coobybook Chapter 353 Public Wrath
Chapter 353 Public Wrath
Zhou Hai's face darkened. "Yang, go back and pack your things right now."
Turning to Zhou Mu, he said, "Zhou Mu, in a little while, you take two brothers and send the man back to Yang Village. As for Guo Dabao, the village will take care of him for now, and we'll deal with the rest when Brother Guo returns."
“Okay, Uncle!” Zhou Mu replied, ruffling Zhou Yi’s hair.
Zhou Yi turned and ran towards Gu Xiaolu. When he reached the little girl, he obediently called her "sister" and smiled at her with his little head tilted up.
Guo Dabao's mother naturally objected, "You, you're bullying me! It's just a chicken leg! My Dabao's face is all swollen from being slapped!"
At this moment, Zhu Zhubu, who had been holding back for a long time, finally couldn't help but sneer, "Isn't it just a chicken leg? Robbery is robbery. Even a needle and thread is stolen. Giving your son a beating is already too lenient."
He glanced at Guo Dabao's physique and said, "He's still young now, and you're encouraging this kind of behavior in him. When he gets older, won't he start stealing chickens and dogs? And when he's even older, won't he steal pigs, cows, and people's money? At that point, it won't just be a beating; he'll be in jail for at least a few years."
Li Xun chimed in, "Zhu Zhubu is right. It is the father's fault if he does not raise his son properly. Since his father is not here, it is naturally your responsibility as his mother."
"We, the aggrieved parties, did not come to your door seeking justice, yet you are turning around and accusing us. Are you trying to take advantage of the Gu family's comfortable life?"
“This young man is absolutely right. I heard that Guo Tian hasn’t sent any household supplies back for two months. Da Bao’s mother has gone back to her parents’ home to borrow grain several times.”
"That makes sense. Yesterday, the Gu family moved to their new home, and even the few remaining members of the Lin family across the river came to offer their congratulations. Chang'er didn't kick them out. It's just that Da Bao's mother is holding a grudge against Chang'er for seeking justice for Xiao Man last time. Last night, she happened to cause trouble for the Gu family, so she came early this morning to pick a fight and freeload."
"You're the ones who're trying to take advantage of me. I'm just here to get an explanation. My son was beaten, why should I have to swallow my anger?" Guo Dabao's mother was a tough nut to crack; normally, the villagers would avoid talking to her if they could.
Regardless of right or wrong, there's no point in arguing about it.
Zhou Hai frowned and gave his aunt a look. His aunt quickly called two of her sisters-in-law to pull the shrew away.
Zhou Mu then took two of his relatives to bring Guo Dabao back.
Seeing this, Guo Dabao's mother became even more frantic, shouting, "Get away from me! Don't touch my son! None of you will be able to separate me from Dabao!"
She forcefully shook off Aunt Zhou and the others, then rushed over and pushed Zhou Mu and the others away. She hugged Guo Dabao tightly, her gaze shifting to where Sister-in-law Gu was, her eyes filled with resentment.
She couldn't afford to offend Zhou Hai, but Yu Damai, with such a lowly background, why should he stand by and watch her make a fool of herself?
If she can't live a good life, she shouldn't expect to live a good life either.
Guo Dabao's mother shouted fiercely at her, "Yu Damai, you did something shameful that makes you unable to have children, so you want to separate me from my child too? Let me tell you, no way."
Looking around, he laughed and said, "You all don't know, do you? The Gu family that you're all so eager to please, their eldest daughter-in-law, Yu Damai, used to be a pawned wife. She lost her health by bearing children, and now she's just a hen that can't lay eggs. It's a shame that the Gu family still treats her like a treasure."
Then he called out to Gu Dalang, "Gu Dalang, is that green hat on your head still warm... ah..."
"Big Brother, Big Brother..."
"Don't pull me. I, Gu Dalang, have been a coward my whole life. Today, Guo Caishi has insulted my wife to this extent. If I continue to swallow my anger, am I still a man?"
"Nobody stop me. At worst, I'll pay with my life if she kills me."
"Aunt Gu, please persuade Dalang. It's not worth paying for such a scoundrel's life."
"Yes, yes, ma'am, please try to persuade him."
This incident caused a huge uproar. Gu Dalang, unable to bear the humiliation his wife had suffered, started fighting with Guo Dabao and his mother.
Gu Xiaoman and the other children also rushed forward.
Some rational people advised Aunt Gu to break up the fight, but Aunt Gu looked grim as she watched the group of people wrestling together and said in a deep voice, "If Dalang doesn't do anything, then he's the one who deserves to be beaten."
Among the guests, such as Headmaster Lu and Chief Clerk Zhu, their faces were all solemn. Such a thing as selling one's wife was something no man with any sense of decency would do; it was simply a disgrace to them as men.
Especially the city gate guards; if it were that bastard in front of them, Gu Dalang wouldn't even need to lift a finger, they would have already taken care of him.
They naturally looked down on Guo Caishi for reopening old wounds.
However, one thing is true: it's not worth sacrificing your life for someone like that.
Therefore, He Yang and A Da and the others immediately pulled Gu Dalang and the children who went up to help away.
Seeing that things had escalated, Zhou Hai hurriedly sent the person away, no longer wanting to get in the way of his family.
Ah Da stopped the man, saying, "Zhou, village head, it's fine for neighbors to quarrel, but now that things have escalated to this point, if Guo Caishi wants to withdraw like this, our Miss Lin will not allow it. We will take care of the mother and son for the time being, and how things go afterward will depend on how our young lady decides to deal with them."
"This..." Zhou Hai was also furious with Guo Dabao's mother, but Guo Tian had grown up with him like siblings, and the main problem was that Guo Tian was not around, which was the most difficult thing to deal with.
Just then, an aunt called out, "Where's Dalang's wife? Where did she go?"
"It was just here a moment ago!"
Upon hearing this, Gu Dalang looked around but couldn't find his sister-in-law. He panicked and looked at his mother, "Mother, Damai, Damai won't do anything rash, will she?"
"What are you all standing there for? Everyone, hurry up and help us look!"
"Yes, yes, eldest brother, go back to the room and look for them first. The children can look for them in the yard!"
"Everyone else, don't just stand there, look around. This whole mess has been ruined. This Cai family is a real troublemaker!"
"Stop talking. If there's really something wrong with Dalang's wife, and Chang'er gets upset and moves out with the Gu family, then we won't have a good life either."
"Yes, yes, Chang'er is very protective of her own. Everyone remember that. Don't mention a word about Da Lang's wife when you see her. Just go home and persuade her."
“If you don’t want to go back to the hard times of the past, then whatever Cai said should go in one ear and out the other, and you should keep it to yourself.”
"Did Cai say anything? I didn't hear anything."
"Me neither!"
"Remember this. If even a single word of what happened today gets out, we'll be the first to tear her apart, before Chang'er even has a chance to make a move."
At this moment, Lin Chang'er, whom the aunties kept talking about, was in Yujia Village, dozens of miles away.
Liu Zi drove the car, and Lin Chang'er and Wu Qingfeng traveled together, along with Xiao Jinyu.
Children tend to get along well with each other.
After Lin Chang'er and Wu Qingfeng got off the carriage at the village entrance, they chatted with a fellow villager for a while, asked for directions to the Yu family's residence, and then, with the little goldfish in tow, made their way to the gate of Sister-in-law Gu's maternal home.
It's called a courtyard, but there's no proper wall around it; it's just a sparse fence with a few dilapidated mud houses inside.
In the courtyard, a woman of about thirty was sitting in front of a wooden basin washing clothes, while a little girl of about five or six years old was squatting beside her, helping her.
The woman raised her hand to wipe her sweat, and the little girl looked up at her. "Mom, are you thirsty? I'll get you some water!"
Lin Chang'er looked up and saw the girl's face clearly; she looked at least five or six parts like Sister-in-law Gu.
The woman's voice was gentle, "Mother isn't thirsty. The sun is getting strong, He'er, go inside and play!"
"I'll help my mom scrub, it'll make the washing faster!"
The woman said gently, "Okay!"
Lin Chang'er bent down and gave the little goldfish a few instructions. The little guy nodded and stood outside the fence, calling out to the inside, "Hello, Auntie. My family and I are passing by and are very thirsty. May we ask you for a bowl of water?"