Chapter 84: “sharp-tongued Man”
“Sister, congratulations on successfully separating your household!” Lin Zhao was happy for her elder sister-in-law. “When did you move?”
Gu Chan’s heart warmed, and she smiled. “The night you and Da Zai and Er Zai came to join the family. We just moved yesterday.”
“Why didn’t you tell us to help with the move?” Mother Gu said unhappily.
Wei Xiangdong helped his wife out of a difficult spot. “We didn’t have much, so I found a couple of people to help.”
With her son-in-law speaking, the mother-in-law couldn’t say much more. She secretly glared at her daughter, annoyed that she didn’t consider her maternal family important.
Was that pure help?
A maternal family’s visit was to support their married daughter!
Gu Chan felt guilty and quickly lowered her head. The little person in her heart stuck out its tongue.
She knew her mother meant well, but she was too busy gluing matchboxes to come back.
“Where are you living after moving out?” Mother Gu asked.
Gu Chan’s entire face lit up, and her tone became cheerful. “The old house at the village entrance. It can be lived in after some repairs, and there are several rooms. Xiangdong and I are very satisfied.”
Wei Xiangdong nodded.
He didn’t have to squeeze into the same room as two cold stones. He was satisfied, very satisfied.
As for being scratched and clawed by his wife last night because he was too hot-blooded, he had already forgotten about it.
With tangible benefits, what was wrong with a few complaints? Hitting is love, scolding is affection.
The man reached out for an enamel mug, and a burning sensation on his back made him frown uncomfortably.
Tsk, A’chan’s fingertips were no longer sharp. He would sharpen the scissors when he got back!
“How much did it cost?” Mother Gu continued to ask.
“It cost one hundred and twenty.” When it came to the amount of money spent, Gu Chan felt a pang of heartache. That was all she had saved bit by bit.
However.
Thinking about finally having her own small home and no longer having to see the hateful look on Sister-in-law Wei’s face, the heartache turned into honey, seeping into her heart.
Home was important!
Money could be saved slowly.
“This price isn’t expensive,” Mother Gu said with a smile, a great weight lifted from her heart.
Separating households was good; life was comfortable.
Huang Xiulan and Zhao Liuniang were envious.
Which daughter-in-law didn’t want to separate her household and live independently? They certainly did.
Then they thought that with the troublemaker sister-in-law driven out of the house, and the third son and his wife being filial to their parents-in-law, they could also benefit. The sisters-in-law felt their own lives were good and their moods returned to peace.
“Mom, how are you? Are you feeling better?” Gu Chan asked with concern.
“I’m fine, I’ll be able to work soon.” Mother Gu had rested for several days and was uncomfortable. She had been looking forward to her recovery and had been diligently applying medicine.
“We’ll go after you’re fully recovered,” Gu Chan said, her brow furrowed with worry that her mother might be too hasty.
“How can I not know? Your father is watching me,” Mother Gu said irritably.
Her words flowed with a hint of fire.
It was clear she was tired of being cooped up at home!
Gu Chan smiled sheepishly, not daring to provoke her further.
They chatted for another half hour.
Mother Gu took the opportunity to go back into the room and packed some brown sugar, biscuits, and canned food, which the third son and his wife had given them, and brought them out into the yard.
In front of the three daughters-in-law, she handed them to her daughter.
Frankly.
“Take these back for the two stones to eat. Bring them back to see me when you have time. I haven’t seen my grandsons in months, I don’t know if they’ve grown taller yet.”
Before Gu Chan could speak, she continued without a pause, “Since you’ve separated your household, live well from now on, make sure the children are fed, and if you need anything, send word to us.”
Lin Zhao’s expression remained unchanged.
It was the same as she said before: she didn’t care how they handled what they gave away.
Mother Gu observed the expression of her third son’s wife out of the corner of her eye, thinking that if Da Zai’s mother was unhappy, she would immediately retort.
It was rare for the third son to be back, and she didn’t want to see the couple argue.
Seeing that Lin Zhao’s expression hadn’t changed, she quietly breathed a sigh of relief.
Gu Chan knew that her parents’ things were gifts from her third brother and his wife. She pushed them back, “I don’t want them! We have everything we need at home. Xiangdong and I have hands and feet, and we can raise the two stones. You and Dad eat these good things.”
“Take these for my two grandsons!” Mother Gu’s face darkened. “You separated your household and moved without any help from us. Take these things back, or take back the eggs and meat you brought, and never come back!”
With her words coming to this, how could Gu Chan dare to refuse?
She looked shamefully at her sisters-in-law and brother’s wife, her face flushing with embarrassment.
“Sister, please accept them. Moving is a good thing, it should be celebrated,” Lin Zhao said to ease the atmosphere.
Only she could say that appropriately.
Zhao Liuniang smiled and spoke decisively, “You should accept them. Actually, we should have prepared something too, but this news was too sudden, and we didn’t prepare anything. Don’t blame us for not being able to give you anything.”
“Don’t blame you, don’t blame you. We didn’t want to trouble you in the first place,” Gu Chan waved her hands hurriedly and added, “No, no, we have everything we need at home.”
Huang Xiulan smiled and asked, “You have everything you need? What about the pot for cooking?”
Gu Chan smiled helplessly.
“We do lack things.”
That’s why people rarely separated their households. A family only had one pot; without a pot, they couldn’t even cook.
Huang Xiulan looked at Lin Zhao. “Third sister-in-law, you’re from the city. If you happen to come across a pot, please leave it. We three households can share the cost and get A’chan a pot.”
She said this grandly, and Gu Yuanshan looked at his wife with pride.
Look, this is the eldest sister-in-law, truly bringing him honor.
Lin Zhao recalled that she had drawn a double-eared iron pot and immediately said, “I have a pot, a double-eared iron pot. I’ll give it to Sister.”
“We’ll split the money equally,” Huang Xiulan thought to herself, ‘This is a coincidence,’ and deliberately said, “You can’t get all the glory!”
“No need, Xiangdong has already asked someone for help,” Gu Chan didn’t want to trouble her maternal family. A pot cost over ten yuan, which would be several yuan for each household, and by work points, it would take over half a month of hard work.
“Don’t talk, it’s none of your business,” Zhao Liuniang interrupted her, saying sarcastically, “Getting a pot for free and pushing it away is foolish.”
“Before I start feeling the pinch, say yes quickly!” she urged, her face full of heartache.
Gu Chan was stunned.
Lin Zhao leaned against Gu Chenghuai and smiled, gently patting his back with her warm hand.
Not far away, Gu Yucheng’s whip made a whistling sound through the air.
The whip tip cut through the air and landed on the spinning top, making it spin rapidly.
“Wow, Second Uncle is amazing!!”
“Second Uncle is so powerful!!”
The children’s exclamations and laughter rose and fell.
In the midst of the praise, Gu Yucheng became more and more engrossed.
His laughter was so loud it could have overturned the yard.
Even though the oldest child was already twelve, he played like a wild boy.
He didn’t ignore what was happening with Gu Chan, and called out loudly, “A’chan, listen to your second sister-in-law. She’s rarely this generous. It would be foolish not to take advantage of her.”
He then said to Wei Xiangdong, “Xiangdong, you’re a smart person. Don’t be foolish like A’chan. We’re all family.”
A few yuan were not as important as family ties.
A’chan didn’t take much advantage of her maternal family either; she never came back empty-handed.
Wei Xiangdong said, “Okay, we’ll accept it. Thank you, brother-in-law, and third brother and sister-in-law. I’ll treat you to meat when I catch a big one.”
Father Gu’s expression was serious, and his words were full of concern.
“Eating meat is fine, but be careful. Nothing is more important than your limbs being intact. You are A’chan and the two stones’ reliance. If anything happens to you, even with us, their lives will be difficult. Remember what I said, don’t be rash.”
Wei Xiangdong stood up and said loudly, “I’ll listen to Dad.”
As he finished speaking.
He ran over to snatch the whip from his brother-in-law and also spun a top.
He knew how to play.
With one flick of the whip.
The wooden spinning top seemed to come alive, its rotation speed increasing, blurring into a streak of color as the paint merged, like a rainbow of flowing clouds.
It leaped into the air, half a foot off the ground, paused slightly at its highest point, and then slammed back down to the ground with a thud—
“Dong!”
Dust flew.
The spinning top was still spinning madly on the ground.
“Wow!!” The children were so shocked they held their chins.
Er Zai unceremoniously hung onto his uncle-in-law’s arm and said repeatedly, “Uncle-in-law, Uncle-in-law, teach me, teach me, I want to learn!!”
Tie Chui said sheepishly, “Second Uncle isn’t as good as Uncle-in-law.”
Gu Yucheng: “…”
Da Zai gently nudged Tie Chui with his arm and whispered, “Tie Chui, you can’t say that. Adults care about face.”
Tie Chui took the advice and immediately changed his tune, “Second Uncle, you’re also amazing.”
As he said this, he looked at Gu Yucheng and nodded heavily, giving him a look of approval.
“…” The “wow” and praise from earlier seemed like a dream to Gu Yucheng.
With a perfunctory compliment, Tie Chui pulled Da Zai and excitedly surrounded Wei Xiangdong, exclaiming “Wow” repeatedly.
Wei Xiangdong glanced at his brother-in-law when he had a moment, shrugging.
There was nothing he could do, it was skill.
Gu Yucheng gritted his teeth.
The stones’ father was so childish that Gu Chan couldn’t bear to watch. Gu Chan secretly covered her face.
She wiped her face from top to bottom, rubbing away the complex emotions, and looked at her sisters-in-law and brother’s wife, saying sincerely, “Thank you, Eldest Sister-in-law and Second Sister-in-law, and thank you too, Zhaozhao.”
Huang Xiulan was forthright and said with a smile, “What are you thanking us for? We’re all family.”
“Your second sister-in-law is thrifty, not stingy. Don’t listen to your second brother talking nonsense and ruining my reputation,” Zhao Liuniang said, not forgetting to defend herself.
Lin Zhao suppressed a smile.
If she didn’t know her in-laws’ second sister-in-law’s true nature, she would have believed her!
Gu Chan also knew her sister-in-law’s personality. Whatever entered her pocket was rarely taken out. If you asked, she would say she was saving it for Yu Yu’s dowry.
Gu Chan was surprised that her second sister-in-law was willing to spend money to get her a pot.
Hearing Zhao Liuniang’s words, she shook her head like a rattle drum. “She’s not stingy, she’s very generous. What sister-in-law is so generous as to get a pot for her elder sister-in-law who has been married for many years.”
Zhao Liuniang was flattered and very happy.
Catching sight of the faint lines at the corners of her second sister-in-law’s eyes crinkling into a joyful smile, Gu Chan said a few more pleasing soft words.
“My second brother’s eyes are covered in glue, he can’t see Second Sister-in-law’s goodness. It’s his bad eyesight. Second Sister-in-law, don’t argue with him. Mother sees everything and will teach him well.”
Of course, Gu Chan knew her second brother was joking.
Lin Zhao turned her face towards Gu Chenghuai, suppressing a smile.
It was tough on her elder sister-in-law, not being eloquent, yet still trying hard to praise her second sister-in-law.
Speaking of which, not counting the children, the Gu family, except for Gu Yucheng, were all people of few words.
Gu Chenghuai looked at Lin Zhao and smiled helplessly. Behind his family’s back, he subtly took her hand, holding her boneless hand in his palm.
Gu Chan and her husband didn’t stay long. After another twenty minutes or so, they bid farewell and left.
Before they left, Father Gu came out of the room with a flashlight.
“Take the flashlight. Be careful on the road.”
Gu Chan looked at the flashlight curiously and asked, “Dad has a flashlight? Did Chenghuai give it to you?”
“Of course,” Father Gu said with considerable pride.
His son was doing well.
Gu Chan chuckled secretly.
“Xiangdong and I can see the road, we don’t need…”
Before she finished speaking, a flashlight was placed in her hand.
“Take it. It’s not like I’m giving it to you for free. I wouldn’t part with it if it were for Baibai. Bring it back next time you come.” Father Gu said.
If she weren’t his biological daughter, he wouldn’t even lend it to her.
He treasured the flashlight his son gave him, touching it several times before sleeping every night.
“…Okay,” Gu Chan replied.
Lin Zhao went back into the room. When she came out again, she was carrying a cloth bag in her left hand and an iron pot in her right.
After coming out, she handed the items to her elder sister-in-law.
Not wanting to hear her polite refusals, she turned back into the room.
Gu Chenghuai looked at the slender and decisive figure, a smile like the spring breeze in March spreading in his eyes. He quickly shifted his gaze back and, looking at Gu Chan, explained for his wife, “Sister, Zhaozhao doesn’t like to go back and forth with politeness.”
“I know,” Gu Chan’s face was full of emotion.
“Please thank Zhaozhao for me.”
After that, the couple left.
Wei Xiangdong only left a flashlight in his wife’s hand; he carried the other items himself.
…
It was hot inside, and it wasn’t yet time for bed, so many people were standing by the doorway, chatting in groups of two or three.
After Lin Zhao became a salesperson, the gossip about her in the village sharply decreased.
Even if there was any, it was praise.
They had mastered the art of human relations perfectly.
Then.
Su Yuxian became the focus of public opinion.
Here, five or six aunts were gathered in a circle, chattering away.
“I heard Yi Zhou’s wife hit Bao Zhen, and Bao Zhen cried, wanting her dad.”
“I heard about it too. What’s going on? I remember before she got married, Yuxian was quite good to Bao Zhen, always saying how obedient she was! She’s been married for less than a month, and she’s already hitting the child? Aren’t the Lu family’s parents doing anything?”
“What can they do! They haven’t found the Lu family’s money, have they? The couple seems to have lost their souls. I called them this afternoon several times, and they didn’t react.”
“Alas.” Another aunt first sighed and then said with heartache, “I heard they lost over a thousand yuan. Even if Yi Zhou saved, it would take him two years. It’s no wonder they’re not over it. If it were me, I wouldn’t be over it either.”
Thinking about so much money made her heart ache.
“Life has to go on. It’s best to get over it quickly.”
“We’re talking about Yi Zhou’s wife, aren’t we? Why did she hit Bao Zhen?” Someone was always listening carefully to gossip.
“I know, I know,” said a neighbor of the Lu family. “It seems like Yi Zhou’s wife had just washed the clothes, and Bao Zhen knocked them to the ground. When Yi Zhou’s wife saw it, she got angry, grabbed Bao Zhen’s ear, and started hitting her. She hit her until she cried, calling her a bad stepmother and saying she wanted her dad to beat her to death…”
“Bao Zhen is only a little over four years old, isn’t Yi Zhou’s wife a bit harsh?” commented a woman who rarely hit children.
“I think she deserved it. Children don’t learn without discipline. Washing clothes is also hard work, tiring. She knocked them to the ground, so it’s understandable to give her a beating.” The speaker inserted a needle into the sole of a shoe and pulled out a thread, her words light and airy.
“But she hit her too hard,” the Lu family neighbor muttered. “Yi Zhou’s wife hit her hard, at least for five minutes. If it were her own child, how could she bear to hit her like that?”
Another person said, “If Yi Zhou’s ex-wife knew about this, she would be heartbroken.”
A child she gave birth to with her own life.
As they were talking, they saw two figures approaching from ahead.
Upon closer inspection, it was Gu Chan from the Gu family and her sharp-tongued husband.
Everyone knew Wei Xiangdong was not to be trifled with, so they only greeted them politely and didn’t dare to ask further questions.
After the two figures disappeared, the topic naturally turned to them.
“Did you see? The new pot in A’chan’s husband’s hand.”
“We’re not blind. The Gu family is quite good to their married daughters, even willing to give them a new pot.”
“Did Chenghuai’s wife give it to them?”
“Besides her, who else could do that.”
“Look at those bags and packages. I say, A’chan is much smarter than Xing’er. If you build a good relationship with the third branch, what good things can’t you get?” This comment implied that Gu Chan was helping the Gu family’s third branch to gain benefits.
Wang Chunhua thought this was biased and couldn’t help but say, “A’chan isn’t that kind of person. She helped her third brother’s family all those years ago without getting any benefits.”
The person lowered their head and said no more.
…
Gu Family.
The adults returned to their respective rooms, while the children were still making noise in the yard.
Lin Zhao sat in the backrest chair at the desk, her arm casually resting on the desk, feeling like she had forgotten something.
Gu Chenghuai’s tall figure leaned against the doorway, his deep eyes falling on his wife, his gaze gentle and smiling, filled with love.
“What are you thinking about? So seriously.”
