Zhao Juxiang fixed her gaze on Xu Zhiyuan, her face full of displeasure as she said, "Your sister-in-law has been good to you guys, hasn’t she? Your older brother is busy with important matters. A grown man can’t just stay at home all the time."
Zhao Juxiang didn’t care at all. Previously, when she and her mother-in-law, Liu Sanmei, visited, although Shen Qiuyun was inwardly displeased, didn’t she still serve them happily?
Every time they went to the city to see their grandson, their great-grandson, didn’t Shen Qiuyun still take care of them with delicious foods and drinks?
So what if they were city folks?
Her son was promising after all.
Zhao Juxiang felt that Shen Qiuyun’s actions were only right.
Xu Zhiyuan felt a headache coming on. He couldn’t communicate with his own mother, so he sighed, turned around, and went inside to read.
After enrolling in university, his course load had become heavier, and in order to secure a good job placement in the future, Xu Zhiyuan knew he needed to study even harder. He hadn’t understood before, but as he grew older, he had increasingly realized the importance of education.
Xu Zhiyuan thought back to the day he went to the factory to find his older brother. His brother, who was supposed to be working overtime at the factory, was instead meeting secretly with a woman, and they were kissing so passionately that it was hard for them to part. Xu Zhiyuan had always thought that his brother and sister-in-law were very loving toward each other. Who could have known that his brother...
He couldn’t accept this scene, and he had ended up arguing with his brother on the spot. His brother apologized profusely, insisting he had been bewitched and promising to treat his sister-in-law well from then on.
After returning home, Xu Zhihao indeed started coming home early every day.
Xu Zhiyuan, afraid of showing any sign of what he knew, made an excuse and went back home.
"Dad, we haven’t split the household, so why are there two entrances to the house?" Xu Nianji, accompanied by Zhou He and Zhuangzhuang, had returned home, and naturally, everyone started discussing plans for building a new house next year.
However, even though Xu Nianji was not familiar with design plans, he knew that the plan was for two side-by-side houses, each with its own entrance, which made it look like two separate families.
"I know we haven’t split the household, but, you’re married now. It’s not good for us to all live together. Of course," Xu Qinghe added, "Your mother and I thought it over, and we think it’s fine to eat meals together. We just won’t live together. Besides, it gives you young couples some individual space."
"Our houses will be connected, and we’ll still be one family," Ji Ying added.
Xu Qinghe nodded in agreement, saying, "Yes, your mother and I have discussed it. Next year, we’ll start with two houses, and in a few years, we’ll build another one for Nian’an. That way, we’ll be together while still maintaining a bit of distance."
As the children grew up and got married, Xu Qinghe didn’t want to continue living as before, all crammed into one big household, with everyone calculating against each other.
Even though the eldest and the second sons did not think this way at the moment, and the brotherly love was strong—even the eldest daughter-in-law, since entering the Xu Family, was very gentle and generous—since the second son was not yet married, there didn’t seem to be any discord. But as time goes by and once the second son also gets married, there will be long days ahead. If they live together for too long, there will inevitably be some sort of conflict.
He and Ji Ying both felt it would be better to separate early on rather than damaging their father-son and brotherly bonds later on.
"In the future, when you brothers each have your own smaller family, your mother and I will also have our own place to live. As for Nianhua, our second floor will go to Nianhua," Xu Qinghe and Ji Ying had everything well planned out.
"Mom, then in the future, the second floor will all be mine," Xu Nianhua said playfully, as she agreed with her parents’ approach. It’s not about being inseparable and living together forever; sometimes, having a bit of distance can actually make the relationship better.