Chapter 577 - 496: Shifting the Blame (Part 2)
Chapter 577: Chapter 496: Shifting the Blame (Part 2)
"Shaoling said she wanted to eat the dried fish Grandma Tang gave us. She also said Grandma usually keeps it in the kitchen cabinet, so I thought..." Tian Xueqin trailed off.
Granny Gu was so angry she raised her hand as if to strike her. "You woman! Have you no sense? Your older and younger sisters-in-law were home. What would have been so hard about asking if there was any of that dried fish left? Even if your eyes are failing you, what about your nose? Can’t you tell the difference between the smell of saltwater and freshwater fish? Ugh, I give up on you!"
Grandma Tang sneered, "You can’t just give up. Your second daughter-in-law thinks *I* gave her that spoiled dried fish. Would I, Fang Qinglan, ever do something like that? Shaoling eats something bad and ends up in the hospital, and the moment my daughter and I get here, she blames us! She claims the Tang family sent rotten food, and that the Gu family has to be grateful to us even as they eat our trash! Is that how a decent person speaks?"
Granny Gu was so furious she was left speechless.
Grandpa Gu’s face was black as thunder. Gu Qifan slipped away to one side for a smoke. Gu Qiyuan had been smiling when he first walked over—Xiao Man loved the sight of him in his snow-white naval uniform, a handsome uncle who was gentle and elegant yet still possessed a commanding presence. But after hearing all this, his face became an expressionless mask. He stood ramrod straight behind Grandpa Gu, radiating an icy chill, looking for all the world like a statue carved from white ice.
Tian Xueqin’s face turned ashen. "Aunt Tang, I never said such things!"
"So you’re saying I came all this way just to slander you? I have better things to do! Your husband’s oldest and third sisters-in-law were right there." Grandma Tang had nothing more to say.
Granny Gu and Grandma Tang usually enjoyed trading friendly barbs, but they knew each other’s character inside and out. Hearing this, Granny Gu knew without asking that Grandma Tang was telling the truth. She shot Tian Xueqin a cold glare but, for the sake of her second son’s dignity, refrained from scolding her in front of everyone.
Grandpa Gu, however, glared at his other two daughters-in-law. "Wife of my eldest son, and wife of my third. Did you both hear what the second’s wife said?"
Zhou Huilan and Jiang Yuyan nodded in unison.
Grandpa Gu said, "Wife of my eldest, as the senior sister-in-law, did you simply allow her to disrespect her elder?"
Zhou Huilan replied, "I tried to reason with my second sister-in-law and told her to apologize to Aunt Tang, but she refused. She said that because of that incident last year, she couldn’t come home for the New Year. As a result, she missed her chance to see Shaofeng and couldn’t stop his marriage in time. She’s blaming Manman for being immature and causing a ruckus, claiming it ruined Shaofeng’s prospects. She’s still bitter about it!"
Jiang Yuyan wanted to add her two cents, but seeing that the old master’s face was so contorted with anger it looked like you could wring water from it, she decided to keep quiet.
Granny Gu glared at Tian Xueqin, her expression one of utter disappointment. "You... I will deal with you later! You blame everyone and everything, but how can you possibly blame Manman? What does Shaofeng’s marriage have to do with her? You’re completely muddle-headed! You’ve become useless!"
Without a single glance at Tian Xueqin, Grandpa Gu exchanged a few words with Grandma Tang and then left with Xiao Man. Xiao Man had come specifically to discuss their Cultivation, so they needed to find a quiet place to talk.
Gu Qiyuan, Gu Qifan, and Gu Shaoqin followed behind them. Without turning his head, and paying no mind to Xiao Man’s presence, Grandpa Gu spoke in a grave voice, "The men of the Gu family are born with a sense of duty. Our womenfolk, though they may stay within the home, are not permitted to be so weak as to shirk responsibility or shift blame. Pushing the fault for one’s own mistakes onto someone else is absolutely forbidden! You and your wife must formally apologize to your Aunt Tang and Manman! I was the one who approved Shaofeng’s marriage. If you have an objection, you can bring it to me. When you two wanted to marry, there were many disparities between our families. Your mother and I advised you against it time and again, but seeing how insistent you were, we eventually allowed you to marry. Now that you’re faced with the same situation, what right do you have to look down on that girl? Is Tian Xueqin not the daughter of a common worker herself? To openly resort to schemes, coercion, and intimidation, even to threaten the girl’s life... you know as well as I do that such actions are illegal! I spoke to you about this before, but it seems you’ve forgotten. To then allow her to shift the blame onto Manman is simply preposterous! Take your wife and go home today, and reflect on what you’ve done. If you can’t bear to be without Shaoling, take her with you. But if you intend to leave her here in our Beijing home, then do not come back and disturb us again! In the future, should either of you be transferred back to Beijing, you will be allocated housing in your work-unit’s compound. You will not live in this house again. It seems it will be just your mother and I, watching over this old residence until our final days."
"Yes, Father. I understand," Gu Qiyuan replied, his voice devoid of inflection, his tone serious and formal.
At noon, Gu Qiyuan and Tian Xueqin did not appear at the dining table. Zhou Huilan told Xiao Man that Second Uncle Gu and Second Aunt Gu went to the hospital to see Shaoling, and then went directly back to Lian City.
Tian Xueqin had not wanted to return to Lian City so quickly. Gu Qiyuan knew she had purchased a house where several members of the Tian family were now living. He figured that if she stayed any longer, she would inevitably go and associate with her family, possibly even taking Gu Shaoling with her. Gu Qiyuan was growing more and more disgusted with the Tian family, so without another word, he bundled Tian Xueqin into the car and drove off.
Tian Xueqin was deeply resentful, but one look at Gu Qiyuan’s stormy expression was enough for her to wisely keep her mouth shut.
’Such a waste of her vacation,’ she thought, ’a whole week!’ Her plans had been perfect: she was going to spend time with her daughter and her side of the family, catch up with friends in Beijing to nurture those connections, and also pay a visit to her preferred choice for a daughter-in-law, Zeng Rong. She refused to acknowledge Wu Xiangyun. ’That treacherous little bitch.’ She’d taken the payoff and promised her to her face, only to turn around and seduce her son again. When Tian Xueqin heard they had gotten married, she had nearly fainted from rage.
’That low-class girl—no background, no education, plain-looking, and utterly uncultured. She had clearly accepted the terms and promised to never show her face to Shaofeng again, yet she had the audacity to go back on her word and secretly contact him to demand marriage! The absolute nerve!’
’Her son came from a wealthy and aristocratic family. He was so exceptional, so outstanding! His future was destined to be paved with gold. How could he possibly be sullied by the daughter of some small-city factory worker!’
’Human nature truly is sinister and insatiably greedy! That girl was just lucky. The people she’d sent to take care of it couldn’t be too obvious, so they could only stage an accident where she fell into the water. The plan was that a Southerner, unused to the cold, falling through a hole in the ice in the North would be half-dead even if she didn’t drown on the spot. She wouldn’t have lasted long. But who would have thought she’d actually survive!’
’Does she think that surviving a great calamity means she’s destined for good fortune?’
Tian Xueqin gritted her teeth. ’In her dreams! I will destroy that marriage. I will save my son!’