Chapter 648: Returning to the City Privately
Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation
Zhang Mei was visibly displeased, her hand resting on her husband’s arm, her demeanor that of a city dweller forced to deal with a rural woman. “How can you be so rude?” she complained. “We asked for your help because we respect you. You could at least show some manners.”
Upon hearing this, Aunt Zhang couldn’t help but laugh. She had seen shameless people before, but this was a new level. She had long noticed their ill-treatment of Gu Zi.
Even though they were Gu Zi’s foster parents, she wouldn’t indulge them. She retorted, “Don’t think that just because you’re dressed nicely, everything you say is polite. I don’t owe you anything. Why should I help you just because you ask?
“And you call yourself city people, from the military district no less. I see your true colors now. Every place has its good and bad, even the city and the military district aren’t necessarily filled with reasonable people.”
Zhang Mei felt a pang in her chest, her dislike for the countryside growing. Gu Shan’s face turned red with anger, but he couldn’t say anything. After all, he was arguing with an ignorant village woman. What would that make him?
However, he redirected his anger towards Gu Zi. The next time he saw her, he would give her a piece of his mind. How dare she associate with such a woman!
Just then, another villager passed by the Su family’s gate. They had attended Su Shen’s wedding banquet and had met Gu Zi’s foster parents. One of them approached and asked, “Oh, you’re here to see Gu Zi, aren’t you?”
Ignoring Aunt Zhang, Gu Shan turned to the villager to inquire about Gu Zi. To his surprise, he learned that Gu Zi wasn’t just lazing around at home. In fact, the house was completely empty. Everyone had moved out.
Gu Shan and Zhang Mei were shocked. Gu Shan asked, “When did they move? Where did they go?”
The villager replied, “Just yesterday. The whole family moved to the city. But we don’t know the exact address. Didn’t Gu Zi come to visit you with her husband and children?
“Maybe they’re still busy. Aunt Zhang, why didn’t you tell them? You’re close with Gu Zi, you should know the address, right?”
Aunt Zhang was livid. Ignoring the villager’s question, she turned on her heel and stormed off.
After further inquiries with the nosy villager, Gu Shan and Zhang Mei received even more shocking news. They returned to their car and drove back to the city, feeling blindsided by Gu Zi’s actions. The car was silent for a long time.
Zhang Mei finally broke the silence, “What is she trying to do? She hasn’t even been married to Su Shen for half a year, and she’s already persuaded him to move the whole family back to the city. We made this trip for nothing.
“We arranged her marriage here, and she just up and moved back to the city. Does she even consider our feelings?”
After all, when they arranged for Gu Zi to marry Lin Miao as a substitute, they were prepared to sacrifice her. They hoped that once she moved to the countryside, she would accept her fate and live there for the rest of her life. After all, a city girl marrying into a village wasn’t exactly a good look.
While Gu Zi was in the village, it was manageable. But once she moved to the city, where they frequently ran into acquaintances, it was a different story.
Even if Su Shen was wealthy, it couldn’t change the fact that he was a divorced older man with three children. If their acquaintances saw that the Gu family had married their foster daughter to such a man, wouldn’t they criticize the Gu family behind their backs? They would say that the Gu family was biased and heartless towards Gu Zi.
Moreover, the people in the military district already blamed the Gu family for Gu Zi’s situation. The things they said behind their backs were harsh enough. But they wouldn’t talk forever. Given enough time, people would eventually stop talking.
But if Gu Zi moved back to the city, that would be a different story!
Gu Shan was also feeling heavy-hearted. He didn’t know how to respond to his wife’s words. After a long silence, he finally said, “If she just moved back to the city, it wouldn’t be so bad. After all, she can’t live in the military district, right? The things you’re worried about might not happen. But the worst part is, she managed to get a job in the city.
“If it was just any job, it would be fine. But it’s a job at the Guangcheng Newspaper. If this news gets out, our family will be criticized even more. People will say we sacrificed our foster daughter for our biological daughter. They’ll call us foolish, you know?”