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Chapter 512: Chapter 512: Knife to the Throat
Aunt Gu’s face turned pale from fright, she quickly instructed everyone to back off, then pleaded with Guo Jinnian, "No, no, no, we won’t do anything. Please keep the sickle away. Don’t accidentally hurt my son."
"That depends on you all," Guo Jinnian snorted, "Weren’t you all acting tough just now? Why don’t you continue doing so?"
"I was wrong, I was wrong. Please don’t hurt my son," Aunt Gu hurriedly apologized, for her son was her dearest child.
Aunt Gu’s husband looked greatly distressed too, standing still on the spot for fear that Guo Jinnian’s hand might shake and the sickle could slash open his son’s throat, which would be fatal.
At this point, with Gu Hongwei’s support, Tong Yao had managed to climb onto the oxcart. She then called out to the old man driving the oxcart, "Sir, let’s go!"
The old man hesitated for a moment, then quickly drove the oxcart forward. Aunt Gu wanted to catch up but Tong Yao sternly warned, "If anyone dares to follow us, we’ll chop off their finger first."
Her words made Aunt Gu shudder, instantaneously halting her chase. She watched as the oxcart grew smaller and smaller in the distance, slapping her thigh while crying out loudly, "Where are you taking my son? My God."
After that, she turned towards her eldest son and husband, scolding, "Are both of you dead? They threatened him with a sickle and you couldn’t interfere?"
On the oxcart, Aunt Gu’s youngest son was almost scared shitless. His voice trembled as he stammered, "Where are you taking me? To be honest, I really didn’t want to stir trouble, it was my mom and dad who insisted on bringing me along. Debts have their debtors, please spare me?"
Before anyone could respond, he turned towards Gu Hongwei, "Cousin, I’m your big brother! You’re going to watch me get killed? We’re blood-related family. Even though bonds may break, ties remain. Are you going to sit by while they kill me?"
Guo Jinnian was irked by his incessant nagging. Exasperated, she smacked him on the forehead, "Could you please shut up? You’re too noisy!"
When they could no longer see Aunt Gu’s figure, Tong Yao exchanged a glance with Guo Jinnian who then understood, tossed the sickle into the bushes by the roadside and gave a kick to Aunt Gu’s son’s butt, sending him tumbling off the oxcart.
"Aiyo!"
Aunt Gu’s son fell in a heap, but the pain mattered not as he picked himself up and ran back in the direction they had come from. This blast of a scene had Guo Jinnian roaring with laughter.
Seeing such a vulgar act, Gu Hongwei’s mouth twitched. Suddenly, he felt that Guo Jinnian had indeed been showing him mercy during their previous encounter at the Railway Station.
Si Boyi had just recovered from his shock. Remembering the earlier incident, he was still nervous and jittery. The thought of a group of people armed and ready to attack him was absolutely terrifying. However, looking at Tong Yao and Guo Jinnian, they seemed unfazed, even more composed than he and Gu Hongwei.
He exclaimed in admiration, "Both of you ladies are really brave. I was scared stiff just now, worried they might attack."
Guo Jinnian responded with a laugh, "What’s there to be scared of? Let me tell you, when I was competing for business in the past, some people even came at me with machetes."
Guo Jinnian rolled up her sleeves, exposing her fair arm, "Look here, this scar was from a fight. However, the other person didn’t get the upper hand. He slashed me once, and I stepped on his arm and broke it."
No one expected Guo Jinnian to have such a past. They were all astounded. On her fair arm was a long scar, the stitch marks still visible.
Tong Yao sighed, "Later on, we should go to the hospital and get some scar removal cream, see if it can be erased."
No woman enjoys having a scar, especially one that is visible on the arm.
"It’s just a scar, don’t worry about it." Guo Jinnian nonchalantly waved off the concern, then cheekily asked, "Yao Yao, do you have any good scar removal products to recommend?"
"I’ll ask my doctor friend for some recommendations later." Initially, she wanted to ask Si Chen, but since Si Boyi was here, Tong Yao refrained from saying so.
After a shaky ride, they finally arrived in the city. Tong Yao, Guo Jinnian and Gu Hongwei found a decent hostel to stay while Si Boyi rode the oxcart back to the village.
Tomorrow, he would take his wife and child to live in the city. Si Boyi felt a bit lost as he had no idea how things would be in the city and whether his business would prosper. All he could do was to plow forward with dogged perseverance. He felt helpless, having such a mother.
The journey had exhausted everyone. Upon returning to their rooms, they washed up and fell asleep.
When they woke, it was almost dark. Tong Yao and Guo Jinnian were a bit hungry. They decided to invite Gu Hongwei to join them for a meal. However, after knocking on the door for a while, there was no response. This unnerved the two ladies: Gu Hongwei didn’t seem like someone who would sleep so soundly.
Guo Jinnian went downstairs to get the hostel owner to open the door. Once inside, they saw that Gu Hongwei was indeed still asleep on the bed. Tong Yao gently called out to him a couple of times, but there was no response. Guo Jinnian commented, "Did he... die?"
Tong Yao’s mouth twitched at the comment. Observing Gu Hongwei’s complexion, which was still fair and clear, she touched his forehead and was taken aback, "Hongwei has a fever, at least 39 degrees. Get some cold water to cool him down. I’ll go get a doctor."
"Hey, hey, hey, let me go get the doctor instead! I don’t know how to take care of people!" Guo Jinnian quickly stopped Tong Yao, who was usually as rough as a tomboy. She could fight people confidently, but caring for a sick person was truly beyond her abilities.
Tong Yao responded, "I’m afraid you might get lost." After all, it was Guo Jinnian’s first time in Li City.
"..."
Guo Jinnian was taken aback. She had forgotten about that. So, with no other options, she had to follow Tong Yao’s suggestion and stay behind to care for Hongwei while Tong Yao went to fetch the doctor.
Guo Jinnian came back with a basin of water from outside and used the towel the hostel owner provided to apply cold compresses to Gu Hongwei’s forehead to lower his temperature. She didn’t know if it was working, but after a short while, Gu Hongwei woke up, looking startled to see her sitting by his bed.
"Why are you here?"
"You have a fever. Yao Yao has gone to get a doctor. I stayed back to watch over you." She pointed at the towel on Gu Hongwei’s forehead and awkwardly said, "Don’t get me wrong. Yao Yao asked me to cool you down. If it wasn’t for her, I wouldn’t have been so kind."
"Thank you."
Gu Hongwei managed to sit up, his head spinning and his mouth feeling bone-dry.
Guo Jinnian noticed his lips seemed dry, "Do you want some water?"
Without waiting for Gu Hongwei to answer, she poured him a glass of water and handed it to him, "Here."
"Thank you."
Gu Hongwei gratefully accepted the water and gulped it down. This seemed to comfort him a bit. However, he was worried about Tong Yao - could she really be pregnant and still running about outside?
"How long has Yao Yao been out?"
Guo Jinnian thought for a moment, then replied, "About twenty minutes. She should be back soon. Actually, I wanted to go, but I’m not familiar with this place."
