Chapter 17: Injustice

The early spring air was still crisp, and Qi Wanfeng stood there clad in a thin layer of clothing, his lips pale and bloodless. The burden of life weighed heavily on his shoulders, and his body was already feeling the strain, but he persevered for the sake of his fulang and child.

The moment his amu mentioned separating the family, Qi Wanfeng instantly understood her intentions. A look of disbelief flickered in his eyes. He turned to the silent adie and realized that his adie had also agreed to this. His amu was looking at him, and Qi Wanfeng knew that she was waiting for his agreement. He said, “Amu, Adie, please speak. I’m listening.”

“As you all know, there are over a dozen mouths to feed in this family, and that’s a considerable expense every month. Little Wu also needs to study, and there’s not much money left in the family. The monthly expenses for such a large family are quite high. We’re barely managing to make ends meet.” Chen Zhu was implying that the family was very poor and had no money to spare, so no one should expect to receive any silver from him upon separation.

“Originally, our family only had seven mu of barren land. Over the years, we’ve gradually bought some more. As you all know, the family now has four mu of superior land, three mu of medium land, and seven mu of inferior land.”

In reality, this was quite a bit of land in Caojia Village. With over ten mu for a family of over ten people, they would have enough rice to eat for the year if they worked diligently. After paying taxes, they could even sell some to supplement the family income.

“Regarding the separation, your adie and I have discussed it. The eldest and second sons will continue to live with your adie and me in this main courtyard. Little Wu will also live with your adie and me in the future. The fourth son’s family will move out and live separately. There are old houses over at the old homestead. You can move over there.”

“As for the land, there are so many mouths to feed, especially the eldest and second sons’ families. Little Wu also needs to take the imperial examinations to become a xiucai, and a large sum of money will be needed after that. Right now, everything requires money. So, regarding the land division, your adie and I have discussed it. The fourth son’s family will be given two mu of inferior land. You’ll live over at the old houses, and the land around the old houses will also belong to you.” Chen Zhu finished speaking in one breath, glanced at everyone, and looked at Qi Wanfeng, indicating that it was settled.

“Oh my, we’ll all listen to Amu. We have no objections to how Amu wants to divide it.” Second Brother’s wife, Wang Yan, quickly understood that their amu was giving the fourth uncle’s family the least, which pleased her greatly.

The eldest son, Cao Fugui, opened his mouth to say something, but his wife pinched him. He knew in his heart that his amu’s division was unfair, but his wife wouldn’t allow him to speak. He didn’t dare to help his fourth brother’s family, fearing that his wife would cause trouble.

The eldest brother’s wife, Chen Li, said with a fake smile, “We juniors will definitely listen to Adie and Amu. We have no objections to how Adie and Amu want to divide it. Amu, isn’t Jinbao twelve this year? I’m planning to find him a marriage match. If it works out, Amu will be waiting to become a great-grandmother.”

So, what he meant was that since his fourth uncle’s family was moving out, the house would be available for his eldest son to marry a wife. Otherwise, he wouldn’t even be able to marry, let alone become a great-grandmother.

Chen Zhu glanced at the eldest brother’s wife, Chen Li. This eldest daughter-in-law was somewhat related to him on the same clan. In the past, he had favored this eldest daughter-in-law somewhat. Now, hearing his words, he knew that he was eyeing his fourth son’s house. He didn’t scold him. If his eldest grandson’s marriage was successful, he would be waiting to become a great-grandmother. The family would only get better and better, with more and more descendants, becoming more and more prosperous and wealthy. All of this would happen if the fourth son’s family moved out, so he was even more determined to drive the fourth son’s family out.