Chapter 253: The Area of Chen Suxiang’s Psychological Shadow

Chapter 253: Chapter 253: The Area of Chen Suxiang’s Psychological Shadow

After finishing her conversation with her grandfather, Gu Nuan Nuan didn’t linger. She stopped him from seeing her off and got up to leave the main hall herself.

In the courtyard outside, Chen Suxiang, Gu Lihui, and Gu Jiayi were nowhere to be seen. As she stood there, wondering if she should pay a visit to her second uncle’s room, she happened to see Gu Lihuang walking in through the gate.

"Nuannuan, you’re here today... Are you leaving already?"

Gu Lihuang’s face lit up when he saw Gu Nuan Nuan, and an eager smile naturally appeared. "If you’re not in a hurry, why don’t you come to my place for a bit? Your second aunt brought back some dried apricots from her family’s home a couple of days ago. She was just talking about you and saved a portion especially for you. After all, apricots are a northern fruit, so even the dried ones are a rare sight here in the south."

"Let’s go. Second Uncle, I actually have something to talk to you and Second Aunt about," Gu Nuan Nuan agreed with a nod and immediately followed Gu Lihuang to his room.

"Nuannuan’s here!" Ye Rong also beamed when she saw Gu Nuan Nuan.

And why wouldn’t she? Ever since Gu Lihuang landed a job at the Zhang family’s company, he worked five days with one day off. Even though he was just a delivery driver, his monthly salary was no lower than what he used to make in the city, and the company benefits were great, instantly easing their family’s financial burden. Furthermore, according to a smug Gu Lihuang, because he was Gu Nuan Nuan’s uncle, his colleagues didn’t dare to offend him. As a result, he was getting along quite well at the company.

These days, Gu Nuan Nuan was a powerful backer, and latching onto her was definitely the right move. So, Gu Lihuang and Ye Rong were very pragmatic and never put on the airs of an elder in front of Gu Nuan Nuan. Besides, Gu Nuan Nuan needed someone within the Gu Family to coordinate with. If a few small favors could make Chen Suxiang and her scum of a father even more upset, then why not?

"Go get that packet of dried apricots we saved for Nuannuan," Gu Lihuang urged Ye Rong. He then personally took the oil-paper packet, opened it, and held it up to Gu Nuan Nuan. "Have a taste. See if you like them," he said solicitously. "If you do, your second aunt and I will have more sent over."

’Apricots and dried apricots... I certainly ate my fair share of them in my last life.’

Gu Nuan Nuan picked up a piece and took a bite. Glancing at Gu Lihuang and Ye Rong, who were watching her eagerly, she nodded. "They’re okay, but I prefer fresh fruit. I’m not that interested in dried fruit. Trying a little now and then is fine, but there’s no need to have more sent over specially."

"Haha, all right then. Take this packet home with you," Gu Lihuang said with a grin, quickly rewrapping the remaining apricots. "By the way, what was it you said you wanted to talk to your second aunt and me about?"

"I’m about to go to the city for high school, so I won’t be in town often. I’ve hired someone to come check on Grandpa, bring him food, and look after him every other day, but I’ll still need you and Second Aunt to keep an eye on him. If anything happens—and I mean *anything* concerning Grandpa, big or small—I want you to let me know. This is my home phone number. Only you, Second Aunt, and Grandpa should have it. Don’t tell anyone else." Gu Nuan Nuan handed over a slip of paper, her tone stressing the words ’anything concerning Grandpa, big or small’.

Gu Lihuang clutched the slip of paper and exchanged a look with Ye Rong. They both understood instantly and nodded. "Don’t worry. We won’t tell anyone."

A smile appeared on Gu Nuan Nuan’s face. She stood up to leave, and Gu Lihuang and Ye Rong, not daring to slight her, walked her all the way to the main gate. Just as she was about to step out, Chen Suxiang suddenly poked her head out of the kitchen and called out to her, "Hey, wait, wait!"

Gu Nuan Nuan ignored her and simply nodded to Gu Lihuang and Ye Rong. "Second Uncle, Second Aunt, I’m leaving."

"Okay. Don’t worry, we’ll block her for you. Goodness, I don’t know what she could possibly have to say. It’s always the same old nonsense every time..." Gu Lihuang said, quickly turning to intercept Chen Suxiang. "Mom, if you have something to say, you can just tell me..."

"What is there to say to you? I need to talk to Nuannuan! She can’t just go around only caring about her grandfather. Her own father and I are still alive and well, you know! Ah... You unfilial son, don’t you block me..." Chen Suxiang was flustered and exasperated, but she couldn’t get past her second son and daughter-in-law.

She was anxious, but Gu Lihuang knew exactly how to handle her. Unmoved, he continued to argue self-righteously, "Mom, you just said that you and Big Brother are alive and well. If you’re so well, why are you always pestering a child like Nuannuan with your nonsense? How old is she? What does she know? Even if you talked her ear off, it would be a complete waste of breath. I’m begging you, can you please stop scaring her every time she comes over, either by shouting or by nagging? No kid can stand that kind of treatment all the time. Of course she’s going to be scared stiff the moment she sees you..."

As Gu Nuan Nuan rode her bicycle away, she could still hear the two of them arguing behind her. She couldn’t help but suppress a smile. Thinking about just how traumatized Chen Suxiang must be, her mood instantly brightened. It seemed her move to have her eldest maternal uncle arrange a job for Second Uncle, thereby winning him and Second Aunt over to her side, was absolutely the right one.

It saved her so much trouble. Yes, that was it exactly.

She almost laughed thinking about how her second uncle and aunt always defended her. Whenever she visited the Gu Family, she had always ignored Chen Suxiang and Gu Lihui as if they were thin air. Any gifts she brought were, by custom, only for Gu Wu. Later, seeing that Gu Lihuang and Ye Rong were so sensible, she would occasionally include a share for Gu Qian and the couple. As for everyone else, they didn’t get so much as a scrap.

How could Chen Suxiang and Gu Lihui possibly stand for that? Accusations were common, but most were blocked by Gu Wu. The few that he missed were intercepted by Gu Lihuang and Ye Rong. As a result, during Gu Nuan Nuan’s brief monthly visits to the Gu Family, Chen Suxiang couldn’t even dream of hitting or cursing her. If she so much as raised her voice, someone would immediately jump in to defend her.

One had to admit, Chen Suxiang was a resourceful woman. When the hard approach failed, she tried a soft one. Since she couldn’t hit or curse Nuannuan, she resorted to using her tears as weapons...

Unfortunately for her, Gu Nuan Nuan didn’t fall for that act, either. With Gu Lihuang and Ye Rong around, the moment Chen Suxiang opened her mouth, Nuannuan would slip away, and the couple would automatically step in to block her.

A resentful Chen Suxiang eventually tried to defame Gu Nuan Nuan to others. But no sooner would she start bad-mouthing Gu Nuan Nuan outside than Ye Rong, who was no mute, would praise Gu Nuan Nuan and Zhang Minzhen to the heavens, calling them paragons of filial piety, rare to find on this earth. Her words always implied that Chen Suxiang was just an ungrateful person...

Given Chen Suxiang’s reputation in the neighborhood, people were already skeptical of her words. Now, even more people looked down on her. Secretly, many of them envied her for having a former eldest daughter-in-law and a granddaughter who were so filial despite past grievances, while also hating her for being so ungrateful. This, in turn, ended up building a good reputation for Gu Nuan Nuan and Zhang Minzhen. This was especially true for Zhang Minzhen; everyone who spoke of her would give a thumbs-up and praise her for being so magnanimous and not holding a grudge...