Chapter 25

Jiang Chunzao could understand Lu Lin’s feelings at this moment. Although he wasn’t the biological son of the Lu family, he had grown up in the Lu household. It was one thing that Mother Lu didn’t treat him well, but Father Lu had always treated him like his own son.

Although the third branch of the Lu family had already separated from the main family, Lu Lin still hoped that his family could live well.

But the Lu family kept having conflicts every few days. Mother Lu was always shouting and scolding in the yard, sometimes even calling Lu Lin’s family to come in and scold them. It wasn’t just Lu Lin—just hearing those words, even Jiang Chunzao felt upset.

Lu Lin glanced at the steaming bowl of pork dumplings, his dark eyes deepening again. Jiang Chunzao heard the shrill and angry yelling from the next yard, Mother Lu’s voice sounding like a ghost’s wail. She sighed and put down her chopsticks, saying, “Let’s go. Let’s go check on the old house and see what’s going on.”

Lu Lin nodded and stood up, about to pick up little Moli. Jiang Chunzao originally wanted to take Xiao Shitou and follow behind, but when she saw the two little ones pouting at the dinner table, she thought to herself that the kids had already been walking around the county all day. Their little stomachs must be hungry by now. She was worried they wouldn’t be able to hold out, so she decided to leave them at home to eat by themselves.

After all, she and Lu Lin were just next door, and if anything happened, the kids could call them, and they would hear.

Lu Lin agreed, thinking it was chaotic enough at the old Lu house. The two kids were still so small, and who knew what else might happen there. He reminded Xiao Shitou to take good care of his sister and to call for their parents if anything happened.

The two little ones obediently nodded. Jiang Chunzao looked at the dark sky outside and said to Lu Lin, “Shall we go?”

Lu Lin nodded and, with his long legs, walked ahead. The couple left the house, with Lu Lin leading the way. The door to the old Lu family house was slightly ajar, and Lu Lin gently pushed it open.

Jiang Chunzao followed him, and as soon as she stepped into the yard, she was startled by the sight of Mother Lu.

In the Lu family yard, Mother Lu was sitting like an actress performing, slapping her thighs with both hands, her mouth wide open as she yelled loudly:

“Oh my, heavens! Why is my life so hard? I gave birth to three sons, and in the end, all three of them want to split from me! What kind of sons are these? These are debt collectors! One by one, they marry their wives and forget their mother, like debt collectors! What’s the point of me living? I should just die and make way for you debt collectors!”

After saying this, Mother Lu covered her face and was about to crash into the yard wall. Lu Dashan rushed over in a panic to hold his mother, looking like he was about to kneel down to her:

“Mother, what are you doing? Even though we’ve separated, I and Ershan are still your sons. We’ll still be filial to you and our father. Please don’t think like this. What will we do if something happens to you? How will we live?”

Lu Dashan, over forty years old, cried like a child. Mother Lu looked at her eldest son, crying with snot and tears, not caring about how he was embarrassing himself in front of the family. She just glared at him sideways. “Dashan, if you want me to live the rest of my life comfortably, then don’t ever bring up the subject of splitting the family!”

Lu Dashan, tears still in his eyes, let out a helpless sigh and then cast a hopeful look toward his wife, Lu Dajiao, who was standing not far away, holding a cold expression and silently watching: “Meilan, our mother is getting old, and she has suffered for this family her whole life. Our father and mother’s hair is already turning white. How about we don’t split the family? Let’s just live like we used to, together as one.”

Lu Ershan and his wife, seeing their elder brother soften because of Mother Lu’s emotional outbursts, immediately spoke up: “Eldest Brother, this won’t do. You’ve seen with your own eyes what our family is like these days. The household is in chaos. How can we live like this? I think it’s better to separate for some peace.”

“Yes, let’s separate. If we don’t, I’ll go talk to the village leader!”

Liu Hongyan, who was pregnant, chimed in from the side. She had been looking forward to the separation for a long time. Separation would be great—then she could make decisions on her own, do whatever she wanted, without her mother-in-law controlling her. She would also have money and food, so only a fool would refuse to separate!

Mother Lu had just been dramatically acting, but after successfully softening the eldest son’s heart, she was furious when she heard Lu Ershan and his wife chattering in the background. She jumped up from the ground and started hitting Lu Ershan and his wife: “You ungrateful child! I’ll beat you to death, you ungrateful wretch! And you, you shameless woman, encouraging my son to separate from me! How can you not be ashamed!”

Lu Ershan took several slaps from his mother and was filled with anger. He waved his hand and said:

“Mother, you’re being foolish. Hongyan is carrying your precious grandson! How can you, as the grandmother, curse your own grandchild like this?”

Mother Lu spat and cursed: “Bah! Nonsense about a precious grandson! It’s just a fetus in her belly, we don’t even know if it’s a boy or a girl. You’re already calling it a grandson. I bet it’s just a girl, a worthless one!”

Lu Ershan was left speechless by his mother’s words. He crossed his arms and walked to the side, leaving Liu Hongyan, her face flushed with anger, glaring at Mother Lu.

After scolding her second son, Mother Lu turned her attention to Liu Hongyan, who was glaring at her. She was about to jump up and scold Liu Hongyan when Lu Dashan, who was standing nearby with a stern face, grabbed her arm: “Enough, stop embarrassing yourself. At your age, in front of your children and grandchildren, shouting and hitting people—don’t you have any decency left as an elder?”

Mother Lu had been making a scene for a long time, but now, exhausted, she couldn’t keep up. Her throat felt dry, and she collapsed onto a bench in the yard. She turned to Eldest daughter-in-law and ordered her: “Oldest son, go get a bowl of water.”

Chen Meilan however, just stood there with a cold expression, not moving a muscle. Seeing this, Mother Lu was about to jump up and start scolding again.

Lu Dashan, unable to watch this any longer, turned to Lu Dajiao and said: “Meilan, didn’t you hear what our mother said? She’s thirsty! Why don’t you hurry up and get her some water?”

Jiang Chunzao, observing from the side, couldn’t help but sneer inwardly. This mother and son were something else. Both of them had hands and feet—if Mother Lu was really thirsty, why couldn’t she get her own water? And as for Lu Dashan, he prided himself on being so filial, but when his own mother was thirsty, why didn’t he get her the water himself?

This pair only knew how to command Lu Dajiao around. It was clear what kind of life Lu Dajiao was living at home.

If this were the past, Chen Meilan would have obediently gone to get water. But now, hearing what they said, she just stared blankly and replied emotionlessly:

“I’m not going. You’re her son—why don’t you get your mother some water?”

Lu Dashan was left speechless by Chen Meilan’s retort. His face turned purple with anger, but it was Father Lu who quietly went and got a cup of water for Mother Lu.

After handing it to her, Mother Lu glared at Chen Meilan and muttered a few curses under her breath. Chen Meilan, however, acted like nothing had happened, and even the usually timid cotton did not seem to hear it.

After drinking the water Father Lu had fetched, Mother Lu felt somewhat relieved. She was now back to her energetic self, looking around the room with a pair of sharp, triangular eyes. Finally, her gaze landed on Lu Lin, who had been silently observing: “Third son! You’ve been in this house for so long, and you’re just letting the family cause this ruckus without stepping in?”

Lu Lin paused for a moment before responding in a calm tone: “The house has a father and mother. It’s not my place to take charge.”

Mother Lu was momentarily taken aback by Lu Lin’s response. These were the very words she had used when she and Lu San (Lu Lin’s father) split the family, and now, she had been caught off guard by her own words, used back on her by Lu Lin.

Father Lu had been silently smoking for a while, enveloped in a cloud of smoke. Finally, in a hoarse voice, he spoke: “Fine, let’s split it then. Tomorrow, Dashan and Ershan, you two go and invite the village leader, and the uncles and second uncles, and bring them to the house. We’ll settle this family split once and for all.”

When Lu Ershan and his wife heard this, their faces lit up with joy, and they quickly agreed. While Lu Dajiao and the cotton-faced woman didn’t show their joy so obviously, it was clear they too felt a sense of relief.

But Lu Dashan, upon hearing his father’s decision to split the family, suddenly crouched down in the yard, covering his head and crying in despair.

Mother Lu wanted to make a scene, but Father Lu sternly scolded her a few times, and she dared not say anything further.

What could she say? Her husband had made the decision, and there was nothing she could do. Even the usually obedient eldest son had fallen silent, and the eldest daughter-in-law was also upset. It was clear that the authority in this household was no longer hers to hold—everything was being taken over by the debt collectors.

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After Father Lu made the decision to split the family, the tumultuous atmosphere in the Lu family finally quieted down. Lu Lin and Jiang Chunzao, the two who had been caught up in the mess, returned home.

When they walked in, they found that Shitou and Xiao Moli had already finished eating and were sitting together quietly, engrossed in the small picture book that their father had bought for them.

Seeing that the children were getting sleepy, Jiang Chunzao washed their little hands and feet, then coaxed them to bed. When she stepped out of the room, she noticed that Lu Lin had reheated the cold food from earlier.

Now, the table was full of warm, fragrant dishes, and chopsticks were neatly arranged. But Lu Lin hadn’t started eating yet.

Jiang Chunzao walked over, picked up a steaming dumpling with her chopsticks, took a bite, and chewed it with relish.

“Mmm, these dumplings are really good today. Every bite is so flavorful. Don’t you want to eat, Captain Lu?”

Lu Lin looked up at his wife, who was smiling at him, and his heart softened. He smiled back, picked up his chopsticks, and began eating hungrily. To be honest, even though the dumplings didn’t look very fancy, they tasted pretty good tonight.

At least, Lu Lin finished all the remaining dumplings, and seeing this made Jiang Chunzao feel like her dumplings had been a success.

After the couple finished their meal, Lu Lin went to wash the dishes, while Jiang Chunzao took a bath and hung her hair to dry in the yard.

In the neighboring Lu family, after a whole day of chaos, everyone had finally retreated to their rooms to sleep. Father Lu finished washing his feet and entered the room, seeing Mother Lu still fuming, like an angry crow perched on a tree. He took off his shoes, sat on the kang, and said: “Wife, how can you still not understand? This family, the hearts of the people, have already scattered long ago.”