Chapter 438 - The Farmer Top Scorer
Chapter 439 of "Quick Transmigration: Drama Queen's Daily Life" starts with: At night, Mrs. Wang tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep, her mind swirling with... Continue exploring!
At night, Mrs. Wang tossed and turned, unable to fall asleep, her mind swirling with the Orchid worth over 100 taels of Silver that Ye Qiu mentioned during the day."Are you bitten by bedbugs that you canât sleep?" Ye Ming growled with his back to her.
Feeling extremely displeased, Mrs. Wang simply sat up and whispered, "Did dad ever mention when the family will be divided?"
Hearing his wifeâs words, Ye Ming felt uneasyâwas she really lying awake at night thinking about dividing the family?
Because of this, his anger flared up: "Dadâs not dead yet, whatâs there to divide?"
Mrs. Wang gritted her teeth and glared at him: "The division was dadâs idea not mine, whatâs more, do you know how much Silver the youngest brother and his family spent on that courtyard in the county?"
"Whatâs it to you how much Silver he spent, itâs all earned by the youngest brother himself," Ye Ming turned over, ready to continue sleeping.
"Are you being foolish?" Mrs. Wang pinched her husband, "The youngest is just a Government Official, earning only eighteen taels a year, how could he afford a small courtyard worth over 300 taels in the county without eating or drinking?"
"Isnât there the extra unofficial income?"
"Can such income be that much? Have you ever counted how many Government Officials there are in the county? What about the county magistrate and the steward, how much money do they have to rake in a year for the youngest to get so much? Wouldnât the sky have turned upside down by now? I heard today that the youngest spent over 100 taels of Silver on a single flower, just a flower! He really knows how to spend, then what about other areas, how much more has he spent? Does he also spend money like water?" Mrs. Wang carefully calculated with her husband.
Now Ye Ming couldnât sleep either, turning back to his wife, "Did he really spend one hundred taels of Silver on a flower?"
"Would I lie to you? When Qiu returned this afternoon after sending the youngest and his wife home, she said so, and those two didnât even refute it. Where did they get all that money from? Isnât it from dad? Now that dad has given all the money to the youngest and his wife, what will there be for us to divide in the future?" The more Mrs. Wang spoke, the more resentment she felt.
Ye Ming sat up, his eyebrows deeply furrowed: "About the division, dad just casually mentioned it that day. If we really were to divide, how should it be done? The youngest has a house in the county; are you suggesting that I and the second brother split this house? By dividing the house, we would offend the youngest, and what about our sonâs future? If we ask for less, itâs not acceptable either... Sigh!"
"The youngest already has a courtyard in the county, does he still want to divide the familyâs land and Silver? Thereâs no such cheap deal. And about the sonâs future, I thought it throughâthe youngest son is at the academy and probably wonât inherit the position of a Government Official. Other than giving it to our son, who else could he give it to? Dad would never agree at first, and as for the second brother, hmph, he has neither the ability nor dadâs favor. You are the eldest son, and inevitably dad will want to live with us, naturally, weâll get the larger share. As for the house, there are plenty of deserted houses in the village. Just repairing any one of them would do, right?"
"Would dad agree? He had his eye on that small courtyard owned by Qiuâs family previously.
"Would dad tell you beforehand if he didnât agree with the division? The small courtyard of the Qiu family isnât tiny, and it would cost a substantial sum to purchase it, right? I would really mind if it werenât for the fact that our son is about to discuss marriage soon; how could we live with the house being so cramped? If another grandson or granddaughter comes along, there wouldnât even be room to stand in the house. Donât forget that Ye Lin is a year older than our Ye Ping; if he gets married, wonât dad have to provide the money? Once the family is divided, that will be none of our concern."
Mrs. Wang persuaded persistently, and the more Ye Ming listened, the more tempted he became. After all, he thought, I am the eldest son, so I should get the larger share of the inheritance. Right now, arenât the second and third brothers using my money?
"But how can I bring it up out of the blue with dad?"
"Just wait, in the next few days Iâll start some trouble with my cousin and Mrs. Huang. When we start arguing, dad will surely get impatient. You, on the other hand, deliberately worsen your relationship with the second brother. When dad becomes annoyed, you just casually mention it, saying that with more people in the house, conflicts arise more easily, and dad will naturally understand."
"But the youngest only has three days off, once they leave itâll be quiet again, wonât it? Those two from the second brotherâs house are like mute fools, unlikely to start a quarrel."
"Then you just tell dad you suspect the second brother and his wife are hiding private savings."
"What if they havenât hidden it?"
"If they have hidden it, we can smoothly take the opportunity to split the family. If not, our relationship with the second brother has been strained as well, and we can tell father itâs no longer suitable to live under the same roof, and still manage to separate."
"Wouldnât that leave me without any dignity?"
"Whatâs more important, silver or face? Besides, would father ever let word of this leak out? Heâs the most face-conscious person. Whatâs it to lose face in front of the second brother? What idle talk could a man who canât fart with a stick up his bottom possibly say? Their familyâs life is no better than this anyway, itâs no big deal if relations sour. Do you think he could help us in the future? Donât make me laugh!"
Ye Ming was swayed by his wifeâs words, and the thought of division became clearer in his mind.
In another room of the same house, Ye Gang and his wife Mrs. Wang were also unable to sleep.
"The third brother has gone to the county again and spent over 100 taels on another plant," Mrs. Huang mentioned to her husband in a calm tone.
"Ah!" Ye Gang sighed softly and patted his wifeâs hand, "Iâve wronged you."
"Iâve been used to it over these many years, who asked for our father not to like us!" Mrs. Huangâs tone was flat and unemotional.
But it was precisely this that made Ye Gang feel even more pity: "Iâm not the eldest son, nor have I accomplished much. Itâs only natural that father doesnât like me."
"Itâs you I feel sorry for," Mrs. Huang couldnât help but complain, "Youâre clearly the one who does the most work in this family, but look, over the years, the youngest got a courtyard in the county, and the eldest is the successor to the village chief, recognized by father. In the future, heâll definitely get the lionâs share of the inheritance. What about us? Our son is about to enter into marriage talks; how many silver coins do we have in our hands? When our daughter-in-law comes and goes, weâll have to ask father for the wedding gifts, and the elder sister-in-law will surely have snide remarks to make. Doesnât that frustrate you?"
"But father is still alive, we canât split the family yet!"
"I donât think we necessarily have to wait until father passes away to divide the family," Mrs. Huang speculated, "Just wait and see, Mrs. Wang is probably getting restless."
"So what do you want to do?"
"Nothing, just go along with her wishes, thatâs all."
"Dividing the family is fine. Even if we get the least of the property, Iâll work harder to ensure you live a better life."
"Iâm not worried for myself, itâs just hard on Pingâer. Heâs clearly the eldest son in our family but he never gets fatherâs attention. He doesnât get a chance to study; with the youngest approaching of age soon, if he takes over there wonât be a chance for our son. Why should Pingâer be condemned to farming by birth? Is he not stronger than that braggart Ye Lin who only knows how to talk big?"
"Keep your voice down, donât let others hear," Ye Gang tugged at his wifeâs sleeve.
Mrs. Huang seethed quietly: "In this family, we canât even speak up; whatâs the point in living such a life?"
"Alright, I understand what youâre thinking, itâs all for our son. This time, I wonât hold back either."