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

Chapter 419 The Alliance of Interests Collapses
"You old fool, I told you not to get involved in this, but you wouldn't listen to me. You're helping Youtian bully orphans and widows. You won't have the face to face your cousin in the afterlife!"

"You'd better apologize to your sister-in-law right away. Our Daqiao can't carry anything, he's lame, who would take him to earn money? It's just that his Aunt Big Foot took pity on him... Waaah!"

Before my fourth cousin could even speak, my fourth cousin's wife started cursing and crying.

"Fourth Sister-in-law, please don't say that. There aren't many people in our village who can read, and I wouldn't trust anyone else to do this job," Tong Huaqiong said.

My fourth cousin and his wife thanked me with tears in their eyes.

Gu Youtian was left with an embarrassed expression that he couldn't hide.

Tong Huaqiong then said, "Daqiang, I heard from Laifu that your son is hardworking in his studies. He discussed it with me yesterday, and his tuition will be waived from now on."

Gu Daqiang was never willing to stand on the same side as Old Master Gu.

The other party was forcing him to return the land. He tried to reason with the clan chief, but it was no use. Unfortunately, his grandfather and the clan chief were brothers, and his grandfather insisted on bringing him over.

Gu Daqiang was overjoyed to hear Tong Huaqiong praise his son.

Upon hearing that tuition was waived, they were even more moved. It was indeed Aunt Tong who was kind-hearted; knowing their family's poor circumstances, she waived tuition for her son.

His son was studying with the clan chief's great-grandson, and the clan chief suppressed him because he believed his son was doing well in school.

"Auntie, I don't know what to say. I'll tell my son to study hard so he can get into a good school and help Jingzhe out in the future."

Tong Huaqiong: "."

Not necessarily.

These members of the Gu family, who appear to be united with Old Master Gu and Gu Youtian, are actually a disorganized bunch who could fall apart at the slightest touch.

They came because of Grandpa Gu's promises, such as his son's livelihood and his grandson's education. You can't say they're wrong; everyone in this world has their own plans.

Tong Huaqiong wouldn't mind trying to win them over, since she needed manpower anyway.

Moreover, Tong Huaqiong knew in her heart that the people she had won over were all wavering factions who neither took advantage of her nor Gu Youtian or Old Master Gu.

She thought again of the words of a great man from later generations: "Make as few enemies as possible and as many friends as possible."

As a result of Tong Huaqiong's arrangements, the clan's alliance of interests collapsed.

"Well, You Tian, ​​you've been in the south for so many years, you don't understand the situation in our Yanguan Town. Don't ruin your sister-in-law's business again, or you'll be even more sorry for your brother. I think you should just stay in the village and honestly farm the land," Uncle Gu said to Gu You Tian.

“Brother, you’ve reached the age of fifty, so don’t worry about whether your daughter-in-law is doing business or not. She’s got plenty to eat and drink, so just relax and enjoy your life,” Old Master Gu’s cousin advised sincerely.

"That's right, that's right. You can't be a good father-in-law if you're not deaf and dumb. Even Aunt Tong was praised by the emperor of Shengjing. How could we be more capable than the emperor? Clan leader, our clan rules are no greater than the emperor's, are they?"

Those who wanted to cause trouble with Grandpa Gu, Gu Youtian, and the clan chief not only quieted down after receiving benefits from Tong Huaqiong, but also kept persuading Grandpa Gu not to cause trouble.

The faces of Grandpa Gu, Gu Youtian, and the clan chief were as varied as if a sauce shop had been opened; their expressions were incredibly interesting.

It turns out that when faced with real interests, everyone's alliance crumbled instantly.

"Well, I need to water my wheat, so I'll be going now. Mom, my son is ready to come to work anytime."

"There's a hole in my chicken coop, I need to go home and fix it. Dashu, if you need anything, just call me anytime."

“Ruinian, you’ve already passed the preliminary examination. You should try to persuade your grandfather and father. Your aunt is doing a good job in business. It wouldn’t be good if your father messed it up if he took over.”

Everyone stood up.

They feared that if they didn't leave soon, their sons would lose the livelihood they had worked so hard to obtain from Tong Huaqiong. Soon, the room was mostly empty.

Only a few stubborn households remained around Grandpa Gu.

This group of stubborn households had a falling out with Tong Dajiao in the past. After Old Man Gu passed away, they forced Tong Dajiao to give Old Man Gu money in front of the mourning hall.

They wanted to ask Tong Huaqiong if it was still too late for them to join her.

Their family also needs money, and their children and grandchildren need jobs and education.

Out of respect for Grandpa Gu and Gu Youtian, they ultimately dared not.

With a determined heart, everyone decided to remain neutral no matter how much trouble Grandpa Gu and Gu Youtian tried to cause Tong Huaqiong, and if necessary, they planned to offer some advice to appease her.

The faces of Grandpa Gu, Gu Youtian, and the clan chief were unusually grim.

Gu Youtian, in particular, clenched his teeth tightly, realizing he had underestimated his sister-in-law's shrewdness.

“Clan chief, on behalf of my whole family, I thank you for coming to celebrate the anniversary of Da Shu’s death. It’s getting late, so I can’t keep you any longer.” Tong Huaqiong dismissed the clan chief.

The clan leader, unable to save face, stuck to his chair and gave Old Master Gu an encouraging look, hoping that Old Master Gu would continue to use his position as father-in-law to pressure Tong Huaqiong.

Even if things don't go as planned, we should still cause some trouble for Tong Huaqiong.

It was as if neither Grandpa Gu nor Gu Youtian received the clan leader's signal.

They knew that today's plan had failed, and they could only try again later.

Without saying a word, Grandpa Gu stood up and walked outside.

When the other holdouts in the clan saw that Grandpa Gu had stood up, they stood up as if they had been granted a pardon and ran away.

I was afraid that if I stayed any longer, Tong Huaqiong would hold another grudge.

In the end, only the clan chief, Granny Gu Honglian, and the Gu Youtian family remained.

"Ruinian, you and your second uncle should go home with Grandma," Gu Jingzhe said to Gu Youtian.

Gu Dashu had already helped up Old Lady Gu and handed her to Gu Youtian.

Grandma Gu followed Gu Youtian and Gu Ruinian outside, completely bewildered.

Gu Ruinian looked up at Gu Jingzhe, who had seen him out the door, and was momentarily confused.

Where does this pure ancient man get his confidence?
Today at the banquet, he confirmed that Gu Jingzhe was indeed a pure ancient person, because in order to show his talent in the clan, he recited many poems and songs, and Gu Jingzhe even asked him how he came up with them, and his expression did not seem to be fake at all.

Gu Ruinian hated Tong Huaqiong to the core, and at the same time hated the people in his clan for being so short-sighted and being led astray by the old woman's petty interests.

Seeing that everyone had left, the second branch of the Gu family realized it wouldn't be appropriate for them to stay any longer, so they also left.

"Honglian, why aren't you coming with us?" Tong Huaqiong asked when she saw that only Gu Honglian was left in the old house.

Gu Honglian hesitated, still wanting to stay at her sister-in-law's house.

She complained that her father didn't take her words to heart. Shouldn't he have taken the opportunity to tell her sister-in-law to let her stay at her sister-in-law's house? Her request wasn't as unreasonable as her second brother's, so the opportunity was wasted, and she didn't get anything for her second brother.

"Sister-in-law, I want to stay at your house." Gu Honglian said hurriedly. "Don't worry, I'm not like my second brother who covets your shop and your business. I'll be satisfied as long as I can stay at your house and eat and drink well."

Tong Huaqiong thought to herself, "Who gave you the confidence to make this request?"