Chapter 684: Gu Haifan Returns Home (1)
Chapter 684: Gu Haifan Returns Home (1)
Gu Haifan was set to take his exams in May. Ever since Gu Xiuxiu left for the mainland, he had been attending a boarding school. Having endured hardships from a young age, he had developed a resilient character and didn't require much attention from Lu Jiaxin.
After finishing his exams, Gu Haifan spoke to Lu Jiaxin, "Cousin, I want to go to Si Jiucheng to keep my aunt company."
Due to his busy academic schedule over the past few years, he could only visit Gu Xiuxiu during the winter and summer breaks. He had noticed that his aunt's health seemed to be deteriorating. Now that his exams were over, he intended to stay with her in Si Jiucheng until it was time for him to leave for university.
Lu Jiaxin, of course, had no objections.
Gu Haifan continued, "Cousin, I also want to make a trip back to my hometown. It's been many years since I've been back, and my father's grave is probably overgrown with grass by now."
"It's time to go back," Lu Jiaxin agreed.
Gu Haifan had a request for Lu Jiaxin regarding his trip, "Cousin, I want to repay those who helped me in the past. Could you please assign two people to accompany me on my trip back home?"
Lu Jiaxin responded with an 'oh' and then asked, "Why do you need people to accompany you?"
Gu Haifan gave a bitter smile, "It's better to be safe than sorry. If someone sees that I have money now and gets the wrong idea, it could be dangerous if they try to detain me and prevent me from leaving."
Lu Jiaxin praised, "It's good that you're thinking this way. You haven't seen your relatives in seven years, and their characters may have changed. Haifan, people can be treacherous, and not just your relatives—the same goes for making friends in the future. Don't be too trusting, or they might push you into a abyss."
As Gu Haifan's guardian, Lu Jiaxin didn't need to worry about his daily life or studies. Even hiring tutors was left to the secretary, and she would only visit the school occasionally if there was an issue. With her prominent status in Hong Kong, no one dared to bully Gu Haifan, who was known to be her cousin.
Having experienced the incident with the He family, Gu Haifan had already witnessed the dark side of human nature. He nodded to indicate that he would keep her words in mind, "Cousin, how is the He family doing now?"
If he hadn't brought it up, Lu Jiaxin would have forgotten about them, "He Zhuliang passed away last year. Even with medical parole, he couldn't be saved. His wife, Li Xuanqi, is now being taken care of by He Yanyan."
He Yanyan had no particular strengths. She had gotten into university by donating money and only wanted a degree. However, she had her looks going for her, but after being knocked down by reality a few times, she had also changed her ways. Rumor had it that she was now kept by some wealthy old man. As for Li Xuanqi, she was living a comfortable life thanks to the money He Yanyan earned as a kept woman. Lu Jiaxin didn't bother to keep up with the rest of the family.
Gu Haifan had a good impression of He Mingzhu, but he didn't really care about the others, "Cousin, where is Mingzhu now? Is she doing well?"
Lu Jiaxin smiled, "I don't know where she is, but with her money and capabilities, she'll be doing well no matter where she is. Haifan, the same goes for you. As long as you learn real skills, you'll do well wherever you go."
"I understand," Gu Haifan replied.
The next day, Gu Haifan returned to Si Jiucheng and stayed there for a day before heading back to his hometown. After seven years, his dreams were still filled with people from his hometown. But now that he was actually back, seeing the muddy, unpaved road and the low-lying houses, he felt a bit disoriented.
An old man spotted him and cautiously asked, "Comrade, who are you looking for?"
Gu Haifan's eyes grew moist at the sight of the elderly man with a head full of white hair, "Sixth Uncle, it's me, Haifan! I'm Haifan!"
His father had passed away, and his mother had remarried, leaving him to fend for himself in poverty. Many of his clansmen had given him food, preventing him from starving to death.
It wasn't long before he was fortunate enough to be chosen by his grandaunt to go to Hong Kong.
Sixth Uncle couldn't believe his eyes. "Is it really you, Haifan? It can't be."
Seven years ago, when Gu Haifan left, he was still a frail little boy. But the young man standing before them now was handsome and radiant, obviously well taken care of by his wealthy grandaunt. Oh yes, Haifan had been taken away by his wealthy grandaunt.
With this in mind, Liu Sixth Uncle asked, "Where is your grandaunt? Why would she let you come back?"
Before he left, Mei Gu and Hong Gu had instructed him not to tell the Gu family about Gu Xiuxiu's situation in Si Jiucheng. Having lived in the upper-class society, they were well aware of the maliciousness that people were capable of. If the Gu family found out about Old Mrs. Gu's whereabouts, not to mention the potential actions of Gu Haifan's cousins and second cousins, they might very well pay a visit. It wouldn't be a problem if Old Mrs. Gu was in her right mind, but now that she was delirious...
Gu Haifan said, "Grandaunt is in Hong Kong City. I came back after my college entrance exam, and I'll be leaving for university abroad soon, so it might be a few years before I can come back again."
He had applied to several renowned medical universities abroad. Although he had struggled at first after arriving in Hong Kong City, his Cantonese and English skills had improved by leaps and bounds. Following Lu Jiaxin's requirements for holistic development, he had taken up various sports like basketball and tennis, and even joined the school basketball team in Form Four. Although the results of his graduation exam weren't out yet, he was confident that he would be accepted by a foreign university.
Sixth Uncle hastily invited him into his home.
When the Gu clan heard that Gu Haifan had returned, they rushed to Sixth Uncle's house. Even Gu Haifan's eldest uncle, upon receiving the news, came to take him to stay at his own home.
However, Gu Haifan declined, saying that he was quite comfortable staying with Sixth Uncle. Back then, many villagers had given him food and prevented him from starving to death. But his eldest uncle and uncle had not been among them. What's more, his aunt and uncle's wife had even spread rumors that he had brought about his father's death, causing his mother to remarry hastily out of fear of suffering the same fate.
Soon after, his uncle also came to invite him to stay at his home, but Gu Haifan refused this offer as well. He didn't hold a grudge about what had happened in the past, as he understood how difficult it was for a family to support an extra mouth during those truly impoverished times. However, he couldn't forgive them for spreading false rumors about him bringing about his own father's death.
Sixth Uncle's eldest daughter-in-law gave him the incense and spirit money she had bought. Carrying the basket, Gu Haifan climbed up the hill and looked at the short mound of earth that was his father's grave. "Sixth Uncle, I want to repair my father's tomb, but I don't know how to go about it," he said.
Sixth Uncle explained that they would need to find someone to calculate an auspicious date for the tomb repair, and they couldn't just start the work whenever they wanted.
Gu Haifan didn't want to stay in the village for too long, so as he descended the hill, he asked Sixth Uncle whom they should find to calculate the auspicious date.
Although Sixth Uncle was in his sixties, he was still robust and healthy. Smiling, he said, "I'll take you there now, and we'll buy the materials after we've chosen a date."
The auspicious date for the tomb repair was quickly calculated to be in the middle of the following month. As Gu Haifan couldn't stay in the village for that long, he entrusted the task of buying the materials to Sixth Uncle's eldest son.
Sixth Uncle said, "Haifan, many villagers helped you back then. Now that you're back, you should go and thank each household."
If it hadn't been for the villagers' support, Gu Haifan might not have survived that winter. Although he had helped out quite a bit back then, many of those who had helped him had large families and weren't well-off themselves, so their ability to help was limited. But with help from many households, a little rice from one family and a bit more from another, he had managed to scrape through the most difficult times. Later, he was noticed by his wealthy grandaunt, who had returned from Hong Kong, and taken away—how many people must have envied him then!
Gu Haifan nodded in agreement. "I'll go now."
(End of Chapter)
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