Free Web NovelChapter 84: Chapter 84: Coming to Find Her
When no one else would talk, Li Hua asked Zhou Cai. He gave her a brief summary, explaining that Gu’er had been cornered in a room by Zhang Da, but she ended up slashing Zhang Da, Zhou Mei, and her sister, Feng’er. Zhou Mei’s family refused to let it go and demanded that Gu’er kneel and kowtow, but she wouldn’t. In the end, she declared she was severing ties with the family, and Sun Jiaming paid fifty yuan on her behalf. From now on, Gu’er was no longer part of the family. He told Li Hua to just act as if Gu’er was dead.
Li Hua’s head was spinning. How could things have come to this in the short time she was called away? ƒrēewebnoѵёl.cσm
’Gu’er has left the Zhou family. With no family or friends, what will she do? She’s offended people in the village, too... How will she survive? If only I had been here. I could have kneeled and kowtowed for her.’
’But why would Gu’er attack Feng’er?’
Li Hua couldn’t understand. Nearby, Zhou Mazi, still not satisfied after having beaten Li Hua, was unleashing a torrent of abuse on Zhou Feng’er. Zhou Feng’er just cried endlessly, not daring to speak or move.
’It was Feng’er who tricked Gu’er?’
Li Hua couldn’t believe what she was hearing.
"Why? Feng’er, Gu’er is your sister! How could you let Zhang Da harm her!"
Li Hua confronted her daughter, a chill running through her body.
"They said Gu’er stole Second Sister’s man—the one from Liu Shu Village," Zhou Cai answered for Zhou Feng’er. "Second Sister got angry, so she ganged up with Zhou Mei to trick her. That way, Second Sister could marry into Liu Shu Village and have a good life."
Before Li Hua could react, Zhou Cai turned to Zhou Mazi. "Dad, Gu’er isn’t marrying the guy from Liu Shu Village anymore, so why don’t you talk to them about having my second sister marry him instead? The guy’s a cripple with a bad temper who beats people anyway. They can’t be choosers. If we offer my second sister to go over and take care of him, they’ll definitely agree. They might even give us fifty yuan for it! Then our family can live well, and maybe I’ll even be able to marry a wife from Liu Shu Village in the future."
If Gu’er or anyone else had heard Zhou Cai’s words, they would have been shocked. How old was this boy to be so cold-hearted? Setting Gu’er aside, Zhou Feng’er was his own biological sister. Yet, just like his father, he showed no regard for others’ lives, caring only about money.
"I won’t marry him! I’d rather die!"
Zhou Feng’er looked up, glaring furiously at Zhou Cai. She hadn’t known the details before, but now that she did, how could she possibly agree to marry him?
"You’re rebelling, are you?! I tell you to marry him and you dare refuse? If you won’t marry him, then you can just go die!"
Zhou Mazi slapped her across the face.
Li Hua lunged forward to stop him, but the slap had already landed on Zhou Feng’er’s face. Zhou Feng’er sobbed but didn’t dare say another word. She couldn’t fight back like Zhou Gu’er; she didn’t have it in her.
"It’s all your fault, you damned hag! The children you gave me are nothing but trouble! All of you better behave, or I’ll beat you to death!"
Zhou Mazi beat Li Hua again before squatting down to smoke his pipe. ’But his son’s words were running through his mind. What the boy said wasn’t unreasonable. The guy over there was a cripple. Maybe a little talk could make it happen. He should go see Wu Sanduo tomorrow and ask her to be the go-between. If that didn’t work, he could still find Cui Mei. If this worked out, he’d have money.’
Li Hua couldn’t believe what she was hearing. ’The prospective groom was a cripple with a bad temper. Her second daughter had harmed her first daughter for *this*. Her first daughter, pushed to the edge, had attacked people and then severed ties with the family. Gu’er, who was always so quiet and obedient, had been forced into this...’ As their mother, her heart ached terribly.
"Go away! I don’t need you! It’s all your fault! If you hadn’t brought me into this family, I wouldn’t be in this mess! If you hadn’t insisted on bringing that jinx with you, how could this have happened to me!"
Zhou Feng’er pushed Li Hua, shouting, her eyes filled with resentment and fury.
Li Hua felt her heart tear in two. ’She didn’t know how her eldest daughter was doing. Her second daughter was acting like this and hated her. Her third daughter wouldn’t speak. Her youngest son was just like his father. What sin had she committed to deserve this?’
Li Hua covered her face and began to cry.
Her crying annoyed Zhou Mazi, and he cursed at her again. fгeewёbnoѵel.cσm
"I’m going to check on Gu’er. I’ll bring her back. She can’t survive out there on her own. Husband, the child was just being foolish. Don’t stoop to her level. Please, forgive her this once. Let her come home, can’t you?"
Li Hua begged Zhou Mazi.
Zhou Mazi had a strong urge to beat Li Hua again.
’Gu’er had already disowned him. She had shamed him in front of the entire village. He didn’t want a daughter like that...’
’No, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad to have her back. What if she really did marry into a good family someday, or started making money? With Li Hua around, he could just make her go ask Gu’er for money.’
’As long as he didn’t have to return the fifty yuan, letting her come back was fine.’
With this in mind, Zhou Mazi decided it wasn’t a bad idea for Li Hua to go find Gu’er.
Still, he cursed Li Hua a few more times before letting her go look for Gu’er.
’It wasn’t that Li Hua didn’t care about Zhou Feng’er. Despite what her daughter had said, she was her mother; she couldn’t take it to heart. But for one, Zhou Feng’er was ignoring her right now. Two, Zhou Feng’er had started today’s mess, so she deserved to learn a lesson. And three, Zhou Feng’er was at home, safe with family. Gu’er was different. She was out there all alone, and who knew what state she was in? She must be heartbroken.’
At this thought, Li Hua’s heart burned with anxiety. Seeing that Zhou Mazi had agreed, she didn’t care about anything else and stumbled out the door.
’In Li Hua’s mind, Gu’er must be crying all alone in Sun Jiaming’s family’s old house. She must be terrified.’
Her heart ached just thinking about it, and she wished she could fly to Gu’er’s side in an instant. But when she reached the old house, there were no lights on. She knocked, but no one answered. Left with no other choice, she went to knock on the Sun Family’s door. She never expected that Gu’er would be staying with the Sun Family tonight.
Now she saw Gu’er, but Gu’er was not how she had imagined. She wasn’t crying pitifully, nor did she look scared. Instead, she was calmly comforting her, as if nothing had happened. But looking at Gu’er’s slightly swollen face and her red-rimmed eyes, Li Hua’s heart still ached. Gu’er had truly suffered a great deal today.
Gu’er managed to calm her adoptive mother, then cast an apologetic look at Sun Jiaming and Grandma Sun.
Grandma Sun gestured that it was alright and told the mother and daughter to just talk. Sun Jiaming even poured a bowl of water for Li Hua.
Gu’er recounted the evening’s events to her adoptive mother.
"How could they bully someone like that? They’re all named Zhou! Even for the sake of a common ancestor, they shouldn’t be so cruel!"
Li Hua was a simple, honest person. She felt the Zhou clan had gone too far, but aside from crying and feeling wronged on her daughter’s behalf, she couldn’t say much else.
Gu’er was silent. ’In their hearts, she didn’t have the Zhou surname. Both she and Li Hua were outsiders.’
"You’re so stubborn, child. They told you to kneel, so you should have just kowtowed. It wouldn’t have cost you anything. Why did you have to cut yourself? Sun Jiaming helped you this time, but what if you had really hurt yourself? Were you trying to scare me to death? Why did you grab a knife? That’s not for chopping vegetables! If something went wrong, someone could have died. You can’t do that ever again. Don’t scare your mother like that, okay?"
Li Hua was truly terrified in hindsight. If Gu’er had seriously injured someone, or if something had happened to Gu’er herself, what would she have done?
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Thank you to Karl King for the He Shi Bi jade and the monthly ticket. Thank you to Super Assassin for the monthly ticket. Thank you all for your support. I won’t write pleas for tickets and subscriptions anymore; I’m starting to feel embarrassed, and I’m afraid of annoying you all.
