Rebirth: She is Ready for a Counterattack!

The couple put their things back home and rushed to Mr. Gu’s house.

Because today neither of them was in the mood for business and returned early, it was only one o’clock, and people had finished lunch and were taking a nap.

When Gu Ruhai and Li Xuemei pushed open Mr. Gu’s main door, they unexpectedly felt a sense of tragic heroism, like the bleak wind over the Yishui River.

Gu Ruhai lifted the curtain, "Dad, Mom, we came to see you."

Li Xuemei wore a stern face, not intending to show a pleasant demeanor.

Their in-laws could do such shameless things; as a daughter-in-law, was there anything she couldn’t do? Should she still have to grovel?

Mr. Gu and Mrs. Gu were feeling quite comfortable recently; Gu Xiaocheng’s matter was settled.

They met with Granny Feng that day and finalized the matter, and the other side sent word that Gu Xiaocheng could start work in ten days.

He would first go to the county for training to learn how to drive, and then start the job.

The whole family was happy about this.

Especially Gu Rushan and Jiang Xiulan, who would boast to everyone that their Gu Xiaocheng was going to be a city man.

Mr. Gu and Mrs. Gu finally felt relieved, although Mr. Gu felt a bit sorry for Gu Ruhai, he thought to himself that as long as he gave Gu Xiaoying some extra money as compensation, it would express his intentions as a grandfather.

Mrs. Gu did not take Gu Xiaoying’s matter seriously at all, and never intended to consider the compensation money Mr. Gu mentioned. In her mind, given that Gu Ruhai had become capable now and could earn money, why would he still need his parents’ supplement?

This matter didn’t bother Mr. Gu at all.

It was absolutely certain.

He didn’t care at all about how Gu Ruhai would react when he knew.

After all, he was his own son; it’s not like he could eat them alive.

Complaints were inevitable, but Mr. Gu was even less worried about Gu Ruhai’s attitude. How could a son take serious action against his own parents with just complaints?

Gu Ruhai wouldn’t commit murder or arson, let alone sever ties.

Blood relations aren’t something you can cut just because you want to.

Mr. Gu and Mrs. Gu were absolutely confident and unafraid of the matter being exposed.

As Gu Ruhai came in at this lunchtime, Mr. Gu and Mrs. Gu had to get up.

Mrs. Gu wore a displeased expression since she had the habit of taking a nap. Being interrupted like this, how could she not be upset? She looked at Gu Ruhai with disdain, as if seeing a fly.

Seeing Li Xuemei’s stern face made Mrs. Gu even angrier.

In her mind, she thought, as an elder, she hadn’t given the cold shoulder yet, so how dare the daughter-in-law show her attitude?

Suppressing her anger, she reproached, "Eldest, aren’t you being too unruly, coming at this time of day? Your father and I are not young anymore; we can’t handle the bother."

The underlying meaning was to put Gu Ruhai and his wife in their place.

Li Xuemei didn’t care and spoke straightforwardly, "Dad, Mom, as a daughter-in-law, I didn’t know when such a rule was set, where the daughter’s engagement was arranged without the parents’ knowledge."

This instantly darkened Mr. Gu’s face.

The older couple knew.

With a snort, he didn’t even look at Li Xuemei and said to Gu Ruhai, "Eldest, since when did a woman lead the house?"

Gu Ruhai replied, "Dad, isn’t it what I learned from you? In this house, it’s always the wife who is in charge, and the men can’t make decisions."

This almost infuriated Mr. Gu to death.

This was pointing out Mr. Gu’s indulgence of Mrs. Gu.

"Eldest, do you have any semblance of being a son, talking to your parents like this?" This was striking first to gain advantage.

Gu Ruhai laughed coldly, "Dad, stop trying to scare me. You’ve said this line at least five hundred times, if not eight hundred, over the years. Does it still amuse you? I want to regard you as my father, but have you ever treated me as a son?

If a father doesn’t treat his son as a son, does the son still need to regard him as a father?"

This was truly the first time Gu Ruhai had so directly confronted Mr. Gu without any reservation.

Bluntly laying these words on the table, with an air of a rascal, no longer the honest Gu Ruhai he appeared, but a rogue.

This filled Mr. Gu, who always considered fatherly authority supreme, with a surge of rage. The embarrassment, guilt, and resentment from losing control recently left Mr. Gu losing his composure.

Mr. Gu suddenly looked up and slapped the table, a rare act for him, generally Mrs. Gu’s thing, as Mr. Gu hadn’t been so angry before.

Slapping the table today was an explosion of rage and shame, aiming to fully intimidate Gu Ruhai.

"You unfilial son, what do you want? Don’t you have any law to follow, talking to your father like this? Is this your attitude when you speak to your parents? What happened to the teachings of etiquette and virtue, respect, and filial piety?"

Gu Ruhai walked up to Mr. Gu and knelt down straight in front of him, not even bending, with his eyes fixed on him, filled with a turbulent storm of anger.

"Dad, Mom, you taught me to respect the elderly and cherish the young, to be brotherly and respectful among siblings, to love and care for family. That’s what you taught me. How could I forget that.

But Dad, do you only teach me alone? Respect the elderly and cherish the young? It’s laughable, how can one demand respect when they don’t act respectably as elders? Did you ever care for our young ones?

Brotherly respect? Over the years, have Gu Rushan and Gu Ruhe ever respected me as their elder brother? As younger brothers, they plotted against their niece to secure their own son’s future, yet expect me to be brotherly towards them?

Am I brainless? Not beating them to death has already been Gu Rushan’s fortune.

Filial respect? That’s probably the biggest joke in the world. Dad, Mom, haven’t you heard me call you that for over forty years without feeling guilty? Is this how you parented?

You’re the kind of parents who want to sell my own daughter; how do I muster up the respect as Gu Ruhai? It’s like making me cut out my heart to respect you. I’d rather not have parents.

Love family? You only want me to love the second and third siblings, shouldn’t I love my own children and wife? Is this how you taught me to love?

I really want the whole village to come and see the Gu family’s righteous facade, which is so disgustingly dark within." (To be continued. If you like this work, you are welcome to vote for recommendations and monthly tickets at Qidian.com. Your support is my greatest motivation. Mobile users please read it at m.qidian.com.)