novelraw Chapter 310 Gu Qingzhang is here
Chapter 310 Gu Qingzhang is here
Chapter 310 Gu Qing is back
Gu Tang shook his head: "The firecrackers in the east wing are all scattered. You can keep them for your own amusement, but you can't use them tomorrow."
Third Uncle was stunned for a moment: "How could they have fallen apart when everything was fine?"
“It’s probably because of poor craftsmanship. I’m worried that there will be duds. Dad said he’ll go to the village and ask around to see if anyone has any firecrackers. He’ll use his copper coins to buy a few strings of new ones.”
"Very well." Third Uncle sighed. "When your father bought them, I was worried that these firecrackers wouldn't be good enough. A string of 100 firecrackers would cost at least 30 copper coins."
But your father bought these hundred-shot firecrackers for fifteen copper coins a string! That's half the price difference, how can they be good quality?
Gu Tang nodded repeatedly: "Yes, my dad is just greedy for cheap things. I'll talk to him about it later and make sure he doesn't do that again!"
"Master, it's snowing again." Gu Ping'an looked up at the gray sky as large snowflakes, as big as goose feathers, fell from the sky.
"Sir, please go inside first. Ping An and I will put on our straw hats and go to the village to find my father."
Gu Tang took down the bamboo hats hanging on the wall, put one on herself, handed one to Gu Ping'an, and took another one in her hand.
"Go on, and don't forget to put on your cloak." Third Uncle knew that everyone in the family wore fur coats, so it wouldn't hurt for them to go out for a stroll.
He looked at Ah Gou and said with a smile, "Since you're just killing time anyway, why don't you come along for a walk? You've been cooped up at home for too long, and you're getting restless."
Ah Gou smiled and nodded, saying that was exactly what he was thinking.
Seeing this, Gu Tang took out a bamboo hat and handed it over.
They went back inside, put on their cloaks, and then the three of them went out into the courtyard.
Although the snowflakes falling from the sky were as big as goose feathers, they were not dense and the snowfall was light, so there was no need to worry about obstructing the view.
After leaving the courtyard, the three of them were unsure which direction to take to find Gu Lianshan.
Gu Tang suggested they split up, but Gu Ping'an and A Gou refused.
"Let's not rush to find our father, let's take our time strolling around." Gu Ping'an stepped on the snow, creating patterns with his footsteps.
Gu Tang rolled her eyes at him: "Aren't you cold?"
"I'm not cold." Gu Pingan patted his clothes. "I'm dressed very warmly today!"
"Look," Ah Gou suddenly spoke up, looking towards the east end of the village, "there's someone coming from over there."
The siblings followed Ah Gou's gaze eastward and indeed saw someone approaching, but it wasn't their father, Gu Lianshan.
The person was dressed thickly and wrapped up tightly, but it was still possible to tell that he was somewhat thin and not very tall.
As the person drew closer, the three could clearly see that he was wearing a royal blue brocade fur coat. Strangely, the coat was extremely ill-fitting, with the sleeves and hem being much too long, as if a child were wearing an adult's clothes.
Gu Tang and the other two stepped aside to make way for them.
The path dug in the village is very narrow, only wide enough for one person to walk on. If you meet someone, you have to stop and one person has to step aside while the other brushes past.
Gu Tang and the other two stopped to let the person in front of them pass first.
Strangely, the man stopped a few steps away and stared intently at Gu Tang.
Gu Tang didn't realize at first that she was imitating Gu Ping'an by stepping on the patterns.
"Second sister..." Gu Ping'an called her softly, tugged at her sleeve, and gestured for her to look east.
Gu Tang was confused and turned her head to look, only to be met with a pair of bloodshot eyes full of resentment.
???
What's going on? Does this person recognize me?
Before Gu Tang could even ask a question, Ah Gou blocked her view, cutting off the other person's gaze.
Gu Tang was very curious. She peeked out from behind Ah Gou and saw that the man panicked and took two steps back.
Was it scared by Ah Gou?
I looked up at Ah Gou, and yes, he did look rather pale.
He tugged at Ah Gou's clothes, urging him to make way for the person: "Wrapped up so tightly, he must be someone who doesn't want to be seen. Why bother with someone like that? Hurry up and make way for him. I think I smell a stench!"
Ah Gou moved aside following Gu Tang's force, but his eyes remained fixed on her.
Gu Ping'an also sensed that the person opposite him harbored malice towards his second sister. He glared at the person with a serious expression and unfriendly eyes.
The person opposite him lowered his head and was trembling all over, whether from the cold or from anger after hearing Gu Tang's words, it was hard to tell.
Gu Tang watched leisurely, her mind searching through the many people she didn't get along with, but none of them matched up.
The main problem was that the person's clothes were too thick and ill-fitting, and their head was wrapped up very tightly, with only their eyes showing, making it impossible to tell whether they were male or female.
After waiting patiently for a while, the person on the other side tentatively continued to walk this way.
Gu Tang and the other two did not make a move, but only stared at him.
The man seemed relieved and quickened his pace to pass the three people.
As he brushed past Gu Tang, the man paused for a moment, but under A Gou's terrifying gaze, he quickly quickened his pace and ran away.
Gu Tang frowned and sniffed the air a few times: "Can you smell a... fishy smell? It smells like fish."
"Really?" Gu Pingan sniffed around, his expression changing slightly. "There is indeed a fishy smell, though it's very faint."
"It's emanating from that girl just now," Ah Gou said casually.
"A girl?!" The siblings exclaimed in surprise, turning their heads to look west. The person had already walked away, and judging from the back view, she didn't look like a girl at all.
"Are you sure you didn't see it wrong?" Gu Ping'an asked with a suspicious look.
"There's no mistake, that person is definitely a girl." Ah Gou said with great certainty.
Gu Tang believed him. Ah Gou was different from others and had martial arts skills. If he said it was a girl, then it must be true.
"Second Sister!" Gu Ping'an suddenly became excited, pointing to the path to the south, "Father is over there!"
Gu Tang looked in the direction he pointed, and lo and behold! It really was her father, carrying two strings of firecrackers.
The three of them walked over quickly, and their sudden appearance startled Gu Lianshan!
After recognizing who it was, Gu Lianshan glared at Gu Tang: "You almost scared your father out of his wits!"
"When did you become so timid? You need to exercise more."
Gu Tang opened her mouth and started talking nonsense, while reaching out to touch the firecrackers hanging on her father's arm.
How many copper coins are in a string?
Gu Lianshan held up three fingers: "Thirty!"
"This is the same price my grandfather quoted. Why did you only buy two strings? Since you've already made this trip, you might as well buy a few more."
"You think your father doesn't want to?" Gu Lianshan rolled his eyes. "Others also need to save them for ancestral worship during the New Year, so we can only get two strings." "Then why don't you go ask other people?" Gu Tang knew her father well; he definitely wouldn't be satisfied with just two strings of firecracker heads.
"Two strings are too few. I'll go ask around at other places. Take these two strings back with care, and don't break them."
"Yes!" Gu Tang responded, carefully taking the firecracker and handing over the straw hat she was holding.
"It's snowing again, please put on your straw hat."
After taking the straw hat and putting it on, Gu Lianshan turned and headed east.
The clan chief's family should have firecrackers. Since there are many people in his family, they set off a lot of firecrackers every year. Maybe we can get a few extra strings from him.
Gu Tang and the other two turned back and happened to see the girl with the fishy smell from earlier turn into a courtyard on the north side of the road.
Because they were too far away, Gu Tang only saw a small black figure enter a courtyard, but she couldn't tell whose house it was.
Gu Ping'an didn't recognize her either. He looked at A Gou and asked, "Cousin, you have good eyesight. Can you tell whose courtyard that girl went into?"
Ah Gou fell silent and glanced at Gu Tang twice.
Gu Tang's heart skipped a beat, and she immediately had a bad feeling: "Could it be that she went to Gu Liansheng's place?"
Ah Gou nodded, his face full of admiration: "That's right, the courtyard that girl entered is Gu Liansheng's house."
Gu Tang walked home in silence. When she entered Gu Liansheng's house, he stared at her with resentment and venom. He was short and thin. A name instantly popped into her mind.
Gu Ping'an, still not quite understanding, started chattering: "That person must be Gu Liansheng's relative! Gu Liansheng must have been making up stories about my second sister with those relatives! Otherwise, that person wouldn't have glared at my second sister like that!"
With a suspect in mind, Gu Tang breathed a sigh of relief. She wasn't afraid of her mortal enemy returning; she was just afraid of not knowing who the other person was.
She comforted Gu Ping'an, helping him calm down: "Why bother arguing with those lowlifes? It's not worth it. Don't be angry. When you see Grandpa later, you mustn't mention this, so as not to worry him."
Gu Ping'an was someone who listened to advice. When he arrived at his doorstep, he took a deep breath to calm himself down and entered the yard as if nothing had happened.
……
At the end of the village, Gu Liansheng heard someone knocking on the door.
He was feeding Madam Feng her medicine in the east room of the main hall when the knocking sound came from the east wing.
He put down the medicine bowl and went out to see who was knocking on the door.
Madam Qian is catching up on sleep in the east wing right now. She has been restless these past few days and often can't sleep at night, so she relies on catching up on sleep during the day.
When the knocking sounded, Qian Shi, who hadn't had a good night's sleep for several days, was woken up and felt like killing someone!
Thinking it was Gu Liansheng, Madam Qian suppressed her anger and got up to open the door, looking haggard.
When the door opened, Madam Qian was immediately stunned. The person knocking was not Gu Liansheng, but a person who was wrapped up so tightly that his appearance could not be seen.
"You are……"
"Who are you?!" Before Qian could finish speaking, the person knocking on the door interrupted her with a hoarse voice and questioned her in an unfriendly tone.
Madam Qian's brow twitched, and she couldn't hold back her anger any longer. She opened her mouth and cursed, "You wretched thing! You knocked on my door and actually asked who I was? Bah! What kind of crazy woman is this! How dare she act so wildly in front of my door!"
Although the voice was rough and unpleasant, Qian could still tell that the person in front of her was a woman.
The person knocking on the door wasn't frightened by Qian at all. She ripped off the scarf covering her face and spat at Qian with a ferocious expression.
"Bullshit! This is my house! Which brothel did you come from? How dare you live in my father's house!"
Madam Qian was stunned for a moment. Forgetting that she had been scolded, she hurriedly asked, "Is Gu Liansheng your father?"
"That's right! He is my father! I am his eldest daughter, Gu Qing!"
Gu Qing? The name is correct; Gu Liansheng's eldest daughter is indeed named Gu Qing.
Madam Qian looked her up and down, a hint of mockery flashing in her eyes: "Oh my! Your aunt said you ran away, where did you come from? Why are you wearing men's clothes? Tsk tsk! You're supposed to be a young lady who hasn't left home yet, how can you wear men's clothes!"
Gu Qing's mind went blank. These words struck a nerve, causing her to lose her temper instantly. With a ferocious expression, she raised her hand to slap Qian Shi.
Caught off guard, Qian realized Gu Qing's intentions but it was too late to dodge, and she received a hard slap across the face.
Upon being slapped for no reason, Qian immediately went berserk. She grabbed Gu Qing's scarf and dragged her to the ground.
Gu Qing seemed to have a problem with her voice. She screamed in a hoarse voice, using both her hands and feet to try to subdue Qian Shi.
Unfortunately, Qian was strong, and Gu Liansheng was overpowered by her. It was really easy for the thin Gu Qing to control him.
At this moment, Gu Liansheng was jogging towards them, shouting, "Stop! That's my eldest daughter, Qingya, and also your daughter!"
Qian didn't care about any of that. She raised her hand and slapped Gu Qing's face several times.
She was strong, and when she slapped him, she used all her strength, until her hand went numb from the impact.
Gu Qing was immediately knocked unconscious by the slap, his mouth covered in blood.
Upon witnessing this scene, Gu Liansheng gasped in shock, "You killed Qing'er?!"
Madam Qian was furious: "Who beat her to death? She's just passed out!"
"How...how could you hit her so hard! She's your daughter!"
"Daughter? Whose daughter dares to slap her own mother?" Madam Qian pointed to her left cheek, where she had been slapped, leaving a handprint.
Gu Liansheng paused, too ashamed to speak.
Madam Qian continued, "I'm barely in my early twenties. I can't possibly give birth to a daughter this big. I don't want to hear that again!"
At this moment, Madam Qian was riding on Gu Qing's back. After saying this, she remembered something, but suddenly smelled a fishy stench!
She sniffed twice and confirmed that the fishy smell was coming from Gu Qing.
As she stood up, the stench still lingered in her nostrils. The smell seemed very familiar to her; she felt as if she had smelled it before.
“Since Qingya started it, you shouldn’t have knocked her unconscious. There’s a difference between father and daughter. Take Qingya to the next room; that’s her room.”
Gu Liansheng kept staring at Gu Qing's clothes, his heart pounding with anxiety.
Madam Qian was unaware of the truth. Qingya was told to others that she had run away, but in fact, she had been taken away and sold by the Wang family.
According to Gu Zhier, the Wang family found a wealthy family for Qingya to work as a maid. If she is lucky enough to hook up with the young master or master of the mansion and become a concubine, that would be a blessing that would take several lifetimes to attain!
If we have another child, maybe they can come back and help the family out in the future, so that the whole family can also live a good life!
Gu Liansheng had been indulging in his dream of wealth and status, but now it had been shattered.
His daughter returned, dressed in men's clothes, braving the wind and snow.
He couldn't figure out what was going on and hoped that Qingya would wake up soon so he could ask her properly.
"Don't be angry." Seeing that Madam Qian was still standing there and refused to take Gu Qing back to the house, he patiently persuaded her, "If you are still not satisfied, when she wakes up, I will make her kneel in front of you and apologize."