Chapter 492: Foreseeing A Prosperous Future

Translator: EndlessFantasy Translation  Editor: EndlessFantasy Translation

Over time, a peculiar tradition developed in the town. Whenever a child misbehaved, people would point towards the home of Yuan Yuan and frighten the child with a cautionary tale. “See there? Do you hear the crying? That little one was locked up by his mother for being naughty. If you continue to misbehave, I’ll do the same to you.” This threat was usually enough to keep the children in line for a while.

Mrs. Wang, Yuan Yuan’s mother, typically returned home late at night. Before leaving, she would prepare a large bowl of noodles or a few buns for her son, leaving them on the table for him to eat when he was hungry. Thus, the child spent his days locked inside the house.

Aunt Yang, the boy’s grandmother, was heartbroken. She recalled how she had once praised her grandson for being so independent, able to clean himself and wash his face. She now realized that these skills were born out of necessity, a result of his harsh living conditions.

Aunt Yang confronted Mrs. Wang about her treatment of the child, only to be met with a sharp retort. Mrs. Wang quickly turned the tables, telling Aunt Yang’s son, Yang Tao, that she had asked his mother to help care for the child, but she had refused, leaving Mrs. Wang with no choice but to lock the boy in the house.

Without discerning the truth, Yang Tao berated his mother the following day. Aunt Yang was left speechless, unsure of how to defend herself against such blatant false accusations.

Unable to bear the sight of her grandson’s suffering, Aunt Yang took it upon herself to care for the boy. To prevent him from being locked in the house, she walked from the village to the town every morning and back again each evening.

Initially, her role was to look after the child, but it soon evolved into serving the couple. From laundry and cooking to running errands and childcare, Aunt Yang took on all the household chores.

This routine continued for half a year until Yang Tao had to leave for work in a distant place, and the family moved back to the village.

However, the shadow of Yuan Yuan’s past could not be erased. He remained sensitive and irritable in confined spaces, often breaking down into tears when left alone.

Aunt Yang longed to help her grandson overcome his trauma but was at a loss for how to do so.

Gu Zi felt the matter at hand was of utmost importance. If not addressed promptly, it could potentially impact a child’s entire life. Wasn’t that akin to adding another tragic tale to the book, much like the unfortunate endings of children like Su Bing? She couldn’t allow that. At the very least, she could do something.

She might not be able to offer much assistance, but she could try to guide Aunt Yang on how to properly steer the child’s mental state. The situation with Yuan Yuan wasn’t entirely beyond salvation.

She said to Aunt Yang, “This Saturday, Lele’s speech therapist will come for a language training session. I will consult them about this issue then.”

Aunt Yang was extremely grateful upon hearing this. After soothing her grandson, she returned to her chores. Gu Zi didn’t dwell on it too much. Life was unpredictable, and every family had its own set of difficulties. There was no point in overthinking or discussing it further.

She then turned to Li Hua to discuss the adjustments to their shop, “Sister-in-law, our opening promotion period is almost over. Once it ends, we need to reduce the quantity of food we prepare for sale each day by twenty percent, maybe even more. If we sell less, we can close the shop earlier and rest.”

Li Hua was puzzled as to why they needed to reduce the food quantity suddenly. The shop had been thriving these days, and the breakfast and braised meat they prepared for sale each day were barely enough. She said, “Ah, just yesterday, Mother and I were discussing increasing the quantity of food we sell each day. Won’t reducing it make it even less sufficient?”

Gu Zi shook her head and simply said, “There’s no family in the world that can earn all the money. Don’t worry about whether reducing the quantity will be enough for now. Just reduce it first, and you’ll understand later.”

Li Hua agreed, thinking that her sister didn’t want the shop to attract too much attention. Closing the shop earlier would also give other shops some room to grow.

She didn’t grasp the reason behind Gu Zi’s instruction until a few days later, during which she had reduced the quantity of food as Gu Zi had advised.

To her surprise, Gu Zi’s prediction was spot on. After the promotion period ended, business wasn’t as booming as before. However, because they had appropriately reduced the quantity, there was no leftover food in the shop at the end of the day, thus avoiding any loss.

Li Hua was extremely curious, “Sister, what’s the principle behind this? Can you really predict the future? Did you foresee that our business would decline these few days?” At that moment, Li Hua resembled a curious seven or eight-year-old child, her eyes fixed on Gu Zi, seeking answers.

Playing along, Gu Zi lifted her hand to her chin, pretending to stroke a long beard, and said in a theatrical tone, “Hmm, with a simple calculation, I figured it out. I see that you, young lady, have a full forehead, indicating a prosperous future with your husband. Your future is boundless, beyond words!”

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