Chapter 26 Selling Own Daughter For Money
Unsurprisingly, the person on the other side fell silent, as if he was torn between whether to come or not. Gu Ye held back a smirk and said, “I’m just kidding. If I’m inviting you to dinner, we definitely wouldn’t come to this kind of place.”
Yu Ze probably didn’t expect Gu Ye to joke with him, so he paused for a moment before chuckling, “I have a meeting later so I can’t come. But I’ll treat you guys to some after-meal dessert.”
Gu Ye looks at Zhao Pengyu, your little uncle is such a nice guy!
Zhao Pengyu shook his head like a rattle. He held out both hands with Gu Ye like Er Kang’s pose, indicating that his uncle is not as nice as he thought. He suffered countless hidden damages when he was a child. His childhood memories were all of his uncle’s tricks*.
*This sentence is a play of words that is not translatable to English so Banana just replace with something similar.
Sure enough, Yu Ze kept his word. In a short while, someone brought a box of desserts. There are all kinds of desserts, and the portions are just right for tasting. Gu Ye said in a surprised tone, “He actually knows where we are.”
“It should be he checked the GPS I have on my body.” Zhao Pengyu used a fork to flip the dessert box and then checked the desserts one by one. As he did that, he turned his face to the side, for fear that something would spray out from the dessert and hit himself with cream foam.
Gu Ye and Xia Xiang didn’t think too much. They each took one and ate it. It makes them wonder where Yu Ze ordered these desserts from. It tastes better than the ones sold in the shops. The cream melts in the mouth, and the chilly feeling; very tasty. Zhao Pengyu only dared to eat the desserts when he saw the two of them are eating well.
Xia Xiang asked, “Your uncle is really kind to you. He only has you as the only nephew?”
“No, I’m the oldest. My second aunt’s family has twins, and my third aunt’s family has a younger cousin. When I was young, no one cared about me so I often lived in my grandfather’s house. My uncle is only 7 years older than me, and he teases me like a monkey every day. Maybe that’s why he likes me the most.” Zhao Pengyu had a serious face, and he almost believed what he said.
Xia Xiang pointed out mercilessly, “He didn’t even want you to talk just now.”
Zhao Pengyu: “Don’t say it! One does not simply reveal the truth!”
Gu Ye smiled and ate another piece of dessert. He doesn’t like dessert very much and just tastes for something new. But he did eat more than usual today. After eating and drinking, the three of them went to a nearby video game city and played games all afternoon. It is past 5.00 pm when he got back.
When Gu Ye got home, he saw the invitation card on his desk, and couldn’t help admiring. These words from Old Master Yu deserved to be framed up and treated as a treasure. The handwriting is vigorous and powerful, flying like dragons and phoenixes. Without decades of foundation, momentum, and insight, one simply can’t write such characters.
During dinner at night, Gu Decheng asked Gu Ye, “I heard that you received an invitation from the Yu family?”
Gu Ye answered calmly, “The old master invited me to appreciate the antiques.”
Gu Decheng happily said, “Not bad. Inviting you to this tea party should be because you saved Zhao Pengyu. It’s also good to go and broaden your knowledge. The Yu family has a rich cultural background, and the old master’s calligraphy and paintings are all national treasures. You should talk less, listen more, watch more, and learn more.”
Gu Ye nodded obediently. The way to survive in this family is – Everything Dad said is right.
“Take out that invitation card of yours…” Gu Decheng paused and said seriously, “… and bring it to me to have a look.”
Gu Ye asked worriedly, “You won’t cut out those words and keep them for collection, right? Don’t cut out holes in my invitation card.”
Hearing that, Gu Decheng’s face darkened, “Am I that kind of person? How could I rob my son?”
After admiring Old Master Yu’s handwriting, Gu Decheng casually put the invitation card by his side, pressed on it with his elbow, and continued to eat. Gu Ye curled his lips, you don’t want to rob me, you just simply take it away.
Mrs. Gu rolled her eyes and placed a shrimp in Gu Ye’s bowl. Then she asked flatteringly, “Would you like to take your brother together with you? It’s summer vacation at that time.”
Gu Decheng clicked his tongue, and asked disapprovingly, “What’s the point with bringing the child along?”
Gu Ye didn’t mind and said, “It’s fine to take him along. Then we can go and play with Zhao Pengyu.”
Mrs. Gu shrank her neck when her husband looked at her, “Isn’t this just to let Gu Yang join in the fun and gain a lot of knowledge? If you don’t want him to go, then he won’t go.”
At this moment, Gu Ye wisely says nothing so to protect himself. He retreated to his room when he was full and began to pack his things.
Early the next morning, when the nanny called Gu Ye down for breakfast, she found that he had left a note on the table, and had disappeared. The nanny saw the words written on the paper, clutched her little heart, and rushed downstairs, “It’s not good! Sir! Ma’am! The third young master ran away from home!”
“Run away from home?” Mrs. Gu got taken aback. Wasn’t he fine last night?
Gu Decheng read the letter Gu Ye left for him with a cold face, and slapped the table angrily, “Just reaching adulthood and he thinks his wings are strong enough to fly. Servants, bring him back to me!”
“Don’t, don’t, don’t!” Mrs. Gu hurriedly stopped Gu Decheng. After reading Gu Ye’s message and knowing that he just wanted to go out for a walk, she quickly comforted her husband and soothed him, “The child has finished his college entrance examination and just wants to go out to relax. He is no longer a child, you can let him go.”
“You are still pampering him. If he dares to run away from home today, he will dare to elope with a girl tomorrow!”
Mrs. Gu didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. This train of thought is going too far, “To put it bluntly, you just can’t bear to see your child grow up.”
Gu Decheng asked angrily: “You are still protecting him until now, how many benefits have you received from him?”
Mrs. Gu snorted and muttered unhappily, “Is it easy for me to be a mother? If I don’t care for him, you will say that I treated him badly. But it’s still my fault if I protected him. What do you really want me to do?”
Gu Decheng got a mental slap in the face by the last sentence. If he continued this conversation, she would make a fuss again. So, President Gu sighed heavily and said, “A benevolent mother who spoils her children will have bad children! You just continue to pamper him like all I care, I’m going to the company now!”
Mrs. Gu quickly sent a message to Gu Ye, “Come back after playing for a few days, or your father will send someone to catch you. At that time, I really can’t stop it.”
Gu Ye replied after seeing the message: [Okay~ Mom, I love you yo~ *finger-gesture heart]
Mrs. Gu sent Gu Ye a string of dots in return. Gu Ye could imagine how speechless the expression on his little mother’s face was after reading his reply, and couldn’t help but laugh by himself.
…
It took Gu Ye a day and a half by car before he arrived at his destination, a small town surrounded by mountains and rivers – Wufu Town.
This is a small town formed by the union of several surrounding villages. There is a river on the outskirts of the town. Looking down from the mountain, it seems like the town is embraced by the river, like a paradise isolated from the world. In fact, this small town is not so closed off from the outside world. Many young people in the town go to work in the city, and the standard of living in the town is not bad.
This small town is the hometown of Shao Fuxian, Gu Ye’s master. Before Shao Fuxian died, he told Gu Ye that he had no other request, but he hoped Gu Ye would take him back to his hometown for burial. Gu Ye went all the way to bring the old man’s ashes back, found a place with good geomantic omens to bury his ashes, and even lived in this small town for a while.
An old woman saw the direction Gu Ye is going, and asked with concern, “Young man, are you here to visit the town?”
Gu Ye smiled and shook his head, “I’m just going home, Auntie. Did something happen in Daliu Village up front?”
The aunt saw that Gu Ye isn’t dressed like a villager, and kindly advised him, “If you are not in a hurry, come back in 2 days. Many people died in Daliu Village. Funerals are going on in the past few days. It’s a mess.”
Gu Ye thanked the aunty for the reminder with a smile and continued to walk in. When approaching the entrance of Daliu Village, he found a large shed built at the entrance of the village. There are several large coffins under the shed, and there are several rows of paper horses and cows next to them. Gu Ye tilted his head and looked carefully, his face became serious. How many people died at once to warrant a collective funeral?
In small villages like this, almost every household has some relation with each other, 7th aunt, 8th aunt, 3rd aunt, and 6th uncle. If something is going on in the countryside, almost the whole family is involved. Generally, when someone from a family dies, a string of hell paper money is placed at the door of the families related to that family.
When Gu Ye entered the village, he found that almost every household had a string of hell paper papers. It is really rare for the whole village to hold a funeral at once. The more he walked, the more he felt uneasy, until he came to the place where he lived before. Gu Ye pushed open the unlocked gate with complicated emotions and found that the yard is already full of weeds. Gu Ye immediately regretted it. He shouldn’t have come back by himself. He should have brought a gardener back with him to change the hairstyle of the green grass.
At this moment, someone at the door asked, “Who are you? Where did you come from?”
Gu Ye turned around and saw a middle-aged man who is not very tall, dark-skinned, and a little thin. He called out happily, “Uncle Guan Ting?”
“You are?” The other party got stunned by his call and didn’t know who Gu Ye was for a while.
Gu Ye realized that he had changed his body now, and the people in this village no longer knew him. He smiled and said, “My senior brother Gu Ye has something to do, so he let me come back to visit Master’s grave. My senior brother mentioned you to me, Uncle Guan Ting, the neighbor uncle who is very good at building houses.”
“Oh! Gu Ye’s junior brother,” Liu Guan Ting smiled innocently when he heard Gu Ye praise him and stopped acting distant like a stranger to Gu Ye, “He actually let you come back alone, you are not familiar with this place,” Liu Guan Ting glanced at the courtyard and said with disgust, “It’s impossible to find a place to step on at all. Just wait for a moment, Uncle will tidy up the yard for you in a while.”
After a while, the uncle came back with a big shovel and quickly leveled the grass in the yard. Gu Ye felt really embarrassed to bother Guan Ting, so he stuffed the other party with a sesame oil chicken he bought on the road. His excuse is that his senior brother asked him to bring it, and I have to give it away.
Uncle Guan Ting accepted it embarrassingly, and enthusiastically asked Gu Ye to go to their house for dinner. Gu Ye declined, and asked by the way, “Uncle, what happened in our village?”
At the mention of this, the smile on Liu Guan Ting’s face faded. He took out a cigarette, lit it, took a deep puff, and said after a long time, “It’s miserable!”
After finishing smoking the cigarette, Liu Guan Ting finally calmed down and began to say, “It’s the rainy season now. The rain is heavy and the current is fast so the river has washed away the bridge in the town. Many people in our village are working on construction sites outside. Since they promise to work on people’s projects, they have to do it. There are people in the village who know how to row boats. So they pulled out the old boats at home, and use them to carry people across the river. It was fine for the first few days, but the boat capsized the day before yesterday.”
Uncle Guan Ting sighed, “A dozen people got caught under the boat. Even those who can swim are not spared. In the end, only 2 came back alive.”
There are also a few buddies who grew up with Liu Guan Ting among the deceased. The more he talks, the more uncomfortable he becomes. Liu Guan Ting wiped away his tears and picked up the big shovel for weeding.
“Uncle is going to help dig the grave. If you need something, go to ask your aunt (LGT’s wife).”
Gu Ye sent Liu Guan Ting out. Hearing the cries from all over the village, he heaved a long sigh and lamented that the world is impermanent.
Gu Ye checked the circuit and found that there is no problem. There are pots and pans at home, and they can be used after washing them a bit. When it is getting dark, Gu Ye took out the food he bought on the road from his backpack and warmed it up. Just as Gu Ye is eating, he heard a burst of crying outside and many people shouting and cursing, as if something terrible had happened.
Gu Ye quickly spread out a flatbread. He shaved off the meat from the chicken legs, and then put some shredded cucumbers. Rolling them into a roll (like kimbap), he went out to watch the commotion.
Surrounded by the crowd, a middle-aged aunt is held up by two women. She is crying so much that she couldn’t walk by herself. As she is being dragged away, she scolded, “Li Dahai! You have no conscience! You are inhuman! You will not end well! You dare to sell your own daughter! Are you not afraid that your daughter will find you in the middle of the night?! Pity my son, nothing is left behind. Why didn’t you think about the parents who raised you when you jumped down!”[1]
The surrounding villagers sympathetically scolded along with the woman, “So heartless, actually selling own daughter for money!”
“What is this thing? Liu Chao has suffered, and now his life ended for nothing, alas!”
Gu Ye walked behind the two aunts and asked in a low voice, “Auntie, what’s going on?”
Sometimes, being good-looking has its own advantage. The aunts saw Gu Ye’s nice appearance with red lips and white teeth. Even if he is not from this village, she still talked to him, “This woman’s son Liu Chao and Li Cui, a girl from the next village[1], grew up together as childhood sweethearts. The two graduated and worked outside together. This time they said they were coming back to get engaged and gotten just in time to catch the boat. There was a big wave and the girl fell off. The boy can swim, in order to save the girl, he also jumped down. Unexpectedly, the boat capsized and he is caught underneath. If he didn’t jump to save the girl, he might survive.[2]”
Another aunt also came over to chip in, “The boy’s family thought that the two children had a good relationship and since they both died, they should arrange a yin marriage for them. They will be buried together so that they will still be together in the next life. They agreed with the bride’s family yesterday, but who would have thought that when the woman went to discuss this matter today, the other party backed away from the deal.”
“It is said that someone drove from the city in the middle of the night last night. They gave Li Dahai 50,000 yuan and bought Li Cui’s body away that night. Times like this, it is very difficult to find girls for a yin marriage, so everyone is rushing to get them when they caught wind of it.”
When the aunts get together, their gossip can dig out people’s ancestors up to 8 generations. An older lady with red eyes wiped her tears and said, “I heard that the family who bought that girl is the richest man in the county/district. He’s a big boss who runs the coal mine and has a lot of money in his family. His son was executed by shooting a few years ago, he was a murderer.”
“Aiya! Li Dahai is really inhuman! This kind of person’s money also dares to take, and he is not afraid of retribution. Does he feel at ease spending the money from selling his daughter?”
Amidst a group of sighs and cursing, Gu Ye suddenly felt a ghostly aura. He looked over vigilantly and saw a young man in his early twenties standing on a hillside not far away. The young man looked at the woman who got taken home with a painful expression, the black aura above his head became more and more intense. Just as Gu Ye is about to chase after him, the ghost disappeared in a flash.
With a sullen face, Gu Ye counted with his fingers, and cursed in his heart: F U U C C K!
Raw word count: 4049
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[1] 这家儿子刘朝和隔壁村闺女李翠 – the raw said that Li Cui is from the other village so Banana is not very sure why the son’s mother is making a commotion in her own village instead of Li Dahai’s house?
[2] But to be honest, which fiancee won’t jump down to save the person they wanted to marry? Especially they are planning to get married.