The wicked mother-in-law doesn't try to whitewash herself; she only abuses her awful children.

Chapter 33 Frustration at Borrowing Money from a Private School
After the meal, Tong Huaqiong rolled up her sleeves and decided to get to work.

She carried the basin and jars into her room, tore open the outer packaging of the butter, milk powder, sugar, condensed milk, and other ingredients that Man'er had taken out of her space, and put them into the basin and jars in order.

For things like butter that need to be refrigerated, you can just put it in a bowl and let it melt, since you'll be using it soon anyway.

Store sugar, milk powder, nuts, and other similar ingredients in a jar for later use.

Condensed milk can be stored for a long time if the packaging is not opened.

Tong Huaqiong stuffed the torn packaging bag under the bed, intending to destroy the evidence under the cover of darkness.

After finishing all this, Tong Huaqiong wiped her hands clean, carried the basin out of the room, and returned to the kitchen.

Liu Yue'e went to the Liu family to return the money, Gu Dashu went to Gu Baishuang's place, Tong Huaqiong didn't have time to care where Gu Jingzhe was, and Gu Taohua hadn't gotten up yet, so only Chen Sufeng was helping out in the kitchen.

"Mother, I want to go to town," Gu Taohua said to Tong Huaqiong at the kitchen door after getting up.

Tong Huaqiong looked Gu Taohua up and down.

Today, Gu Taohua is wearing a new dress, with hairpins and pearl flowers in her hair, and blush on her face. She also had a good night's sleep last night, so she is full of energy.

Tong Huaqiong had a guess in her heart.

"What are you doing in town? You're not setting up your stall today," Tong Huaqiong demanded.

Gu Taohua felt rather awkward under Tong Huaqiong's scrutiny. She twisted her clothes and said, "Third Brother went to the private school in town to borrow money and hasn't been home for three or four days. I want to go to the private school to see if something has delayed him."

Tong Huaqiong's sharp eyes were fixed on Gu Taohua.

Just kidding the ghost!
When did Gu Taohua start acting like a close brother and sister with Gu Jingzhe? Even if she went to the private school to find Gu Jingzhe, there was no need for her to dress up like that.

This is clearly a pretext for visiting the Valley of Awakening of Insects, but actually an attempt to see the scholar Fan Tong.

“Your third brother is a grown man, he doesn’t need your concern. There are so many things to do at home, we can’t get enough people together, so we need you to help make pastries at home.”

“You’re not allowed to go anywhere today except stay at home,” Tong Huaqiong said.

Gu Taohua looked disappointed.

Yesterday, she had a lot to say to Fan Tong, but because Tong Huaqiong was there, she didn't have a chance to say it.

I thought I was going to town today to look for Fan Tong under the pretext of finding my third brother, but Tong Huaqiong forbade me from leaving the house.

Gu Taohua had already found out the truth when she first went to the private school to find her third brother and met Fan Tong.

Fan Tong lived in the neighboring village of Moon Bay. Like her, he had no father. He had a widowed mother and a younger sister, and his education was supported by the clan.

Ever since meeting Fan Tong, Gu Taohua has looked down on all the other young men in the village.

The young men in the village are rude and only know how to farm; they are nothing like a scholar like Fan Tong who is knowledgeable and tactful.

Her second brother always mocked her for being fourteen years old and having no suitors. She was indignant and had her sights set on Fan Tong.

She was determined to find a scholar to prove herself.

"Come here and peel the walnuts."

Ignoring Gu Taohua's dejected mood, Tong Huaqiong assigned her to work.

Gu Taohua pouted, looked aggrieved, and pulled up a stool to sit down and start cracking walnuts.

Tong Huaqiong decided to make jujube cake, chestnut pastry, jujube paste pastry, butter cookies, mung bean cake, as well as honey three-knife pastry, Sachima, and horn honey pastry, which are both modern and traditional and easy to make.

……

"Madam, how come your heartless stepmother has changed her ways? There must be something fishy going on."

After seeing Gu Dashu off, Fei Pozi returned and saw fifty taels of silver on the table in front of Gu Baishuang. She couldn't help but say something.

The sun truly rose in the west; Widow Tong refused to accept the Nie family's money and even sent Gu Dashu with shocking news that had left the lady still reeling.

Granny Fei replaced the cold tea in Gu Baishuang's hand with a hot one, and Gu Baishuang only came back to her senses when she held the hot tea.

The stepmother's change was quite drastic, and Gu Baishuang was unsure how to treat her. Early in the morning, Gu Dashu arrived at the Nie family's house. Gu Baishuang didn't want to see her, but Gu Dashu called out at the door that she had come to return the money, so Gu Baishuang had no choice but to invite her in.

As soon as Gu Dashu entered the door, she returned the fifty taels of silver to her. She originally thought that her request to put her mother's and father's memorial tablets together had persuaded Tong Huaqiong to give up. In her heart, she cursed Tong Huaqiong for being so vicious as to disregard her grandson's life and death in order to compete with her deceased mother.

But things turned out to be completely different from what she had imagined.

The heartless stepmother not only agreed to place her mother's and father's memorial tablets together, but also planned to have her mother and father reburied together. The stepmother even made a promise that she would not be buried in the Gu family's ancestral grave after her death.

This completely baffled Gu Baishuang.

She couldn't understand what her stepmother was up to!

After fighting with her stepmother for so many years and suffering so much at her hands, Gu Baishuang felt a little lost when her stepmother suddenly stopped.

"I don't care how she changes, as long as my mother and father can be buried together."

Thinking of this, Gu Baishuang felt a little gratified.

Finally, I've fulfilled my wish. I just hope that my heartless stepmother won't change her mind and cause any more trouble.

Gu Dashu was in a great mood after leaving the Nie family.

His older sister let him in. He had completed the task his mother had entrusted to him, and his son wouldn't have to be sent away. All of this made him happy.

He took out the copper coins he had saved from buying grain and oil for his family in the past, bought two large meat buns, and ate them as he walked.

Seeing a scholar-looking man hurrying towards the town's private school, Gu Dashu suddenly remembered that his third brother, Gu Jingzhe, had been at the school borrowing money for several days and hadn't returned home. Since his son's matter had been resolved, Gu Dashu decided to go to the private school to bring Gu Jingzhe home.

The wheat in our yard has already grown tall. Weeding, watering, harvesting—which of these tasks doesn't require manpower?
Since Gu Jingzhe didn't go home for a long time, the work fell to his shoulders.

Now that Mother won't let Gu Jingzhe go to school, Third Brother shouldn't expect to leave the farm work to him alone.

Thinking this, Gu Dashu ate a meat bun as he walked toward the private school.

At this moment, the genius boy Gu Jingzhe is struggling to ask his classmates for money at the private school.

In the town's private school, besides the scholar Fan Tong, the most dashing and favorite student of the teacher was Gu Jingzhe.

After all, Gu Jingzhe was a year younger than Fan Tong when he obtained the title of Tongsheng, and he had also been personally reviewed and praised by the prefectural education commissioner.

It's only a matter of time before he passes the imperial examinations and becomes a scholar.

Gu Jingzhe was always arrogant and disdainful of others in the private school.

Two days ago, he was kicked out of the house by Tong Huaqiong to get money. He first went to Wanliu Academy in the prefectural city to try his luck, hoping that the prefectural city would return fifty taels of silver because his family was poor. However, the academy insisted on its principles and refused to return the money.

He had no choice but to return to the private school in town to borrow money.

Gu Jingzhe's popularity at the private school was inversely proportional to his academic performance; the better his grades, the worse his popularity.

Not only did they fail to borrow any money, but they also received a barrage of ridicule.

Even his classmates, whom he usually looked down upon, said they would lend him their legs if he could crawl between Han Xin's legs like Han Xin.

Gu Jingzhe naturally could not bear such an insult.

The usually arrogant Gu Jingzhe was already embarrassed by being forced to bow his head to his classmates, but when faced with their ridicule and harassment, his mental state almost completely collapsed.

But if he couldn't borrow the money, his second brother, Gu Dashu, wouldn't let him off the hook.

The gifted young man was like a rat trapped in a box, caught in the middle and suffering from both sides, utterly miserable.

Left with no other choice, he borrowed money from his nephew, Nie Xiaofeng, who was also studying at a private school and was Gu Baishuang's son.

"Uncle, have you had too much to drink? Why are you suddenly looking at me properly today?"

Nie Xiaofeng's opening remarks were full of sarcasm and irony.

(End of this chapter)