Carrying the little lucky star, leading the villain on the road to exile

The two of them finished the wild vegetable soup without any appetite, failing to taste the bitterness that was originally present in the soup.

After Xu Yulan finished eating, she put her bowl and chopsticks aside and said, "Tell me, what happened to all these injuries on you?"

Didn't you promise me you wouldn't gamble?

Gu Kaichen said, "My injuries are all because of Lao San."

"Gu Kaiyuan? He attacked you?" It wasn't because of gambling, but because Gu Kaiyuan had disciplined her. Xu Yulan couldn't accept this. What right did Gu Kaiyuan have to hit her man?
"Are you stupid? You just stand there and let him hit you. Don't you know how to fight back?" Xu Yulan had obviously forgotten that Gu Kaiyuan was skilled in martial arts. If a fight really broke out, Gu Kaichen would still be standing here.

"He didn't hit him. He had Bai's lackeys incite passersby, and they threw stones at him."

Now that he had eaten something and was ready to go to the capital tomorrow, he relaxed and felt pain all over his body.

He didn't even know which spot to cover; there wasn't a single spot that looked good...

"This is outrageous! Tell me what exactly happened!" Xu Yulan gritted her teeth. "When we get back to Beijing, we'll tell our father-in-law that Gu Kaiyuan and his wife's actions these past few days have been utterly outrageous. They should be taught a lesson, and it would be best if they were tied up and brought back to Beijing so they can watch us live a good life."

These days have been so oppressive that Xu Yulan was almost at her breaking point, but Gu Kaiyuan and the others were living a good life and turned a blind eye to her suffering.

Putting aside the fact that she is Gu Kaiyuan's second sister-in-law and also his cousin, he couldn't even show her any care based on these two relationships, which shows how cold-hearted he is.

Gu Kaichen was reminded by him that he still owed gambling debts at the gambling den. If he didn't pay back the money today, they would probably come to block the door early tomorrow morning.

He immediately stood up in alarm. "No, we can't leave tomorrow. We have to leave tonight."

Xu Yulan was startled by him. "Why are you so startled? Didn't we agree to leave tomorrow?"

They hadn't even raised enough money yet, and they needed to prepare food. How were they supposed to proceed?

Since things had come to this point, Gu Kaichen could no longer hide it and told them that he had incurred gambling debts at the gambling den.

Thinking of the previous times when he came to collect debts, Xu Yulan's face turned pale. She opened her mouth to curse, but cursing would be useless at this time. She automatically went back to the room, picked out the two people's bags, and stuffed them directly into his arms. "Let's go, we have to leave now."

Gu Baimu was trying to find people to discuss it with. Everyone was willing to go to the capital, but when it came to getting them to spend money, no one volunteered.

“Chieftain, we only have expenses and no income every day here. Everyone knows how much silver the old chieftain distributed to us before. It was just a small amount. We’ve spent almost all of it on buying things these days. Where would we get any more silver?”

"That's right, we only have a few copper coins at home, and we can't find work in the county town. Where are we going to get the money for travel expenses?"

"Anyway, my family doesn't have a single copper coin, but I can take out some of the grain from home as provisions for the journey."

"We can also provide dry rations..."

After all, they also wanted their families to go to the capital with them. They couldn't go on an empty stomach, so they brought their own food rations.

"Are you going on foot?" Gu Baimu also wanted his son to go with him, but if they went like that, the man would suffer a lot.

Putting everything else aside, just the heavy luggage alone would probably cause some people to collapse within a few days of walking.

As for the oxcart from before, it had already been sold off long ago due to conflicts among the clan members over how to distribute it, and the money was distributed to each household.

Getting these people to hand over their money now is practically impossible. Everyone is discussing it, but no one can come up with a solution that satisfies both parties.

Anyway, I have no money, just a worthless life, so I can do whatever I want with it.

Gu Baimu had no good solution and could only listen to their discussion quietly. If he spoke up now, he would probably put all the blame on himself.

Sure enough, his worries came true.

After much discussion, these people ultimately focused their attention on themselves.

Some people below whispered that if the old clan chief were here, he would have come up with a solution long ago.

It was only then that everyone remembered Gu Li's good qualities. Although the old patriarch was somewhat autocratic, he could make decisions quickly when discussing matters. Everyone had wasted half a day here, but still hadn't found a solution. Moreover, judging from the new patriarch's expression, he probably couldn't find a solution either.

Gu Baimu was holding his breath, not knowing who to vent it on.

Because he was wary that Gu Li's constant presence in public would influence his decisions, he bypassed Gu Li's group this time. But these people still remembered Gu Li. So what has he been busy with these days?
"Let's not talk about anything else now. Today, each household will contribute one or two taels of silver. If you don't have enough silver, you can borrow it or sell your things. Do you really want to stay in this poor, remote place?"

Before the people below could react, Gu Kaichen and his wife rushed in again, carrying their bundles. "We have to leave tonight."

"The money hasn't been raised yet, what's the rush?"

Gu Kaichen's eyes darted away. Xu Yulan knew that these people wouldn't cooperate unless she made things clear. "If you don't leave now, the debt collectors will be here..."

After Xu Yulan finished speaking, the entire Gu family looked at Gu Kaichen in disbelief.

Some people even suspected that Gu Kaichen was planning to run away, but he didn't have any money.

They had thought of it, so they asked it out loud. Now everyone was staring at Gu Kaichen with hostile eyes, as if he wanted to use them as scapegoats.

"Gu Kaichen, tell me the truth, is the information from your father's side true?" Gu Baimu really didn't expect that the first major event he would face after becoming the clan leader might be a deception. How could he not be furious?

Look at his pig-faced face. How could I have been so bewitched to believe him?

Gu Kaichen had already sensed that something was wrong, and immediately said with a strong desire to survive, "Clan leader, I really didn't lie to you."

I did lose money gambling and owed some silver. I originally wanted to ask my third brother to help me pay off the debt, but that man was cold-hearted and even had his servants incite passersby to attack me. That's how I got these injuries.

I originally wanted to report it to the authorities, but the county magistrate was not there, so I went back to the village first. On the way, I met some people talking about my father, and that's when I learned that my father and his family were already living a good life in the capital.

I can wait for my father to come and pick me up; anyway, the people at the gambling den wouldn't dare to take my life.

I was thinking of going to Beijing overnight because I didn't want to delay everyone's time because of my personal matters.

If the gambling den doesn't let me leave, I have no way to take you back to the capital.

Last time my father was escorted away by guards, I was afraid he would send someone back to do the same thing again. (End of Chapter)