Chapter 61: Brother Beihan, You Need to Help Me!
Everything she had done today left almost no impact on the Zhang family. However, she did that with clear intention.
She lived under the same roof with Zhang Xiaohui and Gu Ruoqing for many years. She knew them very well.
Zhang Xiaohui grew up in hardship. Her parents brainwashed her with the mindset that she must show filial obedience to her family and support her brothers. Her parents valued males in the family so her function in the family was just to help her brothers.
She had to support her elder brother.
Zhang Xiaohui was a self-conflicted person. On one side, she wanted herself and her daughter to live a good life and on the other side, she believed that she must support her family at all costs.
As a daughter of the family, it was difficult for her family to raise her. Thus, she must help her brothers.
It was normal for her to live a hard life as long as her brothers had better lives.
Gu Ruoqing liked to compare with others.
She could not tolerate that others had better lives than her. She could complain about everything when she realized that her living standard was worse than others. She craved for a better life.
Gu Qingyao gave the Zhang family so many goods. Gu Ruoqing definitely wanted to be like them when she could only stare at the food.
However, based on Zhang Xiaohui’s personality, she would never blame the Zhang family. She only blamed that the Gu family was not capable enough to give her more goods, so that she could show her filial obedience to her family and also live a good life with her daughter.
Those two people’s mindsets were exactly the same as how she imagined after the meal.
Gu Qingyao intended to make Zhang Xiaohui hate the Gu family.
The Gu family was a landlord family. Under the current social status, they could not dislike Zhang Xiaohui who was born in a farmer’s family. It would bring trouble to her grandparents.
The best way was to let Zhang Xiaohui leave the family by herself if she betrayed her father. It might be slightly shameful for the Gu family but it would be the safest option.
Gu Qingyao knew about the man. In her previous life, Zhang Xiaohui left with that man.
Zhang Xiaohui wanted to leave by herself and asked to get divorced. She even came back to show off her life after she was rich.
Though the Gu family’s reputation was affected, at least the family was safe. No one would talk about the landlord identity of the Gu family or spread rumors about how the Gu family were capitalists who looked down on farmers, and that they chased her out of the family.
Ironically, Zhang Xiaohui was mocked by others.
Gu Qingyao did not care about others. She only wanted the Gu family to live past the next few years peacefully. There would be nothing to be worried about when society entered the right path.
The man that Zhang Xiaohui left with was quite capable as his social status was quite high now. Gu Ruoqing definitely could not resist the temptation of living in the city if they left with her real father.
Leave! Leave! Better leave right now!
Then she could finally take good care of the Gu family!
Gu Qingyao found Mo Beihan and told him about her plan the next morning.
Mo Beihan further doubted that her Yao Yao was totally different now.
“Why do you want to invite them over?”
Gu Qingyao stared at him with her black and pretty eyes. The impression she had of him in her previous life was slightly different from now.
She felt that the Mo Beihan now gave her a similar feeling during some occasions in her previous life.
Chapter 62: Finally Here!
She grew up together with Mo Beihan. He was six years older than her and was 21 this year.
She treated him like her elder brother. They were always very close.
Mo Beihan was just a 20-year-old young man who should be very energetic and righteous.
However, recently she felt that Mo Beihan had changed. He appeared to be more mature now.
He gave her a safe feeling.
Like how he protected her in her previous life.
She did not intend to hide her interspace from him. Anyway, he knew about that in her previous life, just a few years from now.
She did not purposely tell him. He found out by himself after they spent a long time together.
She also did not want to hide anything. He would soon realize it from the things she had.
However, she did not know how to explain that she was reborn.
“Hmm… Brother Beihan, I have some little secrets. Please don’t ask me. I don’t know how to explain it. Help me, please! I’ll prepare food for you as appreciation, okay?”
Mo Beihan: “…”
The little girl was begging him?
How could he reject her with that soft voice?
He could only agree to what she asked since he could not reject her.
“I’ll be waiting for that!”
Gu Qingyao: “…”
After meeting Mo Beihan, Gu Qingyao went to look for another person, Chen Goudan. He was smart and close to her. He would be the right person.
After settling everything, Gu Qingyao waited for three days before hearing that the family was going to visit here.
The news was sent two days ago and Gu Yunshen went to look for some herbs. But many were brought back by Gu Qingyao previously.
After a long anticipation, Wang Guozhu and the family finally came.
Wang Guozhu also belonged to the Qing River Brigade. His family was poor, very poor.
They did not even have food to eat.
Wang Guozhu was good at studying but could not do any work. He was the only son in the family. However, he did not perform well for his high school graduation exam and failed to enter a university.
High school graduate was considered a good education background back then. He also received an opportunity to work at a textile factory in the town with good pay.
He was a leader in the factory, not just a normal worker. It was rare for a person who came from the countryside to get such a job. Usually, the factory only recruited people from the cities.
Wang Guozhu grew up in the countryside.
His wife was his classmate and did not enter university as well. She had a wealthy family and was the only daughter. Wang Guozhu was married and got the identity in the city. He worked in the textile factory all these years.
His wife, Zhou Hong, was a spoiled child. She was very arrogant and picky. She fell in love with Wang Guozhu and stayed with him all these years.
Zhou Hong’s parents passed away. Wang Guozhu, Zhou Hong, and their only daughter now stayed in the town. Wang Guozhu also brought his parents over.
They came to the countryside to seek treatment for Zhou Hong’s leg.
Her leg always hurt when winter came due to past injury.
The family of three came together. They were well-dressed and their daughter Zhou Xiaoyu was riding a pretty lady style bicycle. Gu Ruoqing really envied her.
Chapter 63: Acting Skills on Point
Wang Guozhu was fair and of middle height. He looked like a scholar which was different from other men in the countryside.
No wonder Zhou Hong fell in love with him.
He dressed in new grey-colored clothes and a pair of leather shoes.
He was riding a bicycle and his wife Zhou Hong sat at the back.
Zhou Xiaoyu was riding a lady-styled bicycle by herself.
Both Zhou Xiaoyu and Zhou Hong were well dressed.
Though the idea of beauty was not valued at that age, those who liked to dress appeared different from others.
Zhou Hong was in a black coat and Zhou Xiaoyu in a blue coat with checks. She also wore a pair of black pants and leather shoes that made her look extraordinarily pretty!
The way they dressed was very fashionable at that age.
Gu Qingyao almost laughed when she saw how Gu Ruoqing envied them.
The family of three entered. Zhou Xiaoyu and Zhou Hong showed their dislike towards the house that was just beside the lair. The disgust was clearly shown on their faces.
Zhang Xiaohui froze when she came out of the kitchen and saw Wang Guozhu. She was stunned as she stared at him…
Hmmm…
Wang Guozhu was also stunned when he saw Zhang Xiaohui. They knew each other when they were young as they were both from the Qing River Brigade. Zhang Xiaohui was filial and capable. She was the virtuous wife in his eyes.
However, he married the rich and arrogant lady, Zhou Hong. She never even respected his parents.
Zhou Hong was not used to the environment here and rushed Wang Guozhu to look for the doctor so that they could leave this place as soon as possible.
The three of them entered the main room of the Gu Family. Both Gu Yunshen and grandfather Gu Chonghua were waiting for them.
Gu Qingyao stayed in the yard and was not far from Gu Ruoqing. She watched Zhou Xiaoyu’s back view and showed her admiration.
“The girl from the city is so pretty! Her clothes are so beautiful. Goudan, look at that bicycle! Do all ladies in the city own that?”
Chen Goudan also stared at the bicycle, “Many of them own bicycles. When I was in the town, I saw many ladies from the cities riding such pretty bicycles. They live in nice buildings as well. They even have places to work and get salaries. With money and coupons, they can buy food, clothes, and everything they want. Such a good life!”
Gu Qingyao smiled, “I really envy them. I heard that the man is the head of a department and works in a textile factory. The girl is his daughter. She will work in the factory after she graduates. The pay is very high. She can always buy new cloth to make clothes!”
Chen Goudan was envious; she said, “It’s so good to have a father. I also want to have a father.”
Gu Qingyao said, “Of course it’s nice to have a father. But you need to have a father like Mr Wang who is a leader in the factory to live in a building, have a job, and get paid. Otherwise, you can only stay in the countryside and work here.”
Chen Goudan nodded, “That’s true. She looks a few years older than us but how is she better than us? Just because she has a father who works in the textile factory?”
Gu Qingyao sighed, “No choice, she is born that way. Let’s do our job since we don’t have her luck. I need to cook now. We don’t have much food left here. If we were in the city, we could eat meat often!”
Chapter 64: Acting Skills on Point (2)
Gu Qingyao walked towards the kitchen. Her lips curved into a smile as she saw Gu Ruoqing contemplating about something and said, “Come and help with food. What are you looking at? You think you are her?”
Gu Ruoqing’s expression changed as she was pissed.
In the main room, grandfather and Gu Yunshen were treating Zhou Hong. Wen Ruyu was at the cowshed. The two elders were both under reformation. As there were visitors to the house, Gu Chonghua was here to treat the patient but not Wen Ruyu. So she stayed at the cowshed to do her job and kept a low profile.
Gu Qingyao, Gu Ruoqing, Zhang Xiaohui, and Chen Goudan were in the kitchen.
Chen Goudan helped the Gu family to do many chores today including bringing over dry woods. Thus, the Gu family allowed him to stay and have a meal.
Chen Goudan always helped different families. His family was very poor so he always needed help from neighbors. Though he was raised by his eldest uncle, he was fed by every family in the area.
It was common to have such a child in every brigade.
Chen Goudan always helped to do tasks in order to show his appreciation.
Gu Ruoqing and Zhang Xiaohui were both in a bad mood.
Gu Qingyao stood in front of the stove and was anxious, “What can we eat for lunch? Nothing good is left. We can only eat wild vegetables and coarse grain.”
Chen Goudan looked up and said, “You want to eat meat, Sister Gu?”
Gu Qingyao pursed her lips, “Who does not want to eat meat? I crave meat everyday.”
“Brother Mo is not at home? He did not hunt for animals for you from the mountain?”
Gu Qingyao rolled her eyes and said, “Yes, but I did not manage to eat. Such a waste that Brother Beihan passed me so much good food.”
“You didn’t eat? Where did the food go?”
Gu Qingyao took a glimpse at Gu Ruoqing and Zhang Xiaohui and showed a disdainful look, “Where else can the food go? Besides the Zhang family, where can our food go?”
Chen Goudan glanced at Zhang Xiaohui and Gu Ruoqing and rolled his eyes towards Gu Ruoqing and showed his disdain. He did not say anything and carried on with his job.
Gu Ruoqing was enraged when both of them rolled their eyes at her.
“How dare you roll your eyes at me?”
She was talking to Chen Goudan. She was the type of person that was afraid of those who were stronger than her but liked to bully the weak. Chen Goudan was an orphan in the brigade and grew up from other’s help. Many children bullied him.
Chen Goudan was clever and did not say anything. Gu Qingyao immediately said, “When did you see me rolling my eyes at you? Furthermore, all our things went to the Zhang family. It’s not like you don’t know about that?”
“The whole family came over and ate all the food. They even wanted to bring away the food. It seemed like they had never eaten meat for a few hundreds of years. How difficult is it to have some meat in the family? They finished everything in one go. Why can’t I say something about that?”
“You…”
“Shut up!” Zhang Xiaohui raged, “They’re your grandparents and uncles. It is the right thing to do to respect them. You…”
“Stop saying that to me. Of course, we need to be filial to them, and I never disrespect them at all. Furthermore, my grandparents are your parents and Gu Ruoqing’s grandparents. I have never seen you being filial to them.”
“They’re the bad element and need to be reformed. They…”
“They need to undergo reformation but that does not mean you can treat them like slaves. They should work harder but as the daughter, you should remind them to work but not treat yourself like the owner. Look at yourself, you treat your brothers as the princes in the family. You’re just indulging them!”
Chapter 65: Acting Skills on Point (3)
“Working is glorious. They’re learning to sustain their lives with their own hands. My grandparents still take care of all the animals in the cowshed at this age and contribute to the brigade while going through reformation. What did those people of the Zhang family do? How dare they think of meat everyday?”
Zhang Xiaohui could not say anything and was speechless.
Ultimately, she was just a normal woman in the countryside who had never gone to school. She only attended a few lessons in the brigade in the past but she could barely recognize words.
She would never be able to compete with Gu Qingyao on this issue.
Gu Qingyao started learning and reading at a very young age. The elderly who stayed near the cowshed were all her teachers. With her decades of experiences in her previous life, how could she not be able to fight Zhang Xiaohui?
In the past, Zhang Xiaohui was only scared of Gu Yunshen. She did not show respect to others in the family. Though Gu Qingyao was Gu Yunshen’s beloved daughter, she was always a quiet and obedient girl.
Gu Qingyao in the past would never provoke her like this. Zhang Xiaohui was in a bad mood now. She totally raged after hearing her words, “Ultimately, it’s your Gu family that is too poor. I suppose to show filial obedience to my family. They raised me up and all of them are my close family members. What’s wrong with them eating meat from you?”
“Gu family could not even offer some meat. How dare you complain?”
Gu Qingyao was waiting for that sentence. She shouted, “The Gu family is too poor? My family is like that from decades ago. If you look down on the family, why did you even marry my father? You complain about my grandparents as bad elements everyday and even treat them like your slaves. We offered everything to your family for your parents. How dare you discriminate against the Gu family?
“Since you discriminate against my family and my grandparents, why did you even marry my father? Just go look for a rich man! As a rightful poor farmer, why did you come to my family which is full of bad elements? It seems like you’re not anywhere better!”
“You…”
“What’s wrong with my words? No one else in the entire Qing River Brigade would offer everything in the family to her own relatives. You don’t know you’re famous now in the brigade? With a mother like you, Gu Ruoqing will not be able to get married. No one can afford to keep you in the family. Discriminating the family while all goods are taken away by you. Remember that your family is even poorer!”
“You… Gu Qingyao, who do you think you are? How dare you speak to me like that? I will slap you, I swear!”
“How dare you? I’ll tell my father that you slapped me for no reason. You bully me everyday but treat Gu Ruoqing like a princess. She doesn’t know how to do any house chores still. Why can’t I say something when you’re doing the wrong thing?
“We value equality now. Children can also educate their parents if the parents make some mistakes. Why can’t I scold you? You’re using the title of parents to control me. This is dominance! Why are you the master?”
“SHUT UP!” Zhang Xiaohui was furious but was also scared.
Though she did not attend school, she understood that she would be dead if what Gu Qingyao said was deemed as truth.
“Why should I shut up? I’m telling the truth. Don’t treat Gu Ruoqing and me differently in the future. She must do work as well. Come and set up the fire now.”
“Everyday, you’re wandering around and do not help with chores at all. Do you think you’re the princess from the city? The lady outside is a princess. Her father is the department leader of the textile factory. Look at her bicycle and the new clothes. She is a typical city girl and you’re just a countryside girl. That’s not your life. Do your job now!”