Chapter 81: Chapter 81: Secrets

“Old sir, I made some plain rice porridge and brought it over. It’s the most comfortable thing for someone who’s sick to eat. Brother Ji, why don’t you feed him some?”

Gu Qinghuan poured the porridge from the thermos straight into Ji Linhai’s big bowl, then poured out the water inside.

“You two… are so thoughtful.” Ji Linhai looked a bit embarrassed, standing there awkwardly.

He hadn’t expected the two of them to be so considerate, even bringing over porridge. He’d been so flustered earlier that he hadn’t prepared anything, and besides, there wasn’t any rice left at home.

Someone just recovering from a serious illness usually has no appetite, and plain rice porridge is just right for the stomach. The old man’s eyes lit up with hunger—his stomach was full of nothing but water—so he urged his son to hurry up and feed him.

“Come on, boy, hurry up.

And you two kids, thank you.” The last sentence was directed at Gu Qinghuan and her companion.

He spoke in a southern dialect—it sounded a bit odd, but they could more or less understand.

Ji Linhai quickly sat by the kang, feeding his father while chatting with the two.

Xu Huai’an waved his hand and replied, “No need to be polite, sir.”

Gu Qinghuan gave a few instructions: “The old man is still weak, so for now, he should eat more liquid foods and avoid anything dry or hard. That’s bad for the stomach and hard to digest.

My husband brought you ten jin of rice—take it for the old man, just in case.”

Xu Huai’an suddenly remembered and quickly put down the bag he was carrying by the kang.

This was actually Gu Qinghuan’s idea. Since they’d already helped this far, they might as well see it through and build some goodwill.

Ji Linhai thanked them again, “I really don’t know what to say. You’ve given us food and rice…”

Gu Qinghuan didn’t like hearing polite refusals. “Don’t say anything. We don’t lack this, and you don’t need to worry about returning the favor.”

That was true—since they lived nearby, Ji Linhai knew their family ate well.

After saying this, the two of them got ready to leave.

Ji Linhai wanted to see them out, but Xu Huai’an stopped him. “Take good care of your father. We’ll head back.”

They hadn’t even left the house when they heard the old man’s voice: “Ji Linhai, give me the bowl! I want to eat by myself. You’re too slow!”

This father and son really were a pair of characters.

But being able to keep this kind of attitude even in tough times showed they were both unusual people.

With this back-and-forth, the two families started having more private interactions.

Sometimes Ji Linhai would bring over bamboo rats he’d caught, or some wild chicken or duck eggs, just as a token of thanks.

Naturally, Gu Qinghuan would reciprocate generously—sometimes she’d secretly send over some of their own home-cooked food.

Xu Huai’an would even sometimes quietly take Ji Linhai out to set traps, lending him their own, and teaching him how to set snares so it’d be easier to catch prey.

Ji Linhai was pretty sharp at this—he caught on quickly and soon was catching plenty of game.

But his cooking was truly awful, and he didn’t dare cook meat in the cowshed—better safe than sorry.

So whatever he caught, he’d either have Xu Huai’an help sell it for cash, or hand it over to Gu Qinghuan to cook, splitting it half and half.

They provided the meat, Gu Qinghuan provided the spices.

Of course, Gu Qinghuan wouldn’t let them lose out—the game would be sold in her “space” for ten yuan each, and they’d be gone as soon as they were listed.

Then she’d pay Ji Linhai the highest market price, five yuan each, making a bit of profit herself.

But it wasn’t that she wanted to profit off them—ten yuan was just too outrageous, so this was a compromise.

Xu Huai’an told Ji Linhai he’d process the wild game and sell it to a friend who did freight runs.

Ji Linhai didn’t ask much—he was clearly very satisfied with the price.

Finally having a way to make money, he was thrilled to sneak out and set traps every day.

Before long, Ji Linhai had made forty or fifty yuan.

With food in hand, there was no more panic.

His father’s close call had made him realize for the first time how helpless it was to be penniless.

But he was also glad he’d knocked on the Xu family’s door.

All in all, the two families were getting closer by the day.

That day, Gu Qinghuan finally received a reply letter from Zhong Luoning.

Reading it, she was so angry she could barely breathe.

What was going on with Gu Lanting? Something this important, and he hadn’t told the family? How could a kid who hadn’t even finished high school handle this on his own?

Poor child, bullied so badly.

Dropping out of school, running away from home, working to support his family…

But to be fair, the kid was really filial. That eighteen yuan, five mao, and three fen was probably all the money he had, and he sent it all home. Who knows what he’s eating or drinking.

She’d felt something was off at the time—who sends money in such odd amounts? Usually, people send round numbers.

Sister Luoning said he was working at the Overseas Chinese Hotel, so he was probably getting meals there, and with someone looking out for him, she wasn’t too worried. Young people can stand a little hardship—it’s good for them.

But the fact that this hardship was caused by his own father was infuriating.

A “phoenix man,” a scumbag father, a bastard!

No wonder people say, “With a stepmother comes a stepfather.”

That bastard, he even set up his own son—his heart was rotten through and through.

No, she had to go back and sort this out once and for all.

Lanting was still young, and in a couple of years, the college entrance exam would be reinstated. He needed to focus on his studies and not have his whole life ruined by these scumbags.

Xu Huai’an knew about the situation and agreed she should go back.

Even though she wasn’t the original Gu Qinghuan, after spending all this time together, she already saw the Zhong family and Lanting as her own family—of course she had to look after them.

But he wasn’t comfortable letting her go alone.

Bringing the whole family wasn’t realistic either.

Meanwhile, on the same day the letter arrived, something big happened in the village. Everyone, young and old, was called to a meeting in the drying yard.

Xu Lao’er, the rascal whose luck had been sucked away by Lin Xiaomeng, had gone crazy and run into the mountains. No one knew what wild beast he’d encountered, but he died deep in the forest.

Most of his internal organs and body had been eaten.

All that was left was a bloody skeleton, carried down and left lying on the ground—a terrifying sight that could make a child cry.

No one dared get close—just a glance from afar. Xu Lao’er’s mother had already fainted from crying.

Xu Meiling threw up all over the place.

This reaction made the older women in the village start to speculate.

Could Xu Meiling be pregnant? She was reacting so strongly!

Liu Guifang excitedly pulled her daughter aside to ask about her period.

Lin Xiaomeng was shaking so badly she could barely stand, clutching her son’s eyes shut.

Her heart was pounding out of her chest—she was in a panic.

It was the first time she’d seen someone die such a horrible death because of her interference.

Xu Lao’er’s eyes, wide open in death, seemed to be staring at her, saying: “Why did you harm me? Why did you steal my luck? Give it back!”

For the first time, she felt fear. She couldn’t use that thing so lightly anymore—life was actually pretty good as it was.

Gu Qinghuan took one look at the bloody remains on the ground and couldn’t bear a second glance—it was too gory.

She pulled the two kids behind her, not letting them sneak a peek. If they saw, it’d haunt them for life.

This wasn’t in the book—Xu Lao’er wasn’t supposed to die like this. Something must have changed his fate.

Xu Huai’an clenched his fists, his eyes reddening. He could feel emotions he hadn’t felt in a long time boiling up inside him.

His mind was filled with blood, so much blood, and skeletons just like that one. So many people had fallen around him.

His head throbbed painfully—he felt like he’d forgotten something important, but the more he tried to remember, the more it hurt.

And right then, Xu Mingshan was giving a speech, louder and louder.

“I’ve said it again and again—don’t go into the deep mountains, don’t go into the deep mountains! Xu Lao’er is a warning to us all…”

The next second, Xu Huai’an charged at him and punched his own father to the ground.

“Too noisy.”

Everyone in the drying yard was stunned.

The next moment, everyone scattered.

“Xu Huai’an’s gone crazy again! Run, don’t let him catch you!”

“Girl, run!”

“My god, this lunatic even beats up his own father when he snaps!”

…

Xu Mingshan lay on the ground, unable to get up. He was so angry he could kill Xu Huai’an—his reputation was ruined, and he’d never been so humiliated.

Luckily, Liu Guifang had the sense to drag him away.

No one cared about Xu Lao’er’s corpse—his family had all run off, even his mother was carried away by his brother.

Gu Qinghuan told the two kids to go home first, then hurried after Xu Huai’an.

The kids were worried about Xu Huai’an too, but knew they couldn’t help, so they obediently listened.

Xu Huai’an had run toward the foot of the mountain.

Gu Qinghuan, panting, caught up to him and saw he was hiding behind a big tree with a wooden stick in his hand.

When he saw someone coming, he raised his “gun” at Gu Qinghuan.

“Don’t come any closer! I won’t surrender. Give up on that idea.”

Then he shook his head.

He seemed trapped in his own memories, unable to escape.

Gu Qinghuan had always wanted to understand the cause of his illness—that was the key to curing him.

Right now, the medicine only controlled the symptoms, not the root.

Deep inside, there was always a hidden danger. If anyone touched that sensitive nerve, he’d go mad.

She’d asked him about it in private, but when he was lucid, he couldn’t remember the past.

It was as if he’d chosen to forget the most important memories.

Maybe the trauma was so great he didn’t dare remember.

But this was a good opportunity—maybe when he was in a fit, he’d let slip the things that hurt him most.

Gu Qinghuan had an idea. She grabbed a stick and pointed it at him. “Surrender now! Stop resisting!”

At the word “surrender,” Xu Huai’an’s reaction grew much more intense. Tears even welled up in his eyes, and he shouted emotionally, “I’d rather die than surrender to someone who harms their own people! Sooner or later, I’ll expose your crimes to the organization!

Bastard, if you’ve got the guts, just kill me too! Come on!”

He kept shaking his stick, pretending to shoot.

He even pulled out a stone from somewhere and threw it at Gu Qinghuan—probably thinking it was a grenade.

Gu Qinghuan dodged while carefully thinking over his words.

From what he’d just said, she realized something shocking—he was probably carrying a huge secret.

Based on his words and the spy dramas she’d seen, she boldly guessed that there must have been a high-level traitor in their organization, and that traitor had caused the deaths of his comrades.

But she didn’t know if the matter had ever been resolved.

She tried to get him to say more."

"Chapter 82: Sparring and Becoming Godfamily