"You're just like my granddaughter," an old man chuckled. "Every time she comes home for the holidays, she asks me to tell her stories about the village from the old days. She says she wants to share them with her dormmates." The grandfather's face was full of affection as he mentioned his granddaughter.
"Grandpa, why don't you tell us the same stories you tell your granddaughter?" Qiao Peipei asked sweetly. Her cute appearance and endearing smile reminded the old man of his own granddaughter, making it impossible for him to refuse.
"Alright then, I'll tell you a story," the grandfather agreed. "Those old-timers are all six feet under now, so it doesn't matter if I talk about them anymore."
"Guangxing, you're going to tell stories about Guangfa again, aren't you? Be careful, or his ghost might come looking for you tonight," another elderly man sitting nearby teased, apparently knowing what was coming.
"His bones have long since turned to ash. Let him come! He still owes me eight yuan!" the man called Guangxing replied nonchalantly, completely unfazed. He then turned to the three young people and asked, "Can you guess what he borrowed those eight yuan for?"
"Eight yuan? To buy snacks?" one of them ventured.
"It must have been for gambling!" another guessed.
The old man chuckled and waved his hand. "Neither. He told me his family had no rice to cook, so he needed to borrow ten yuan to buy some. But in reality, he used it to buy clothes for his mistress."
"What's a mistress?" the innocent Gu Zhijing asked.
"It's like a third party in a relationship," Nian Suian explained casually, not seeing any issue with Gu Zhijing knowing such things. After all, he was in high school and should be learning about ethics.
"How did you find out?" Qiao Peipei pressed the grandfather for more details.
"Ah, that scoundrel spent eight yuan on clothes, and then gambled away the remaining two in his mistress's village. He got caught and had to send word home for his family to bail him out! His wife didn't know what to do and came to me for help. That's when I found out the whole 'no rice to cook' story was a lie!"
"I remember now. Guangfa's mistress was from Shangshi Village, wasn't she? A widow with three kids whose husband drowned in a flood," another elderly person chimed in.
"That's right! But you can't blame the widow too much. Raising three kids on her own was exhausting work. She passed away before she turned fifty, never getting to enjoy any of life's pleasures."
"Her youngest daughter really made something of herself, though. She went abroad to study and even got a PhD. I doubt she'll ever come back."
"The two older ones weren't good at school, but the youngest was a top student."
"Maybe it's true what they say, that the little girl wasn't the widow's husband's child, but was conceived after he passed away."
"Oh my, we shouldn't spread rumors without proof!"
At this point, Nian Suian and her friends couldn't get a word in edgewise as the elderly folks continued their gossip.
"When did you get here?" Qiao Yan had appeared without anyone noticing, crouching nearby.
"I've been here for a while, since they started talking about the mistress," he replied.
Qiao Peipei rolled her eyes, thinking her brother just loved to act cool.
What they didn't realize was that the number of viewers in their livestream was rapidly increasing. People had heard there was juicy gossip to be had, and they were flocking to watch. Some fans even abandoned their idols' streams to come and listen in on the village drama.
It seemed that old Guangfa's reputation was about to be thoroughly tarnished.
"That Guangfa, tsk tsk tsk. Xiu Chun really had bad luck marrying him," one of the elders commented.
"Xiu Chun was a good person, taking care of everything both inside and outside the home. All Guangfa did was gamble, drink, and chase women."
"You don't know the half of it! Even at seventy-something, he was still going to those massage parlors. When the police caught him, he claimed he had a heart condition. The police called his children to come pick him up, but they refused, saying it was too embarrassing! The police had no choice but to let him go with just a warning."
"If it were me, I wouldn't want to go pick him up either! At least his children are filial, and Xiu Chun is finally enjoying some happiness now."
"That's right. Xiu Chun's children turned out well. Not like Da Gou's family, where the children are unfilial. It's a sin!"
"Who can they blame for unfilial children but themselves? They treated their eldest son and daughter like they were adopted, and only cared for their youngest son. And how did that turn out? The eldest two are successful and make good money, while the youngest can't do anything right."
"Even at their age, they haven't figured it out. They still go to their eldest son and daughter, demanding they buy a car and a house for their brother to help him find a wife. Can you believe how infuriating that is?"
Nian Suian and her friends nodded in agreement. It was indeed very frustrating.
"So, did the eldest son and daughter give them money?"
"No, they didn't. They said they'd each give a thousand yuan per month for their parents' living expenses, but nothing more."
"Even if they gave more, it would just go to that youngest one. Better not to give at all."
One of the grandmothers turned to Gu Zhijing and asked, "Young man, is your sister good to you?"
Gu Zhijing had no choice but to answer, "Yes, my sister is very good to me. She even took me with her when she got married."
"Then you must study hard and be filial to your sister in the future."
"I will..."
At this moment, Nian Suian desperately wished she could disappear into a hole in the ground. Looking over at Qiao Peipei and Qiao Yan, she saw the siblings were doubled over with laughter. She realized that her plan to listen in on village gossip had thoroughly backfired.
Meanwhile, Gu Junxing, who was watching the livestream at home, furrowed his brow.
"What kind of program is this? Why are they talking about these things?" he asked.
"Well, it's probably for entertainment value. Look at the comments, sir. The viewers seem to really enjoy it," Butler Su replied, secretly thinking to himself that he quite enjoyed it too.
Heaven knows how much willpower it took for Gu Junxing to continue watching this program. If it weren't for Gu Zhijing and Nian Suian being there, he wouldn't have given it a second glance.
"Is my luggage packed?" Gu Junxing asked Butler Su. He was due to travel to Chunshui County in a couple of days to survey potential factory sites.
"Yes, sir, it's all ready. Mofang Village is actually under Chunshui County's jurisdiction. Were you planning to visit the young master and madam while you're there?" Butler Su inquired.
Gu Junxing glanced at the screen again, where the group's conversation had dispersed and the four young people appeared to be heading back.
"We'll see. I may not have time," he replied.
"Very well, sir," Butler Su agreed outwardly, while inwardly considering whether to have the cook prepare some good food. It wasn't far from Mofang Village, and they could bring it in thermal containers so the young master and madam could have a hot meal.
Oh, the boss said he might not go?
As if that were possible. He was only fooling himself.