Chapter 387: Seeking Help
Chapter 387: Chapter 387: Seeking Help
If Gu Kaichen had turned around, he would have realized that the young man was Lin Hua—and that this was yet another trap set for him by Gu Kaiyuan.
But even if he had known, he still would have jumped right in. He no longer had a place in Zhang County.
He ran all the way home. Seeing Xu Yulan sorting through wild vegetables, he marched over and kicked the basket away. "Stop messing with that! Pack our things. We’re going home."
"What crazy nonsense are you spouting now?" Xu Yulan said. She thought they were already home. However, when she looked up and saw his bruised and battered face, her voice immediately turned shrill. "Did you go gambling again?"
"Never mind that," Gu Kaichen said. "When I say ’home,’ I mean the capital. The Third Prince gave my dad a house there. I’m done living this miserable life."
Xu Yulan immediately jumped to her feet. "Are you serious? Did your father send a carriage to pick us up?"
She no longer cared that the scattered wild vegetables were supposed to be their dinner. Once they returned to the capital, they could eat all the delicacies they wanted!
"No. They’ve probably forgotten all about us," Gu Kaichen said, his voice thick with resentment. "I heard from someone else. If they won’t come to get us, we’ll go there ourselves."
If Xu Shuanghong and her daughter dared to make the journey alone, what did they have to fear?
"But we have nothing! How are we going to afford the journey?" Xu Yulan asked. Aside from the jewelry that had been confiscated earlier, Gu Kaichen had gradually sold off everything else they had acquired. Their home was practically bare walls.
"Just go pack a few sets of clothes. I have a plan," Gu Kaichen said. He went back to the bedroom, gathered his best outfits, and slung his makeshift knapsack over his shoulder. A sharp pain shot through his back, instantly causing him to double over.
Xu Yulan didn’t even glance at him, rushing back to her room to pack. Once they returned to the capital, she would no longer be a helpless, pitiful woman. She planned to complain to her maiden family, and the Gu family would be forced to compensate her.
Preoccupied with their own thoughts, the couple packed quickly. When Gu Kaichen led her to Gu Li’s house, Xu Yulan immediately guessed his so-called "plan."
She doubted Gu Li would be willing to help. Everyone in the clan knew how miserable her life in the village had been lately, yet not a single person had offered a helping hand.
Still, she didn’t try to stop him. Gu Kaichen might be a scoundrel, but he had a knack for petty schemes. Perhaps he could actually pull this off.
When Gu Li saw Gu Kaichen and his beaten-up state, his eyelids drooped. He remained silent.
"Great-uncle," Gu Kaichen said, dropping straight to his knees. "Please help me."
"How could I possibly help you?" Gu Li asked. "I’m just a useless old man now."
"You’re the Clan Leader! I’m begging you to seek justice for me—"
Bai He, who had rushed back upon hearing the news, sneered. "Your information is a bit outdated. Thanks to you and your father, my dad is no longer the Clan Leader.
"If you want the Clan Leader to seek justice for you, turn left on your way out. It’s the fifth house down the road."
Gu Kaichen wasn’t familiar with the clan members and had no idea who lived in the fifth house. As far as he was concerned, this Great-uncle was his closest relative in the clan; everyone else was beyond five degrees of kinship.
"You’re our Great-uncle. I can’t trust anyone else," Gu Kaichen said.
"You didn’t rack up more gambling debts and come to us to pay them off, did you?" Gu Kaichun walked in with his brothers. Seeing Gu Kaichen’s condition, they assumed he had been beaten by debt collectors again. Who would dare get involved with someone like that? Gu Kaichun couldn’t help but speak up to warn his family against acting as bleeding hearts.
Sure enough, his words put everyone on high alert. This was not a mess they wanted to touch.
"No, it’s not that!" Terrified of being kicked out before he could explain, Gu Kaichen hurried to clarify. "My dad has settled down in the capital. My wife and I want to go back."
"Then go back," Gu Kaichun muttered. "That’s none of our business. If you just came to let us know, well, now we know."
"Great-uncle, you know I’ve been a bit of a scoundrel lately. I’ve spent all the silver at home. But traveling to the capital requires funds, so I wanted to borrow some from you first."
"So you really are here for money," Gu Kailiang scoffed. "Is this just a new excuse? Any money lent to you will surely never return."
"No, Great-uncle, you have to believe me!" Gu Kaichen was determined to achieve his goal today, no matter what. "I’ve already packed my bags! If you don’t believe me, you can come with me.
"Didn’t my dad promise to find a place to settle you all in the capital? Let’s go back together and settle this with him face-to-face."
Gu Kaichen’s words were genuinely tempting. The clan members who had been watching the spectacle from outside the door began to scheme.
The last time, Gu Baijiang had left in a hurry, and with the Third Prince’s guards present, they hadn’t dared to do anything.
But at the end of the day, they were his clan members and elders. If they showed up at his doorstep, they didn’t believe Gu Baijiang would actually turn them away.
Gu Li looked up and saw the new Clan Leader standing outside. "Bai Mu, you’re the Clan Leader now. Naturally, matters like this are up to you to decide.
"I’m old, I lack the energy, and I don’t want to meddle anymore."
With that, he reached out, grabbed his eldest son’s arm, and hobbled back into the inner room.
Gu Kaichen cursed internally, "If you aren’t the Clan Leader anymore, you should have said so earlier! You made me kneel for so long over nothing!"
He quickly stood up. He had knelt for Gu Li because the man was an elder, but who was this new Clan Leader? Hearing Gu Li call him Bai Mu meant he was from his father’s generation. "Clan Leader, who do you think should accompany me to the capital?
"As soon as we arrive, I’ll make my father fulfill his promise."
Bai Mu noticed that many clan members looked tempted. This was their greatest hope. "There’s no rush," he said. "We need to discuss this thoroughly and decide exactly how many people should go, and who they should be."
Hearing that they needed to discuss it, Gu Kaichen furrowed his brow, suddenly feeling his body ache even more. "How long do you need?"
Bai Mu glanced at the sky outside. "It’s getting late. Even if you left now, you wouldn’t be able to find a carriage."
Although they had heard the journey was safe now, they couldn’t possibly walk all the way back. They really needed to plan this out.
How many people should go? How much would the journey cost? How much should everyone pitch in? All of these details had to be calculated.
Gu Kaichen tried to rush them again, but Xu Yulan quickly grabbed his arm. "The Clan Leader is right. Everything will have to wait until tomorrow."
She wasn’t some ignorant woman. The clan members were poor; scraping together the funds would take time.
Gu Kaichen was dragged away. The moment they returned to their dilapidated house, he tossed his bundle aside. "Hurry up and make something to eat so we have the energy to travel tomorrow."
Looking at the wild vegetables scattered on the floor, Xu Yulan realized she was quite hungry. She had no choice but to crouch down, gather them up again, and give them a quick wash by the river. Throwing them directly into a pot with some water, she boiled them, sprinkled in a handful of salt, and scooped a bowl for each of them.
"We eat this trash every single day..."
Xu Yulan didn’t even look up. "If you don’t want it, don’t eat it. I foraged these from the foot of the mountain myself. Otherwise, you wouldn’t have a single bite."
Gu Kaichen was left speechless. If he had been able to return to the capital sooner, he never would have become addicted to gambling...