novelraw Chapter 237 The frightened bird
Chapter 237 The frightened bird
Chapter 237 The frightened bird
When the grandfather and granddaughter saw Gu Tang come in, they quickly stopped what they were doing. The third uncle pointed to the round stool next to the stove and told her to sit down and warm herself by the fire.
Then he said, "The food I left for you is probably cold. Let Ping An reheat it for you."
Gu Pingan put down the cotton wadding in his hand: "This morning's breakfast was boiled yam porridge, fried egg pancakes, and stir-fried pickled vegetables with pork cracklings. I didn't save the egg pancakes for you because I was afraid they wouldn't suit your taste if they were left too long. I wanted to make them for you fresh when you got up."
"Then make another omelet, and just reheat the rest." Gu Tang warmed his hands by rubbing them in the hot oil, then took the task from Gu Ping'an and told him to go to the kitchen to heat up the food.
Third Uncle continued measuring the cloth, and once it was long enough, he took scissors and cut it off.
"Sir, why did you suddenly decide to make quilts? I was originally thinking of just buying a few from the shops outside, and also a few rabbit fur blankets, those are warmer than quilts."
The cut cloth wasn't enough. While continuing to measure the fabric, Third Uncle said, "We bought quite a few fur coats this year, and everyone has two or three to change into, which is enough for winter. The cotton you bought can only be used to make quilts."
Grandpa did the math: thirty catties of kapok, twenty catties to make quilts, and four quilts, each weighing five catties. The remaining ten catties would be used to make cotton trousers. Grandpa didn't know how to make those, so he'd have to go back to the village to find someone to sew them.
"No need to find someone to sew it, my dad can sew. All the cotton-padded trousers and coats that my siblings and I have worn since we were little were sewn by my dad. His skills are excellent! Better than many women!"
Hearing this, the third uncle was not surprised at all. He had married a wife who didn't care about her family, and his adopted son had to act as both father and mother.
He laughed and said, "I've never worn clothes sewn by your father before, so I'll enjoy them this year."
"You'll know how skilled my dad is as soon as you put them on! Those clothes he makes are comfortable in every way!"
Speaking of her father, Gu Tang glanced at the door and said, "By the way, why didn't my father come to help sew the quilt? Logically speaking, that's his specialty."
Third Uncle pointed south: "I went to the city gate early this morning. The money from yesterday needs to be distributed. Also, regarding Tianbao's request, your father plans to find a few men from the village and a few strong women."
They say that everyone is heading to Beian City on market day, and I reckon the people in that mountain village are no exception. There probably aren't many people in the village right now. If your aunt is really there, now is the best time to go and rescue her.”
Gu Tang nodded, then suddenly paused: "The men in the village can go, why do we need to ask strong women?"
The third uncle was somewhat embarrassed, unsure how to explain to Gu Tang. After thinking for a while, he said, "If your aunt is really in Shanyao Village, she's probably being held captive. It's not convenient for men to check if someone is injured; it's more convenient for women..."
Gu Tang understood immediately and stopped asking about it.
I placed the neatly arranged cotton wadding on the table and helped my third uncle measure the cloth.
Most of the blankets here are rather narrow and short, made to fit a person's height. There's no other way; it's all because of poverty.
The quilt that Gu Tang used at the Gu family home was like this.
The quilts at her third uncle's house were different from others; they were wide and long. She measured them and found they were about six feet wide and seven feet long.
Picking up a piece of cloth that had been cut off, Gu Tang measured it with her arm and found that it was over seven feet long.
"Can you take the measurements?" Third Uncle let Gu Tang take the measurements as she pleased, looking at her with a loving expression.
"More than seven feet, almost eight feet." Gu Tang could tell that the old man had intentionally measured it to be that long.
She was very puzzled: "Why does it have to be so long?"
“Your father is taller than others, so our quilts should be longer too, so that they will be warmer to cover ourselves with.”
Gu Tang was taken aback. She hadn't really noticed this. The width of the quilts she bought was the same, but the length varied from six feet nine inches to seven feet one inch. Each store was different, but the differences were not significant.
“From now on, all the quilts in our house will be sewn longer. I’ll sew one for you just like that too,” Uncle San said with a smile.
"If that's the case, I won't be afraid of snow disasters this winter." Gu Tang put down the cloth and secretly kept this in mind.
When buying the rabbit fur blanket, make sure to ask about the size; you need to buy a large one for her father.
As the grandfather and grandson were talking, the curtain at the door was lifted, and Gu Ping'an walked in.
"Second sister, the food is on the kitchen table. Hurry up and eat it while it's hot."
Gu Tang turned around and responded, handed him the cloth, and lifted the curtain to leave the room.
Upon entering the kitchen, a bowl of porridge, a plate of stir-fried pork cracklings and pickled vegetables, and a plate of golden-brown fried egg pancakes were laid out on the table.
The food was steaming, and you could tell at a glance that it was about to be served.
After sitting down and taking a few bites, he couldn't help but nod; Gu Ping'an's cooking skills were getting better and better.
Gu Tang probably woke up too late and was too hungry, because she wasn't very hungry at the moment. She ate slowly, and after a while, the food went from being piping hot to lukewarm.
The food was too cold to eat, so Gu Tang put down her chopsticks and decided not to eat anymore.
Just as he was getting up to clear the dishes, Gu Ping'an suddenly appeared at the kitchen door.
Gu Tang glanced at him and saw that his eyes were flustered, but when he saw her, he actually breathed a sigh of relief.
"What are you doing?" Gu Tang asked, puzzled. Why did you suddenly become flustered and then let out a long sigh? Could something have happened?
"You've been out for so long, and I thought you'd sneak out shopping again. Before I left, I specifically told you not to go shopping today. If there's anything you want to buy, just tell me, and I'll go buy it!"
Gu Ping'an spoke in a serious tone and with a serious expression, but the meaning he conveyed was like that of a frightened bird, as if he was afraid that he would encounter kidnappers again if he went out.
Gu Tang didn't argue with him. If he didn't want her to go out, then she wouldn't. It was cold anyway, and she didn't want to go out. Right now, she just wanted to go back to bed and lie down.
She pointed to the remaining food on the table: "I wasn't very hungry, so I ate a little slowly. Anyone want to go out? It's so cold, I just want to stay in bed!"
"Then you can go back to bed and put the dishes down, I'll clean up." Gu Ping'an told Gu Tang to step aside, rolled up his sleeves, and efficiently began to clean up the dishes.
Looking at the leftovers of her meal, Gu Tang felt an urge to get a dog. In her previous life, she had lived in the countryside since childhood, and her most frequent companions were her two guardian dogs, Da Huang and Da Hei.
"When Dad comes back, ask him to ask someone to look around and see if he can bring a dog back to raise."
Hearing this, Gu Ping'an's eyes lit up, and he turned to look at her: "No need for Dad to search, I know where the dog is!"
His eyes were piercing: "The Sun family at the village entrance has a female dog. I heard she gave birth to puppies two months ago. When we get back to the village, you can ask your father to inquire if there are any left. If there are, we can exchange some things for one to raise, how about that?"
Gu Tang raised an eyebrow: "Since you know this and want to raise him, why don't you go and talk to your father yourself?"
“If I bring this up, Father will definitely disagree.” Gu Ping’an knew his own limitations; in front of his father, his words carried less weight than those of his second sister.
"Okay, I'll talk to Dad about it when he gets back." If there really was a puppy, she really wanted to bring one home and raise it.
Upon hearing this, Gu Ping'an immediately beamed with joy. Gu Tang ignored him, stamped her feet, felt a bit cold, and left the kitchen, intending to go back to her room and continue lying in bed.
As she passed by the main room, she lifted the curtain to inform her third uncle that she was feeling cold and was going back inside to warm up, so that the old man wouldn't start overthinking if he didn't see her soon.
Gu Tang's guess was correct; her third uncle visibly breathed a sigh of relief the moment he looked at her.
When he heard that she wanted to go back inside, he relaxed even more and smiled as he told her to hurry back inside so she wouldn't get cold.
Gu Tang smiled and nodded, then lowered the curtain and went back to the backyard.
As she entered the room, she suddenly realized something was wrong. The curtain at the door of the inner bedroom had been hung up when she left, but now it had been unhooked and lowered.
Looking at the curtain, her heart jumped, and she quickly took out the pepper spray and held it in her hand.
With a heavy heart, I lifted the curtain, and the first thing I saw was Ah Gou lying on the tatami mat inside the room.
"Why are you here?" Gu Tang breathed a sigh of relief, but her expression changed as she quickly closed the door and glared at the person on the bed, clearly displeased!
Ah Gou looked completely innocent and pointed to the oil paper package on the table: "I've brought you medicine. I've bought all four medicines you mentioned this morning."
It turns out they were delivering medicine... wait!
"Can't you just deliver it at night?!" Gu Tang scolded in a low voice.
If they were to climb over the wall in broad daylight and run into someone again, their previous plans would be completely ruined!
Seeing that Gu Tang was a little angry, A Gou quickly defended himself: "Delivering medicine is only one thing. I also heard that someone is selling a courtyard house. It's located on West Street, and I heard that the courtyard house is quite large and meets our requirements. Do you want to go and take a look yourself?"
Ah Gou always remembered what Gu Tang had told him: to find a house that was reasonably priced, had many rooms, and a spacious courtyard.
Just today, while buying medicine, I ran into a middle-aged man with a worried look on his face.
The man was talking to someone on the street, not far from Ah Gou, who could hear it clearly. The two were discussing selling the courtyard.
But soon after, the person who was talking to the middle-aged man waved and left, and the two failed to reach an agreement on the price.
Upon seeing this, Ah Gou went up and asked a few questions. He learned that the courtyard was very large and empty, and then said that he would go and take a look at the courtyard in the afternoon.
Ah Gou wanted Gu Tang to come along, but it was up to her to decide.
Gu Tang also wanted to go, but unfortunately she couldn't go out now.
"I won't go. I'm afraid I won't be able to go anywhere for the next two days. You can go and see for yourself. As long as the yard is spacious and the price is right, then make a decision."
It's okay if there aren't many houses. Next spring, we can add to the houses in the yard or tear them down and rebuild them; that's not a problem. The main problem is that the yard needs to be large.
If we're going to run a charity, we should run it properly and not just do it half-heartedly.
When he heard Gu Tang say he couldn't go, Agou was a little disappointed, but he quickly cheered up again.
"If it's really settled, then I'll come to you this afternoon to collect the money?"
"Alright, if it's really settled, come back this afternoon and I'll give you the money."
Ah Gou finally cheered up and happily walked outside.
But after walking only a few steps, he suddenly turned back.
Gu Tang looked at him blankly: "What's wrong?"
"I've found several of those recipes you wrote down last time. I'll make them in Pear Blossom Alley tonight, and after your dad and the others are asleep, I'll bring them to you for a taste, how about that?"
Ah Gou looked at Gu Tang with hopeful eyes.
Upon hearing Ah Gou mention her father, Gu Tang's attention shifted from the food, and she stared intently at Ah Gou as something popped into her mind.
"Go and see the courtyard now. If it's suitable, make a reservation first, and pay the rest of the money tomorrow. After you've seen the courtyard, go find my father. He's leading a group of villagers to the mountainside village to the north."
"Go out of the north gate of Beian City and follow the main road. If you're fast, you'll definitely catch up with them. My father and the others probably went by oxcart, so they can't be fast."
"Then, what about the food?" Ah Gou was a little confused. Weren't they talking about food? How did it turn into him having to chase after her father?
"There's plenty of time in the future, we can enjoy the food later. Let me tell you, after you catch up with my father, don't let them see you. Stay hidden in the shadows. If my father and his group are in danger, then secretly help them. If everything goes well, then continue to follow them in secret."
Upon hearing this, Ah Gou understood that her father had encountered trouble and wanted her to secretly protect them.
"Okay, I'll go see the courtyard right now. Whether it works out or not, I'll leave the city to catch up with your father after I've seen the courtyard."
Gu Tang nodded repeatedly, looking satisfied, and personally opened the door for Ah Gou to see him off.
Watching the person move with the ease of a swallow, leaping across rooftops and scaling walls, Gu Tang's dream of mastering light-body skills resurfaced.
Who hasn't dreamed of being a chivalrous hero or cultivating immortality when they were young?
She may not have encountered the path of cultivating immortality, but her dream of becoming a chivalrous hero is within reach!
I'll ask Ah Gou when I have some free time. If the lightness skill isn't too difficult to learn, then I'll learn it myself.
I don't aspire to be a great hero; I only wish to be able to run away and escape immediately when I encounter danger!
After closing the door and calming my surging emotions, I rolled up my sleeves and walked to the table, opening each of the medicine packets on it.
Four medicines, one medicine per packet, making exactly four packets.
Gu Tang took out a medicine grinder and crushed the four herbs one by one until they were in powder form.
To prevent mixing up the four powdered medicines, she took out paper and pen and wrote the name of each medicine on a slip of paper, then clipped the slip of paper to the string outside the medicine packet.
This way, they won't get confused under normal circumstances.
Gu Tang clapped his hands in satisfaction, intending to store the four packets of powder in his system inventory.
The moment she picked up the medicine packet, a thought suddenly struck her. This was essentially processing medicinal herbs; why not try signing in and see if she could get anything good...?
After hesitating for a moment, she pressed the medicine packet under her hand, brought up the system interface, and clicked "Today's Check-in".
[Ding! Congratulations, host, for completing today's check-in! You have received a gift pack of medicinal herb processing skills!]
The blue system interface turned into a seven-color display, with virtual seven-colored gems appearing in mid-air and then exploding.
After all the seven-colored gems exploded, a seven-colored gift bag popped out.
Gu Tang: ...Great! Just based on the colors and special effects, this is absolutely a game-changer!!!