Chapter 41: Chapter 41 Accident
Mrs. An favored Gu Ya, her son.
Within the Gu Family, there was always a bias towards Gu Ya.
Moreover, Gu Ya’s leg was crippled from falling down the mountain while trying to save his father, so Mrs. An and her husband both felt they had wronged Gu Ya. Out of guilt, Mrs. An became even more partial towards Gu Ya than before.
Her favoritism towards Su Yunjin was also for the sake of Gu Ya, her son!
If Gu Ya were eaten by the wild beasts on the mountain!
Mrs. Zhang didn’t believe that Mrs. An would continue treating Su Yunjin, that little wretch, well, showing such favoritism towards Su Yunjin at every turn. Just thinking about the white rice porridge with meat that Su Yunjin had eaten two days ago made Mrs. Zhang’s heart, liver, and lungs ache.
She slaved away day after day at the Gu household, always worried about everything, yet she, who did the most work and had the hardest tasks, reaped no benefits. Meanwhile, Su Yunjin, that do-nothing waste, enjoyed good food and drink—it was simply too unfair!
Now that Gu Ya had gone up the mountain, it was very likely that she would be rid of two big troubles at once. The Gu Family would no longer continue to waste silver on Gu Ya’s account, nor would Su Yunjin continue to be favored by her mother-in-law!
Instantly, Mrs. Zhang became so excited she could hardly contain it, eagerly awaiting news of Gu Ya being eaten by wild beasts after heading up the mountain. She spent the entire afternoon reaping rice with her mind elsewhere, preoccupied with whether her brother-in-law, Gu Ya, would be devoured on the mountain!
Everyone from the Gu Family had gone out to the fields, and soon Su Yunjin realized that Gu Ya was nowhere to be found as well. Thus, she was the only adult left at home, along with several children in the courtyard of the Gu household.
Some of these children were Gu Ya’s nieces and nephews, while others were kids from the neighboring families. The group of children huddled together, appearing to be playing with little bugs on the ground.
Leaning on the door frame, Su Yunjin watched the children in the courtyard. Seeing them playing happily, Su Yunjin lingered for a while.
She was to prepare dinner tonight just as she had at lunchtime when Mrs. Chu, the fifth brother’s wife, had come back to help her cook. However, Mrs. Chu did not return to assist her in the evening.
With her experience from lunch, Su Yunjin found it not too difficult to prepare dinner for the entire Gu household. She cooked the leftover pig blood from lunch and also made a dish with pig intestines, along with a stir-fried tender water celery dish. The combination of meat and vegetables made for several fragrant dishes on the table.
The workers from the Gu Family returned from the fields, everyone except for Gu Ya. Su Yunjin had thought that Gu Ya had gone hunting on the mountain with the others.
But Mrs. An looked puzzled and said, “Third daughter-in-law, haven’t you seen the third son all afternoon? His leg is crippled, and mother didn’t let him go to the field to reap rice. It’s so late and he hasn’t returned. Where could your husband have gone?”
After Gu Ya had given her the medicine, Su Yunjin hadn’t seen him again. At Mrs. An’s inquiry, Su Yunjin also shook her head, “Mother, I don’t know where my husband went. After he had lunch, I haven’t seen him.”
Mrs. An frowned with a flash of concern in her eyes, “Strange, where could the third son have gone? It’s rare for him to not have returned so late!”
If this were the past when Gu Ya’s leg was fine, Mrs. An wouldn’t have been worried even if he hadn’t come back. But now that Gu Ya’s leg was crippled and he hadn’t been seen so late in the evening, Mrs. An couldn’t help but feel uneasy. She turned to her eldest and fourth sons, delegating a search, “Baofu, Tiezhu, you two go out and look for your brother! The third son hasn’t come back yet; I hope nothing has happened to him.”