Chapter 29: The Jealous Brother-in-law
“Hey, have you heard? Yang Yiwen from our village has sold almost all his grain! Lately, they say even eating has become a problem!”
“Who told him to be so greedy? I told him long ago not to sell the family’s grain so carelessly.”
“If this continues until winter, how will they survive!”
“We can’t blame anyone else. It’s just their own fault. It’s better for us to mind our own business.”
“I heard the price of grain in town has gone up again!”
In recent days, every time Gu Qingheng came to the village, the most frequently heard sentence was about the rising grain prices. However, today, hearing that someone in the village had actually sold the grain they ate, he was quite surprised.
Indeed, for the sake of silver, they would disregard everything else!
However, this had nothing to do with him. It was better to honestly listen to the gossip.
According to his brother-in-law, the best approach was to avoid trouble…
“But hearing about the current grain prices, I’d be tempted too!”
“No matter how tempted you are, you have to think about starving! The prices of vegetables and meat are already high. If your family has no grain, it will be even harder to get by! And it’s not like other times; when grain prices are this high, no one will kindly offer assistance.”
“Let the village chief worry about it. I heard Yang Yiwen is at the village chief’s house now, crying poverty and wanting the village chief to find a solution.”
“Are they expecting the village chief to pay out of his own pocket! These people should use their brains. How could the village chief possibly help them!”
“Qingheng, you have so much grain at home, won’t you help out?”
However, just as Gu Qingheng was listening to the gossip, he didn’t expect the matter to involve him.
Seeing that other people’s gazes also turned towards him, with many eyes filled with schadenfreude, Gu Qingheng couldn’t help but roll his eyes inwardly, thinking, “I’m not an idiot, what do they mean by asking this?”
In this world, there are many poor people.
Should his family help all of them?
“My family doesn’t have any surplus grain either! Besides, whose grain comes from the wind? If we give to anyone who has difficulties, then my family members would have to go begging with sticks.”
Gu Qingheng chuckled, and his words stunned the women around him. Clearly, they hadn’t expected… Gu Qingheng to refuse so quickly.
This made those who were hoping to gain something from the Gu family anxious.
As long as the Gu family started helping the villagers, they could imitate them.
Who couldn’t cry poverty!
At times like these when there was an opportunity to make money, even a few pounds of grain from the Gu family could fetch a good price. It was a gain without any effort.
“Qingheng! You can’t say that. When your family was poor, the village did help you. People shouldn’t forget their roots, right?”
“Exactly! At that time, the villagers helped your family.”
“You can’t get rich and forget your neighbors.”
Afterward, when Gu Qingheng heard these women mentioning kindness and gratitude repeatedly, he truly grew tired of it, thinking, “Can’t these people change their tune?
Always talking about kindness and gratitude, do they expect my family to repay it for a lifetime?
It’s not that Gu Qingheng truly forgot these things, but the villagers’ excessive exploitation of this kindness made Gu Qingheng feel annoyed.
“Aunties, you can’t say that! When our family was poor, we received help from everyone, and our family is very grateful. However, I still remember the incidents from back then quite clearly… I remember one family gave my sister old clothes they couldn’t wear. We thought we’d have clothes for winter, but the next day they took them back.”
Afterward, hearing Gu Qingheng’s words, the surrounding women didn’t continue to speak.
They wore guilty expressions, thinking that they hadn’t really taken great care of the Gu family, and their request for the Gu family to help the villagers in need was baseless.
After Gu Qingheng finished speaking, he thought of the difficult days in the past and no longer had the inclination to stay there listening to gossip. Instead, he wanted to go back and study.
During his family’s most difficult times, they didn’t receive much help from the village. His elder sister shouldered all the responsibility.
Even though her shoulders were very frail, she didn’t say much and directly took on the responsibility of raising him.
Thinking of this, Gu Qingheng’s eyes turned a little red. He ran all the way home. When he saw Gu Mengyao chatting with Gu Yu, he couldn’t hold back anymore and rushed over, hugging Gu Mengyao’s waist, trying to calm the sorrow in his heart.
It’s so good to have a sister!
“Hey, hey, Gu Qingheng, this is my wife. What are you hugging her for? Go away!”
However, before Gu Qingheng’s sadness could dissipate, he heard Gu Yu’s dissatisfied voice. He immediately pulled his lips in speechlessness, then turned to look at Gu Yu, who had a jealous look on his face, and felt resigned.
“This brother-in-law of mine must have crawled out of a vinegar jar!
This is my sister, why can’t I hug her?
I will hug her!
“Qingheng, what’s wrong? Were you bullied outside? I’ll go beat them up for you.”
“It’s nothing, I just remembered how wonderful my sister is, and it made me want to hug you.”
Gu Mengyao was also very surprised by Gu Qingheng’s act of acting cute, as her younger brother had been smart and mature from a young age, and didn’t have the usual childish behavior of acting cute.
Of course, except when he needed something from someone.
This unusual behavior at this moment made people curious as to what had happened.
Afterward, with Gu Yu’s gaze fixed on him like a knife, Gu Qingheng could only reluctantly let go. He thought, “This vinegar-loving brother-in-law of mine is so clingy to his wife. What will he do when my sister isn’t around!”
He remembered that when his sister went to the battlefield without them, his brother-in-law made him disgusting food every day… Thinking of that taste made Gu Qingheng quickly dismiss the thought to avoid getting tangled up again.
When Gu Mengyao went to the kitchen to prepare dessert, Gu Yu looked at Gu Qingheng with a “confess and be spared” expression, telling him to honestly explain what had happened just now, so as not to worry Gu Mengyao.
After hearing the reason from Gu Qingheng, Gu Yu could then tell Gu Mengyao.
Gu Mengyao going to prepare dessert at this time was also to have Gu Yu persuade Gu Qingheng. When it came to dealing with men, it was easier to talk among themselves.
“It’s nothing much, I was just listening to gossip in the village, and those people mentioned the past, which made me think about not having enough to eat and not having enough to wear back then, and I felt upset.”
Seeing Gu Yu’s serious expression, Gu Qingheng knew he couldn’t hide it, so he honestly explained what had just happened.
After hearing this, Gu Yu’s eyebrows furrowed slightly. He thought, “These villagers from Yang Family Village are really something; if you don’t beat them for three days, they’ll take the tiles off the roof. They’ve only had a few days of peace, and they’re already eyeing our family’s property again.”
Are they tired of living such peaceful lives?
