Chapter 4: Suing the Gu Family's First Wife
Before she could say anything, her father wiped his face and suddenly said angrily: "My son's education is my responsibility. How can I let a girl like you pay for it?"
Gu Tang's heart skipped a beat. Why did the tone sound so murderous?
"Because your eldest brother failed in his studies a few years ago, your father and I always kept our heads down in front of your grandparents and didn't dare to mention the matter of studying again.
Now that you've mentioned this, I'll argue with you again. It doesn't make sense for our family to suffer losses all the time, and for your uncle and his son to spend all the money we earn!"
Gu Tang nodded. That was true. The entire Gu family was mostly supported by the second branch. It didn’t make sense that all the benefits should go to the first branch.
"That being said, you should be more careful. After all, my grandparents are our elders. If they are unfilial, our family will not be in a good situation."
"Don't worry, Dad knows what's going on."
Gu Lianshan had a confident look on his face, but he looked unfriendly.
How could Gu Tang feel at ease with him like this? He could only make up his mind to keep a closer eye on him.
Perhaps he had something on his mind, Gu Lianshan whipped the old ox to make it speed up.
Soon, the ox cart stopped in front of the gate of a courtyard house facing north and south.
This courtyard is the Gu family’s home.
The courtyard wall is a bamboo fence, one person tall, and the courtyard gate is also made of bamboo. It looks pleasing to the eye, but it can't keep out thieves.
I heard from her father that these bamboo walls were built later. In the early years, the walls of the Gu family were all made of adobe.
But adobe cannot withstand wind and rain and needs to be repaired every few years.
All these repair work was done by her father.
Later, her grandparents became more and more partial to her, and her father became angry and refused to care about the courtyard wall. Finally, her uncle made the decision and hired someone to build a fence, saying it was elegant.
Gu Tang glanced at the fence and pouted.
The money spent on inviting guests was earned by her father, but in the end the reputation fell on her uncle.
After getting off the ox cart, Gu Tang slung her package over her arm, waited for her father to tie up the ox, and followed her father into the yard.
The Gu family must have heard the noise. Except for the two elders, everyone else came out of the house. They stared at the package on Gu Tang's arm with fiery eyes, wishing they could open it immediately to see what good things were hidden inside!
Gu Tang dusted off the package and ignored everyone's gazes.
The entire Gu family, young and old, knew that she had money, but even if they had ten times the courage, they would not dare to rob her.
The reason was simple. All members of the Gu family were frightened by what her father had done two years ago. Even though they were jealous now, they did not dare to rob him.
Two years ago, the master who taught the original owner how to collect herbs passed away. The original owner took over the master's herb collecting spot and earned more and more money.
The Gu family had seen it a long time ago and were extremely jealous.
Soon, the eldest wife of the Gu family instigated Old Lady Gu Feng to search the bed where the original owner slept and took away all the copper and silver coins that the original owner had saved.
When the original owner came back from the mountain, he saw the messy bed and his own mother just watching without doing anything. He became so upset that he hanged himself!
At that time, her father Gu Lianshan was frightened, and he hurriedly rescued the original owner, placed her in a friend's house, and then went to the city to report to the police!
That’s right, her father Gu Lianshan went to the city to report to the police!
Feng is Gu Lianshan’s biological mother, so he definitely cannot sue her. He knows this clearly, so he sued the entire eldest branch of the Gu family!
Especially the eldest son of the Gu family, Gu Lianshan knows what the first wife, as well as his parents care about the most, so he can just deal with the eldest son alone.
First, he was accused of instigating his wife to ransack his niece's house. Second, he was accused of robbing his niece of the silver she had risked her life to collect herbs in the mountains. Third, he was unworthy of the title of "Tongsheng" and begged the officials to take it back!
This accusation was a huge blow to the Gu family.
At first, the eldest wife and the second elder of the Gu family did not take it to heart. They were so angry that they scolded and beat Gu Lianshan, threatening to cut off ties with him and kick him out of the house.
He wanted to use this to scare Gu Lianshan and make him withdraw the lawsuit.
But Gu Lianshan was not afraid at all. He took Gu Tang and moved out of the Gu family so that the two elders of the Gu family could not find him. When the stolen money was returned double, this matter would be over!
Seeing that the police from the government were about to come to the house to arrest someone, the eldest wife and the second elder of the Gu family finally realized that their second son was serious!
For a moment, the whole family was trembling with fear, and immediately surrendered to Gu Lianshan, returning double the stolen silver to its original owner.
Afterwards, he spent all his family fortune to bribe the government, and the lawsuit was dismissed, thus preserving the title of the eldest son of the Gu family as a scholar.
After this incident, the Gu family no longer dared to rob the original owner of the money. Even though they were jealous and anxious, no one dared to do anything.
So, Gu Tang was not afraid of them seeing it.
After cleaning the package, Gu Tang went to the west wing.
The second branch of the Gu family lives in the west wing.
Just as she took a step, Wei from the other side of the main room called out to her in a sarcastic tone.
"Si Ya is back? Why didn't you call out to me when you saw me? Look at the bulging package. Did you really get the medicine?"
"If you ask me, why would you spend money on medicine? You are a farmer, and farmers are tough. You can get through it by just holding on. If you really have money, you should buy some meat or something to nourish your grandfather and grandmother."
After saying this, Wei covered her mouth with a handkerchief and laughed, her laughter making a "cluck, cluck" sound, just like an old hen about to lay eggs.
Gu Tang stopped and turned to glance at her.
When Wei saw her looking at her, she curled her short and sturdy fingers into "orchid fingers" and stroked her clothes a few times in a coquettish manner.
Today, Wei was wearing a lotus green jacket with narrow sleeves and a brown pleated skirt. She stood in the corridor of the main hall, staring at the package on Gu Tang's arm. The greed in her eyes could not be concealed.
Gu Tang knew at a glance that Wei had gone to the village again today.
Farm girls, regardless of age, do not wear head scarves or long skirts except when they get married.
No veils are needed because these veils are again made of fine muslin.
The cloths used by farmers were all rough and stiff linen and coarse cloth, which could not be made into handkerchiefs. Everyone used the aprons around their waists to wipe their hands.
If any girl or daughter-in-law dares to use fine cloth to make a handkerchief, she will be punished three times a day.
The reason why people don’t wear long skirts is because it consumes too much cloth. Most farmers cannot afford to buy or weave cloth.
Most farm ladies wear a short top with a knee-length vest and long pants, and an apron on the outside to wipe their hands.
This kind of dress is very suitable for farm girls who have to work in the fields.
But Gu Tang's aunt Wei was different. The man she married was a scholar and had passed the imperial examination. In this village, everyone who saw her had to respectfully address her as Master Tongsheng.
Therefore, Wei felt that she was superior to other women, so she had to wear a handkerchief and a long skirt. She dressed up well and walked around the village every day, for fear that others would not know that her husband was a tongsheng master.
Wei is the elder. In the past, Gu Tang would not confront her head-on. It was always her father who took the lead for her.
(End of this chapter)
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