A husband found in the village? I bought a regent for a penny!

Gu Xixi pondered for a moment, then suddenly opened her eyes wide and looked at Mu Nanzhao.

Mu Nanzhao nodded. "It's just as you think. Someone deliberately pushed the stones down."

"Although he did it too roughly, it is very likely that he did not plan ahead and it was just a spur-of-the-moment idea."

"But there is no doubt that the person wants your life."

He continued eating his porridge, while Gu Xixi lowered her eyes in thought.

The room was unusually quiet; you could even hear the very slight clinking of a spoon against a bowl.

Mu Nanzhao finished eating slowly and deliberately, wiping his mouth with a handkerchief. "It's a matter of life and death, it's normal for a young lady like you to be afraid, but I'm here..."

Before she could finish speaking, Gu Xixi suddenly stood up. "It must be him!"

Mu Nanzhao was startled by her sudden action and looked up at her. "Do you know who the murderer is?"

"Gu Tiezhu," Gu Xixi said bitterly.

“Apart from him and his family, I have not made any enemies recently.”

In the past, Gu Xixi was only the target of ridicule and sarcasm in the village. She had neither the ability nor the cunning to bully others, so naturally she had no enemies.

Recently, only the families of Gu Laosan and Gu Daye have been involved.

Even though Grandpa Gu's most treasured vegetable garden was burned down, he didn't dare to fight to the death with Gu Laosan. As for killing someone, firstly, he lacked the physical strength, and secondly, he didn't have the guts.

Mu Nanzhao pondered for a moment and said, "I haven't seen Gu Tiezhu around the village recently."

"Logically speaking... his legs should be almost fully grown by now."

Gu Xixi also thought of a situation during the rescue.

Even though she had plenty of manpower, Gu Qingye insisted on squeezing in front of her.

That's nothing. Gu Qingye has always been a well-liked girl since she was a child, and she's always there for anyone who wants to earn a good reputation.

Coincidentally, no sooner had Gu Qingye walked away than a stone fell from the sky.

Gu Xixi recounted this incident and asked, "Don't you think it's too much of a coincidence?"

The two exchanged a glance and immediately identified Gu Tiezhu as the prime suspect.

The next step is to verify the information and try every means to find evidence.

The old doctor and Aunt Zhang ate dinner in the kitchen tonight.

While Aunt Zhang was washing the pot, the old doctor placed five copper coins on the stove, saying, "It's not much, but you can keep it."

Aunt Zhang asked in surprise, "Why are you giving me money when it's neither a holiday nor a festival?"

The old doctor said, "This is the consultation fee given by the village chief. I eat and drink here all day long without contributing to the household expenses, but I am ashamed that I still have nothing after all these years."

He paused, then smiled. "I know this little bit of money is far from enough to cover my food and living expenses, not to mention how much you and Xixi have taken care of me—that's priceless. If you find it too much..."

Aunt Zhang quickly picked up the five coins, saying, "Alright, alright, I'll take them!"

"If I don't accept it, I don't know how many times you'll say something inappropriate!"

"I'll tell Xixi later. She's the head of the household, and she should know that I accepted the household allowance from her master."

The old doctor grinned.

The next day, Lao Qian got up at the crack of dawn.

The old doctor advised him to go to bed early and get up early from today onwards, and to exercise his muscles and bones before eating breakfast to improve blood circulation.

Old Qian strictly followed the doctor's orders and performed a set of Five Animal Exercises that he had learned when he was young.

Unfortunately, I haven't practiced in a long time, so I don't remember all the movements, and my execution is not standard.

When Gu Xixi knocked on the door, Lao Qian had just finished making the "Golden Rooster Crows at Dawn" dish.

He maintained his posture shakily, and shouted impatiently, "Who is it?"

Gu Xixi replied, "Uncle Qian, it's me, Gu Xixi."

Old Qian quickly stopped his movements and began to breathe deeply.

He quickly tidied himself up, his face already beaming with a smile: "Is that Xixi? Just a moment, Uncle will open the door for you right away!"

The door opened, and before Gu Xixi could speak, Old Qian turned to the courtyard and said:

"Honey, my niece Xixi is here. Why don't you stir-fry some scallion eggs for Xixi to eat here?"

Aunt Qian opened the kitchen window, smiled and agreed, then warmly greeted Gu Xixi:

"I just steamed a pot of chive buns with chopped dried shrimp and tofu. They're delicious! Xixi, you have to eat a lot!"

The couple sincerely invited her to stay for dinner, but Gu Xixi hurriedly waved her hand, forced to tell a little lie.

"No need to trouble you, Auntie. I already ate at home before I came."

Old Qian knew that Gu Xixi must have something important to say when she came to his door so early in the morning.

He waved to his wife, "You start cooking, I need to talk to Xixi for a bit."

Old Qian invited Xixi inside for tea.

Gu Xixi said, "The children are probably not up yet, so I'll just talk here. It'll only take a few words."

After a moment, Old Qian exclaimed with delight, "Your Chen Fang is willing to teach the children to read?"

Gu Xixi nodded. "That's what he said."

"It's about choosing a location for the village school and recruiting students..."

Old Qian understood, "Don't worry, as long as there's a teacher, everything else will be easy to handle. I'll take care of it all."

He suddenly turned to Gu Xixi and bowed solemnly.

"On behalf of the people of Huachidu Village, I thank you and Chen Fang, oh no, I should call you Mr. Chen."

Gu Xixi was slightly taken aback, then said sincerely, "Uncle Qian, please don't make such a big gesture."

“I am also from Huachidu Village. I am naturally happy to see the village get better and better.”

Old Qian was moved and said, "Good boy, good."

"As for Mr. Chen, please tell him that I will choose an auspicious day to formally visit him and extend my invitation. Mr. Chen deserves respect in Huachidu Village and we must not mistreat him."

Gu Xixi wanted to say that it wasn't necessary to go to such lengths.

On second thought, as a middleman, there was really no need for him to make this decision for Mu Nanzhao.

So she said she was going home.

At this moment, Madam Qian chased after them and, without saying a word, stuffed a plate of steaming hot buns into Gu Xixi's hands.

"Take it back and let your family try my cooking."

Old Qian smiled and said, "Don't refuse, or your aunt will be unhappy."

Gu Xixi had no choice but to accept it. "Thank you, Auntie. Thank you, Uncle Qian. I'll return the plate to you later."

She carried the steamed buns back home, feeling a warm glow in her heart.

She had experienced this kind of warmth, where neighbors shared food with each other, when she lived in the compound as a child.

On the path in front of my house, I could see a beautiful figure pacing back and forth in the distance.

Gu Xixi called out, "Qingye."

Gu Qingye turned around, her face immediately breaking into a sweet and lively smile. "Sister Xixi! You left so early, I thought you went into the mountains."

Gu Xixi smiled faintly and said, "I promised to take you with me, how could I go back on my word?"

Gu Qingye quickly smiled and said coquettishly, "Of course I know Sister Xixi is good to me, she won't..."

She glanced at Gu Xixi and said, "It won't be because of my parents and my brother that we sisters have become estranged."

Gu Xixi smiled at Gu Qingye, "Of course."

This girl pushed her towards the mad cow not long ago.

At this moment, it seems as if he has completely lost his memory. Could it be that he thinks everyone else is a fool?

Gu Xixi glanced into the distance and asked casually, "Has my cousin not gone out recently?"