Chapter 111 Division of the Family 3

Upon hearing what the Fourth Master said, Madam Ning angrily retorted, "You're talking nonsense! Your eldest brother wanted you to move out and become independent, but you refused to move. How come you're now blaming your eldest brother?"

Duke Li laughed again, but this time it was a laugh of anger:

"What are we supposed to do for you? Did you invite us here today so that we would persuade Old Madam Ning to continue supporting your families?"

After their parents pass away, it's not uncommon for brothers to live together if they have a good relationship. However, while we've heard of brothers relying on their parents, uncles, or eldest brothers, we've never heard of a younger brother-in-law with a house full of children and grandchildren still clinging to his widowed sister-in-law.

You just said you were worried about your sister-in-law? What kind of talk is that? If I remember correctly, Old Madam Ning is two years younger than you, Second Master, isn't she? You said you didn't want to leave your widowed sister-in-law; that's a very awkward statement to make."

The second master was so speechless that his face turned white, then red, then white again – it was quite a sight.

General Wu said directly, "Don't waste your breath on them. If you have any dignity, you should move out quickly to avoid becoming a laughing stock."

After everyone had finished speaking, Yu Jingsheng turned to a few elders and asked, "You are all senior members of the Lu clan. What do you think?"

What could the uncles say? It was obvious that these good-for-nothings still wanted to leech off the eldest son's family as before, to continue being parasites who did nothing but eat and wait to die. That's why they had no shame and stubbornly refused to separate from the family.

The second uncle pointed at them and said with a look of disappointment, "You two have lived most of your lives, and you even have grandchildren. At least have some backbone and move out to be independent."

The General was a peerless hero, upright and honorable. His brothers must not have any cowards. If any of you dare utter another word of nonsense, you will be punished according to clan rules.

After saying this, he bowed to the superiors with a guilty expression and said, "I apologize for making you laugh. Today, as the head of the Lu clan, I will make the decision for them. Let's divide the family today. Whether they live well or poorly in the future depends on their own abilities."

Upon hearing this, the second master and the others' faces immediately changed color.

Yu Jingsheng: "Alright, let's do as the elders say and divide the family property cleanly today. However, there are rules for dividing the family property. Why don't you tell us your opinion first, Madam, how you want the family property to be divided?"

The fourth master's eyes darted around, and he jumped up, saying, "Fine, let's split it up."

Now that all the gentlemen and Second Uncle have spoken up for us, it wouldn't be right for us brothers to be shameless and refuse to move. But how to divide it up, you should at least let my second brother and I have a word to say.

To be honest, my second brother and I have already discussed the division of the family property. Since ancient times, family property has primarily gone to the male members. Now, the eldest branch only has three women and children left, while our two branches are thriving with sons and grandsons. No matter how we divide it, we can't be left out. Otherwise, my eldest brother in heaven wouldn't be able to bear it, wouldn't he, sister-in-law?"

Before anyone could react, the hot-tempered General Wu slammed his hand on the table, and a set of fine old kiln white porcelain teacups on the table fell to the ground with a crisp sound that made everyone below tremble.

Seeing the situation was not good, the second master hurriedly stepped forward, cupped his hands and bowed, saying, "Fourth brother was just joking. Gentlemen, you don't need to take it seriously. We are all family, no need to be so particular. Although we, the second and fourth branches, have more children and grandchildren, the family property was earned by the eldest brother. So let's divide all the family property into three parts, one for each family. How about that? Fair and just. Does the eldest sister-in-law have any objections this time?"

The second master thought his way of dividing the property was quite benevolent. He asked around the whole capital and found out which family could keep their property if they had no male members and only the elderly, weak, women and children. They were all eaten up by their own family and other relatives.

He and his second brother were willing to give one-third of their property to the eldest son's family because they thought that after adopting a son, the family property would still belong to both of them and would not end up outside the family.

The second master was quite eloquent, but the expressions on the faces of the others did not soften much.

The second uncle and several clan elders, seated at the lower level, secretly observed the situation and knew that the two fools' words had offended the distinguished guests seated above. The second uncle quickly reprimanded them:

"Second brother, fourth brother, what nonsense are you spouting? You still want to share the General's Mansion's assets with the eldest son? You have quite the nerve."

The second master hurriedly said, "Second Uncle, you misunderstood. It was Fourth Brother who didn't explain clearly. The General's Mansion is naturally left to the eldest son, since he will inherit it after the adoption. As for the other family property, such as the estate, shops, storerooms, and household belongings, the brothers will divide them equally."

Duke Li stroked his beard and said, "So you mean, apart from this general's mansion bestowed by His Majesty, which you can forgo, everything else must be divided into three parts?"

The fourth master nodded repeatedly: "Yes, yes."

The people seated at the head of the table were so angry they laughed. Why didn't they just suggest dividing the General's Mansion in half?

Duke Li: "Then tell me first, what things did your late parents leave to their children and grandchildren? If you tell me, I, Li, can make a decision for you."

General Wu also said, "What Duke Li said is very true. This is very important. If it is the family property left by your parents, it should be divided equally among the children of the several houses. However, as far as we know, your parents passed away decades ago. Before the general became rich, you four siblings were so poor that you had to rely on the clan's help to survive. I suppose your parents did not leave you anything of value?"

So what do you want to divide now?

Lord Li said, “Why don’t you two tell me what contributions your two branches have made to the General’s Mansion over the years, and how much profit you have made? The wealth accumulated by the General’s Mansion over the years owes to your efforts, so it is reasonable to divide it equally.”

The adults seemed to speak casually, but each of them hit the nail on the head, and the elders present were so engrossed in listening that they couldn't even lift their heads.

As clan elders, how could they not know how the General's Mansion acquired its wealth and status? Now that they were being asked so clearly, they felt ashamed and glared at the two fools.

The second and fourth masters were also speechless, unable to recall what contributions they had made to the General's Mansion over the years.

The second master served as a soldier in his youth, but unfortunately he was discharged due to injury. He then married and had children under the care of his elder brother, living a peaceful life. Now, apart from having many wives, concubines, children, and grandchildren, he seems to have never done anything serious.

As for the fourth master, needless to say, he was even worse than his second brother. He had taken many concubines and had many children and grandchildren, but when it came to doing anything serious, well, he never did.

As for the adult men of the two families, such as Lu Yunbo and Lu Yunzhang, only Lu Yunbo of the second family has a seventh-rank official position in recent years, which means he has earned some salary, but he has never paid it into the public account and still has to receive monthly allowances from his family.

It is obvious that after going through these accounts, the adults and elders present are fully aware of the past affairs of the two families in the General's Mansion.