Second Aunt Qin’s words left everyone momentarily speechless, with no one quite sure how to respond.

Qin’s mother, though sometimes critical of her sister-in-law’s loose tongue and tendency to speak thoughtlessly, held no grudge against her nephew, Niu Dan.

Before or after the family division, Niu Dan always got along well with her own sons, and the relationship between her husband and Second Uncle Qin remained close as well.

Considering the idea of sending Niu Dan to Qin Fang for an opportunity, Qin’s mother reflected on whether it would be beneficial.

If her son had the ability to help, she wouldn’t object, but if it would cause him any trouble, she would naturally refuse.

She thought for a moment and then said, “This depends on what Ah Fang thinks. Besides, Niu Dan is still young. Ah Fang is probably quite busy with his duties, and it’d likely fall on Yanyan to look after him, but she’s also trying to prepare for having children herself.”

Suddenly, Niu Dan spoke up, “Auntie, I don’t need my brother or sister-in-law to look after me. I’m old enough to take care of myself. I want to join the military and learn martial arts. I want to fight bandits just like my brother!”

Niu Dan had always been a bit of a troublemaker and a natural leader among the children, a stark contrast to his well-behaved cousins, Qin Shouye and Qin Shoucheng.

He was quite a bit like Qin Fang as a child, always running wild across the village and bringing back wild fruits for his siblings to enjoy.

Grandfather Qin thought carefully and then asked Second Uncle Qin, “What do you think? Honestly, you don’t have to go. The fields here can all be left for you to manage.”

Third Uncle Qin added, “Second Brother, we usually rent out the land for a forty percent cut. If I rent it to you, I’ll only take thirty percent.” He wanted to make it clear that managing the family’s fields wasn’t a free privilege.

The fields generated income, and giving them to Second Uncle wasn’t an option without fair compensation.

Besides, Second Uncle couldn’t possibly handle all the land on his own and would likely end up renting it out or hiring labor anyway.

Second Aunt Qin said, “Third Brother, just rent it out then. We have enough land, and if Ah Fang gives us another ten mu, we won’t be able to manage it all ourselves.”

She had it all planned out—if they got the ten mu of high-quality land, they would likely rent out half of it for a yearly return of three taels of silver.

They’d work the remaining land themselves, making another four taels a year.

Going to Yunxiang County to manage the military fields might earn them twelve taels a year, but they’d lose the ten mu of land and the four-tael income from renting it.

Staying at home seemed more profitable.

Hearing everyone’s back-and-forth discussions, Grandfather Qin understood their intentions clearly.

He said, “In that case, your grandmother and I, along with the eldest branch and the third branch, will go to Ah Fang, while the second branch can stay behind. As for Niu Dan, we’ll ask Ah Fang when we get there and see what he has to say.”

Second Aunt Qin quickly suggested, “Father, why not let my husband take Niu Dan there first? If Ah Fang can’t look after Niu Dan, my husband can always bring him back.”

Grandfather Qin, taken aback by his normally blunt daughter-in-law’s sensible idea, nodded. “Fine, but before you go, you’ll need to write a document severing family ties.”

Second Uncle’s face turned pale, and he almost dropped to his knees, his eyes welling up. “Father, what did I do wrong? Why would you want me to write a severance document?”

Grandmother Qin gasped, alarmed, “Old man!”

Qin’s father’s eyes widened. “Father, what’s the meaning of this?”

Third Uncle looked at Grandfather Qin in shock.

Grandfather Qin, calm as ever, replied, “Rest assured, I’m not disowning you.”

Everyone breathed a sigh of relief, momentarily stunned by the implications.

Second Aunt Qin asked, “Father, if you’re not disowning us, then why write a severance document?”

Grandfather Qin said seriously, “We’re all going to Yunxiang County. Who knows what you might do here? There’s a saying, ‘When the tiger is away, the monkey reigns supreme.’ I want to make sure that none of you misuse Ah Fang’s status or do anything that might harm him.

The truth is, the Qin family came from humble roots, and we’ve finally had a descendant rise to success.

His achievements will shape our family’s future, and I won’t allow anyone to jeopardize that.

So, it’s not just you, Second Son. Third Son, you also need to sign the document. If I could, I’d have the eldest sign one as well. But being Ah Fang’s father, even if he signed, it wouldn’t change anything.”

“But Second and Third Uncle, you are uncles from separate branches of the family, and you’ve already divided your inheritance, so if you sign the severance letter, even if you get into trouble, it won’t affect Ah Fang.

Don’t worry, as long as you don’t do anything wrong or misuse Ah Fang’s name for ill purposes, I won’t bring up the severance letter.

While I’m alive, I’ll keep it safe, and after I pass away, I’ll give it to Ah Fang.

As long as you live honestly, I assure you that Ah Fang, being a filial child, will continue to care for the second and third branches.

But if you act like animals instead of men, then don’t blame me for being ruthless.”

Second Uncle Qin and Third Uncle Qin exchanged glances, both shocked by their father’s actions.

Even Qin’s father didn’t expect this.

He might have had an inkling of it, but he wouldn’t have dared to carry out something like this.

He lacked the resolve, and moreover, he couldn’t force his brothers to sign it. Only Grandpa Qin had the authority to make such a move.

Qin’s father hesitated. “Father, this—”

Grandpa Qin interrupted sternly, “You keep quiet. This has nothing to do with you, and you don’t need to intervene. Your eldest brother had no knowledge of this either, so Second and Third Uncle, you don’t need to blame him in the future.

Of course, as long as you do nothing wrong, this will be as if it never existed, so it won’t affect you. Have you made up your minds?”

Third Uncle Qin was the first to respond. “I’ve made up my mind. I’ll sign.”

As their father had said, as long as he didn’t do anything wrong, signing the severance letter wouldn’t affect him.

Third Uncle Qin was confident he wouldn’t make mistakes.

He had already decided to follow his nephew’s lead, bringing his entire family with him.

He would manage the fields in his nephew’s military estate, and if possible, ask his nephew’s wife to teach his daughter proper manners so she could find a good husband.

He had no plans to exploit his nephew for wealth.

Seeing that Third Uncle had agreed without hesitation, Second Uncle finally said, “I’ll sign too.”

He hadn’t intended to do anything wrong anyway.

Second Aunt, however, hesitated.

She worried that once the severance letter was signed, Qin Fang might no longer recognize his uncles.

But then again, that seemed unlikely. As for doing something wrong, Second Aunt was confident she didn’t have the guts for it.

Grandpa Qin nodded. “Good. Shouye, go call the village chief and the family elders. Let them witness this.”

Qin Shouye, still somewhat confused, stood up. “Yes, Grandpa.”

Huang Huzi, who had been in the room the whole time, hadn’t wanted to stay and listen, but Grandpa Qin had called him in at the beginning.

Hearing all this, Huang Huzi couldn’t help but admire Grandpa Qin’s determination.

Despite appearing to be a simple rural elder, he was meticulous in his thinking.

In this respect, General Qin was indeed much like his grandfather.

Grandpa Qin turned to Huang Huzi and smiled. “Young man, you can be a witness too.”

Huang Huzi immediately responded respectfully, “Yes, Old Master.”

After a pause, he added, “Old Master, you truly live up to being the grandfather of a general. You and the general are very much alike.”

Grandpa Qin, who had been calm and serious throughout the conversation, couldn’t help but smile when he heard this. He was delighted and a little proud when Huang Huzi said his grandson resembled him. He asked, “How are we alike?”

Qin’s father, feeling a bit dissatisfied, chimed in, “Ah Fang is my son, so of course he looks most like me. Dad, the young man is just trying to say something nice. Don’t take it too seriously.”

Grandpa Qin gave him a disdainful look and said, “Young man, tell me, who does your general resemble?”

Now Huang Huzi felt awkward, but he still answered truthfully, “He resembles you, Old Master.” After all, he knew full well that Grandpa Qin was still the one in charge of the family.

Grandpa Qin was extremely pleased. “In what ways does the general resemble me?”

Huang Huzi replied, “In temperament, he’s decisive and bold, just like you.”

Grandpa Qin chuckled, “You’re right. In terms of personality, Ah Fang does take after me.”

Even Grandma Qin agreed with this. “The eldest and second sons are honest, and the third is shrewd, but the one who truly takes after the old man is our eldest grandson. This young man also mentioned that while on his way to Yunxiang County to take up his post, Ah Fang even led a raid to eliminate bandits. The court recognized his achievement and rewarded him. That bravery also resembles you.”

Grandpa Qin, Qin’s father, and Qin Shouye had been reading the letter in the other room earlier, so they hadn’t known about this. Hearing Grandma Qin mention it now, Grandpa Qin became curious. “He wiped out bandits? Well done! Those bandits deserve it. Tell me, how did Ah Fang deal with them?”

At that, the Qin family members who had heard the story from Huang Huzi excitedly began recounting the tale to Grandpa Qin.

Meanwhile, the village chief and family elders had arrived at the Qin home, summoned by Qin Shouye, though they had been a bit worried about what was happening. When they heard Grandpa Qin laughing, they felt reassured that it wasn’t something bad.

Qin Shouye said, “Grandpa, the village chief and family elders are here.”

Grandpa Qin stood up and walked to the door. “Come in, please.”

Third Aunt Qin served tea to the village chief and family elders.

Once they were seated, Grandpa Qin explained, “I’ve invited you here today to ask you to witness something.” He then proceeded to tell them about Qin Fang’s military accomplishments, his promotion to general, and the matter of the severance letter to be signed by the second and third branches.

The village chief: Am I getting old and hearing things?

The family elder: Did I hear that correctly?