28: Chapter 17 Division of Family_2 28: Chapter 17 Division of Family_2 At the doorway, the villagers had already dispersed and the Lin Family’s two households were awaiting their arrival.
Li Fangmei was over eighty years old, her hair sparse and streaked with white, her face etched with the toil of hard work, yet her spine was still ramrod straight, without a hint of stoop.
Seeing Lin Xiaoguai, her dim eyes shone with warmth.
She grasped Lin Xiaoguai’s hand and repeatedly said, “It’s good that you’re alright, good that you’re alright.”
Her grip was tight, and her withered arms trembled slightly.
Lin Xiaoguai looked down, and she suddenly remembered how as a child, she went to her uncle’s house to help her aunt peel peanuts.
She had only a small handful to peel, and once her aunt had fried them, she fed them to her and her brother.
Watching her brother eat two peanuts in the time it took her to eat one, she grew frustrated.
Her uncle stood by, laughing, while her brother ate with such gusto, looking smug.
Afterwards, her uncle secretly gave her a small taro and her aunt slipped a bird egg into her pocket, and her mood lifted once more.
In the years that followed, her mom was unwell, and the Second Aunt couldn’t handle delicate tasks, so her sweaters and cotton-padded clothes were made by her aunt, until she learned to do it herself.
She looked up and called out one by one, “Aunt, Second Uncle, Second Aunt, Brother Xiaoxi, Sister Hanfang, Brother Xiaoping, Brother Xiao’an, little brother.”
“Good, good,” Lin Xiaoxi said excitedly.
Truth be told, of all the siblings, Lin Xiaoguai had the best relationship with Lin Xiaoxi.
Even her four biological brothers couldn’t compare, which was evident from how they addressed each other.
Both were late arrivals to the family, and although they were five years apart, that didn’t matter much compared to their older siblings.
Neither of them was coddled despite being latecomers.
Lin Xiaoguai’s father was very strict with her education, and she herself was considerate and sensible, while Lin Xiaoxi was truly under strict discipline.
It wasn’t that their uncle and aunt didn’t love him; after two sons died and four daughters were born, they had gone to the brink of financial ruin for this son—how could they not cherish him?
But both uncle and aunt were thinking of the future.
With the family’s poor conditions and their advanced age, if they indulged their son, how would he manage once they were gone?
Because of this, Lin Xiaoxi faced hardships from a young age, and though he was cheerful and loved to laugh, he was dependable in tough situations.
Before Lin Xiaoguai turned three, grandma had taken care of her, and the little brother had been cared for by grandma as well.
Perhaps because of this, even though they didn’t play together often, their affection for each other was always strong.
In her previous life, her little brother would visit her whenever his business took him through Shanghai.
She had been reluctant to connect with relatives on that side, and noticing this, her brother never brought up the past, only discussing matters concerning his children.
She remembered that at one point he even suggested letting her raise his eldest grandson.
Although the idea tempted her, she didn’t want to cause a mother-child separation and ultimately refused.
“Mother-in-law, it’s not often you visit; we should be hosting you, but we need to return to town now, and it’s already so late, you all…” Luo Yufang felt a bit troubled.
“Mother-in-law, please don’t be so formal.
It’s late; we couldn’t possibly impose,” Tang Hanfang said with a smile.
“This…” Luo Yufang still hesitated, “Why don’t you all come to town and visit?”
“How can we let people go back on their very first visit?” she thought, regarding her granddaughter-in-law’s family.
“No need, no need,” Li Fangmei interjected: “You don’t need to fuss over us; we’ll come over tomorrow to see Wanwan.”
“Alright then, come for a meal tomorrow; you’ve got to give this old woman some face,” Luo Yufang said happily.
“Sure,” Li Fangmei agreed readily.
She patted Lin Xiaoguai’s hand in a comforting manner, not saying much, and both parties went their separate ways.
“It’s better that it’s torn apart,” Shen Zhangming suddenly said on the way home, with no one speaking during the journey.
As soon as the tractor left and the four had just entered the yard, “Mincheng has been muddled for so long; it’s time he woke up.”
How could he not feel pain for his own son?
In truth, regardless of Chi not being his biological grandson, when it came to comparing with his own son, a grandson would still be secondary.
But with someone as unreliable as Mincheng, even abundant affection could be exhausted.
“Isn’t that the truth?” Luo Yufang sighed, “If this had happened ten years ago, I would have definitely intervened, but now…
I can’t, and I don’t want to handle it.
Chi is not a mean person; no matter how much trouble Mincheng causes, he won’t let him freeze or starve when he’s old.” She was confident in this; the grandson they had adopted might not be a nice guy, as evidenced by his forced marriage, but he was certainly one to remember debts and grievances.
At least, when his wife was around, Mincheng had loved Chi.
Meanwhile, the Lin Family members were also discussing the incident while walking down the night road.
“It’s after all so much money, grandma, aunt, by deciding on behalf of our little sister , won’t she be unhappy?” Lin Xiaole was referring to the money that Shen Chi had sent over time.
“Don’t worry, your sister has a sharper mind than you,” Zhou Fengqin chided him with a knock, “Wanwan is so bright; even if she can’t go to university this time, she can just retake the exam after the baby is born next year.
Are we afraid she won’t get in?
By then, how much money can’t she earn?”
Although she was straightforward, she wasn’t foolish.
Her niece had not relied on connections to get into university; the title of provincial top scorer was earned through genuine knowledge and study.
Hearing this, everyone nodded in agreement.
Their Wanwan (little sister) had always been good at studying; they had no doubts about her getting into university.
“But what about the forced marriage issue?
Won’t our little sister hold some resentment in her heart?”
When Lin Xiaoxi raised this, everyone fell silent.
“We wronged her in that matter,” Li Fangmei sighed after a while, “Back then, we thought our third brother was gone, and we couldn’t afford the university fees.
Although Shen Chi wasn’t righteous in his actions, he was sincere, and the living conditions weren’t bad.
We thought Wanwan would have a good life marrying him.
And even though we were angry with Xiao Kang and the others, I still stopped you from intervening.
Who would have thought…”