Seeing Song Chongjin so sensible in proposing that the silver could be owed temporarily, securing a favor from a few sons, and ensuring that his daughter’s money would not be a penny short, he felt satisfied. This son-in-law wouldn’t foolishly play the big shot for the sake of face, recklessly using his wife’s money.
The thing Old Granny Zhang hated the most was men who couldn’t see clear, having not a penny to their name yet using their wife’s private money to put on airs of wealth and generosity.
It’s as if some wouldn’t be satisfied unless they cut flesh from their own family to feed outsiders!
Seeing a heroine as shrewd as she, she felt pleased.
She nodded and said, "Since Chongjin has said so, I, as a mother, have nothing to say. But there is one thing, brothers should settle accounts clearly. Exactly how much silver was spent and how much should go to your sister, you guys should calculate that first. Then, write an IOU for your sister, setting it down in black and white, specifying when it will be paid back. So that in the future, those with thick faces who rely on being relatives and want to deny this debt won’t get away with it, that I won’t allow!"
This statement made all the sons and daughters-in-law blush.
Wang Yonggui felt uncomfortable, and he said uneasily, "Mom, what are you talking about? In your eyes, are your sons such people?"
Old Granny Zhang snorted coldly, and although she didn’t speak, that one glance made everyone feel the heat on their faces.
Wang Yongfu promptly expressed his stance, "Mom, don’t worry! As soon as spring starts we can go into business. Just as long as we do well this year, we can repay by the end of it, and ensure our sister doesn’t suffer a loss!"
Wang Yonggui and Wang Yongping also hurriedly followed suit, pounding their chests in promise.
Since it was settled, everyone sat down and went over again in detail the travel expenses to Qi City to see Wang Laozhu, medical fees, inn accommodation fees, the silver spent at Yi Zhuang to hold the wake, and the funeral and burial silver back home.
All the miscellaneous expenses, though seemingly minor, added up bit by bit, and in the end, it surprisingly amounted to just under one hundred taels of silver.
Lady Lin’s face darkened on the spot.
Not just Lady Lin, but the Wang brothers were also taken aback. Initially, consumed by grief and egged on by the villagers, they got carried away and couldn’t step down.
The silver had all come from the youngest sister, and as it hadn’t passed through their hands, they didn’t feel the pinch and were just pleased to have whatever was needed. The funeral was grand, and they felt proud hearing the villagers’ praises.
They had only calculated a few major items before and it had already come to several dozen taels.
No wonder Old Granny Zhang had said what she did. For the next ten or even twenty years, no one in the surrounding ten miles, except for some wealthy landlords, could afford such a grand display.
Back then, spending money didn’t feel like much, but now that they knew they had to pay themselves, everyone felt some heartache.
Even if it was divided into four parts, each household would have to come up with more than twenty taels.
Lady Lin couldn’t help but object, "Let’s get this straight, we acknowledge this debt, but we can’t be responsible for it all! First things first, Dad initially gave the inheritance to Laosan’s house. Now, for the funeral expenses, we must first use the portion Dad left behind when he divided the inheritance. After that is spent, we can discuss sharing the rest among us, and I’m okay with that. But if we’re expected to expense with Laosi’s family while Laosan still holds the entirety of Dad’s inheritance, that’s just unreasonable no matter how you look at it!"
Although Liu Xiaoqiao didn’t speak, it was apparent she agreed.
If the funeral expenses were minimal, they might have let it slide and shared the costs among themselves.
But the amount spent was the substantial, and right after the division of assets, it was clear who had what, and this was no small sum.
If they were to simply burden, it would be far too unfair.
A trace of annoyance flickered across Wang Yonggui’s face. He wanted to protest but had no ground to stand on. Logically, since he took care of Dad and received the inheritance, all birth, sickness, and death expenses should be his responsibility, with the other siblings contributing as a mere gesture.
But to expect him to pay out such a sum of silver, not only missing out on any advantages but also paying extra, was out of the question.
He forced a wry smile and said, "When the property was divided, everyone saw that Dad only gave me five taels of silver. What can that do? The money was spent in Qi City buying things for Dad and is almost all gone, and I haven’t touched the rest of the silver. I’ll acknowledge these five taels; isn’t it enough if I bring that out later? But I won’t acknowledge the rest!"
He adopted the stance of a dead pig not fearing boiling water, with no silver to give, and no life to take – what could they do?
This remark reminded everyone; they were all watching when the silver was given out.
Lady Lin snorted, "Who knows if Dad might secretly slip some to you behind our backs?"
She shrank back after receiving a glare from Wang Yongfu.
Old Granny Zhang then said, "That principal sum of silver, your father gave it to me for safekeeping before he passed away. I’ll bring out that silver later, as for the rest, don’t come to me; I know nothing about it."
Everyone breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing this; at least they knew where that sum of silver was, and it meant they had to contribute less.
"Dad’s daily expenses were all taken care of by the family, how could there be no silver left? And his wages, we didn’t see anything when we cleaned his room, could it have been used by someone else?" Lady Lin couldn’t help but mutter.
Wang Yongfu kicked Lady Lin, as if to say, was she the only smart one, and the rest of them fools?
Who didn’t know what kind of man their father was?
This private stash of silver, who knows if it went to the second brother or to help out the eldest sister.
The man was dead, where could they go to reclaim it? They had to accept their bad luck.
Everyone had the same thought, and their deep mourning for Wang Laozhu diminished somewhat.
After the accounts were settled, Wang Yongzhu finally spoke, "Count me in for the silver spent on Dad. Brother Song and I are doing quite well; consider it our way of showing filial piety."
Wang Yongfu and his brothers looked at Old Granny Zhang, and seeing no objection from her, hurriedly recalculated the accounts to determine how much silver each family owed her, to be repaid after the end-of-year business foreclosure.
After writing the IOUs, everyone felt a heavy burden on their shoulders; they had finally had a prosperous year, a good omen, but the first thing in the new year was their father’s death, followed by a debt to their younger sister.
Everyone felt the pressure; they needed to earn money.
Wang Yongfu cleared his throat, "Younger sister, about the post-New Year business, shouldn’t we start preparing? What’s the plan for this year? Will Boss Zhang still take our goods?"
The rest of them looked eagerly at Wang Yongzhu.
Wang Yongzhu saw that the timing was perfect to talk about her and Song Chongjin’s plans.
"Since we’ve brought it up, I also happen to have something to say."
The Wang family all turned their eyes to Wang Yongzhu and Song Chongjin.
"Once father’s seventh-day memorial is over, Brother Song and I will take Mom to the county city," Wang Yongzhu dropped a bombshell.
"What? Go to the county city?" The Wang family were all taken aback.
"Younger sister, what are you going to do in the county city?"
"Mom, are you going to the county city with younger sister?"
"Younger sister, if you go to the county city, what will happen to our family’s business?"
The room instantly erupted into chaos.