As for Sun Er, he looked at Gu Yuan with fear, then glanced at Dong Gui, and a sense of resentment grew in his heart.
Yes, he both resented and hated Gu Yuan, after all, Gu Yuan crippled one of his hands and a leg, but his resentment towards Dong Gui was even greater!
In Sun Er's opinion, if it wasn't for Dong Gui making him act today, hitting that old Mr. Gu, perhaps Gu Yuan wouldn't have come knocking, and he wouldn't have been beaten until his hands and legs were broken.
If it wasn't for Dong Gui, none of this would have happened!
Now, it's all because of Dong Gui that Gu Yuan, who is obviously not someone to be messed with, was provoked today, and this clearly wasn't a good thing!
It's all Dong Gui's fault!
"???"
Noticing that Sun Er's resentful eyes weren't directed at himself, but at Dong Gui, made Gu Yuan a little confused; his gaze toward Sun Er was a bit strange.
"What's going on? Not hating me, his enemy, but rather resenting his big brother, what kind of bizarre mindset is that?!"
After a brief contemplation, a thoughtful expression flashed across Gu Yuan's mouth, gradually understanding.
It seems Sun Er thinks that I'm not someone to be provoked, so he's shifting all the reasoning and blame onto Dong Gui.
Now that's top grade!
...
Just as Gu Yuan left Dong Gui's rundown courtyard, he felt several eyes on him.
Gu Yuan looked up and saw that most of these people were villagers living nearby, likely drawn by the commotion he caused earlier.
However, at this moment, the way these people looked at Gu Yuan was rather complicated, with fear, shock, and disbelief.
As if seeing a terrifying beast.
They seemed amazed that Gu Yuan had actually subdued the two notorious scoundrels, Dong Gui and Sun Er, to the point of their constant cries and tears.
Gu Yuan ignored these people and walked straight towards his home.
Actually, the reason he didn't deliver a killing blow earlier was not because he didn't dare to, but because he couldn't be reckless!
Killing is a major affair, whether in his past life or current life!
Especially for someone like him from the lowest rung of society.
He currently had his parents, home, and land, and his pet cultivation system. As long as he progresses step by step, his future is undoubtedly bright and promising.
If he killed someone, the government would immediately come after him, arresting him, which would be like ensnaring himself in a cocoon.
But if it were just to injure someone, the seriousness of it would be reduced by dozens of times!
What's more, Gu Yuan had beaten two street thugs, and the two of them had previously caused trouble at his home, which was a retaliatory act. According to the simple moral values of the rural village folk, "violence for violence, settling grudges privately" was perfectly reasonable.
Therefore, nearly no one thought what Gu Yuan did was wrong.
As for why Gu Yuan dared to kill the Third Gang Leader of Cyan Bamboo Gang, it's because there was no one around at the time, which avoided a lot of trouble.
Moreover, although the death of Cyan Bamboo Gang's Third Gang Leader brought Gu Yuan quite some trouble, at least this was a trouble he had some grasp of solving!
"Killing Dong Gui and Sun Er would be easy, but not dragging myself into it is rather difficult."
On his way back, Gu Yuan pondered silently, "Not only does it relate easily back to me, but once they're dead, the first to trouble me would surely be the Qian Mansion!"
There's a difference between injuring and killing.
To injure without killing signifies restraint, and where there's restraint, there are weaknesses.
To dare to kill, that means boundless fearlessness! It's what's most menacing!
If Gu Yuan dared to kill, wouldn't he dare to retaliate against Qian Yunjie?
"With today's medical conditions, even if those two recover from having their hands and legs broken by me, they will likely end up disabled! But gotta admit... responding to violence with violence is truly satisfying!"
At this time, Gu Yuan twisted his wrist, feeling much more relaxed:
"The healing process for bones and muscles takes a hundred days; these two will certainly have to behave and rest up for at least a month or two, plus with A Huang secretly watching over, they shouldn't be able to stir up any trouble."
"As for the future, I'll deal with them when the opportunity arises..."
Dong Gui and Sun Er came to his home to cause trouble today, not to mention their scheme to frame Gu Yuan to curry favor with the Qian Mansion, using it as a stepping stone. If Gu Yuan were still the former Gu Yuan, his family's fate would surely have been tragic.
This is a deadly feud!
How could Gu Yuan let them go?
That said, Gu Yuan was aware that although he felt great earlier, he also left some hidden threats for himself.
At least if this incident gets known to Steward Wu, it would surely arouse his surprise and suspicion.
Why would a mere commoner from the mountains dare to do such a thing? And with such a heavy hand? It was clearly somewhat incompatible with Gu Yuan's identity.
"Therefore, the matter of Martial Arts cultivation needs urgency! Once I become a Martial Master, even if there really are troubles, I would have the means to handle them."
With this in mind, Gu Yuan took out a dagger, which he acquired from Dong Gui.
Drawing the dagger, Gu Yuan presented it to his shoulder level.
"Today, you have accomplished great merit for me, consider this your reward."
"Squeak squeak squeak!"
The Iron-toothed Rat squatted with its two feet on Gu Yuan's shoulder, excitedly taking the dagger, cradling it with its two forepaws, then opening its mouth to start gnawing.
Crunch crunch—crunch crunch—
Alongside the strange teeth-grating, ear-assaulting noise, the forged iron dagger was gnawed piece by piece by the Iron-toothed Rat's hardened teeth, akin to biting sweet cane.
After crunching, it would swallow into its stomach.
"Feeding on gold and iron, you really are a tricky one!"
Gu Yuan heaved a sigh, feeling a bit troubled.
The Iron-toothed Rat had brought him many benefits, but challenges had also followed closely.
Although this alien rat ate grains and meats, it also needed to gnaw metal substances.
It's not just due to its inherent habit of gnawing metal but also because it's currently in its growth stage and needs to consume enough iron artifacts to mature.
Thus, Gu Yuan now had an added expense.
But ordinary iron and copper materials are not cheap, so Gu Yuan needed to work hard to earn money.
...
"A Yuan, are you going out to chop wood again?"
"Brother Yuan, my dad caught a rabbit yesterday, really fat, we're going to stew it tonight, and he told me to invite you over."
"Xiao Yuan, you're seventeen this year, right? I have a niece from the same family, good-looking, diligent, perfect for running a household, if you're interested..."
The next morning, when Gu Yuan went out, he noticeably sensed that his neighbors were remarkably more enthusiastic.
Some greeted him.
Some tried to befriend him.
Some outright wanted to play matchmaker and arrange a marriage for him...
Some people's gazes towards him were different from before.
There was surprise, awe, and curiosity...
Gu Yuan responded to each with a smile, but in his heart, he knew that his actions from last night had spread.
In remote rural areas, news outside rarely trickles in, but conversely, once something happens locally, it spreads rapidly.
Gu Yuan's ability to cripple Dong Gui and Sun implied extraordinary martial strength and signaled that he wasn't to be trifled with.
No one wanted to offend such a neighbor; many wanted to curry favor instead, unsure when they might need Gu Yuan's help.
Stepping on those down and raising those up, this is human nature.