Upon hearing these words, Old Zhang finally lifted his head and looked at his son, whose eyes were red with anger.

In the end, he nodded with difficulty.

With the third household splitting away, life for the rest of them would be much easier.

“Father, you make it sound so simple. You don’t expect us to leave empty-handed like the fourth household, do you?”

Wang Xiuying, standing to the side, asked coldly.

She was not Jian Xiu, nor did she have Jian Xiu’s abilities.

If she left with nothing, she might very well starve to death.

So before the family split, she had to at least secure enough food to last for the next few months.

“This separation was your idea. What else do you want to take with you?” Old Zhang countered immediately.

“Zifu’s father, what do you mean by that? Are you trying to take this matter to the village chief?” Wang Dashi, who was standing nearby, couldn’t help but interject.

From his stance, it was clear he was ready to fight.

For a moment, Old Zhang was actually intimidated.

Seeing this, Zhang Zifu quickly pulled Wang Dashi’s sleeve and said, “Uncle, don’t be impulsive. Let me handle this.”

Then he turned to Old Zhang and asked, “Father, have you made up your mind? Are you sure you want to separate us from the family?”

“Absolutely sure!” Before Old Zhang could speak, Chen Sixi had already responded.

After that, Fang Miaojun added, “Not only do we want you to leave, but you must also leave empty-handed. Don’t blame us for being heartless—this separation was proposed by your household first. If you take this to the village chief, we are still in the right.”

However, Zhang Zifu acted as if he didn’t hear them.

He simply stared at Old Zhang.

Even at this moment, he still found it hard to believe that his father would abandon him so easily.

It wasn’t until Old Zhang nodded that Zhang Zifu finally gave up hope.

“We won’t just be separating the household. If your family is leaving, then we will also sever ties, just like with the fourth household. From now on, whether you are poor or rich, we will have nothing to do with each other,” Zhang Zirong, the eldest son, said.

“Hah… Big Brother, you severed ties with our fourth brother before, but now? How do you treat him now?”

As soon as these words were spoken, the courtyard fell into complete silence.

Even Old Zhang looked embarrassed.

“If you insist on severing ties, then so be it! Tomorrow morning, we will call the village chief to be a witness,” Zhang Zifu declared.

This time, his tone was devoid of any emotion, as if he were discussing something completely unrelated to himself.

“Zifu, we can’t just leave with nothing. How will we survive in the future?”

Wang Xiuying anxiously grabbed Zhang Zifu.

This time, she was truly panicked.

She wanted to separate, but she never expected to leave with absolutely nothing.

They had worked hard on the farmland for years.

Now, they were being kicked out with empty hands?

“Xiuying, don’t worry. Even if I starve to death, I will never beg them for help!” Zhang Zifu gritted his teeth.

“Oh, such big talk! I’ll be waiting to see how long you can last!” Chen Sixi sneered.

“I, Zhang Zifu, keep my word!” Zhang Zifu declared firmly.

Of course, he wasn’t entirely confident.

The only reason he said this was because Jian Xiu had told him earlier—she had arranged a good job for him at Caifang Zhai in the county, earning fourteen copper coins a day.

Not only that, but the fourth household would soon be building a house, and they might need Xiuying to help cook.

The wage for that would be around twelve copper coins a day.

Although he hadn’t planned to accept the wage, his job as a waiter earning fourteen coins daily would be enough to keep his family of four from starving.

“Big Brother, Second Brother, given the situation, let’s take Zifu to Renhe Hall first,” Wang Xiuying turned to Wang Dashi and Wang Ershi.

The decision to separate had already been made.

Hoping to get anything from the old house now was a pipe dream.

If she guessed correctly, it wasn’t even a matter of whether they wanted to leave or not anymore.

Old Zhang probably couldn’t wait to throw them out.

“Little sister, you…”

“Uncle, second uncle, forget it. It’s settled,” Zhang Zifu interrupted Wang Dashi.

“Wait!”

Just as they were about to leave, Old Zhang stopped them.

“What now?”

“Since we’re already here, eldest son, go and call the village chief now!” Old Zhang said expressionlessly.

He had just overheard them say they were heading straight to Renhe Hall.

If Renhe Hall came asking for money tomorrow, what then?

The household split wasn’t official yet.

If they went to the village chief to argue, they might still be held accountable for the debt.

“Father, are you worried? Worried that we’ll ask you for money?”

“No matter the reason, since we’re going to separate, might as well get it done quickly,” Zhang Zirong quickly ran toward the entrance.

In less than fifteen minutes, the village chief, Zhang Wenyuan, arrived in a hurry.

“Old Zhang, what’s going on in your family this time?” Zhang Wenyuan asked first.

“Village chief, don’t ask me. This time, I’m not the one asking for separation,” Old Zhang stiffened his neck and responded.

His words were quite clever—taking advantage while playing the victim.

“Zifu, explain.”

Hearing this, Zhang Zifu recounted everything in detail.

“Uncle village chief, it’s not that I insist on separating. But since my father has already said so, what else can I do? He’s my father. He even said that if we split, we should also sever ties completely!”

As he spoke, Zhang Zifu’s face was filled with sarcasm.

“Old Zhang, is that true? Are you really severing ties?” Zhang Wenyuan asked Old Zhang again.

In the past, he had thought Old Zhang’s family was harmonious.

But over the past two years, so many things had happened that he was deeply disappointed.

“Yes, since the family is splitting, why not go all the way?” Old Zhang said helplessly.

“What about Zifu’s leg…”

“Uncle village chief, his leg has nothing to do with us. He insisted on going to the end of the village himself…”

“Alright, enough! That’s settled then,” Old Zhang quickly cut off Chen Sixi’s words.