Chapter 367: Death of Mrs. Gu
Mrs. Gu died on New Year's Eve.
At that time, every household had closed their doors and were eating New Year's Eve dinner and staying up all night. The next day, when the children in the village went from house to house to pay New Year's greetings and ask for melon seeds and peanuts, they found that in the yard of Song Laoer's house, Mrs. Gu's body had been half buried by the heavy snow overnight.
The frozen corpse was covered with feces and urine. Mrs. Gu must have been unable to get up from the ground and died after lying there for half the night.
No one knows what Mrs. Gu was thinking when she heard the firecrackers going off and the families around her having fun.
But the people in Xiaoshi Village understood that Song Laoer's family was finished.
Song Laoer and his wife took Song Xiaobao and never returned. It is said that they took a sum of money and left their paralyzed mother lying on the kang.
Song Shuirong did come back once, also to get some money for Song Laoer.
She thought her parents would definitely redeem her with the money, but Song Lao Er did not come back, so she could only cry and be taken away by Master Xue, and she never came back.
Her family from Gujia Village came once, also for money, but when they saw that Mrs. Gu was abandoned by her own son, they never came again.
No one cared about Mrs. Gu. She lived on a bowl of soup from one house, a mouthful of rice from another, drinking raw water and eating raw potatoes. It was only a matter of time before she would freeze to death or starve to death.
But no one expected it to happen on New Year's Eve, and in the yard.
There is no one to collect the body, so we can't just let it be sky-buried. Moreover, he died in a violent way outside, which scared the neighbors.
Song Lizheng had no other choice but to go from house to house asking for help. First, he had to lift the body onto the kang, find a woman in the village to help Mrs. Gu wash and groom herself, and then find a thin coffin to bury her.
Song Li is very prestigious in Xiaoshi Village, but that is without Song Laoer and Gu Pozi.
Now Song Lao Er doesn't care that my mother has run away, and there is no one to collect the body of Mrs. Gu, so she has to trouble others. It's New Year's Day, and no one is willing to help.
Song Lizheng's words were of no use, and everyone was cursing and complaining.
It dragged on from the first to the fourth day of the New Year, but no one was found.
Song Lizheng had no choice but to coax and beat his nephews. There was no way to change or wash their clothes, so he could only cut off the dirty clothes soaked in feces with scissors and put on a cleaner one over them.
The frozen people were like pieces of wood, and could only be stuffed into the coffin by breaking their hands and feet.
But now, even though the person has been put into the coffin, it is still placed outside. Not only is there no mourning hall, there is not even anyone burning paper.
Song Lizheng also went to Gujia Village to look for Gu Po's family, but they were busy visiting relatives for the New Year and had no time.
After a three-day pause, mourning must be announced.
Things here have not been settled yet, and the death has been reported since the first day of the new year. As a result, the Gu family, who had been delayed for a long time, finally showed up.
They didn't mention what to do about the funeral, but instead they started talking about the people in Xiaoshi Village who didn't take good care of Mrs. Gu, letting her freeze to death outside the house. They wanted to sue the Song family for abuse.
The implication was that they had to give the Gu family some funeral expenses before they would allow Xiaoshi Village to bury the body.
Now the Gu family has been blocking the gate and arguing for a whole day. It’s time to go out to the mountain tomorrow, but they still haven’t given in.
Song Lizheng was so anxious that blisters appeared on the corners of his mouth in the middle of winter.
Now that Song Zhenping is back, even if he has descendants to take care of the funeral, the Gu family can no longer complain about how he does it.
However, Song Zhenping was unwilling to take care of it. How could Song Lizheng not be anxious!
If you don’t care...then why did you come back? You might as well not come back!
At this time, more and more villagers came out after hearing the news, gathering in groups of three or four at the door of the village head's house. Those who were brave enough not to be afraid of Song the village head even entered the house.
Several elders who had seemed invisible for decades came and, unlike their previous aloofness, surrounded Song Zhenping and asked him all sorts of questions.
Ever since several servants from Mr. Xue's family returned from Qili County, they knew that the Song brothers and sisters had made a fortune.
Not to mention the large carriage parked in the yard, the four stern-looking guards, and the well-behaved new bride.
Young wife...carriage...guards, this is definitely a wealthy family.
In addition, the aunt who had taken care of the Song brothers in the past took Yang Hua aside to ask about her well-being.
From asking about Song Eryatou's marriage to whether Xiao An was still stupid, he also asked about Yang Hua's parents' home, how many children she would have in the future, and whether she would return to Xiaoshi Village.
To put it nicely, it means she cares about everything; to put it bluntly, it means she is too gossipy.
If it were an ordinary new bride, she would definitely be too embarrassed to bear it, but Yang Hua is not an ordinary person.
When an aunt learned that Yang Hua was older than Song Zhenping, she showed an incredible expression, but Yang Hua just smiled faintly.
When they left Xiaoshi Village a month later, Song Zhenping said that those women talked too much and asked Yanghua not to be angry.
Yang Hua said calmly, "My second sister told me back in Suijin Town that the people in Xiaoshi Village are ignorant, timid, and not bad at all, and asked me not to bother with them.
I didn't believe it at the time, but now it seems... my second sister is right."
When Song Liyun was in Suijin Town, she told Yang Hua that the villagers of Xiaoshi Village had been bullied by Gu Po's family for decades. They did care about the Song Zhenping brothers, but not much, and they were not grateful to them.
Just be polite when you go back, don't take it too seriously, and just care about the head of the village.
Yang Hua took Song Liyun's words to heart, so she was naturally distant and polite to these women.
It is normal to have a close relationship with the village head's family. Not to mention that Village Head Song is in charge of clan affairs and is the lowest level of official, and Song Dekui also has an extraordinary relationship with the Song brothers and sisters.
As for Song Zhenping, facing the lobbying of several elders in the clan, his stubborn temper came out and he refused to agree to be a filial son and grandson to Mrs. Gu.
Song Dekui pulled his father aside and muttered to himself. Song Lizheng frowned at first, but then he seemed to understand and finally spread his hands: "You mean just let him do it himself?"
Song Dekui smiled crookedly: "Dad, the pocket money your son gives you is not enough. This is just the beginning. In the future, when your son becomes rich, you can enjoy life well."
Song Lizheng glared at him and said, "How long have you been with Yun Yatou? You've already brought back so much silver. I'm telling you, don't do anything bad and come back to cheat me."
Song Dekui opened his mouth exaggeratedly: "If you don't believe me, you have to believe the money.
Let me tell you the truth! Daping will not only not attend Mrs. Gu's funeral, but he will also move his parents' graves. You have to give him some advice."
When he heard about the relocation of graves, Song Lizheng's brows were twisted into knots. He didn't say anything, but just took out his pipe silently and started thinking about things.
Relocating graves is a big event for every clan.
When a branch of the family moves its grave, it means that it has split off and established a new clan, severing its ties with the original family.
Those who want to split up are basically the most outstanding ones, and the strength and influence of the clan will be affected.
Therefore, unlike relocating households, relocating graves requires not only the consent of the village head, but also the consent of the elders in the family. The clan elders must write a deed and burn incense to inform the ancestors.
Song Liyun was worried that Mrs. Gu would cause trouble when the grave was moved, so she not only prepared four guards for Song Zhenping, but also gave Song Dekui some money, asking him to help take care of the town and the village.
What she didn't expect was that Mrs. Gu died, no earlier nor later than three days ago.
Although one hazard was eliminated, one more problem was also added.
(End of this chapter)
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