Ergouzi, hiding behind him, nodded.
Without another word, Gu Zhao strode into the kitchen and grabbed Gu Fu, who was trying to escape. Slap, slap! He delivered two sharp blows, one on each side of Gu Fu’s face.
Before Gu Fu could even react, blood was already seeping from the corner of his mouth.
Gu Qiang, standing nearby, wanted to run, but the moment he saw Gu Zhao’s terrifyingly cold expression, his legs felt like lead—he couldn’t move at all.
The corner of Gu Zhao’s lips curled slightly, his expression icy as frost. He grabbed Gu Qiang like a chick and dragged him over. Slap, slap! Two more strikes landed hard across Gu Qiang’s face.
Gu Qiang was beaten until he felt dizzy and disoriented.
“Who pushed Grandma Zhao?” Gu Zhao flexed his wrist after beating the two of them.
His joints cracked audibly. Gu Qiang and Gu Fu turned pale with fright and immediately tried to excuse themselves. “Brother Zhao, we didn’t mean to…”
Gu Zhao sneered, ignoring their pitiful wailing. He grabbed Gu Qiang’s arm and threw him over his shoulder.
Gu Qiang landed flat on his back, as if his spine had been shattered, crying out in pain.
Gu Fu tried to run, but was quickly blocked by Gu Zhao and met the same fate—another brutal throw.
Old Madam Gu stared in disbelief at Gu Zhao. It had only been a few years since she last dealt with him, yet he had become this strong?
This ruthless?
Listening to Gu Qiang and Gu Fu rolling on the ground in pain, Old Madam Gu suddenly sat down and began to wail.
“Everyone, come look! Come look!”
“This unfilial grandson of the Gu family beats his own brothers and even dares to lay hands on his grandmother! Our family must have terrible karma to raise such a wolf!”
“An ungrateful wretch! I raised him with my own hands, and this is what I get! Someone call the captain! Call him now! What’s the point of keeping such a disgrace? Send him to jail!”
“Why are you all just watching? If he treats me like this, he’ll treat you the same in the future!”
But no matter how loudly she cried, no one outside spoke or stepped in.
No one wanted to get involved in the Gu family’s mess.
Gu Zhao looked at her coldly, his face expressionless. “Where are the vouchers that Educated Youth Shu placed on my table? I’ll count to three. If you don’t take them out, don’t blame me for being rude.”
Old Madam Gu glanced around, pretending not to understand. “I… I don’t know what you’re talking about!”
Gu Zhao let out a cold laugh. “Good. Very good.”
A chill ran through her body.
Before she could argue further, loud crashing sounds came from the kitchen—pots, bowls, and utensils shattered into pieces.
“…”
Then, even more unexpectedly, banging noises came from the rooms. Drawers were pulled out and thrown to the ground, cabinets emptied…
“At your age, you still don’t understand that you shouldn’t take what isn’t yours!”
Soon, Gu Zhao walked out of Old Madam Gu’s room, holding the small bundle Shu Ning had brought earlier. He waved it in front of her.
Old Madam Gu looked like she was about to cry but didn’t dare to make a move.
The boy before her had grown as imposing as a mountain—she couldn’t shake him at all.
“When you threw me and my siblings out, I already said—we go our separate ways from then on. Looks like you’ve all forgotten after just a few years. If you forget again, I’ll make sure you remember!”
“…”
A gust of autumn wind blew through the yard, carrying the rich aroma of chicken soup.
“Brother Zhao…” Ergouzi sniffed the air.
Gu Zhao also caught the smell. He raised his brows slightly. “Take the whole pot.”
After causing chaos in the Gu household, the two of them carried off the large iron pot and walked out.
The crowd at the door automatically parted to make way for them.
Standing among the crowd, Shu Ning watched Gu Zhao’s tall, imposing figure, the corners of her lips lifting slightly. The young Gu Zhao was truly sharp and domineering.
Gu Zhao also noticed her. He shoved the bundle back into her arms and said, “Your things—don’t just give them away!”
Then he lifted his chin and walked off coolly.
“…” That attitude of leaving without taking credit made Shu Ning think he looked incredibly handsome.
“Stupid dog! Don’t you know who your master is?” After a few steps, Gu Zhao suddenly stopped, turned around, and grabbed the little yellow dog wagging its tail beside Shu Ning.
The dog yelped pitifully as it was lifted by the neck, looking at Shu Ning.
Shu Ning burst into laughter—she had guessed it right.
The little dog had been following him, and Gu Zhao got jealous.
Walking out with the crowd, Shu Ning carefully recalled everyone’s movements earlier.
In truth, she didn’t know who had pushed her into the river.
But just now, Zhu Qiulan had slipped away when she wasn’t paying attention.
The person following behind her was Chen Daming, the son of the Chen family living near the end of the village, not far from Gu Zhao’s house.
Thinking of him reminded her—after she and Gu Zhao got together in her previous life, Chen Daming once came to borrow money from Gu Zhao. When Gu Zhao refused, he shamelessly said:
“You should thank me for being able to be with Educated Youth Shu. I was the one who started your whole entanglement. Otherwise, how would you end up calling her your wife for real?”
Gu Zhao beat him up on the spot.
Later, Chen Daming was sent to jail.
He never explained exactly what he meant by “starting their entanglement.”
But thinking back now… could it have been this incident?
Zhu Qiulan must have said something to Chen Daming earlier.
But it didn’t matter—what’s done in the dark will eventually come to light.
Chen Daming, you’d better carry all of it to the end!
“This Gu Zhao is really something!”
“Exactly! Too fierce! Beating his own grandmother and cousins like that—so heartless.”
“But Old Madam Gu isn’t innocent either. She kicked them out, and now that he has something, she wants to take it. He’s raising his siblings and finally managed to raise a chicken, and she still wants to snatch it. If he wasn’t tough, he’d be bullied to death!”
“Exactly!”
“You have to remember, when they drove Gu Zhao out, he was still just a child!”
After Gu Zhao and Er Gouzi walked away, the villagers began discussing among themselves.
People in the village would often bring up the matter between Gu Zhao and the Gu family, but no one knew the exact details.
Shu Ning didn’t know either. She only knew that Gu Zhao and Old Madam Gu were completely incompatible.
Five years ago, when Old Madam Gu drove Gu Zhao and his siblings out, Gu Zhao fought Gu Qiang and Gu Fu, beating them to the ground until they cried for their mother. At the height of the conflict, Gu Zhao even grabbed a kitchen knife and slashed directly at the Gu family.
After that incident, Gu Zhao gained the reputation of being a bully in the commune.
And the Gu family never dared to provoke him again.
Both sides had lived peacefully for many years.
But after all that peace, Old Madam Gu suddenly stirred up trouble again.
“Sigh, Gu Zhao is really pitiful.” Hearing the discussion, Xin Wenyue let out a muffled comment beside her.
There was an indescribable sense of sympathy in her voice.
“….” That tone of sympathy made Shu Ning feel that something was off.
“No matter how pitiful he is, he shouldn’t act like that. After all, they’re family by blood. I still think Gu Zhao went a bit too far. They’re all one family—sometimes, what’s wrong with suffering a little loss? As the saying goes, suffering a loss is a blessing,” Zhu Qiulan sighed softly.
Being bullied to death, and that’s still called a blessing?
What a pure white lotus of a prosperous age!
“Is suffering really a blessing?” Shu Ning turned her head and asked, a hint of doubt in her eyes.
“Yes.” Zhu Qiulan replied with a generous and tolerant expression.
“Then Qiulan, may you be blessed like the Eastern Sea in the future!” Shu Ning smiled meaningfully and strode away.
“….” Zhu Qiulan.
“Qiulan, are you very familiar with Chen Daming from the Chen family?” After taking just a few steps, Shu Ning turned back and asked.
“….” Zhu Qiulan’s heart jumped again.
Today, Shu Ning seemed to keep stepping on her nerves again and again.
Was it possible she really knew something?
“Hm?”
“Not very familiar. Didn’t we have literacy classes a few days ago? Chen Daming sat with me. Just now, he forgot a few characters and wanted to ask me about them,” Zhu Qiulan made up an excuse.
Shu Ning chuckled and said, “Chen Daming really loves studying.”
Was she trying to fool a ghost?
Chen Daming had been an uneducated hooligan all his life—since when did he love studying?
“Right, I was surprised too!”
“Then teach him well. I’m very tired today, I need to go back to the dorm and sleep.” Shu Ning let out a big yawn.
Shu Ning didn’t have dinner with Xin Wenyue and Zhu Qiulan.
She casually mixed some malted milk drink and went straight to bed.
“Wenyue, why do I feel like Shu Ning is like a hedgehog today? Every sentence she says is prickly. Does she not want to be friends with us anymore?” After she fell asleep, Shu Ning faintly heard the rustling conversation between Xin Wenyue and Zhu Qiulan.
Xin Wenyue had also noticed that ever since her cousin was saved by Gu Zhao, her behavior had been very unusual.
In the past, if something like this happened, she would definitely have gone to Bai Zhiping to complain about her grievances and fears, clinging to him in hopes of comfort.
But this time, she directly scolded Bai Zhiping.
She even told him not to nag like an old woman in front of her again.
“Cousin nearly drowned—she might still be shaken. Don’t disturb her, let her rest well. Maybe she’ll be fine tomorrow!” Xin Wenyue said. “You should rest early too. I’ll go back to the dorm first.”
“Alright.”
After Xin Wenyue left, Zhu Qiulan stood in front of the sleeping Shu Ning, her gaze growing darker and darker.
Why did she feel increasingly uneasy every time she saw Shu Ning?
Every word Shu Ning said felt like a test—what exactly was she trying to do?
And that damned Gu Zhao—how could it be such a coincidence?
Of all times, he just had to pass by and save her.
If he hadn’t passed by, Shu Ning would already be a corpse.
Then no one would compete with her for Bai Zhiping anymore.
If Shu Ning had died, most of the vouchers in her bag would belong to her.
Even that easy teaching job would become hers.
But now that she was still alive, Zhu Qiulan gained nothing!
Zhu Qiulan gently lifted the blanket under Shu Ning’s arms. A vicious, ruthless glint flashed in her eyes. If she pressed the blanket down like this, even if Shu Ning died, people would think she had suffocated from lingering breath issues after nearly drowning.
“Mmm… so hot…” Shu Ning murmured softly, kicking the blanket hard.
The blanket in Zhu Qiulan’s hands was instantly kicked far away.
“Qiulan, why are you standing by my bed?” Shu Ning opened her drowsy eyes and frowned.
“Your blanket fell. I picked it up for you.”
“Oh. Thank you!” Shu Ning smiled slightly. “I thought you were trying to suffocate me.”
“….” Zhu Qiulan’s face turned pale instantly.
“Go to sleep early.”
“Oh… alright.”
Shu Ning yawned heavily and lazily turned over.
Heh…
Zhu Qiulan’s intent to kill had really surfaced again and again.
Since that’s the case, I’ll let you stay peaceful for just half the night.
After Zhu Qiulan climbed into bed and fell asleep, and the clock pointed to ten, Shu Ning got up from bed, took a bag of flour, and walked out of the dormitory.