Wait, the two sisters are going to the market. I want to go too." Huan Huan said, quickly locked the door, and followed them. "What do you want to buy?"
"We're going to buy some cloth to make autumn clothes," Gu Ran replied, nodding at Pei Liuniang with his chin. "Haven't you noticed that Liuniang has grown taller?"
"That's right!" Huanhuan took a step back and looked at the two people in front of her. "I remember that Sister Pei was not as tall as Sister Gu before, right? Now they are the same height."
"That's right." Gu Ran said, "If she continues to grow at this rate, she will be taller than me soon."
Gu Ran remembered that after she came to Minzhou, she was about 4.86 feet (1.62 meters). After living in Xiaxi Village for so long, she didn't grow much taller, only 4.95 feet (1.65 meters). According to the original owner's age, she was over 17 years old. She didn't know if she could still grow taller.
But before, Pei Liu was half a head shorter than herself, maybe about 4.5 (1.5 meters). In the time she had been in Minzhou, she had grown to be as tall as herself.
She has grown so much taller in just over a year, and she is only fourteen years old. I'm afraid this is the time when Liu Niang is growing rapidly.
"I think you could make two sets of autumn and winter clothes first, Liu Niang. With your age, the new clothes you make now won't be suitable for you next year. You can just make new ones then."
When choosing fabrics at Sihai Cloth Shop, Gu Ran said to Pei Liudao.
"I'll do as you say." Pei Liu nodded.
"Then come over here and choose some patterns!" Huanhuan was also watching from the side, holding several pieces of cloth of different styles in her hands, and looking at other things.
"You also make clothes?" Gu Ran asked.
"Yes, it looks like the weather is getting cold, and my father and mother haven't bought new clothes for a long time." Huanhuan said, "It just so happens that I made some money from my business this year, so I wanted to make them a few more sets of clothes so that they don't have to buy the cloth themselves, which they are reluctant to do."
Gu Ran smiled and saw Pei Liu also choosing, but in the end he chose a dark-toned, plain color.
Thinking that Pei Liu's dresses were always so simple and had few patterns, she didn't say anything. After Huanhuan had chosen hers, the three of them left the cloth shop and went home with the selected cloth.
Because the donkey cart was still at the He family, Gu Ran and Pei Liu also followed Huanhuan back.
The He family mansion is in the southern district. You have to leave the market and pass by Zuiyue Tower.
When he walked there, Gu Ran suddenly remembered that not long ago, two assassins died at the Changlai Inn at the end of the street opposite Zuiyue Tower, and subconsciously glanced at Pei Liuniang.
Pei Liu noticed Gu Ran's eyes and glanced back at her in confusion, but his peripheral vision caught a glimpse of two people coming out of Zuiyue Tower. He smelled an unusual scent and silently withdrew his gaze.
They are the same kind!
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