TFS – Chapter 61 Goudan

Before long, Tang Chunming learned about the situation with the Qin family’s boy. The whole affair had escalated quite a bit, leaving him and Li Feng momentarily at a loss for words. Should they scold the two boys? Reflecting deeply, it seemed that Tang Chunming himself had played a role in fanning the flames behind the scenes. Fortunately, the outcome wasn’t too severe.

Recently, Qian Defu’s days hadn’t been as blissful as he had imagined. In fact, they were more troubling than before. Perhaps “pain mixed with joy” would be the most fitting way to describe it. On one hand, he had finally married the Ge’er he had longed for, fulfilling his wishes. Apart from one aspect, Sun Ge’er met all his expectations. Sun Ge’er was gentle and attentive, always putting Qian Defu first, greatly satisfying his vanity. However, the painful part also stemmed from Sun Ge’er—or rather, the boy Sun Ge’er had brought with him, Goudan.

Qian Defu was determined to live a good life with Sun Ge’er. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have insisted on marrying this widowed Ge’er who came with a child, despite the strong opposition of his parents. Before the wedding, he had resolved to treat Goudan as if he were his own child for Sun Ge’er’s sake. But reality soon taught him that things wouldn’t go as he hoped. That little rascal couldn’t seem to understand human language and repeatedly pushed Qian Defu’s patience to its limits, making him want to give the disobedient child a good beating.

During this time, Goudan caused so much trouble that even his grandparents distanced themselves from the family, bluntly telling Qian Defu they would not acknowledge Goudan as their grandson. They declared that this child had nothing to do with the Qian family and that they didn’t want to see him brought to them. They said they couldn’t bear the aggravation—better to avoid being driven mad by a child who wasn’t even of their bloodline.

Because of Goudan, his grandparents even began to doubt the unborn child in Sun Ge’er’s belly. First, with such a terrible elder brother as an example, who knew what kind of character Sun Ge’er’s child would have? Second, they had recently learned that Sun Ge’er had become pregnant before the wedding, which made them look down on his character even more. Despite Qian Defu’s repeated explanations, the elderly couple sided with the village gossip, which accused Sun Ge’er of having an unclear relationship with a man from the village while he was widowed. They questioned whether the child in his belly was truly a Qian family descendant, saying they couldn’t bear such humiliation.

That day, Qin Goudan returned home, crying that his whole body hurt and claiming he’d been beaten. He demanded that his mother and Qian Defu seek revenge for him. However, he couldn’t clearly say who had hit him. Instead, he rambled about a list of people, including Er Mao, with whom he had previous conflicts. As Goudan writhed on the ground in apparent agony, Sun Ge’er, frightened, hurriedly urged Qian Defu to fetch a doctor.

Qian Defu was reluctant to call for a doctor, convinced that Goudan was likely faking to gain sympathy. He’d been fooled before, as Goudan rarely spoke the truth. If it weren’t for Sun Ge’er and the child in his belly, Qian Defu would have long since lost patience with the troublesome boy. However, Sun Ge’er’s sorrowful expression softened his heart. Things escalated when Goudan, in his thrashing, accidentally kicked Sun Ge’er’s belly, causing Sun Ge’er to collapse to the ground, clutching his stomach and crying out in pain. Alarmed, Qian Defu immediately went to summon the doctor.

Fortunately, it happened to be the time when Doctor Hu was returning from Anping County. Otherwise, Qian Defu would have had to transport the patients to town. Doctor Hu hadn’t even had a sip of hot water at home before Qian Defu dragged him to his house, clearly agitated. The villagers all knew that Doctor Hu had a bad temper, though his medical skills were highly respected. Few dared to shout at him the way Qian Defu did.

Despite his irritation, Doctor Hu had principles as a physician. Upon seeing the patients, he conducted a serious examination. After checking both Sun Ge’er and the unborn child’s pulses, he ignored Goudan and instructed Qian Defu, “Follow me home to get a prescription for pregnancy stabilization. He’s over two months pregnant now and needs to take better care of himself. If you don’t want the child, just keep this up.”

Doctor Hu kept common and emergency medications at home and only issued prescriptions for rare medicines that required a trip to the town’s pharmacy.

“Goudan isn’t sick?!” Qian Defu exploded with anger. He was furious at Goudan for lying again and at Sun Ge’er for neglecting his health. Was he trying to avoid having children?

Doctor Hu rolled his eyes impatiently. “It’s perfectly normal for boys this age to fall or get into scrapes. Given his behavior, he’s lucky he hasn’t been beaten up more often.” Even Doctor Hu’s herbs, drying in his yard, had once fallen victim to Goudan’s mischief. However, after being disciplined, Goudan hadn’t dared to bother him again. For Doctor Hu, handling a troublesome child was a simple task.

After Doctor Hu left, he had no idea what exactly had happened at the Qian household. Later, however, Qian Defu summoned him again to recheck the pulse. At that time, Qian Defu’s face looked grim. Doctor Hu was furious, feeling his skills were being questioned. If they didn’t trust him, why call him? Let them go to town to find another doctor! Reluctantly, Qian Defu used Sun Ge’er’s stomach discomfort as an excuse to bring him back. This time, even Doctor Hu realized Goudan wasn’t pretending; the boy’s pain seemed genuine. Suspicious, he suggested that Qian Defu invite Elder He from the Tang family to help.

It was only through Qian Defu’s visit that Tang Chunming learned about the troubles in the Qian family and the situation with Qin Goudan. Tang Chunming subtly signaled to Elder He, who paused in stroking his beard before agreeing to accompany Qian Defu.

When they returned, Doctor Hu also came along. The two elderly men scolded and teased the two boys, who were now huddled in a corner, meekly admitting their mistakes. From their explanations, Tang Chunming learned that Qin Goudan wasn’t seriously hurt; he would recover after some time. Relieved, Tang Chunming was glad there wasn’t any serious harm—after all, the boy was only six years old.

“From now on, double your time squatting in horse stance,” Li Feng said casually but firmly. Da Mao and Er Mao wore aggrieved expressions but didn’t dare to protest. Knowing they’d dodged a bullet, they quickly slipped away to find comfort from their parents.

“These two boys just need a little scare to teach them restraint,” Elder He said, shaking his head. “But letting Qin Goudan suffer a little isn’t a bad thing either. Considering all the trouble he’s caused, this bit of pain is mild.” Elder He noted that Goudan’s injuries weren’t severe; it just so happened that the blows landed on particularly sensitive areas, which amplified the pain for the six-year-old.

Compared to Elder He, Doctor Hu had less knowledge about specific pressure points and anatomy, which explained why his initial diagnosis found nothing wrong. Elder He, however, immediately understood the problem upon examination.

“But is it true that Sun Ge’er is over two months pregnant?” Tang Chunming asked in surprise.

“Yes, but after being kicked today, whether the pregnancy will hold depends on how well they care for it,” Doctor Hu said, emphasizing his responsibility as a doctor. He had already prescribed the necessary medication; the rest was up to them. Even doctors weren’t omnipotent.

“That’s fast,” Tang Chunming remarked in shock. Internally, he couldn’t help but gossip. It hadn’t been long since Zhang Lanhua’s divorce, and now Sun Ge’er was already pregnant. Some men could move on quickly, he thought—barely a blink, and they’d found a new partner and even conceived a child.

The news of Sun Ge’er being over two months pregnant couldn’t be kept secret in the village. On the day Qian Defu anxiously dragged Doctor Hu to his house, several villagers had witnessed it. As a result, the entire consultation was practically a public spectacle. By the next day, the news of the pregnancy had spread throughout the village.

On the surface, the villagers congratulated Qian Defu, but their true thoughts were less kind. Some gossiped, saying that last time Huang had “put a green hat” on Qian Defu (an idiom implying infidelity), and now, who knew who it would be this time? They joked that Qian Defu wasn’t satisfied with being a stepfather once and was now doing it a second time.

As for Qian Defu’s household, he was too worried about Sun Ge’er’s miscarriage risk to be angry with him. However, his patience with Qin Goudan had run out. Qian Defu had clearly seen that it was Goudan’s kick that caused Sun Ge’er’s complications. Compared to his own unborn child, Goudan didn’t matter at all.

After Qian Defu left the house, Sun Ge’er tenderly touched Goudan’s face and said, “Goudan, can we stop fighting from now on? If this keeps up, even I won’t be able to protect you anymore. Do you want to go back to Qinji Ridge?”

Qin Goudan pulled the blanket over himself and turned away, refusing to respond to his mother. Sun Ge’er continued, “Can’t we just live peacefully? With me here, your uncle will treat you like his own son. But if you keep this up, I don’t know what will happen.” Sun Ge’er started crying, covering his face in despair. He was at his wit’s end with this child—he had begged, pleaded, and didn’t even dare scold him anymore.

It would have been better not to mention “his own son.” At the mention of that, Goudan sat up despite his pain, gritting his teeth and glaring hatefully at Sun Ge’er’s belly. “He’s going to have his real son, and I’m just an unwanted bastard. Why can’t you just live alone? Why do you have to bring those random men into our house? I already have plenty of stepfathers; what’s one more? Get away from me! Go have your precious son—get out!”

He grabbed everything within reach on the bed and hurled it at Sun Ge’er before jumping off the kang and running outside. No matter how much Sun Ge’er called after him, Goudan refused to turn back.

Meanwhile, Tang Chunming was discussing plans for brewing and selling liquor with Li Feng and Elder He.

“Brewing liquor ourselves is too labor-intensive. We can’t produce much in a year. I was thinking, why not set up a distillery in the village? Once we plant sorghum next year, we can start production locally. We could grade the liquor into first-class and second-class batches. Naturally, the best-grade liquor will be reserved for our family,” Tang Chunming proposed. He had never intended to rely solely on his family’s efforts for small-scale production. “But as for selling the liquor, I’m at a loss. Ah Feng, Elder He, do you have any ideas?”

Seeing Tang Chunming’s hopeful gaze, Elder He pointed a finger at the cunning “little fox” before him, caught between amusement and exasperation. Li Feng couldn’t help but chuckle; leveraging Elder He’s connections was undoubtedly the best solution—no one’s network was stronger than Elder He’s.

“Fine, fine. Since I’m living and eating here, I’ll help you. When it’s time to give New Year’s gifts, package the liquor properly, and I’ll point you to the right places to deliver it. If the recipients are interested, they’ll come to you. Beyond that, I can’t do much more,” Elder He said.

Tang Chunming immediately broke into a wide grin and flattered him, “Absolutely! We’ll make sure everything is perfect. With Elder He taking the lead, there’s no problem that can’t be solved. Ah Feng here doesn’t even come close to you.”

“Ha!” Elder He burst into laughter, especially at the sight of Li Feng’s darkened expression after being belittled.

Feeling dejected from being underestimated, Li Feng wandered around the back mountain of his home. He couldn’t believe Tang Chunming had looked down on him. Shouldn’t he show some of his true capabilities and let Tang Chunming see what he could do? The thought of Tang Chunming treating him as attentively as he did Elder He suddenly filled Li Feng with hope, and even the biting north wind on the mountain felt like a gentle spring breeze.