After Qian Shi left, Madam Zhou and Gu Wan’er both breathed a slight sigh of relief.
Li Xingyue, having spent the day walking around the streets, felt a little tired. Pregnant women tended to sleep more than usual.
She yawned and got up, preparing to return to her room for a nap.
Before leaving, she explained to Gu Wan’er how to scrub the pig’s stomach with wood ash, instructing her to take it to the river to wash it thoroughly.
Wan’er carried a basket of wood ash in one hand and the pig’s stomach in the other, her steps light and quick as she went out.
Li Xingyue’s nap lasted an uncertain amount of time. When she woke, she was greeted by the rich aroma of meat.
She sniffed and realized it was the smell of fried pork fat.
Stepping outside, she saw Madam Zhou in the kitchen frying pork fat, while Gu Wan’er and little Yan’er stared eagerly.
The smell made Li Xingyue’s stomach growl. She thought, since Madam Zhou was frying pork fat, she might as well make some potato pancakes too. After all, they had more potatoes than they could eat.
Swiftly, she went to the storage room, grabbed a dozen potatoes, peeled and washed them, then shredded them finely and mixed with flour.
She added a pinch of salt and fried them in a pan until golden brown on both sides.
Unfortunately, she had no five-spice powder, no thirteen-spice powder, and no chili powder.
Still, the potato pancakes came out fragrant and crispy, golden on the outside and tender inside.
Madam Zhou, busy sewing in the main hall, smelled the aroma wafting from the yard but assumed it was just the lingering smell of fried pork fat.
Gu Wan’er offered a pancake to her mother. Seeing the golden, crispy potato pancake, Madam Zhou didn’t look pleased; instead, her face was full of anger.
“You spendthrift!” she scolded.“How much oil did that waste! Are we even going to live like humans?”
Her voice carried from the main hall to the kitchen.
Little Yan’er, standing by her mother’s side, spoke timidly, “Mother, Grandmother is angry again. These potato pancakes are so delicious… doesn’t Grandmother want to eat them?”
Li Xingyue, also fuming inside, forced herself to calm down and said to her daughter, “Yan’er, Grandmother doesn’t dislike them. She just can’t bear to eat them.”
Little Yan’er nodded, understanding only half of it.
Li Xingyue decided then and there that from now on, she would eat what she wanted herself and never think of improving life for the rest of them again.
In the main hall, Gu Wan’er continued trying to reason with Madam Zhou.
Li Xingyue and little Yan’er each ate a potato pancake before returning to their room.
Dinner was again prepared by Madam Zhou: brown rice and wild vegetable porridge, along with the buns Li Xingyue had brought back from town.
Seven buns had been brought back. Madam Zhou only reheated five, one for each person, plus two extra coarse grain breads.
There were no dishes.
The pork belly, liver, kidneys, and pig stomach she had bought were untouched.
Even the leftover potato pancakes from lunch weren’t served. Only a small bowl of pork cracklings and half a bowl of pickled vegetables were placed on the table.
Li Xingyue served herself and little Yan’er half a bowl of thin porridge each and one bun apiece.
At the table, there was only the sound of chewing—no one spoke.
Gu Wan’er glanced at her sister-in-law a few times. Seeing her buried in her food, she knew Li Xingyue was angry.
Li Xingyue finished eating first and was about to return to her room.
At that moment, someone knocked at the courtyard gate.
Li Xingyue had no choice but to go open it. To her surprise, it was Gu Laohan and Grandmother Sun, followed by Gu Dàshān.
“Grandfather, Grandmother, Second Uncle,” Li Xingyue greeted each in turn.
Gu Laohan nodded slightly without speaking. Gu Dàshān also gave her a small nod.
Grandmother Sun held Li Xingyue’s hand, her face adorned with a kind smile. “Yue-niang, are you feeling better?”
Li Xingyue knew this old lady always had hidden motives behind her smiles. She smiled back. “Grandmother, the doctor said I must take care of myself. He also said I’m too frail, and now that I’m pregnant, I need to strengthen my body.”
Grandmother Sun paused, slightly taken aback. How was this girl speaking today? Not following the usual rules? She forced a smile. “The doctor is right, Yue-niang. Take care of yourself, so you can give me a strong, chubby great-grandson soon.”
Li Xingyue lowered her head slightly, feigning modesty.
Seeing Gu Laohan and Grandmother Sun arrive, Gu Qishan looked surprised and quickly got up with Madam Zhou to greet them.
“Father, Mother, why have you come?” Gu Qishan asked, clearly bewildered.
Gu Dàshān sneered, clearly displeased. “Big Brother, what kind of question is that? You can’t even let your parents come to see you?”
Gu Qishan hurriedly explained, “Second Brother, I didn’t mean that.”
Madam Zhou quickly interjected, “Father, Mother, Second Brother… have you all eaten?”
They looked at the table and saw only half a bowl of pickled vegetables. Gu Dàshān scoffed. “Sister-in-law, we’ve just eaten.”
Madam Zhou nodded, and Gu Wan’er busily cleared the tableware into the kitchen.
Gu Laohan, Grandmother Sun, Gu Dàshān, and Gu Qishan sat in the main hall, while the others remained in the yard.
Li Xingyue immediately knew these three were up to no good.
Sure enough, Gu Laohan cleared his throat first. “Big Brother, Shao’an will soon go to the prefecture city for the exam. You know that over the years, Shao’an’s studies have cost a lot. Our household isn’t rich. How much can you contribute this time?”
Gu Qishan lowered his eyes, seeming to think, yet remained silent for a long time. Beside him, Madam Zhou clenched her fists, gripping her sleeve tightly.
Gu Wan’er pouted, her face full of anger.
Li Xingyue found it amusing. How could Gu Laohan speak so confidently? If Gu Shao’an never became a xiucai, would Gu Laohan even have the face to look at the Gu family ancestors?
Technically, Gu Qishan was Gu Laohan’s biological son, while Gu Dàshān was only the son of Grandmother Sun from her previous husband.
After Gu Qishan was born, Gu Laohan’s first wife died. Later, Gu Laohan remarried Grandmother Sun, who had brought along her son. To protect him from being neglected, she had his surname changed to Gu and added him to the family registry.
With a stepmother came a stepfather, and Grandmother Sun was clever. Over time, Gu Laohan favored her son.
Gu Laohan thought his eldest son too honest, not as clever as his second son; thought his eldest grandson too careless, not as scholarly as the second…
In short, the eldest branch never measured up to the second.
When the government drafted soldiers, Gu Qishan, honest and obedient, was chosen.
Fifteen-year-old Gu Mingxiao worried about his father going alone to war, so he volunteered to take his father’s place.
Three years later, Gu Mingxiao should have returned, but didn’t.
Gu Laohan and the second branch assumed Gu Mingxiao had died. Believing the eldest branch had no male heir, they divided the land.
Out of eighteen acres, only three were given to the eldest branch, because the second branch had three grandsons, and Gu Laohan divided eighteen acres into six shares.
Three grandsons accounted for three shares, Gu Dashan one, Gu Qishan one, Gu Laohan one—leaving Gu Qishan with only three acres.
At that time, Gu Qishan and Madam Zhou were heartbroken. Having lost their son, and being honest and docile, they were pressured by filial duty to Gu Laohan and didn’t fight for more.
That year, Gu Mingxiao could have returned, but for money, he stayed three more years in the army under someone else’s name.