Chapter 222 I Don't Want Anything Else

Song Chunxue never imagined that one day she could be so carefree and joyful.

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, Lord Xie went to the east room to write calligraphy, and Yao Man's joy was palpable.

They look more and more like a perfect match.

A serious man like Lord Xie deserves a woman like Yao Man, who is bold, easygoing, talkative, and charming.

However, this was just his opinion; Lord Xie might look down on people from small places.

Therefore, she dared not openly arrange a marriage.

After drinking two glasses of wine, she got up and picked up her bowl and chopsticks, only to find that the eldest brother was also there.

He quietly carried the bowls and chopsticks to the kitchen for Song Chunxue, and then squatted down to boil water to wash the dishes.

Offering unsolicited favors is either a sign of malice or theft.

She knew her eldest son all too well.

Actually, it's good that the ungrateful person is completely away from her; she's happy to be free.

"Go to the east room and ask them to write something. I'll wash the dishes." She didn't want to give him a chance to ask for anything.

They lived in a flat area with no mountains around them, and the north-facing house was their main house.

The east room was spacious and had a large desk, so it must have been the residence of the eldest son of the family.

Now that Sanwa is in school, he can sit at his desk and write every night when he comes home, so Song Chunxue pointed out the east room to him.

The fourth brother had no objections.

But she felt that the eldest brother had a problem with it.

After burning two bundles of firewood, the water in the pot heated up, and Song Chunxue quickly washed the dishes.

The water vat was already full of well water. Song Chunxue felt light on her feet, and looking at the water made her feel incredibly happy.

She now has access to well water.

I never even dared to imagine it before.

The eldest brother felt a pang of unease as he looked at the faint smile on her lips.

"Mother, where did you get so much money to buy a courtyard?" the eldest son asked in a low voice. "Could it be that it was given to you by Lord Xie?"

Song Chunxue paused for a moment, "Yes, he gave it to me."

"Then you..."

She sneered, "I found this jar on the road when I went to the market. Lord Xie acted as a go-between and sold it for several dozen taels of silver for me."

She turned to look at him. "What are you thinking? Is your mother so frivolous in your heart?"

"I'm not..."

“Even if you’re not, the fact that you asked me that has chilled my heart.” Song Chunxue said calmly, “I’ve given birth to you and I’ve spoiled you so much that you have a lot of bad habits, but I can’t accept that you are so ungrateful. I’ve never tolerated your vicious words, your petty actions, or your attempts to take advantage of others.”

“You agreed to the division of the family property, and we will each live our own lives after the division. I bought this house with my own money, so don’t listen to other people’s encouragement and try to divide it with me.”

She threw away the burlap in her hand. "Eldest brother, you should have noticed by now that your mother has a bad temper. She doesn't want to suffer any humiliation. If you don't want to get beaten, you'd better behave yourself and not go too far."

"Otherwise, I have plenty of ways to deal with you."

"Don't be ungrateful. I don't need you to support me in my old age, so don't covet my things."

The eldest brother lowered his head, speechless.

After rinsing the dishes, Song Chunxue wiped the stove clean, swept the red brick floor, put down the broom, and went outside.

"Come out, it's time to sleep."

The eldest son walked out of the kitchen without a word, his whole body radiating displeasure.

Seeing his pathetic state, Song Chunxue was furious.

"If you're in a hurry to plant tomorrow, go back first. I need to take Sanwa to school before I go back."

The eldest brother remained silent.

At this moment, Yao Man came out of the east room with a smile, holding three calligraphy scrolls in her hands, and walked happily towards Song Chunxue.

"I made a fortune today, thank you Sister Song, haha," Yao Man said, clutching the papers in her hand with obvious delight. "It's getting late, I should head back now. I'll come see you again tomorrow."

"Thanks to your help, otherwise I would still be packing my things right now," Song Chunxue said as she saw her to the door. "Take care on the way."

"Oh dear, I can't be slow, I have to get it to the shop and frame it right away. You should go back and rest." Yao Man turned around and laughed heartily, "Sister Song, I'm so happy."

Song Chunxue teased her with a smile, "Don't be too smug. Watch your step. Buy some better paper next time and have Master Xie write something even better for you."

Yao Man said something, and all that could be heard was her laughter fading into the distance, until she was out of the alley.

Lord Xie emerged from the east room with an unusual smile on his face, perhaps because he had been drinking and was in high spirits.

He chatted and laughed with the two children, and told the third child to study hard, saying that Haruki would come over tomorrow to accompany him to school.

Standing in the courtyard, Song Chunxue thought to herself how many detours she would have taken if it weren't for Lord Xie.

When I have some free time in a while, I must cook something delicious to thank them.

"I haven't congratulated you on your housewarming yet, sister-in-law. I'll make up for it with the gift tomorrow," Lord Xie stopped in front of Song Chunxue, his voice carrying a faint smell of alcohol, his eyes filled with laughter. "I really envy you for having so many children and grandchildren at such a young age, and for becoming so wealthy. I wish you all the best, sister-in-law, and peace and joy."

Song Chunxue smiled broadly, "Thank you, thank you. We farmers are clumsy with words and can't say such auspicious things. Thank you, sir, I'll accept it."

Xie Zheng smiled and said, "Then I'll talk more about it in the future."

As they were talking, Xie Zheng walked to the door, and Song Chunxue asked Sanwa and Lao Si to escort the adults home.

"No need, it's just a few steps, I can walk back." Xie Zheng raised his hand to refuse, "No one dares to do anything to me now."

Song Chunxue disagreed, "It's better to be careful. Sanwa and Lao Si, be careful and come back quickly."

“Sir, let’s go. We’ll just walk around and familiarize ourselves with the way. We might need your help in the future,” Sanwa said, walking ahead. “Please don’t be shy, sir. If you ever need anything, just let us know. That way, we’ll feel more at ease.”

“Alright,” Xie Zheng said without further refusal, turning to Song Chunxue and saying, “Sister-in-law, go back now.”

Song Chunxue stood at the door, watching them slowly walk out of the dark alley, and thought to herself, no wonder he said he was envious.

For Xie Zheng, this is the most disheartening time of his life, and he has no family by his side.

The idea she had previously dismissed resurfaced; perhaps she could try to bring him and Yao Man together.

After closing the door, she took the oil lamp to the donkey pen, looked around, and then went to the main house to make the bed.

The eldest brother was waiting for her in the main house.

"Mother, where will I sleep tonight?"

He discovered that only three rooms in the yard had been cleaned, but none of them had been cleaned for him.

“You’ll sleep with the fourth brother or the third brother,” Song Chunxue said unhappily. “Do you know that in other families, four brothers sleep in one room? Now you’re not even willing to squeeze in for one night?”

That's not what I meant...

"Then why are you keeping such a long face? Do you think I can't tell?"

Song Chunxue put her hands on her hips and said, "As the saying goes, 'Don't let the good stuff go to outsiders,' but if you don't know what's good for you, I'd rather give away the things in my house than give them to you."

"Jiang Yeming, don't you know what it means to be flexible? Can't you be a little nicer to me if I give you some more benefits?"

"Can't you even pretend?"

"If you don't know how, you should make it clear as soon as possible. I'll leave the task of looking after the yard to someone else."

Tears welled up in the eldest son's eyes. "Mother, in your eyes, am I really that worthless?"

Song Chunxue turned her face away, thinking to herself, "It's more than that."

"Mother, I don't want anything else, I just want you to speak to me nicely, okay?"