In the entire Old Gu family, the words “favoritism” had now become the most taboo topic.
This fight naturally ended with Gu Eldest Sister-in-law Wang Lihua’s complete victory.
Mother Gu stood frozen in place, her ragged breathing sounding like a broken bellows.
In the end, she plopped onto the ground and slapped the floor as she wailed, “Heavens, what sins have I committed to raise such a bunch of ungrateful wolves!”
Father Gu walked out and barked sharply, “Shut up!”
Now that the three capable sons and their daughters-in-law had all grown opinions of their own, if the two elders kept stirring trouble, they would only be digging their own grave in a dead end.
Gu Shiyu saw her father’s blatant favoritism. Thinking back to how she had bullied her three brothers since childhood, she broke down crying bitterly.
Father Gu no longer felt the same affection for his youngest daughter as before. Now he only felt irritation as he shouted, “Troublemaker! If you can’t behave yourself, then tomorrow I’ll marry you off!”
Mother Gu gritted her teeth so hard it felt like she might shatter them. Her precious youngest son and daughter had once been treasures held in her palms, so how had they now become so easily bullied by those three rotten sons instead?
This shouldn’t be happening at all.
After Father Gu slammed the door shut, the courtyard fell into a brief silence.
Lin Baozhu took advantage of the moment and walked out.
Gu Shicheng followed his wife, and together they approached Mother Gu and Gu Shiyu. He first flattered them for a while, then led them into the room and closed the door.
Lin Baozhu thoughtfully handed over a dry towel for Gu Shiyu to wipe her face.
Mother Gu felt a small surge of comfort. “Old Four, you and Xiaoyu are twins. Your three brothers above you are all heartless wolves. From now on, you and your wife must take better care of your little sister.”
Gu Shiyu frowned immediately. She knew very well what kind of person her selfish fourth brother was. If she could rely on him, she would not have been forced to set her sights on those male educated youths.
But now she had no status or voice, and could only hope for a little sympathy.
Gu Shicheng, who already knew the truth from the novel’s plot, felt extremely complicated.
When he was young, he had once wondered why his mother treated him and his younger sister differently from the other three brothers.
Now he finally understood. His mother had always tightly bound him and his sister together because they were children born from another man outside the family.
He did not know how the original version of himself would have felt after learning the truth, but right now, he only felt disgusted.
Lin Baozhu noticed Gu Shicheng spacing out and nudged him with her elbow, then smoothly took over the conversation.
“Mother, don’t worry. Acheng and Xiaoyu are from the same womb, their bond is the closest. As his wife, I will also find a way to help Xiaoyu live better.”
Mother Gu was stunned for a moment. She had never expected much from this daughter-in-law, after all, she was an outsider.
Even Gu Shiyu was startled. No one knew better than her what kind of person this fourth sister-in-law really was.
Compared to the other sisters-in-law outside, this one was slippery and ruthless in private.
Gu Shicheng immediately followed his wife’s words. “Mother, now that Eldest Sister-in-law and Father don’t like Xiaoyu anymore, while she is still young, we should quickly find her a marriage partner.”
Mother Gu thought for a moment and nodded. Now that the three older brothers could no longer be used as support, Gu Shiyu really had no other path except marriage.
Gu Shiyu panicked. Just as she was about to object, she heard her fourth sister-in-law speak again.
“Xiaoyu, stop hiding things. I’ve already heard you’re dating a male educated youth at the commune, right?”
Gu Shiyu was shocked. “F-Fourth Sister-in-law, how did you know?”
Lin Baozhu asked calmly, “After you got together, didn’t he tell you not to make it public for now?”
Gu Shiyu reluctantly nodded and lowered her head. She had indeed chosen him because of his family background, but he had explicitly told her to keep their relationship secret, and she had no choice.
Mother Gu immediately poked her daughter’s forehead. “Gu Shiyu, are you stupid? What did I teach you growing up? You were never the type to suffer losses, yet now you’re letting a man play you for nothing. Which educated youth is he?”
Gu Shiyu realized she could not hide it anymore and finally confessed.
“His name is Zhang Wenyuan. I met him after the family split. His family is from a provincial cadre compound. He said his stepmother is in charge at home right now, so we can’t make it public yet.”
Lin Baozhu immediately gave advice. “Mother, Xiaoyu, do you know what those big families in the city care about most? Heirs. Zhang Wenyuan is still too young. If he brings home a wife who is already pregnant with the Zhang family’s eldest grandson, his father will definitely consider handing over some of the family assets to him.”
Mother Gu thought it over and found it reasonable. “Xiaoyu, stop hesitating. Listen to your mother and your fourth sister-in-law. First, find a way to get pregnant with the Zhang family’s child.”
Gu Shiyu was still young and hesitated awkwardly. “…Mother, how am I supposed to do that without harming our relationship?”
Mother Gu replied bluntly, “That’s simple. Your father and I will be the villains. Once it’s done, if he refuses to marry you, we’ll take the whole family to the educated youth office and make a scene.”
Lin Baozhu was already calculating how much bride price they could squeeze out of marrying off this younger sister-in-law.
The next afternoon, Gu Xiaojun secretly told Gu Shiye about a rumor he had heard.
“Third Brother, I heard from my second grandfather that this kind of medicine is usually used by newly married couples. Your Fourth Brother who just got married… could it be that his body isn’t working properly?”
Gu Xiaojun was very straightforward. Knowing that the three brothers were not on good terms with the twins, he deliberately shared the news so Gu Shiye could enjoy it.
Gu Shiye could not help but laugh. Based on what he had seen on the wedding night, Gu Shicheng was not particularly fierce, but he certainly did not need livestock breeding medicine.
Instead, he immediately thought of the plot involving Gu Shiyu that they had mentioned last night. As expected, Lin Baozhu was already targeting her for money.
He could not help but feel a little unwilling to watch a young girl fall into complete despair over love and marriage so early in life.
He asked Gu Xiaojun to take the tractor out for practice on his own.
Then he went to the field where the educated youths were working.
From a distance, he could see that Zhang Wenyuan was completely unfit for farm work.
Just as expected from the story, a useless pretty-face scumbag who could neither carry nor lift anything.
Gu Shiye wrote a note, placed it under two pieces of fruit candy, and asked a male educated youth to deliver it.