Gu Jinli nodded, "Thatâs right, the world is full of such bad people, willing to use any means to achieve their goals."
Thatâs why during the spring plowing, she reminded several families not to be in a rush to find matches for those at home of age or looking to remarry.
Being poor, people scorn you.
But once you have a bit of money, those with ulterior motives show up.
"Son of a bitch, Iâm going to kill him!" Luo Huiniang burst into anger, clenching her fists, ready to rush out and beat Wenhao.
Gu Jinxiu hurriedly stopped her, "Huiniang, donât go out. If you do, Wenhao will definitely come to hassle you."
Mrs. Cui also said, "Sister Xiu is right, Wenhao seems troublesome. Behave and donât go out for now. Your parents will be here soon, and they wonât let Wenhao off easily."
Gu Jinli had already finished stir-frying the spices and pulled the fire out of the stove, burying it in the plant ashes, "My mother and elder sister are right, you should not go out. If you interact too much with Wenhao, with Village Chief Sunâs temperament, he will definitely stir up malicious gossip about you, which wonât be good for you."
Upon hearing this, Luo Huiniang gave up the idea of going out to beat Wenhao.
In the courtyard, Village Chief Sun and his group were loitering, unwilling to leave, but Ms. Chu led Father Luo, Gu Dashan, Gu Dafu, Gu Dalin, Old Zhu and his son, Wang Yongfu, He Sanlai, and a large group of people to the scene.
Seeing such a crowd rush into the courtyard and surround them, Village Chief Sun panicked, "What are you trying to do? We came here to express gratitude today and havenât done anything bad."
Father Luo said, "Village Chief Sun, bring the 230 copper coins."
Village Chief Sun was startled, then unbuckled his money bag with a generous air and handed over one tael of silver to Father Luo, smiling, "Brother Gu helped my grandson, and such favor canât be measured with silver coins."
After all the talk, he still hoped to use Wenhao to climb up to Guâs Workshop.
Father Luo accepted the one tael of silver, took out half a tael of silver along with 270 copper coins, and directly placed these silver coins into the mule cart, "Weâre square now. Village Chief Sun, you all can leave."
Seeing that these famine-escaping families were relentless, one more hard-hearted than the next, Village Chief Sun felt a blaze of anger within him and said to Third Grandpa, "Brother Gu, we are fellow villagers, is there really a need for this?"
Wenhao, tears streaming down his face, pleaded, "Grandpa Gu, please forgive my grandpa. He is a good man, heâs not that sort of person..."
Father Luo shouted, "Shut up! Whatâs wrong with you, lad? Are you a little girl? What kind of man cries and whines like this? I, Luo, canât stand these weeping scholars!"
Father Luo, having heard about Wenhaoâs actions from Ms. Chu and realizing Village Chief Sun wanted Wenhao to win over Huiniang, was so furious he wanted to thrash Wenhao.
Startled by the scolding, Wenhao dared not cry anymore and just looked towards the kitchen door, hoping Luo Huiniang would come out.
Unfortunately, Luo Huiniang would have liked nothing more than to beat him to death, so why would she come out to speak for him?
Seeing the stance of Third Grandpa and Father Luo, Village Chief Sun knew todayâs matter was a bust and had no choice but to swallow his anger, "Brother Gu, weâll be leaving then. When Wenhaoâs parents have the time, weâll have them bring Wenhao over to express thanks."
They still want to come?
Father Luo, livid and eager for a confrontation, saw the servant moving the gifts from the cart to give to Third Grandpa and immediately intervened, "We are not lacking in food and daily necessities, Village Chief Sun, take it back with you."
Father Luo, skilled in martial arts, grabbed the hands of the servant holding the gifts and forcibly turned him around, placing the gifts back into the mule cart.
Village Chief Sun, seeing the turn of events, felt a sinking feeling in his heart, and could only call out to the servant, "Letâs go."
Not long after, the mule cart carried Village Chief Sun and his party away.
Gu Dalin, seeing that things had settled here, then took Old Zhu and the others back to the workshop.
Father Luo didnât leave with Gu Dashan, as Father Luo was still fuming.
"That Village Chief Sun is too despicable. For the sake of business, to come up with such an idea, itâs utterly shameless!"
Ms. Chu comforted him, "Hui Niang is still naive and doesnât understand these things. Village Chief Sun and Wenhao are just wasting their effort."
Third Grandma had been watching from the side, and now she finally understood that Village Chief Sun, having failed in one plan, had come up with the idea of using his grandson to connect with Hui Niang.
Pah, how despicable!
Third Grandma was very worried that Wenhao would pester Hui Niang again and hurriedly said, "Girl Hui is also grown up now. There are many people in the town, so donât let her set up a stall anymore to avoid encountering people with bad intentions."
"Eh, Third Aunt is right; we canât let Hui Niang set up a stall in the town anymore." Ms. Chu and Father Luo wholeheartedly agreed.
Luo Huiniang, upon hearing this, wished she could tear Wenhao apart: "Bookworm, crybaby, bastard, because of you I canât set up my stall. I curse you to flip and break your legs in a mule cart accident, fall off a donkey and have your hands trampled, choke to death while eating!"
...
With a clang, the mule cart Village Chief Sun and his party were riding hit a stone, nearly flipping over.
Village Chief Sun and Wenhao were jolted so hard that they hit their heads against the roof of the cart, the pain was unbearable.
"You little rascal, how do you drive? Are you trying to kill your grandpa and me? Your monthly salary is gone!" Village Chief Sun cursed furiously, docking a monthâs salary from the servant.
Wenhao had a gloomy face and said with his head lowered, "Grandpa, that Old Gu is unappreciative. Why bother yourself with them? Not only is it slow, but itâs also ineffective."
And that Miss Luo, did she really think he, Ge Wenhao, was fond of her?
If the family shop were not doing poorly, if Grandpa had not said that Guâs Workshop was profitable, he would not have bothered coming back to stage this farce.
Village Chief Sun said, "What do you know? Donât look down on those few families for being poor now, but the tofu and spices are making money. People from nearby towns all like to buy their spices to cook with. Do you know about Hai Xian Sauce? The flavor of the dishes made with those spices is almost as good as adding Hai Xian Sauce, itâs delicious. Itâs a great business for making a fortune. We canât just let it slip away now that weâve stumbled upon it, can we?"
"You need money for your studies, and even more for the examination for an official position in the future. Without a big business backing you, how will you afford to take the exams?"
"Donât despise that Luo Family girl. Itâs not like you have to spend a lifetime with her. Marry her first, get the business in hand, and once youâve passed the exams and become an official, you can demote her to a concubine and marry a daughter from an officialâs family, gain both wealth and status."
Wenhao still remembered Luo Huiniangâs cold demeanor towards him, and said, "That girl doesnât like me. And Old Gu, he was also very cold."
Village Chief Sun said, "Thatâs their attitude towards me, not you. You just insist that you didnât know about the previous dealings with their workshop and that what happened that day was an accident. What could they possibly do to you?"
As for that Miss Luo.
"A strong woman fears a persistent man. Just act a little pitiful, visit a few more times, and the girl will soften."
Village Chief Sun was dreaming a grand dream, but he forgot that the families had seen through their tricks long ago, that they were absolutely despised for their underhandedness, and would never trust Ge Wenhao again.