At the health center, Qiao Guilan patiently explained for a long time.

“Baogen, you should try to persuade your older sister; she should listen to you.”

"Mom has inquired about it. The brothers that Sister Wang introduced to your eldest sister and Cai Xing, their parents passed away one after the other a few years ago, leaving behind several children. The eldest is already married and has a son and a daughter; the youngest is thirteen."

"Because he had to take care of his younger siblings, the eldest son's wife was selfish and unwilling to take care of them, so she heartlessly abandoned the two children and ran away."

"This is the eldest brother I introduced to your eldest sister. He's not even thirty yet. This is the youngest brother I introduced to Cai Xing. He's seventeen. The others in between are already married."

"Where can you find such a good match? As long as your eldest sister is willing to marry into the family, Cai Xing's marriage will definitely be fine. She just likes to follow Yin Hua around."

“The man said that as long as your older sister and Cai Xing agree, they can move in immediately.”

"Your mom and dad have discussed it and decided that once Yinhua and Caixing move in, they'll knock down that mud wall in the middle of your room and turn it back into a room. They'll decorate it and use it as your wedding room! Isn't that a great thing!"

Qiao Guilan didn't dare tell the eldest daughter about this, so she went to the health center to find her son and asked him to bring it up.

"Mom, I don't agree with my eldest sister marrying into the family and becoming a stepmother. Being a stepmother is not easy."

"What are you saying? I'm only doing this for your own good!" Qiao Guilan said, exasperated. "If Yinhua and Caixing don't get married, where will you live after you get married? Can your tiny five or six-square-meter room be used as a wedding room?"

"I asked my dad to go to the village and ask for a plot of land to build me a small house so I can move out and live there..."

“That won’t do!” Qiao Guilan immediately interrupted. “Even if Yinhua and Caixing move out, you can’t move out. After you get married, you must live with your mother. After you have a baby, your mother can help you take care of it.”

Qiao Guilan's throat was dry from talking so much at the health center, but her son Baogen wouldn't listen to her.

Not only did he not listen to her, but he also thought about his older sister in every way and considered her feelings. Qiao Guilan was so angry that she poked Song Baogen's forehead with her hand.

"Mom is doing this all for your own good, you stupid brain!"

"My eldest sister has done enough for the family. Mom, if you insist on making my eldest sister and Cai Xing move out, then return part of my eldest sister's salary to her, and I will pay back the rest slowly in the future."

“You’re not allowed to mention salary again. Isn’t that how it is for the eldest child in every family? I sacrificed so much for your uncles and aunts back then. Did you ever hear me say a word?” Qiao Guilan then recounted the various ways she was mistreated when she was a child. “Being the eldest child is just unlucky!”

Song Baogen would get impatient whenever he heard his mother say things like, "Being the eldest child means you should be this way or that way," or "Being the eldest child means you have a bad life."

"My eldest sister is still unmarried, and it's all because of you and Dad. My aunt has been spreading rumors about my eldest sister's reputation in the village behind her back, calling her a jinx. Have you helped to clear her name? If my eldest sister's reputation hadn't been ruined, why would people keep introducing her to gamblers, alcoholics, and sick or unlucky men who will leave her to clean up their messes?"

Qiao Guilan, after being scolded by her son, picked up the corner of her clothes and began to wipe away her tears. "Back then, your mother and father didn't know that it was your aunt who was badmouthing your eldest sister behind your back."

"Mom, please don't cry in front of me. I just had surgery on my foot and need to rest. Please don't come to the clinic to see me anymore."

"You're disgusted with your mother?" Qiao Guilan felt even more aggrieved. "They say that sons forget their mothers once they grow up and get married. This wife hasn't even entered the family yet, and you're already disgusted with your mother."

Song Baogen was so angry with his own mother that his liver hurt.

-

Song Yinhua applied for a plot of land in the village to build a house.

I plan to build two small houses so that I and Cai Xing will have a place to live.

The father, Song Erzhuang, wanted to level the vegetable garden next to the house and build a simple thatched hut for a while.

Both girls were of marriageable age, so they got married without having to go through the trouble of spending money and effort to build a house.

Song Yinhua insisted on applying for land to build a new house.

Song Baogen was also firmly supportive, and even told his mother, Qiao Guilan, that he would not get married until his eldest sister and Cai Xing had a new house built for them.

At the foot of the mountain closest to the village, there is an abandoned little dilapidated house with a large open space. A few years ago, an elderly widow from the village lived there, but it has been empty ever since she passed away.

Although that place is also under the jurisdiction of Songzhuang Village, it is some distance away from the village, and no one in the village would choose that place when applying for a house or land after dividing their property.

Song Yinhua chose that spot.

There is a large open space around the cottage, about four or five acres in size. She plans to use this open space to plant fruit trees and supply fruit to restaurants in the county town, which is also a way to make money.

Qiao Guilan and Song Erzhuang discussed and decided to simply repair the small, dilapidated house, patching up the broken roof so that it would be habitable. They would save the money for their son's wedding banquet and for the future expenses of their grandson's birth.

Song Yinhua found a bricklayer in the village.

The hut was so dilapidated that the wood was rotten, it leaked rain in the summer and drafts in the winter, and it was no longer habitable.

When Song Erzhuang saw that the girl was not listening to him and had asked the village bricklayers to build a house on her own, he was so angry that he jumped up and down.

Do you know how much it costs to build a new house? Can you afford it?

“I don’t have any, Dad, you do!” Song Yinhua said. “I keep all my salary with you, and I even helped you get back the money that my eldest uncle and third aunt borrowed from our family. It’s more than two thousand yuan in total. I’ve calculated the cost of the two tiled houses. It can be built for about a thousand yuan.”

Song Erzhuang turned around and went home to discuss it with his wife.

Qiao Guilan said angrily, "Baogen's monthly salary is only fifty or sixty yuan. It would take Baogen two years to earn a thousand yuan. What kind of new house does a young girl like her need to live in? She got married just like that! After she gets married, the house will fall apart if it's left empty for too long. What a waste!"

Upon hearing this, Song Erzhuang thought it made sense.

He then went to the eldest daughter and threw a tantrum, refusing to let her build the house. He said that once it was built, it would fall into disrepair if left empty for too long after she got married, which would be a waste.

“After Baogen gets married and has a few children, the small house at home will definitely not be enough for everyone. We can move here then, which will save us the trouble of spending money to build a new house later.”

Song Erzhuang thought it made sense. Baogen would definitely have several children after marriage, and the house would not be big enough for everyone. They would have to find land to build a house.

Qiao Guilan said angrily, "That piece of land at the foot of the mountain is so far from the village. I don't feel comfortable letting Baogen and the others live there. What if something happens to them?"

Song Yinhua: "Then you can move in and live together. This place is so big, and we can build a few more rooms next to it. It's only a 20-minute walk to the village, not far at all. This large open space can be used to grow vegetables and fruit trees, and then sold at the market."

Song Erzhuang relayed messages between the two sides. He knew nothing about matters in the backyard. In the past, his elder brother would help him make decisions, but now he had fallen out with his elder brother's family. He thought his wife was right no matter what she said, and he thought his daughter was right no matter what she said.

Finally, Song Yinhua proposed a family vote, with the minority submitting to the majority.

Song Baogen and Song Caixing both sided with Song Yinhua, and even her father, Song Erzhuang, chose the eldest daughter's side. Qiao Guilan thought that at least her husband would be on her side, but they all listened to the eldest daughter. She was so angry that she didn't eat dinner.

The villagers rushed westward in a swarm. Seeing Qiao Guilan sulking, they shouted, "Come on, Guilan, let's go see what's going on! We heard people from the next village are running west to snatch a child!"