Chapter 802 - 804: Lecture
Chapter 802: Chapter 804: Lecture
Whenever Gu Yuanfeng thought about the current miserable state of the youngest, she felt a bit apprehensive and didn’t dare to cause a scene. She took her two daughters and granddaughter, scraped together some more things from her maiden home, and finally left.
Li Cuicui had long given up hope on her, but she didn’t want to let this matter slide so easily either.
Not wanting Gu Wenheng to worry about such trivial matters, she called the other brothers of the Gu family over and gave them some instructions. The brothers immediately turned around and summoned Shi Dayong to the village entrance.
Facing the Gu brothers who had shown up together, Shi Dayong couldn’t help but feel a little panicked.
"What important matter did you call me over for?"
Gu Yuanshui crossed his arms. "Don’t you have any idea why we called you over?"
Gu Yuanhuo snorted and kicked a pebble by his foot. "Old Fourth, he’s just playing dumb. I refuse to believe that someone with a pig’s brain like Gu Yuanfeng could stir up so much trouble.
"In the past, we thought the Shi family wasn’t too bad. We never expected you to be so scheming."
He really didn’t know what kind of fate this sister of his had. She had just jumped out of the fire pit that was the He Family, only to leap straight into the thieves’ den of the Shi family in the blink of an eye.
Shi Dayong cried foul with an honest and simple-minded look on his face. "I know Yuan Feng’s recent actions have been a bit inappropriate. I’ve scolded her in private, but you all know how she is. She doesn’t listen to anyone. I really can’t do anything about her."
Gu Yuanjin said, "That silly sister of mine has a one-track mind and is too easily swayed. If no one was whispering gossip and rumors into her ear, she wouldn’t act like this.
"Furthermore, stop pretending to be innocent here. We warned you back then. Have you forgotten how your son schemed against Chuncao?
"Don’t tell me you didn’t know about that either?
"Living under the same roof, what kind of life has Chuncao been leading? I don’t believe that you, her stepfather, don’t know.
"You schemed against one after another, and this time, you actually dared to target a daughter of the Gu family. Do you really think we brothers are so easily bullied?"
Shi Dayong put on a bitter face and said, "I also know Laiyun is a bit disappointing, but he is still your own nephew, after all. As long as you can lend him a helping hand, he definitely won’t mess around like he does now.
"Besides, our two families know each other inside and out. Yuan Feng just wanted to bring our families even closer through marriage..."
Hearing this, Gu Yuantu directly kicked the man to the ground. "Do you think you get to make decisions for my daughter?
"I’m putting my foot down right here and now. If you go around spouting those ambiguous rumors outside again, I will convince our parents to sever all ties with Gu Yuanfeng.
"Without this connection to our family, who would even recognize you, Shi Dayong, when you walk out the door?"
Shi Dayong lay sprawled on the ground, his hands scraped and bleeding. However, he didn’t dare show any dissatisfaction on his face. Forcing an apologetic smile, he said, "I will definitely talk to Yuan Feng when I get back. Since Yuantu didn’t take a fancy to my bastard son, we certainly wouldn’t dare to have any wild delusions..."
"You’d better remember your words. Don’t think that just because you always let Yuan Feng charge to the front lines while you reap the benefits from behind, we are oblivious. Actually, all of our families are fully aware.
"But we also have our bottom line. We can tolerate it once or twice, but if there’s a third time, I doubt you’ll want to know the consequences."
Gu Yuanjin squatted down and patted his shoulder. "Today, you kept parading your two sons in front of our Old Seventh. Do you really think I don’t know what you’re plotting?
"It’s not that I, as their uncle, look down on those two sons of yours. If they had done even a single proper thing in all these years, I would consider them capable.
"With their petty tricks of stealing and pilfering, who within a ten-mile radius doesn’t know what they are?
"Instead of scheming for these things, you might as well go back and teach them some manners.
"Don’t you think what I’m saying makes sense?"
Shi Dayong nodded repeatedly. "Yuan Jin, everything you say makes sense. It’s just that as parents, we always want to plan ahead for our kids.
"You see, Wenheng is capable. If he just lifts a finger, he can help them find a livelihood. That’s much more useful than any grand principles I could preach.
"Yuan Jin, could you perhaps put in a good word for us? I will always remember your kindness."
Gu Yuanlei scoffed, "Heh, you don’t actually think we’re refusing to let that boy follow Old Seventh around because we’re ostracizing him, do you?
"Don’t forget, the entire Gu family is currently relying on our seventh brother. Boys like those two of yours would only drag him down if they went out with him.
"Do you think the current achievements of our nephews were all just handed to them by my seventh brother?
"Then you really haven’t looked into it clearly. No matter which boy follows him around, they all have to be tempered and trained. They all start at the bottom doing the hardest and most exhausting work.
"It’s not that I, as his uncle, look down on my nephew, but with his kind of scheming mindset, Old Seventh would see right through him at a single glance."
Shi Dayong had been able to endure it all before, but now that his own boys were being belittled as completely worthless, a hint of anger surfaced on his face.
"Don’t you dare act like you’re not convinced," Gu Yuanshui said, feeling that since they had called him out today, they needed to make things crystal clear. "When you sent him to the clan school before, you should already know in your heart what the teacher said about him.
"He studied for so long, yet he still can’t write a few basic characters properly, let alone count.
"With him being like that, what exactly could he do if you let him go out with Old Seventh?"
With that kind of temperament, he would only cause trouble. The Gu family members weren’t stupid; there was no way they would let such a menace tag along beside Gu Wenheng.
The brothers took turns laying into him, leaving Shi Dayong, who had been trying to argue his way out, completely speechless. In the end, he made repeated promises that he would definitely keep Gu Yuanfeng in check from now on. If any more trouble arose in the meantime, he would take full responsibility for it.
After giving the man one last stern warning and knocking some sense into him, the brothers finally draped their arms over each other’s shoulders and headed back.
"If you ask me, we should have done this a long time ago," Gu Yuanhuo said, feeling a bit shortchanged that he hadn’t taken the opportunity to kick him just now. "In the entire Shi family, this Shi Dayong is actually the most devious one. He only knows how to hide in the back and reap the benefits.
"I heard from my wife today that Gu Yuanfeng took things back from Mother’s place again!
"It’s not that I’m being a stingy older brother, but it’s been all take and no give for so many years. I can’t believe Shi Dayong still has the nerve."
"Heh," Gu Yuanshui sneered. "He might be useless at everything else, but he’s the absolute best at playing deaf and dumb.
"Just watch. Our warning this time will only keep him suppressed for a short while. In a few days, he definitely won’t be able to hold back again.
"It’s all because the old lady of our family is too soft-hearted. If she got ruthless and taught this family a lesson, do you think they would still dare?"
"It’s quite annoying having to deal with their crap all day," Gu Yuanjin said, sometimes feeling that being the eldest wasn’t easy. "Let’s wait and see. If they don’t know how to rein themselves in, even if we are biological siblings, there should be an end to it."
As soon as the brothers entered the door, Gu Wenheng leaned against the door pillar and looked at them. "Brothers, where did you go?"
Gu Yuanjin tugged at the lapels of his clothes and said with some hesitation, "We just went for a walk to the village entrance. Are you done chatting with the elders over there?"
"I’ve already had someone escort them back," Gu Wenheng said, looking at them with a smile. "What bad deeds were you off doing? You didn’t even think to invite me. Were you afraid I’d be too slow to strike?"
Gu Yuanshui smiled and replied, "...We did want to invite you, but we were afraid that the moment you stood there, you’d scare the person half to death. If that happened, there wouldn’t be any fun left in it."