Chapter 247 Gu Baobao gets slapped in the face, publicly donating a first-aid kit and bonus to do practical things for the village.
The banquet has begun.
The courtyard was filled with eight tables, and dishes such as chicken, duck, fish, meat, four-happiness meatballs, and braised pork knuckle were served one after another.
The villagers ate heartily, their mouths greasy with food, occasionally stealing glances at the main table—where leaders, elders of the Gu family, and a newlywed couple sat.
Just as the atmosphere was getting lively, Ye Ke appeared.
She specially changed into an old cotton-padded jacket that had been washed until it was faded. Her hair was a little disheveled, and she moved step by step to the edge of the well with her pregnant belly sticking out.
That's the only way to get to the outhouse.
Gu Baobao was getting up to toast her elders.
Lu Zhanming stood up and placed his hand on her waist.
Just as the two reached the middle of the yard, Ye Ke suddenly cried out "Ouch!" and slipped, falling backward!
"Thump—!"
She fell heavily to the ground, and the water ladle in her hand flew far away.
Silence fell instantly.
All eyes turned to them.
Ye Ke lay on the ground, stunned for two seconds, then suddenly clutched her stomach and wailed:
"My stomach! It hurts so much! Gu Baobao... why did you push me! I know you don't like me, but I'm pregnant!"
The cries were heart-wrenching, each word piercing the soul.
The courtyard erupted in chaos.
The villagers whispered among themselves, their gazes toward Gu Baobao filled with suspicion and uncertainty.
At the main table, several leaders frowned.
Lu Zhanming's face suddenly turned ashen, his jawline taut like a knife's edge.
He took a step forward, but Gu Baobao gently pulled his wrist.
"husband,"
Her voice was very low, only he could hear it.
"Don't get angry. Just watch."
She pressed her fingertips against his wrist, both to comfort him and to remind him.
Lu Zhanming took a deep breath, suppressing the raging anger churning in his chest. He stood rooted to the spot, but his eyes were so cold they could freeze a person to death.
[Host! This woman is shameless! I've never seen such a good actress in our database!]
Defu screamed in her mind.
[Sprinkle the powder! We must sprinkle the powder! Let her taste the effects of this bone-corroding, soul-consuming poison!]
Gu Baobao ignored the system's clamor.
She stood there, looking at Ye Ke who was crying her heart out on the ground, her face expressionless, only a cold understanding flashing in her eyes.
They arrived as expected.
Just then, a loud shout suddenly came from the backyard:
"What are you doing!"
This was followed by sounds of struggling and wrestling, and a woman's screams:
"Let me go! Help! The Gu family is going to kill someone!"
Several young men in plain clothes, but with agile movements, rushed out of the backyard, escorting a disheveled woman. It was Zhang Pandi.
She was still clutching an empty glass bottle in her hand, the lingering smell of kerosene from the bottle opening was pungent.
"Report!"
A guard quickly walked up to Gu Baobao and Lu Zhanming, stood at attention, and saluted.
"Expert Gu, Director Lu! We discovered that this woman was carrying kerosene and intended to set fire to the back wall of the Gu family's old house! We have stopped her on the spot!"
The entire courtyard erupted in uproar!
Arson?
kerosene?
The villagers were so frightened that they all stood up and craned their necks to look.
Several daring men had already grabbed iron shovels and carrying poles and surrounded them.
Zhang Pandi's arms were twisted behind her back, but she stubbornly struggled, her eyes fixed on Gu Baobao, her voice as sharp as an owl's:
"Gu Baobao! You're a demon! You're possessed! You used to be dark-skinned, fat, and stupid. You fell and almost died, but you came back as a completely different person! You're not Gu Baobao! You're a demon in disguise!"
She shouted, her eyes sweeping over the surrounding villagers, trying to stir up the fears deeply rooted in the countryside:
"Think about it, everyone! Isn't that right? What was she like before? What is she like now? Isn't she a demon?! She's going to kill our whole village!"
Some of the older villagers' expressions changed, and whispers began to circulate.
Yes, Gu Baobao has changed so much, it's almost unsettling...
Gu Baobao finally moved.
She didn't look at Zhang Pandi, nor did she pay any attention to Ye Ke.
Instead, he turned to face the main table and the villagers filling the courtyard, and slowly began to speak, his voice clear and calm, overpowering all the noise:
"Distinguished leaders, fellow villagers. Today is my wedding day with Comrade Lu Zhanming, and I shouldn't be saying these things. But there are some things I have to say."
She paused, her gaze sweeping across the entire room.
Those eyes were clear and firm, possessing an inherent power that commanded respect.
“I am Gu Baobao. I was born and raised in Qinghetun. A year ago, I fell by the river and injured my head. I almost died. It was the brigade leader and my parents and grandparents who took me to the commune hospital.”
As she spoke, she looked at Old Man Chen, who was standing in the corner, nervously rubbing his hands, and then at Wu Guixiang and Li Fenfang, whose eyes were red at the main table.
"After my injury healed, I felt like I had suddenly gained a new understanding. Medical books that I couldn't understand before, I could suddenly comprehend;
"Prescriptions I couldn't remember before, I suddenly remember them all. Grandpa Chen said, 'This is a blessing in disguise, a gift from our ancestors.'"
Her tone was sincere, brimming with respect for local wisdom:
"Later, I followed Grandpa Chen to learn medicine, and then went to the military hospital on the island. I saw a lot of injuries and illnesses and learned a lot of skills."
"It was the country that nurtured me, the military that trained me, and the Party organization that trusted me, giving me the opportunity to go to the capital and abroad to use the skills I've learned to do something for the country."
At this point, she raised her voice slightly:
"As for saying I've changed, yes, I have. I've gone from a silly girl who almost died by the river to a doctor who can save lives with a scalpel;
From a village girl who only knew how to work diligently, she transformed into a soldier who knew what the country needed and what she was capable of doing.
She turned around and took a wooden box, painted green, from Lu Zhanming's hand.
The box wasn't big, but it looked heavy.
Gu Baobao carried the box, walked up to Old Man Chen, and solemnly handed it to him with both hands:
"Master, this is for you. This is a standardized medical kit for barefoot doctors that the country is piloting."
It contained thirty-two kinds of medicines commonly found in our rural areas, including fever reducers, antidiarrheals, anti-inflammatory drugs, and hemostatics, as well as a simple stethoscope, blood pressure monitor, and acupuncture needles.
Old Chen's hands trembled, and he dared not accept it.
Gu Baobao shoved the box into his arms, her voice so clear that everyone could hear it:
“I came from Qinghetun, and the first medicine kit should rightfully belong to our village. You will always be my mentor, Gu Baobao.”
In the future, I'm counting on you to lead the young people in the village to build our clinic, so that everyone won't have to suffer through headaches and fevers anymore.
She straightened up, looked at all the villagers in the courtyard, and said, word by word:
"When I came back this time, Zhanming and I discussed it. We'll donate part of the prize money the country awarded me to the commune to buy a tractor;
"Take another portion to build a decent clinic for our village. The medicine, the first batch we brought back from the capital, will be provided free of charge."
silence.
Then, thunderous applause erupted!
"good!"
"Doctor Gu is benevolent and righteous!"
"This is the real golden phoenix of our village!"
Captain Li Guoqiang, his face flushed with excitement, jumped to his feet, pointed at Zhang Pandi who was being held captive and Ye Ke who was still slumped on the ground, and shouted at the top of his lungs:
"The Zhang family! Have you no shame? First your daughter-in-law wrote a slanderous letter to defame a meritorious official, and then your daughter poured kerosene on him to set him on fire!"
What's wrong? Are you just jealous of others' success and want to ruin them? Our village finally has a golden phoenix fly out to lead us all to a better life, and you're going to destroy it like this?
He grew increasingly angry as he spoke, and his finger almost poked Zhang Pandi's face:
"If you don't want to stay in Qinghetun, then get out! Take your filthy, rotten hearts and get far away from here!"
Zhang Pandi's face was as white as a ghost.
It was only at this moment that she truly realized the height Gu Baobao had reached, a height that she could not shake with her tantrums or by invoking ghosts and gods.
City leaders were sitting here, the plainclothes guards were incredibly skilled, and the whole village was on Gu Baobao's side...
It's over.
Her legs gave way and she collapsed to the ground.
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