“It’s fine, Auntie. My cart is big enough to hold almost everything in one trip. Brother Changxing and I can push it together, and everyone else can carry a few things. We’ll be done in one go. It won’t be any trouble.”
Zhao Shuisheng said it with a cheerful grin, but his hands moved faster and faster.
As if!
If they didn’t move everything today, would they really be able to move it tomorrow?
Old Madam Gu’s face darkened completely. She stared heavily at Gu Changxing.
“Eldest! Are you ignoring your mother’s words now?”
Gu Changxing’s hands froze in the middle of lifting a bundle.
Two words immediately popped into Gu Qingqing’s mind.
This is bad.
The next second, a mocking voice rang out.
“Old Madam Gu, are you afraid that once Changxing’s family moves away, you won’t have anyone to torment anymore? Are you thinking of going back on your word?”
Gu Qingqing let out a long breath of relief.
The person who had spoken was none other than Zhao Shuisheng’s mother, Old Madam Zhao, whose fighting spirit in the village was every bit as formidable as Old Madam Gu’s.
The two old women had never gotten along.
As long as Old Madam Zhao opened her mouth, Old Madam Gu could be as shameless as she pleased, but she’d still have to swallow her pride and behave herself.
Sure enough, Old Madam Gu instantly reacted like a cat whose tail had been stepped on.
Her entire body went on high alert.
“Don’t you dare spout that foul nonsense! When have I ever tormented them? He’s my own son, the eldest son of the Gu family!”
Old Madam Zhao didn’t get angry. She simply smiled.
“Yes, yes, of course. He’s the eldest son you and Old Master Gu gave birth to outside and brought back home.”
She deliberately drew out the words “brought back home.”
A flicker passed through Gu Qingqing’s eyes.
So there was a story behind that?
But she didn’t have time to think about it now.
She immediately got to work, physically urging her cheap father to hurry up and move the belongings. The rest of the eldest branch also tacitly picked up the pace.
Before long, amid the two old women’s bickering, Gu Changxing and Zhao Shuisheng pushed the cart out of the gate while Liu and the children hurried after them.
Gu Qingqing was the last to leave.
She carried a small bundle containing her own belongings, which consisted of only two old clothes patched over and over again.
Under everyone’s watchful eyes, she turned toward Old Man and Old Madam Gu and bowed deeply.
“Grandpa, Grandma, we’re leaving. Please take good care of yourselves. From now on, we’re two separate families. We’ll still send over the grain we’re supposed to provide as filial support on time.”
So they were really cutting ties now?
They weren’t even pretending anymore?
Gu Changfang let out a shriek and immediately tried to rush forward to stop them.
“You can’t leave! You are not allowed to leave!”
Her land!
Her mountain!
The old lady had already said that all of it was supposed to be left for her Jinbao!
There were still plenty of villagers in the courtyard.
Everyone froze for a moment before bursting into laughter.
“Are you really separating the family, or are you putting on a play?”
“With all this going on in your household, does your future scholar studying in the county know about it?”
The moment Gu Changsheng was mentioned, Old Madam Gu instantly regained her composure.
She had almost charged out together with Gu Changfang to tear that shameless family of ungrateful ingrates apart!
But things had already gone this far.
She couldn’t afford to embarrass Changsheng.
She grabbed Gu Changfang and scolded her.
“Families split when the children grow up and branches spread! No matter how reluctant you are, you have to endure it. You care about him because he’s your own elder brother, but does he care about you, his own sister? Don’t think you’re the only one he doesn’t care about. Even his own mother means nothing to him!”
Old Madam Gu seemed to have truly reached the saddest part of her life.
She slapped her thigh and wailed.
“Heavens above! Open your eyes and look! The son I raised with so much hardship treats me like this…”
Outside the courtyard, the old woman’s cries startled Gu Changxing so badly that he stumbled.
The pots and bowls on the cart nearly tumbled off.
Gu Ping’an quickly reached out to steady them.
“Father, be careful! Little Sister said she’s going to make me something delicious once we get to our new home!”
Gu Xia’an’s gaze darkened.
He reached out and grabbed the handle of the cart, lowering his voice.
“Father, if you can’t bear to leave Grandpa and Grandma, then go back. Mother and the rest of us will go on our own.”
This was the agreement they’d made.
They had given him a chance to choose.
Gu Changxing felt as though he had been thrown into a pan of boiling oil.
No matter which way he turned, it hurt.
If he hadn’t lied to his mother, if he’d simply told her outright that he wanted to separate and done everything openly, would this have been easier?
Gu Xia’an saw right through his thoughts.
“That way, we wouldn’t have been able to leave at all. And we definitely wouldn’t have been able to take all this with us.”
Gu Changxing abruptly looked at Xia’an.
“You… How did you change so much too?”
Gu Xia’an gave a bitter smile but didn’t answer.
How could he not change?
His elder sister had already died once.
If they didn’t change, sooner or later every one of them would die at the hands of Grandma and Aunt.
Liu sighed and stepped forward to comfort him gently.
“What’s done is done. Let’s get settled in first. We don’t even have to wait until tomorrow. Your mother and sister will definitely come over tonight. When they do, we’ll talk everything through properly.”
Zhao Shuisheng also chimed in.
“If you ask me, you’re far too timid. Your mother says something, and you listen to everything she says!”
“Why do you think so many people came to help you separate from your family today? It’s because the whole village has already heard about your mother sealing Qingqing alive inside a coffin! Is that something a decent person would do?”
“Everyone thought you had finally decided to protect your children and separate from your mother. They were afraid you couldn’t handle her by yourself, so they all came to lend you a hand!”
“And what do you do? You’re still dragging your feet at a time like this. You’re not even as decisive as Qingqing, Xia’an, and the other children!”
Gu Changxing’s cheeks burned.
“Why does everyone think I should separate from my mother?”
“Then what else should you do?” Zhao Shuisheng shot back. “Wait until your mother ruins every single one of the children?”
“My mother… She isn’t really that bad, is she?”
Gu Changxing muttered, but there was clearly very little conviction behind his words.
Zhao Shuisheng rolled his eyes.
“If we weren’t good friends, I’d give you a good beating! Act like a father for once. Keep pushing. We’ve still got plenty to clean up when we get there!”
Walking behind them, Gu Qingqing watched as everyone worked together to “educate” her cheap father.
The tension in her heart slowly eased.
Excellent.
Everyone except her cheap father was still perfectly clear-headed.
That made things much easier.
She only needed Old Madam Gu to make a few more spectacular mistakes, and she’d be able to drain every last drop of water from her father’s head.
Once that happened, the family’s life would truly begin to improve.
Old Madam Gu wailed for more than half an hour.
Only after everyone who had come to watch the commotion had finally left did she wipe her face and turn to Gu Changfang.
“Call Tiezhu. Take the carrying pole and baskets. We’re going to bring everything back!”
At first, she’d intended to give Gu Changxing a chance to bring everything back himself.
But now it was obvious.
That ungrateful wretch had been bewitched by that seductive wife and her nest of little fox cubs until he’d turned against his own mother!
If he was going to be useless, then he couldn’t blame her for being ruthless.
Gu Changfang had been waiting impatiently for this moment.
She immediately went inside to call Wang Tiezhu and Gu Jinbao.
As the Gu family’s live-in son-in-law, Wang Tiezhu’s position in the household was more or less equal to Gu Changxing’s.
Watching Gu Changxing’s family pack up and leave, he secretly felt both admiration and envy.
But he didn’t dare step forward to help.
All he could do was keep Jinbao inside so the boy wouldn’t run outside and make trouble.
He spoke cautiously.
“It’s not completely dark yet. How about we eat first?”
“Eat, eat, eat! That’s all you know how to do! Why don’t you just eat yourself to death!”
Gu Changfang was already seething with anger.
She jabbed her finger hard against Wang Tiezhu’s forehead.
“If you don’t bring everything back today, you’d better be prepared to eat dirt!”
Wang Tiezhu shrank back like a frightened quail.
His envy of Gu Changxing grew a little stronger.
“I… I’ll go right now.”
“Go where? Eat first!”
Old Master Gu had appeared in the doorway at some point.
His hands were clasped behind his back, and his deep-set eyes studied the three of them.
“Changfang, go make dinner first.”
“Why should I be the one to cook? Isn’t that always the eldest sister-in-law’s job…”
Gu Changfang stopped mid-sentence.
Those chores had always belonged to Liu.
Now that the eldest branch had moved out, there was no chance Old Madam Gu would take over the work herself.
Which meant…
The work would all fall to her.
No!
Whatever happened, she had to make sure Old Madam Gu brought those human pack animals from the eldest branch back home!