Sanhu calmly went to the kitchen, saw Gu Nian tending the fire, while Dahu was busy stir-frying, and quickly walked over to Gu Nian, "Little Sis, why don't you go outside and take a break? I'll help Big Brother with the fire."
"Alright, then I'll trouble Third Brother." Anyway, the meat and seasonings were already in the pot, she just needed to make sure it didn't burn. There wasn't much more she could do here.
The rest, Dahu could handle.
Gu Nian went outside, fetched a basin of water, washed her face and hands clean, and finally felt comfortable.
Little Hu pulled Gu Nian along, chattering about what he and Sanhu did today. Gu Nian quietly listened, occasionally showing a surprised expression and praising him a couple of times, being a good listener.
In the Lin Family's small courtyard, everyone except the injured Erhu, who could only lie in bed, had smiles on their faces, creating an exceptionally warm atmosphere.
Lin Sanshui was talking to Mrs. Jiang about the hot weather, and how the meat they bought might spoil, so he thought to invite his two brothers' families over to gather. After all, the last time they gathered was during the New Year, and it's been a while since the brothers had a drink together.
Mrs. Jiang pretended to glare at him with reproach, complaining that he must have planned this from the start when buying all that meat.
Mrs. Jiang really misunderstood him; he hadn't thought that far when he bought it. And anyway, the reason for buying so much was all thanks to Gu Nian, he merely couldn't resist his daughter's pleading.
Just as Mrs. Jiang was coaxed into agreeing, a sudden loud shout came from outside, "Mrs. Lin Jiang, come out here! Today your family must give me an explanation, otherwise, I'll stay here and not leave!"
The voice preceded the person's arrival; Mrs. Jiang knew it far too well—wasn't it the village loudmouth, Mrs. Lin Zhang!
The two families even had some familial ties; rumor has it that if you trace back in history, their great-grandfathers were brothers.
However, Mrs. Zhang has a big mouth, always gossiping about others, so Mrs. Jiang seldom interacted with her, not wanting any little mishap in her own family to be endlessly discussed by others.
Yet Mrs. Zhang came to their home with such a confrontational tone. Mrs. Jiang didn't like trouble, but she wasn't afraid of it either.
Looking at the already-entered Mrs. Zhang and her son, Mrs. Jiang coldly asked, "Sister-in-law, no one in our family has offended you, have they? What kind of explanation are you looking for by making such a fuss at my house?"
Lin Sanshui was also extremely angry, his good mood was instantly ruined by this noise, "Yes, sister-in-law, although when we were on the cart today we did exchange a few words, that was because you were picking a quarrel first; it doesn't justify coming to my home for an explanation, does it?"
Mrs. Jiang looked at Lin Sanshui with surprise; he hadn't had a chance to tell Mrs. Jiang about his bickering with Mrs. Zhang.
Mrs. Zhang glared, and gave a sharp tug, pulling Little Niu to the front. With excessive force, Little Niu almost stumbled to the ground.
Pointing at Little Niu's forehead, Mrs. Zhang wailed and shouted in anger: "Such injustice! No conscience! Everyone come and see, this family has united to bully us mother and son, leaving us no way to live..."
With her crying and shouting, coupled with jumping about, the entrance to the Lin Family's courtyard was quickly surrounded, and some even directly entered the yard.
A man carrying a hoe happened to pass by, saw the crowd at the neighboring door, and worriedly squeezed in, casually putting his hoe down, walked up to Lin Sanshui and asked, "Third Uncle, what's going on here?"