Reborn as the Blissful Wife in the countryside-Chapter 15 - 0: Deceived

Gu Jinli watched with curiosity and quietly asked Gu Jin'an, "Brother, why does Uncle Dagu keep going towards the rich families' caravan?"

Gu Jin'an replied, "Our Uncle Dagu is a Shopkeeper in town and loves to deal with the wealthy. On this journey, he's made quite a few connections with the housekeepers of these rich families."

Gu Jinli glanced towards Qian Guangzong and saw him bowing and speaking with a short, plump man. They seemed to be having an intense conversation and suddenly burst into laughter.

In the original owner of the body's memories, Uncle Dagu indeed liked to curry favor with the servants of rich families.

However, she felt a bit uneasy and said to Gu Jin'an, "Big brother, do you think Third Grandma and the others might retaliate against our family because of the water source?"

She had discovered the water source but didn't inform the Old Gu Family, depriving them of the opportunity to show off in the village. With Granny Gu's vindictive nature, she definitely wouldn't let this go and would certainly find a chance to get even.

Upon hearing this, Gu Jin'an furrowed his brow, pondered for a moment, and said, "Then let's be extra cautious during this period and watch out for any trouble from Third Grandma and her folks."

Gu Jinli nodded, and the two siblings shared their concerns with the other four family members, reminding them to be wary of the Old Gu Family in the upcoming days.

Mrs. Cui and Gu Jinxiu were quite frightened, as they were deeply afraid of the Old Gu Family.

When Gu Dashan heard Gu Jinli's words, his hungry and emaciated face seemed even more uneasy, but he still nodded, indicating that he would be vigilant against the Old Gu Family.

For the next ten days, the six members of the Gu family were on guard against the Old Gu Family, fearing they would fall into their trap. However, strangely, the Old Gu Family didn't cause any trouble for them; at most, they cursed at them like usual, and Granny Gu seemed to have restrained her temper somewhat.

After tensely watching for ten days, Gu Dashan and Mrs. Cui finally let their guards down.

That afternoon, the famine refugees found a nearly dried-up big river. Deep within the river, there were a dozen or so shallow puddles. Seeing these water pits, the refugees excitedly stopped to draw water and rest.

But there were too many refugees, and some rich families had sent their Protectors to seize the water holes. By the time the Gu Family Village people stopped and ran to the riverside, the water had been taken.

Village Chief Gu, looking at the riverbed turned into a muddy flat and smacking his dry, sticky mouth, asked Gu Dashan, "Dashan, what do we do now?"

R𝑒ad latest chapt𝒆rs at freewebnovёl.ƈom Only.

Since Gu Jinli found a water source for the village, for the past ten days, every time they stopped to rest, Village Chief Gu would have Gu Dashan take Gu Jinli around to search for water for the village. Unfortunately, their luck seemed to have run out, as they found no new water sources for ten consecutive days. The water they had previously stored was down to a mere trickle, and if no water source was found again, they were in danger of dying of thirst.

Gu Dashan pointed to the muddy puddles deep in the river and said, "This river has not completely dried up; we can dig the mud out of the puddles. Digging deeper should yield water."

Xiao Yu had told him this, emphasizing that the ability to find water was precious and could protect their family. He always remembered Xiao Yu's words.

After hearing this, the village chief immediately took more than twenty villagers to the depths of the river. Having Gu Dashan assess the water pits, they chose one and began digging out the silt.

Their luck was good; after digging just over three meters, the hollow began to seep water again.

The villagers were overjoyed and quickly ran to bring containers to fill with water.

"Xiao Yu, go get water quickly. Our village has dug out water," Luo Huiniang, with two water jars slung over her shoulders and two water pots in her hands, ran to find Gu Jinli.

"Coming right away," Gu Jinli said, slinging water jars over her elbows, taking up a wooden stick, and handing a sharp stone knife, honed with stones, to Gu Jinxiu, saying, "Sister, Brother Cheng, stay with Third Grandma and don't wander off."

Currently, their family shared meals and sleep with Third Grandma's Family, but Gu Jinli still did not feel entirely at ease, fearing that Gu Jinxiu and Gu Jin'an might face danger.

Gu Jinxiu tightened her grip on Brother Cheng's hand, saying, "Xiao Yu, don't worry about us. With Third Grandma here, we'll be fine."

Third Grandma was nearby gathering firewood. Hearing this, she looked up at Gu Jinli and said, "Xiao Yu, go ahead and don't worry. Third Grandma is here, you don't need to worry about Sister Xiu and Brother Cheng."

"Thank you, Third Grandma," Gu Jinli replied and left with Luo Huiniang.

After the two of them had gone, Gu Jinxiu arranged the ground with Brother Cheng, spreading out the straw mats and preparing the pot to make dinner.

"Sister Xiu~" Gu Rong, the eight-year-old from Third Uncle Gu's family, came running to find Gu Jinxiu.

Seeing Gu Rong, Gu Jinxiu wasn't scared like when she saw other Old Gu Family people; instead, she felt a touch of joy: "Sister Rong, what brings you here?"

Third Uncle's family wasn't favored in the Old Gu Family, especially Gu Rong, who, being a granddaughter, was often despised by Granny Gu.

Gu Rong looked around and whispered to Gu Jinxiu, "Sister Xiu, Granny hit my mother again."

Gu Jinxiu panicked and hurriedly asked, "Hit her again? How is my mother? Is she badly hurt?"

Gu Rong replied, "Granny was thirsty, but there was no water left at home. She asked if you guys had any water here. My mother didn't say anything, and Granny got so angry she hit her."

Gu Rong glanced at the bamboo tube tied around Gu Jinxiu's waist and said, "Sister Xiu, if you still have water at home, please hurry and take it to save my mother. Granny's blows really hurt."

Gu Rong's words pierced Gu Jinxiu's heart like needles. Worried about Mrs. Cui and without having time to inform Third Grandma, she hurriedly pulled Brother Cheng and ran towards the Old Gu Family's resting place.

Third Grandmother's Family's resting spot was not far from the river, while the Old Gu Family's resting spot was in a dry woodland, with quite some distance apart, and it took almost half a quarter of an hour to reach.

However, once there, Gu Jinxiu did not see Mrs. Cui or even Granny Gu and Elder Gu. Instead, she saw the rarely encountered Gu Dagu and her husband... and also a man who looked in his forties, short and chubby, with a mole on his face.

"Is that her?" The short, fat man with the mole saw Gu Jinxiu, eyeing her like a wolf, sizing her up with satisfaction and nodding: "She's fairly good-looking, just a bit too skinny."

Qian Guangzong smiled and said, "Elder Ding is the head housekeeper of the Qi Mansion, where there's no shortage of grain. After being fed for a few days, she'll gain weight."

Gu Dagu also said, "Sister Xiu is at a ripe age now. Elder Ding taking her back will surely be a good deal, and he can enjoy playing with her for a good twenty years or so."

Gu Jinxiu had heard enough unsavory tales during the time of famine to finally understand that she had been deceived. Trembling with anger, yet she quickly picked up Brother Cheng and bolted.

"Big Brother, Second Brother, stop her!" Qian Li'er screamed. After finally luring Gu Jinxiu over, she couldn't possibly let her escape.

Qian Chenggui and Qian Chengcai had already blocked Gu Jinxiu's path. As Gu Jinxiu tried to push through and escape, they tripped her.

With a thud, Gu Jinxiu and Brother Cheng fell to the ground, wincing in pain from the fall.

Gu Jinxiu clutched Brother Cheng tightly, trembling as she asked, "Gu Dagu... what, what do you want to do? I, I came here to bring water to Granny... let me go back..."

"Go back? Sister Xiu, what nonsense are you talking about?" Qian Li'er laughed out loud, her eyes brimming with triumph, thinking that Gu Jinxiu the vixen was finally going to be ruined.

Wearing a smile of feigned affection, Gu Dagu coaxed Gu Jinxiu, "Sister Xiu, we've finally found you a good family, so you won't have to chew on tree leaves anymore. You should count your blessings, follow Elder Ding obediently, and you'll be showered with endless luxury."