Division of the family estate.

Yan Xiaoyu had worked tirelessly for half a month, and now that he finally heard those two words, he nearly burst out laughing.

Little did he expect someone else would be even happier than him.

“Hahahaha! You thought you could keep me on a leash? Nice try!” Yan Xiaobao, unusually quiet today, suddenly burst out laughing. He slapped his thigh, his grin wild. “You freeloaders are getting kicked out of the Yan family!”

The brat had been plotting something all along, probably waiting for this moment. Yan Xiaoyu ignored him.

The priority now was to play out the charade.

“Father is still at the clinic! How can you drive us from our home? Grandfather, Uncle! Don’t you fear the villagers pointing fingers at your backs?!”

Yan Xiaoyu’s face, twisted with disbelief and fury, delighted Old Master Yan and Yan Xingsheng immensely.

“If you knew this day would come, why did you do it in the first place?!” Old Master Yan sat down leisurely, picked up the teacup on the table, blew on it, and then spoke slowly, “You needn’t worry about what the villagers say. I, Yan Youcai, act according to my conscience and fear no gossip.”

Yan Xiaoyu grumbled a few more complaints before finally putting on a reluctant act: “Then how should this household be divided? If you favor my eldest uncle, we absolutely refuse to agree to the division!”

Yan Xingsheng shot him a glance. “How the division is handled isn’t for a little ger like you to decide. Your grandfather and I will discuss this with your father. You two go back to your rooms. Don’t just stand around here. First thing tomorrow morning, I’ll go to town to find your father.”

Yan Xiaoyu wasn’t surprised and didn’t argue with Yan Xingsheng. “But first, my uncle’s wife must advance me a few taels of silver. Otherwise, my father has no money for medicine. If he dies from illness, there’ll be no need to divide the estate. I’ll go to the magistrate’s office and sue you all for driving my father to his death.”

“… ” Old Master Yan and Yan Xingsheng’s wife were taken aback that he was still thinking about money at this moment. They were both at a loss for words.

Seeing their eyes meet in hesitation, Yan Xiaoyu pressed on, “Splitting the estate means giving us our share anyway. This is just getting it early. Surely, Grandfather wouldn’t deny us even a few taels? If so, I’ll have a lot to discuss with the villagers tomorrow.”

Old Master Yan fumed, his beard bristling. “Eldest son! Give him five hundred wen. Five hundred wen! Not a penny more!”

Yan Xiaoyu pursed his lips, deciding to take what he could get. “Fine then.”

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Early the next morning, Yan Xiaoyu and Yan Xiaoyue followed Yan Xingsheng to board an oxcart.

Xiling Village was poor; few could afford oxen, so naturally, no one ran an oxcart business. Villagers wanting to go to town either walked or waited under the ginkgo tree outside the village entrance, where oxcarts from Nanling Village passed by.

The fare to town was two wen per person, four wen round trip. After Yan Xingsheng boarded, Yan Xiaoyu followed closely behind and called out to the old driver: “Grandpa, three of us.”

This meant three people were paying together. His shout drew stares from both passengers and bystanders. Under such scrutiny, Yan Xingsheng couldn’t bring himself to argue and ended up paying for this sister and brother.

Having saved another four wen, Yan Xiaoyu hummed a tune as he pulled Yan Xiaoyue to sit down in the cart. Along the way, villagers they knew asked about Yan Xingmao’s condition, and he seized the opportunity to play up his misery once more.

Half an hour later, the oxcart reached town. Yan Xiaoyu led his sister straight to the clinic, ignoring Yan Xingsheng entirely and leaving him far behind.

Yan Xingsheng was furious.

At the clinic, Yan Xingmao lay on a bed while He Qiuhua helped move his injured leg.

“Uncle will be here any minute.”

Yan Xiaoyu said. He Qiuhua nervously set Yan Xingsheng’s leg down and pulled the outer robe from the bed to cover him.

Yan Xiaoyu had already instructed these two yesterday on how to act. So when Yan Xingsheng arrived, he saw Yan Xingmao lying on the bed, pale-faced and breathing weakly.

Beside him, He Qiuhua sat disheveled and unkempt, her eyes swollen like walnuts, her complexion deeply haggard.

“How are you feeling, Second Brother?” Yan Xingsheng inquired, casting a suspicious glance around before abruptly pulling back Yan Xingmao’s outer robe. “In this heat, why are you still covered up?”

The faint glimmer of hope in Yan Xingmao’s eyes vanished instantly at his brother’s gesture.

Back then, when he had taken Yan Xingsheng’s place performing hard labor, Yan Xingmao had crippled his right leg. The villagers all said his elder brother owed him an immense debt of gratitude. Yan Xingsheng had patted his chest, promising solemnly that he would treat him well from then on, ensuring he never suffered injustice because of his injured leg.

Yet now, when he was injured again, Yan Xingsheng only cared whether his injuries were genuine.

Yan Xingmao’s left leg was bound with bamboo splints, his right leg wrapped in gauze stained with blood. Yan Xingsheng could only see that both legs were swollen; he couldn’t assess the severity of the injuries. So he tentatively asked a few more questions.

Yan Xingmao felt utterly disheartened, his tone growing cold. Yan Xingsheng paid it no mind, exchanging only a few words before heading to Doctor Yu’s quarters.

When he returned, his face wore impatience. He dropped a single sentence before leaving.

“Father wants to divide the family estate. I just asked the doctor—your leg can’t be cured. He said since it can’t be healed, there’s no point staying here. You should go home soon to discuss the division with Father.”

Even though he’d braced himself, the man on the bed flushed crimson. Wiping his face, he replied coldly, “Fine.”

━━ 🐈‍⬛ ━━

Three days later, Yan Xiaoyu hired an oxcart to bring Yan Xingmao home.

The mountain road was steep. Yan Xingmao’s leg needed movement, but couldn’t endure severe jolts. It took them an hour to reach Xiling Village.

Old Master Yan and the eldest branch were eager to finalize the division. Over the past three days, Yan Xiaoyu had been questioned daily. Yesterday, he’d promised to fetch them today. Today, the Yan family members hadn’t left their homes, waiting inside.

Upon arriving home, Yan Xiaoyu and the others had barely settled Yan Xingmao when Yan Xiaobao had already invited Village Chief Niu Fugui over.

Inviting Niu Fugui was Yan Xiaoyu’s idea, though Yan Xingsheng didn’t object.

He and Tao Cuiqin, fearing they might be shortchanged, had been mulling over the division for days. Upon further reflection, they realized that after the split, the second branch would still reside in the village. With Yan Xingmao now incapacitated, should anything happen to the second branch, Yan Xiaoyu, shameless as he was, would likely try to pin the blame on them.

Better to seize this chance and eliminate that future trouble.

With Niu Fugui as a witness, they wouldn’t have to worry about Yan Xiaoyu reneging later.

Niu Fugui was about the same age as Yan Xingsheng. He handled matters fairly, though he wasn’t particularly kind-hearted and enjoyed taking small advantages.

He turned a blind eye to the village’s messy affairs unless they came to his doorstep. Last time, after Yan Xiaoyu fell into the water, it was his wife who couldn’t stand by and watch, forcing him to make the trip to the Yan household. Though he’d been dragged into it, he did speak a few fair words once he arrived. Otherwise, Yan Xiaoyu wouldn’t have gotten Yan Xiaobao’s ‘guarantee letter’.

This time around, Yan Xiaoyu didn’t expect Old Master Yan to be fair and impartial, but he also had no intention of easily giving up what the second branch was entitled to.

“A broken bone takes a hundred days to heal.” Yan Xingmao’s leg would take at least three months before he could walk normally. During this time, he couldn’t work and needed medicine. After the division, there were household goods to buy, land to purchase for building a house, food and clothing for a family of four, plus Yan Xiaoyu’s planned food business—everything required money. Yan Xiaoyu couldn’t afford to take it lightly.

Thus, yesterday he deliberately bought two types of pastries. Under the pretext of thanking them for the previous favor, he paid a visit to Niu Fugui’s home.

Niu Fugui could work even if he didn’t accept the gifts, but he wouldn’t be pleasant about it. Yan Xiaoyu figured they’d likely need to buy land from him or borrow his oxcart later, meaning frequent dealings were inevitable. Better to make a good impression now.

What he could foresee, the old fox Yan Xingsheng naturally could too.

Both sides remained wary of each other. Having accepted two gifts, Niu Fugui arrived today with a much friendlier demeanor. After exchanging pleasantries with the Yans and inquiring about Yan Xingmao’s injuries, he got straight to the point.

“I hear your two branches are splitting the family estate. Since everyone’s gathered here, let’s be upfront about it. Old Master, you first—what exactly are the arrangements?”

Grandfather Yan sat at the head of the table, sweeping his gaze over his descendants below with imposing authority. “Village Chief, you’ve seen it yourself—my second son is now a cripple. He and his wife couldn’t produce a male heir. When I’m no longer able, I certainly can’t rely on him. Therefore, I must follow the eldest son. Naturally, the house and fields at home should be prioritized for him first.”

“Besides this main house, our Yan family owns fourteen mu of paddy fields and twenty mu of dry fields. Half of these are ancestral allotments, while the other half were acquired by the eldest son’s household later. While I’m still alive, the house needn’t be divided—whichever branch I follow, the house belongs to that branch. As for the fields, the half bought by the eldest naturally belongs to him. The remaining fields can be divided, giving the second son one mu of paddy field and one mu of dry field. After all, Yu-ger and Sister Yue will eventually marry out. With these two mu, the second son and his wife should have no trouble providing for themselves. Additionally, I will contribute five taels of silver from the family fund to help the second household build a house.

After speaking, Old Master Yan turned to Niu Fugui: “When other families in the village divide their property, they usually give around three taels of silver. I’m offering five taels to the second son and his family—that’s being as generous and fair as I can be. What do you say, Village Chief?”

“What do I say?” Niu Fugui’s expression softened slightly, a faint smile playing on his lips. “Let Xingmao speak.”

The old man had made a compelling case, but even without counting the half purchased by Yan Xingsheng, the Yan family still owned over ten mu of land. And yet they were only giving the second branch two mu? That was taking favoritism way too far!

When families split in the village, those being sent off might indeed only get two or three taels of silver. But what were those families’ circumstances compared to the Yans’? Besides, others helped their sons build houses and furnish them before sending them off. How could anyone compare to the Yans, who didn’t even give a single room, just five taels of silver, before kicking them out?

Niu Fugui was thinking exactly what Yan Xiaoyu wanted to rant about.

“Is Grandfather trying to send beggars away?” Yan Xiaoyu rolled his eyes. “If you can’t bear to part with it, then don’t divide it! Let all the family’s houses and fields go to my eldest uncle. From now on, our second branch’s food, clothing, shelter, and my father’s medicine money will all depend on him.”

“Oh, and since I’m not keen on marrying, I’ll take a son-in-law instead. Have your eldest brother find me a husband, and while he’s at it, cover the betrothal expenses. I’ll give him that mu of land as a gift.”

Old Master Yan gaped in disbelief, fury boiling over. “You shameless brat! Shut your mouth!! How dare you interrupt your elders? A mere ger spouting off about taking in a son-in-law—utterly—”

“Ahem, ahem, ahem!” Before he could finish his tirade, he was interrupted by Yan Xingsheng’s thunderous coughing fit.

The village chief was himself a son-in-law brought into the family. Yan Xingsheng, fearing his father might say something offensive and anger the chief, frantically signaled to his father.

Then, Yan Xingmao spoke up in a low, solemn voice:

“Father, Xiaoyu is speaking for me. I’m not feeling well, and Qiuhua isn’t good with words. We’ve entrusted the entire matter of dividing the household to Xiaoyu. His opinion is the opinion of our second branch.”