However, if we were to return to Lu Village now, it would indeed take several hours on the way.

In the end, you'll be the one who goes hungry.

Even if they go back to the village and speak ill of Lu Amian, she won't even know! Besides, her reputation is already notorious in Lu Village, and she's already married. What can a few more bad things do to her?

Even if things really get out of control, is he going to call on his clan to bring people from Lujia Village to Qingshan Village for a brawl?

Everyone has to farm every day, okay? It's not like we're fighting over water, land, or a way to make a living. It's not worth it!

Lu Xingjia recalled what had just happened... He said he was thirsty, and Lu Amian went to get him some water. There was nothing wrong with that. At most, she was just a country woman who lacked social awareness and didn't know that he wanted to have breakfast with them.

He turned back to the Meng family's house. "Sigh, I've been thinking about this and I'm not at ease. I should tell you about your father's situation, otherwise he'll blame me. I'm starving, I'll have a bite to eat here."

"It's alright, go ahead and eat. There's still some hot water here."

As expected, he spoke frankly, and A-Mian did not refuse.

However, the steamed eggs with minced meat on the table had just been divided among everyone's bowls. Lu Xingjia took two steamed buns. He also grew spinach at home, so he didn't care for it. Therefore, he only picked at the spinach sporadically with his chopsticks, talking as he ate.

“You know your father is a heavy drinker, right? He was supposed to be struggling through this winter, he fell seriously ill with abdominal pain and vomiting. He was in so much pain that he borrowed three taels of silver from my grandfather, saying he would never drink again, that he wanted to see a doctor, and that he wanted to find a widow and start a new life. My father is a righteous man, so he lent it to him.”

A-Mian didn't say anything, but used a spoon to scoop up the steamed egg in her bowl and eat it.

—No sooner had Lu Xingjia left than Meng Chijian swiftly distributed the steamed minced meat and egg to her, Xiao Jing, and her mother.

"He took the money, went to the clinic to get some medicine, and stayed in hotels every day to get through the coldest time. But when the weather warmed up, he started drinking again! He said that drinking made his body feel less painful! Sigh!"

Lu Xingjia actually looked down on this uncle. Drinking a little wine was fine, but drinking like that was a bit too much.

They were a fairly well-off family in the clan. When A-Mian's mother left, it didn't cost much money, and their circumstances weren't too bad; they still had a house, land, and a donkey. They should have quickly remarried and had a few sons, and life would have been fine.

At most, little A-Mian is a bit more difficult to deal with; she has a bad temper and even dares to carry a knife... but she's grown up now, so we can just send her away as soon as possible.

As for the idea of ​​simply guarding the family property, working diligently, raising Ah Mian, and then giving her a proper dowry so she can marry into the Zhang family in style, that's just wishful thinking.

However, since the deceased is the greatest, and he was an elder, it was not appropriate to say such things. He simply said, "Then he wanted to borrow money again. This time he knelt down and swore to the heavens. While he was talking, he even vomited blood. We, the younger generation, couldn't bear to see this, so we chipped in two taels of silver for him."

Lu Xingjia emphasized that there was a loan of "five taels of silver" here. He wasn't making things up; there were IOUs for all of these. It's only right that a son should pay his father's debts.

"After a while, we wanted to find him to pay back the money, but we couldn't find him anywhere. Finally, we found him in the woods. We guessed he had slipped and fallen on a rock. When we found him, he was still breathing and kept saying 'save him' or something like that. We carried him out, but he kept coughing up blood and that's how he passed away."

Then the topic of funeral arrangements came up. Since the family had no inheritance left, the clan planned to have A-Mian pay for it.

"I'm not asking you to pay for everything, just a portion. We still need to buy some coffins, funeral clothes, and things like that. The rest... we'll take some from the clan's assets."

Meng Chijian still remembered the matter of A Mian's old wedding dress, and said calmly at this moment: "These worldly possessions are things you can't take with you when you die, and Father won't care. When he was alive, he told me that he lived a carefree life, and that when the time came, he should just wrap himself in a roll of straw and bury him, and not make a big fuss."

Lu Xingjia chuckled dryly, "It's a big deal after all, how can we just let it go like this... It's alright, my grandfather and the others will talk to you about it later. I'm just a junior, I don't really understand these things."

He estimated that once Amian's family returned to Lu Village, they would have to spend at least five taels of silver on the funeral arrangements, and then pay back another five taels of silver.

Otherwise, they could be drowned by spittle.

After eating and drinking his fill, Lu Xingjia finally got up to say goodbye.

After he left, the family members who had just been grieving in the courtyard all appeared calm and composed. Meng's mother said, "Meng San, you handle this matter. Also, tell your second brother and sister-in-law."

My second sister-in-law has a sharp tongue; with her around, you're never at a disadvantage.

Meng Chijian nodded: "Yes, I know."

When this was mentioned to her second brother's family, her second sister-in-law sneered repeatedly: "They always say 'a married daughter is like water spilled from a bowl,' but now that they've discovered her father didn't leave behind a single copper coin, let alone any land deeds, they've started thinking about Ah Mian!"

Even if A-Mian pays for the funeral, she cannot be the chief mourner; she can only attend as a "guest relative."

When the funeral procession begins, it will be the younger male members of the clan who will perform the rituals of smashing the funeral basin and carrying the spirit tablet. Daughters will only be allowed to mourn at the back of the procession and will not be allowed to be at the front. Furthermore, after the funeral, daughters will not participate in ancestral worship at the ancestral hall.

Such is the way of the world. Even so, if both parents die and only the woman remains in her family, she may even have to "sell herself into servitude to bury her father," otherwise it would be considered extremely unfilial! The reputation of her husband's entire family would also be ruined!

Second Sister-in-law patted her belly and laughed: "Our family is full of filial children, and Amian is also a very filial daughter. Of course she has to go back to the village for the funeral. Meng San, I'll invite my brothers and sisters from my maternal family, and we'll all go together."

She wasn't entirely without ulterior motives in doing these things. After all, Tiger was still working at the blacksmith's shop, and he seemed to be eating well. He could also learn some blacksmithing skills from him. Secondly, reputation is something that needs to be maintained; if you don't let the east wind prevail over the west wind, you have to let the west wind prevail over the east wind. Their children will have to get married in the future.

Moreover, since Ah Mian came to the Meng family, she has always been very polite and well-behaved, and she doesn't care about trivial matters. Her relationship with her is quite good.

Isn't it just about filial piety?

Filial piety is good, everyone should be more filial!

Meng Chijian was a keen listener and understood the underlying meaning of Lu Jiaxing's words regarding the "IOU" and "funeral money." Therefore, he carefully devised a plan with Meng Er and his sister-in-law to deal with the situation.

On the contrary, Ah Mian, the person involved, seemed somewhat detached.

She spotted several azaleas on the wall, some red and some pink, their blossoms sweet and delicate, swaying gently in the breeze—a truly breathtaking sight. It was impossible to look away!

It's good to be alive.