Yang Haiyan originally thought that Qin Dayan would be like Qin’s mother, but in reality, she was quite different; she was relatively quiet.

Because when Qin Dayan was born, she had an older brother several years her senior who shielded her in everything.

If someone bullied her, there was an older brother to protect her; if there wasn’t enough food, her brother would help.

Thus, her character was nurtured to be quieter under her brother’s care.

Qin Dayan’s husband was the second son of their family.

Although the second son is usually the one who gets overlooked, their parents were relatively kind, so Qin Dayan’s life after marriage was not bad, similar to her life at home.

After meeting, Yang Haiyan gifted Qin Dayan a silver hairpin as a token of goodwill from a sister-in-law to a sister.

Qin Dayan shyly accepted it, and if it weren’t for Qin’s mother signaling her, she wouldn’t have dared to accept it.

Before long, noon arrived.

During mealtime, everyone who had gone to the fields returned.

Qin’s grandfather looked at his family, pleased at the sight of so many people.

In his lifetime, having such a large family was his pride.

Qin’s grandfather put down his hoe, washed his hands in the courtyard, and then called out, “Oldest, Afang, come in.”

The two called by name exchanged glances, unsure why the old man suddenly summoned them, but they followed him into the house.

Qin’s second aunt watched them with great curiosity, eager to follow them inside, but when she saw Qin’s grandmother sitting at the door with a small chair, she retreated back into her shell.

Yang Haiyan walked over to Qin’s mother.

To be honest, even she was curious, not just Qin’s second aunt.

Qin’s mother had some thoughts in her mind.

Inside the house, Qin’s grandfather said, “Sit down.”

Qin’s father usually dared not disobey his father’s words, but this reluctance had its limits.

Nevertheless, his respect for his father was ingrained in him, so when Qin’s grandfather told him to sit, he felt hesitant.

However, Qin Fang just sat down.

If this were the Qin Fang before his military service, he wouldn’t have dared.

But after five years in the army, although he still respected his grandfather, the fear had lessened.

After all, he had walked over the bodies of enemies, and his own aura and presence were heavier than the old man’s.

Qin’s grandfather glanced at Qin’s father, somewhat disdainfully, and remarked, “You’re still not as good as your son.”

Qin Fang naturally pretended not to hear.

Qin’s father laughed and said, “It’s a good thing for a son to surpass his father.” He was pleased that his son was doing well.

Qin’s grandfather scoffed, “Surpassing,” then directly stated the purpose of calling them in today: “I called you in mainly for two matters. The first is regarding Afang becoming an official. Grandfather is very pleased; we, the Qin family, have produced a successful descendant.”

He was genuinely happy; although he knew that the eldest grandson’s position was earned through danger, it was still a matter of honor.

Qin Fang replied calmly, “Thank you for the compliment, Grandfather.”

Qin’s grandfather continued, “There’s no need for you to be humble. Although I’m happy that you became an official, this matter is best kept to ourselves. Your grandmother, I, your mother, your father, and your wife—only we need to know. I do not intend to make this public.”

Qin Fang was a bit surprised, and Qin’s father was puzzled as well.

Qin’s grandfather explained, “Your grandmother and I discussed this last night. Now that you’re an official, I worry that your family might become too bold and do something that would jeopardize you. So it’s better not to say anything; let them continue living as they have before.”

Qin’s grandfather was a wise man; in this day and age, there were many who would take advantage of others’ status.

If relatives used Qin Fang’s reputation to do something bad, they wouldn’t know about it, and it would be hard to prevent.

Qin’s father said nothing.

This was his son’s matter; Qin Fang was already grown and didn’t need his father to make decisions for him.

So he looked at Qin Fang, who replied, “I will follow Grandfather’s wishes.”

Qin’s grandfather nodded, “The second matter concerns splitting the family. Generally speaking, now that you’ve become an official, splitting the family is best for you and for the household. After splitting, your affairs will not burden the family, and the family’s affairs will not burden you. Thus, your grandmother and I have decided to split the family.”

Qin’s father widened his eyes in surprise: “Father.”

Although Qin Fang had heard about it from his mother before, he was still a bit surprised to hear his grandfather say this so directly and readily agree to the division of the family.

Qin’s grandfather looked at them and smiled: “My grandson, I believe that even if we divide the family, you will still help the second and third branches when they need your support, right?”

Qin Fang replied, “Of course.”

Qin’s grandfather continued, “So why should we drag you down by not dividing the family? Logically, after the division, your grandmother and I should stay with you in the main branch. However, the world is vast, and your future life might not be limited to here. Since your grandmother and I are getting older, we won’t follow you to the main branch, so we will continue living here.”

Qin’s father immediately said, “Father, neither I nor my child’s mother will leave. If you don’t come with us to the main branch, how can I be a son?”

Qin Fang thought for a moment: “Grandfather, you and grandmother should naturally stay with us in the main branch. But as my father said, I’m currently stationed at the border, and my father and mother can’t possibly go there. If there are changes in the future, we can address that then. So after the division, you will stay with us, and when changes happen, we can resolve the issue then.”

Qin’s grandfather pondered for a moment and thought this was acceptable since it was a future matter: “Alright. Next, regarding some household items, let’s divide them into four portions: one for each of you three brothers and one for your grandmother and me. Since we will follow the main branch, the yield from the fields will also belong to the main branch. Therefore, we won’t ask the second and third branches for support; we will only ask you three brothers to cover our medical expenses when your grandmother and I get sick.”

Qin Fang considered it: “No need. Since grandmother is with us, there’s no need for Uncle Er and Uncle San to bear anything.”

After all, Uncle Er and Uncle San also had no money, and he felt guilty about them dividing the family without informing him about his official status.

But he didn’t refuse; everyone has their selfish motives.

Moreover, if the medical expenses for grandfather and grandmother were so high that Uncle Er and Uncle San had to contribute, it would be an amount they couldn’t afford.

If it’s a small amount, he can handle it.

Qin’s grandfather looked at Qin Fang and saw that he was very resolute.

He turned to Qin’s father: “What do you think?”

Qin’s father naturally agreed with his son: “I’ll listen to Ah Fang.”

Qin’s grandfather nodded: “Good. There’s one more thing regarding the matter of adopting from the third branch.”

Qin’s father was taken aback for a moment, then candidly said, “I… I don’t wish to adopt.”

No matter how important brothers are, can they be more important than one’s own son?

“I only have three sons, and Ah Fang is still in a dangerous military position. If anything happens to my eldest son, I’ll only have two left.”

Besides, even if he had three sons, there’s no guarantee they would produce grandchildren.

With sons on both sides, Qin’s grandfather indeed couldn’t pressure the eldest son to adopt from the third branch.

Qin Fang spoke up: “Grandfather, An adopted boy is not truly Third Uncle’s son; how can a child born from San Ya be less important? Moreover, there are families in the village who have adopted sons. Plus, with us around, there’s no need to worry about San Ya being bullied. Of course, if Third Uncle doesn’t want San Ya to take a husband, when they’re old, I will support them.”

This is his uncle, and it’s common for an uncle without sons to be cared for by his nephew.

However, it also depends on whether that nephew is willing to support his uncle.

Hearing this, Qin’s grandfather said no more: “Let’s go eat.”

After Qin Fang and Qin’s father went out, all eyes turned toward them.

Qin’s grandfather announced, “Dinner.”

Qin’s father and Qin Fang originally intended to discuss this matter with their wives, but since Qin’s grandfather called for dinner, they had to set it aside.

Because of the unpleasantness during lunch yesterday, Qin’s second aunt restrained herself today, and the meal was quite harmonious.

After finishing, Qin’s grandfather spoke: “I have something to discuss with everyone. I just called the eldest and Ah Fang in to discuss this matter. Now I’m going to share it so you can give your opinions. Don’t think I’m being biased; I called the eldest and Ah Fang in advance because they are the ones who will suffer losses in this matter.”

Qin’s second aunt asked, “What are you talking about, Father?”

Qin’s second uncle and the others also looked at Qin’s father.

Qin’s father didn’t keep them in suspense: “I intend to divide the family.”

Qin’s grandmother remained calm; this was something she and her husband had discussed yesterday.

Qin’s third uncle asked, “Father, why do we need to divide the family?”

Qin’s second aunt’s eyes flickered.

She agreed with the division since the main branch had many children; even though they worked hard, they also had more to eat.

Qin’s third uncle thought of his own situation; being without a son made him reluctant to divide the family.

If they didn’t divide, he could still stay with everyone; he wouldn’t be considered without descendants.

But if they divided, he would be an independent household, which meant he would be without descendants.

Qin’s grandfather stated: “I will ask each household. Eldest, do you agree to the division? If you don’t, tell me why, and we can address each point.”

Qin’s father replied, “I agree.”

Qin’s grandfather nodded and asked Qin’s second uncle: “Second, do you agree to the division?”

Qin’s second uncle had no strong opinions: “I’ll listen to Father.”

Qin’s second aunt pinched him hard on the waist.

Qin’s second uncle gasped from the pain.

Qin’s grandfather said, “Just say it directly: do you agree to the division or not? If you don’t, explain why.”

This time, Qin’s second aunt didn’t wait for Qin’s second uncle and spoke up: “Father, we agree to the division, but I have a question.”

Qin’s grandfather replied, “Go ahead.”

Qin’s second aunt chuckled: “After the division, the money earned by our second daughter from embroidering handkerchiefs doesn’t need to be turned over to the public fund, right?”

Since it was the public fund that paid for the girl’s training, she wanted to clarify.

Qin’s third aunt perked up her ears.

Previously, she didn’t think this second aunt was very clever, but she didn’t expect her to consider this.

Qin’s grandfather assured her: “After the division, any money you earn will be yours. Otherwise, what’s the point of dividing? So now, Second, do you agree?”

Qin’s second uncle said, “I agree.”

Qin’s grandfather then turned to Qin’s third uncle: “What about you? If you don’t agree, why not?”